Very scared, my animal companion is seriously ill

Ronja has been my companion for 17½ years, almost all of my adult life. I can't imagine waking up without her greeting me, or coming home and she isn't there.

http://web.comhem.se/solange/images/photos/Ronja1.jpg

She has been quiet for some time and not eaten as much as she normally does, so we talked about taking her to a vet for a checkup, she is after all rather old, even though when looking at her, you'd think she isn't older than 10 at the most. Before we had acted on that, last weekend, she had a seizure, it looked like an epileptic seizure, and it lasted for about 3-4 minutes with her getting a lot of froth around her mouth and shaking violently with her entire body in spasms. I thought she had something in her throat, and I tried desperately to open her mouth, but her jaws were clinched so tight together I could just get my finger in but not open her mouth further. After the attack she could not use her legs for about 10-15 minutes because she was so weak, and her body kept twitching in a spasm every now and then.

I called the animal hospital, but they said there would be very little they could do unless she is actually having a seizure when I bring her in, and they recommended me calling the following day and making an appointment.

Over night she became a little more stable, and the following day I booked an appointment with a vet that I know personally and have a lot of faith in. He saw her Tuesday and took a blood sample. The result came back Thursday evening. My cat has almost complete loss of kidney function and the toxic levels in her blood are frighteningly high. Apparently there is very little to be done with conventional medicine, so my vet has recommended died and homoeopathic medicine.

http://web.comhem.se/solange/images/photos/Ronja2.jpg

She responded immediately to treatment and is now feeling better. She rests better and doesn't twitch as much, she purrs a lot, and eats her new food with a healthy appetite. My hope is growing, even if I'm still scared. The prognosis when caught at this late stage isn't very good, but if she responds to the treatment and continues to get better over the next few weeks, she could live at least another year with a normal and happy life. But if she doesn't keep improving, it could end very soon, within a week or two.

http://web.comhem.se/solange/images/photos/Ronja3.jpg

Don't know why, but I've sort of thought she'd live forever, this came like such a shock to me, even if she is an old lady. For the first time, I've realised she won't.

 

Ronja is a beautiful cat. Part "skogis"? (I only ask because she looks like one I had who was a mix of regular shorthair and Norsk Skogskatt)

Good to hear she is feeling better. To respond so well to treatment, she must be in impressively good health for her age... someone has obviously taken very good care of her.

I hope she gets better and that you'll get at least another happy year with your cat. It is so very painful when they get sick...

 

Thanks, Mimsy & LauraR!

Not skogskatt, her mom was a "bondkatt" and her dad a stray, but with those colours and the thick and rich fur, I think she probably has something noble of unknown sort a few generations back!

Dunno really why she is in such good shape for her age, apart from this problem. She's an indoor cat mainly, I think that probably helps, other than that, I haven't done anything except loving her!

 

Well, my theory would be simply that the bondkatt, through the simple necessity of very harsh natural selection, is one of the most durable and hardy of all the breeds of cat there is.

Keep us updated on how Ronja is doing... my fingers are crossed for her.

 

Solange, I understand how you feel about your lovely Ronja, they are not just companions, but a close family member.

Diet is so important. I expect the vet also suggested a lot of fluids to flush her system (ie drinking lots of water).

I'm sure your little companion will continue to improve...she knows how concerned you are and appreciates everything you do.

 

Legalsuit makes an excellent point. Non-cat persons sometimes don't understand this, but cats are very social creatures, and they need the affection and companionship of their "pack" to be happy and emotionally healthy.

Showing Ronja love and affection right now is at least as important as following the vet's prescriptions. I have seen sick cats making almost miraculous recoveries when they were adopted by a loving family, and conversely, I have seen healthy cats fade beyond rescue when they thought they were abandoned and all alone in the world.

And in return, when cats know they are loved, they will love you unconditionally, and try to treat you as you treat them. It's very sweet, actually.

 

Thanks, gals! Doing what I can, luckily I have next week off, have to prepare some courses, but that can be done from home with kitty laying next to me on the computer, it is warm and it rattles a little, guess that makes it comfy lol.

She is drinking properly, but not obsessively, wish I could tell her to drink more, but she doesn't listen, she is just like a human when taking advice...

Worst was when she had the seizure and she kept looking at me with those huge frightened eyes asking what was happening. I sure hope I don't have to see that again! Right now she is laying on a chair next to me, but she has indicated that she thinks it is time for us to go to bed and stop playing with the computer... So I'll do that now!

 

I'm happy to read Ronja is feeling better. People who don't have pets can't understand the effect they have on our lives. They are like perpetual children.

I hope she continues to improve, my friend.

By the way - she is a beautiful cat!

 

She certainly looks good for her age, been well taken care of and loved so makes for a healthy cat which makes a big difference in recovering from and illness or injury. Hope she recovers, sounds good thus far.
Do you suppose she got some of that contaminated food we heard about recently?

 

Hope your feline companion has a full recovery soon, Solange. Sounds like Ronja has had a long and happy life with you. Cats make for good company and friends, for sure.

 

Ya, humans tend to take things for granted, I'm not saying it's a bad thing, just that we do. Oh BTW, that last pic just begs for a video of her falling off. Ya cats are notorious for having kidney problems. I'm happy that she has been a good companion for you for such a long time, enjoy having her with you for her final days.:cry

 

Thanks, guys, she is my silver princess! First piccy is taken when she was about 5 years old, the rest are taken about 2-3 years ago. She hasn't changed much though, not till the past week when it suddenly felt like she grew old over night.

Haven't heard of that, must have been news that didn't spread to Sweden. She's been on food to keep her from gobbling everything up in a sec and then begging for more, if she had her own way, she would eat till she exploded. Long story, reason is she had a person taking care of her for 3 months when I lived in the US, and that person didn't like cats as much as she had promised me she did (she did love my flat though as it was right next to her work, damn I was gullible ). The girl kept feeding her day and night to keep her from asking for attention and ever since it has been a struggle to keep her slim and healthy. In retrospect, it is possible that this food wasn't good for her and might have speeded up the process, but there was no way of knowing that, I gave her what I thought was best for her.

@augiedoggie that is precisely why I took the piccy, I wanted a "before and after", but I never got the second part of it! -it never happened! roflmao

 

im so gald she is getting a bit better Solange. we have had our cat for nearly 18 years and i dread to think what we would do without her. you are right when you said that you think they are going to live forever.

 

I hope your pet recovers Solange. I went through something simular with my dog Fred. It is amazing how attached you can get to a pet.

Best of luck to you and your friend.

E

 

Thank you for the list! Only one of those brands that she's ever had was Iams, and that was gosh maybe ten years ago. She is happily enjoying Hill's dry kidney food now, wish I could get her to eat the tinned stuff, but she is so darn picky... Mommy, that isn't tuna or mackerel, you know I don't like this stuff, gimme fisssssh!

 

Glad to hear your cat is doing better.
Our home is a haven for strays. Just in the last two weeks, my son brought home two baby kittens that someone dropped off on the road.
I did my best with them, but they were too little to be away from their mom yet. I cried when they both died. They are so innocent.
Yes, I do know there is an abundance of cats. At least around here. But, it is just inuhmane to drop them off alongside the road for them to die.

 

Thats horrible, sorry for you, hard to imagine people being so heartless.

 

A true Scandanavia then! LOL

Solange, your pictures and your way of posting them are so great! The pictures are works of art and I'm amazed at what an elegant feline she is. She is like a goddess! I think cats teach us so much. I'm glad when god assigned teachers to the Earth, that he made them in the form of animals.
abri

 

Glad to hear the Ronja is stable and responding to treatment, as Mimsy said TLC helps a lot, notice my senior cat improves with the amount of TLC she gets.

 

Thanks, everyone! She is stable, not much change atm, hoping she will improve a little more though!

Thank you! *hugs*

 

I'm happy to read she is still stable, Solange. I hope she continues to be ok and improves steadily.

My bests to Ronja and her humans!

 

Hope your little one is continuing to improve. They give us so much and ask for so little.

 

Thanks so much everyone!

Ronja is feeling so much better, it is incredible how much she has improved over the past week and a half! She still limps a little on her back legs, I'm guessing she will do that for the rest of her life, but she doesn't seem to be in pain, and she can still jump up to my desk from the floor, so she isn't hindered by it. She is more relaxed both when she is awake and when she is sleeping, her nervous twitches are almost gone and she has even played with mousie (for 10 seconds at a time, but still! remember she is over 80 years old!).

When looking at her now, it is hard to believe she almost died 2 weeks ago, she looks so healthy now! And that from diet and homoeopathic pet medicine, I am so impressed! Not to mention relieved. I can finally leave the house, and come back home without being afraid of what state she will be in.

 

I'm so glad for you your little precious is improving and still with you. Our Sidney is going on 15, we had a scare a while back also, I'm probably repeating myself but I'm old also LOL

 

New update.

She has improved so much, becoming more social, moving, jumping, even playing with mousie like before.

Only thing that hasn't improved is her breathing, in fact, that has deteriorated over the past 2 weeks, and she is sounding more and more like Darth Vadar, poor thing. Today I called my vet and talked both about the improvements and the breathing, and he was not happy to hear about it, he told me that was usually an early warning sign for a heart problem. He had me check how rapid her breathing is, and it is way too fast. So Ronja is going back to see him Friday.

Good thing is, he said that these problems can usually be very easily helped with medication. Hope she improves fast again, I got my hopes up so much now since she battled her kidneys so well!

http://web.comhem.se/solange/images/photos/Ronjahand.jpg

 

She is a cutie, that is a very trusting position. I've had several cats, each has had their own personallity, and I miss them all. I've always thought it is important for each critter to have a good time all the way till the end, it's the least we can do in repayment. I hope you have several more years of happy times with your charge.

 

Wish her all the best with the recovery Sol
Unfortunately we had to have our 12 year old tabby put down a few months ago, due to a breathing problem. He was constantly lying stretched out gasping for breath and putting him through an operation would've been too painful for him so had to say goodbye. Makes me upset for a moment whenever I mention it
However, our new black and white companion who we acquired from a friend who moved away is brilliant and she's quite a character and loves attention

All the best for your companion

 

Acrobat, she's so pretty. My goodness, good news - bad news, kind of a roller coaster of emotions for you isn't it? Certainly hope the doctor has something to fix that breathing, I know first hand how bother some that can be. Good Luck :wave

 

Good to hear about Ronja's improvement, Solange. Pity about the breathing problems, though. Let's hope it can be sorted with the right medication. Other than that, she's looking good.

 

Solange, What a critter you have there! Socks and a bib, too!
God loves critters, maybe even better than us (for good reasons!).
We are Blessed to be allowed to share in their lives. I remember my old
bestest buddy "Mr. Piggs" the Boston Bull every single day.
Prayer helps.
Blessings,
Port-O-San

 

So happy to hear of Ronja's improvements, Solange. I wish the breathing problems were gone as well. The right medications can work wonders, though

Ronja looks happy and sassy in that picture!

 

sorry to hear that puss is not well again, i have been missing from the forum for a while and need to do some catching up, i see from the latest post that things are improveing i hope it continues that way,i know how you feel i dont know what we would do if our puss (whiskey) got really sick, she is a young cat 7 year old and we had her from 4 weeks old (i know thats young but she was thrown out of her litter by the owners)


http://img223.imageshack.us/img223/2198/38863830jf0.jpg

 

Aaw she is adorable! And welcome back!

Going to the vet tomorrow with Ronja, will know more then, keeping fingers crossed for good news!

 

Ronja is a beautiful cat indeed. Sorry to hear that she's sick. Both of you are in my prayers.

Chipper

 

Couldn't resist, hope all is well with teh kitteh... and if you need a laugh, check out www.icanhascheezburger.com.

http://lh5.google.com/JABaleno/R0WbMxJYIBI/AAAAAAAAAg0/zpqgIxNT7SQ/s400/ronja2.jpg


~C

 

Sorry to hear about the breathing problem, most likely can be treated with meds and hope all goes well with vet appt. Ronja looks healthy re weight, coat and should be treatable. Know the feeling of being afraid when you come home...if kitty does not meow I get a sinking feeling in my stomach, it's really hard with a senior cat with health issues.

 

Very funny! And thanks for the link, good laugh!

Thanks everyone! I'll keep you updated! Right now she is begging for food, so obviously not too bad atm...

 

Glad I could give you a chuckle. Pardon any typos as I have my 3 legged miniature poodle in my lap (no, not a 3 leg breed, he lost it somehow long before we got him). He is being very needy for the last few dys and likes being attached to me. Can't wait for the other half to get back from NYC to take some of the pressure off

Hope all is well!!

~C

 

@ C.T:- LoL!...That pose did kind of remind me of a sock-puppet cat.

~ Glad she's feeling better and eating good.

 

You don't call him tripod by any chance do you?

 

Lmao!

Aww Calltaker, with only 3 legs, I don't blame him for being needy! They can be a bit of a handful sometimes though, when you feel you aren't enough for them.

Ronja saw the vet today. He detected a small problem with one of the valves in her heart on her right side, but being on the right rather than the left side, he doubted that was the cause of her breathing problems. He said the problem did not appear to be big and if she doesn't start coughing or retaining water she should be ok.

He thinks the breathing problems are more asthmatic, and hopefully temporary in nature, so he gave her something that will help the flexibility in her lounges, that she will take for 4 weeks if there isn't a huge change for the worse within the next week or so. So with a little luck, this was just me being over cautious because I worry so much about her. She seems to be fine, apart from shallow and somewhat strained breathing, and the vet was amazed with the improvement she's made, he thought she would be dead within weeks after he saw her last...

 

Better overly cautious than the other way around. Glad to hear she is improving, that must be such a relief! Happy Thanksgiving...