I got a cat that has been dealing with vomiting and diarrhea the last few years. Everytime I take him to the vet the doc is giving him some new kind of medication.
This last time she prescribed an antibiotic. It only made the diarrhea worse to the point he was stepping in it as he exited the litter box.
Once I shared that with the doc she told me to stop and prescribed a whole new order of meds and treatments with one of them being B12 shots. Along with an anti nausea medication and psyllium husk fiber.
They want to shoot him up once a week for 4 weeks and then one shot a week till I assume death?
Besides the vomiting and diarrhea he’s in good health. The other meds he is on has worked quite well. One for his thyroid. And the other for the vomiting. He is old currently 14 years old.
So what do you think stackers. Is this sound medical advice or is it a cash grab by the vet office? The shots are $25 each.
What does he/she usually eat?
Give it a natural foods. Not dry and canned food...
I was thinking that but not sure which foods just the meats we eat?
Yes.
There were no processed foods a century ago. Look at youtube for real meat cat recipes...
I may thanks for the idea.
I didn’t know you had a cat. We gave B12 injections to our dog for awhile while she was battling back from pancreatitis.
Indeed I do haha
I didn’t, either!
I think we need to see a pic of Blok's cat.
#1309129
handsome fellow
Tuxedo cat!!
I’d love that
It makes sense to me coming off antibiotics. B-12 primarily comes from digesting bacteria, including those that inhabit the intestines.
Our bodies can tolerate very high levels of B-12, so I doubt there's any particular risk. Maybe you can find some easier and cheaper kitty supplements, though.
I don't know much else beyond that.
Thanks!!
Good luck. I know caring for aging pets can be pretty stressful.
Yeah trying to balance between how much do I spend versus letting nature take it’s course. For example the doc wanted to do radiation procedure on his thyroid and I refused that treatment because I felt it would be too expensive and he’s already a senior cat.
The thyroid meds seem to work fine and brought his levels back to normal
What are you feeding the cat? It could be allergic to something in the food and may be worth doing an elimination diet (ie canned chicken in water for a week or two). Do you give it flea treatment (that it might be ingesting)? If this has been going on a for a few years, I'd begin wondering about the cause.
I used to feed him only blue buffalo but then the doc kept changing a his food. Now I get the food you can only buy with prescription. I forget the name it’s like $45 a bag.
No flea treatments. The doc might think it’s parasites and wants a fecal sample but I haven’t done that.
The symptoms are related to GI cancer as well but to confirm that would be very expensive and invasive procedures that I don’t want to put him through at his senior age.
Two days this week right after eating breakfast he vomits. Then goes back to his food eats again and is fine.
This morning I heard him poop and it sounded like a sloppy mess.
I am going to try the fiber in his food tomorrow. Hopefully that helps
my senior cat has GI cancer as well. bi weekly oral chemo has kept him doing well for a few years. though the daily steroid makes him a fiend for any and all foods
Yikes
surprisingly, the medication is not expensive
I don't know about cats, but we had a dog and we gave her B12 without any problems.
Now, if you have to give him B12 for life, I think you could change his diet to include liver, both chicken and beef. Liver is the only place where you find B12 naturally. For our youngest son, a diet with liver has worked very well; I buy it here every week.
If you're unsure, another vet's opinion could give you some peace of mind before making a long term decision.
I'd probably get a second opinion before committing to lifelong injections, especially if he's otherwise doing well.
Sounds like you're doing everything you can for him. Hope the treatment finally brings some relief.
Sometimes it takes a few tries to find what works with senior cats. Hope you're getting close.
I'd ask what they're treating with the B12 specifically and what the long term plan is. Always good to understand the reasoning.