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I've already consulted someone else if this was an emergency and they said no but I really don't want to regret this because my cat is my whole world to me, so I'd like a second opinion if that's okay. I realized about an hour ago that my cat might be blind? I've noticed her behavior was a little off this month and I took her to the vet this week to check out a cut on her haunch, I noted a lot of her weird behavior but I forgot to mention how dilated her pupils have been so they may not have been looking for any hints of blindness. Tonight I noticed her sniffing around the edge of the bed, so I moved her food bowl towards her but she kept sniffing in the wrong area and then acted surprised when she found it, which is what made me suspect her eyesight. When she sniffed around the floor and bumped into the wall trying to get out of the room, it confirmed my fears. She also stepped in her foodbowl while trying to find it while I was typing this. I looked up what might be causing the blindness and I'm 90% sure it's hypertension that caused her retinas to detach, she has hyperthyroid and kidney disease and is already on meds for her blood pressure but I don't know when they last checked it, she started taking it about a year or two ago. I read that catching it early is vital to it being reversible, and while I can learn to live with a blind kitty, it will be very difficult, especially since she can't smell water and she needs to drink a lot of it because of her kidneys. So should I try going to the emergency tonight if it's important to catch it early or wait until the morning when I can go to the vet? I've already left them a message, so I plan to go as early as possible but I'm worried about losing valuable time. Money is also an issue which is why I want to avoid emergency but I would be willing to go in debt to save her. Please don't tell me it's time to let her go because she's my entire reason for living and I'm not ready yet, she's also been doing very well for a cat with thyroid and kidney disease and she still has a big appetite and goes about her day just like a normal kitty, this is the first big blip I've seen and I'm really worried. e: i don't know if it changes anything but her blood pressure medicine is benazepril and i just gave her a half extra tablet tonight because i'm losing my mind just sitting here and waiting to be able to do something. will this help at all? yellowyams fucked around with this message at 03:38 on Oct 19, 2019 |
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Oct 19, 2019 03:33
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| # ¿ Apr 27, 2024 06:57 |
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I called the vet as soon as they opened and the vet told me to go to the emergency with her. As suspected it was hypertension and she's completely blind. She could definitely see SOME things yesterday since she managed to get to her food bowl without trouble until the evening so I thought maybe there was still hope since it hadn't been 24 hours yet but the emergency doctor made it sound like there's nothing that can bring back her eyesight. i'm sure they were trying their best but they also took a reeeeally long time to even give her anything for her blood pressure which led to several hours of hyperventilating and hysteric sobbing in the waiting room as it felt like any possible chance to reverse it was slipping away. She said it's possible for maybe some of the retinas to re-attach enough for her to see shadows but she phrased it as if she was looking for something to make me feel better, if anyone knows literally anything i can do to help that process though PLEASE let me know, I'm having a breakdown over this. If anyone owns a blind cat, how long does it take for them to get used to this? Watching her in distress and unable to find anything is absolutely soul-crushing. She was a very clingy kitty who would always freak out if she was left alone and now all I can think about is how she's going to spend the rest of her life feeling completely isolated, and forgetting what I even look like or who I was to her. I think her nose has gone bad and she can't recognize my scent, she just feels a disembodied hand trying to comfort her and is distressed about it. I don't know if I'm strong enough for this, I keep having waves of panic and can't calm down enough to be a good cat mom. This all happened so suddenly. e:her blood pressure when i left the emergency was 122 or some combination of those numbers. is that stable? e2: does anyone know a cat opthamologist in houston that would work on weekends? i'm really desperate and the 24-hour window is closing yellowyams fucked around with this message at 22:19 on Oct 19, 2019 |
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Oct 19, 2019 21:21
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Thank you so much everyone for being so kind and supportive and helpful. I reached out to an old friend who helped manage a vet and she says that due to all of my cat's issues (renal disease, thyroid disease, blood pressure, etc.) it's extremely unlikely her sight will be able to come back even if i did everything i possibly could. I'm trying to reach the acceptance stage but it's difficult because I can't afford to treat my anxiety and it all happened so abruptly after her blood panel had turned out so well the previous month, so I really appreciate the nice and comforting advice yall are giving, sorry for panicking in the thread. I've had my cat since I was in elementary school and she's the closest thing I'll ever have to a child so this is really difficult but she's getting to be in her 20s and I probably need to start confronting that she won't be around forever. I want to give her the best and most comforting life she can have for whatever time is left, I just don't know how to let go and I don't feel like it's time yet.
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Oct 20, 2019 01:22
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The cat is going to see the kidney specialist we've been going to for the last 2 years on Monday. The blood pressure medicine I need to give her is hard on her kidneys and she's been at stage 3 of kidney disease for over a year now, I think expecting her to have another year after this is probably unrealistic so I'm trying to brace myself for whatever happens next but I'm really not handling this well. Is there a good resource for grieving over your pet? I've had 3 cats in my life but this one is special. No matter how bad things got, she was the reason I kept trying to go on, all of my decisions in life revolved around how I could spend as much time with her as possible, there is no single person on earth that I love more than her, she's my entire world, I have no idea what the hell I'm going to do without her and getting another cat is both out of the question and would probably just make me feel worse even if I did. I don't really have advice but I hope she's okay.
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Oct 20, 2019 17:30
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Weird unexpected life saver to come out of all this that is apparently semi-common knowledge but I'd never heard of it: if you're having panic attacks over your kitty's health try some saltines. I've had a knot in the pit of my stomach that's made it impossible to eat for the last 2 days and after a few saltines it's suddenly gone and I'm also not hyperventilating anymore. This poo poo is like witchcraft. I think it's finally dawning on me what probably caused the hypertension though I'm obviously not a vet. Her blood panel last month was great except for her thyroid which was high. So we started giving her more medicine for it to bring it back down, but I think her thyroid had been helping pump blood to her kidneys so when we brought it down her kidneys got worse and consequently her blood pressure. They gave me extra time before we had to recheck her because they knew I was short on money but looking back on it I really shouldn't have done that. Her weird behavior started shortly after we made that change too but I just shrugged it off because she was mostly just staring at me a lot and it didn't seem serious. yellowyams fucked around with this message at 20:41 on Oct 20, 2019 |
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Oct 20, 2019 20:38
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I came in here about a week ago to freak out about my kitty suddenly going blind due to hypertension, and I'm extremely appreciative of all the support and advice I received, however, I'm happy to report that her vision is returning and as of today she's more or less back to her old, sweet, cuddly self if not a little better. I don't know if it's a miracle or what because the emergency vet said her eyesight wouldn't come back and my vet friend who consulted an internal medicine specialist for me said it was extremely unlikely that there was anything I could do to bring it back even a little, but on Monday the ophthalmologist said one of her retinas was starting to re-attach and a follow up later this week confirmed that both of her retinas were re-attaching and her vision had already returned enough to get her to blink when he shined light in her eyes. I really can't describe how it felt when I came into the room she was resting in and she was staring at nothing but after a few moments of just sitting there she suddenly looked up at my face in surprise and let out a big meow as if she could see who I was for the first time since it all started. She's been cuddled up next to me all morning and purring, something she hasn't done in a while even though just a few pets used to get her to purr so much she would start drooling.  Being able to see her happy again has me tearing up. I'm so lucky to be able to share my time with my wonderful little kitty.If anyone reading this has a cat with co-occuring hyperthyroid and kidney disease, or even just kidney disease, please let my mistake be a lesson and check their blood pressure frequently, especially if you make any changes to their medication.
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Oct 26, 2019 18:36
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Is it a terrible idea to get a cat next month if I'm planning to move somewhere much smaller within a year or two? I was originally going to wait on it after how painful it was losing Bella, my sweet kitty of 20 years recently but it turns out not having anything to care about or take care of is unbearable and I don't think I can last a whole year like this. But at the same time, I would be devastated if the new cat couldn't adapt to a smaller space after getting used to a bigger one and was never as happy again. Is there any way to avoid this? I was planning to get a second cat after the move to help the first cat stave off boredom but that brings me to my next question, is there any way to ensure that a cat will be chill with other cats if they're going to be the only cat for a while? I know it would be easier to just get a bonded pair now which is what I want to do but I'm not living alone until the move so that's not really an option. Apologies if these are dumb questions, I was in elementary school when my family got Bella so I have basically no experience with adoption. And this is maybe the dumbest question but uh how do you pick? Do you go to a shelter and they let you spend time with a cat and decide, or do you just look at pictures they show you or do they just pick one for you or what? How do I make sure my cat and I are a good fit for each other?
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Mar 22, 2020 06:26
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Question for people with lots of cat experience, is there a certain age at which chronic health issues usually show up? My previous cat had kidney disease for several years and nursing her through it took a huge emotional and financial toll on me as I slowly watched this kitty I loved more than anything in the world get weaker and sicker each year and had the constant fear that she might suddenly need a huge medical procedure that I couldn't afford and I would have no option but to let her die. Fortunately, she lived to the ripe old age of 20 (maybe 21?) and I only had to borrow money once at the very end but I wanted to avoid going through that again for as long as possible, so I was hoping to adopt a young cat but I also don't want a kitten because they require too much energy. I found out the cats I was thinking of adopting are already 10 years old though, am I making a mistake if I commit to it? I admire anyone who adopts older cats but I'm not a strong person and the prospect of nursing a senior kitty again in just a few years has me terrified. Am I getting way ahead of myself and 10 isn't that old or should I look for younger cats instead?
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May 31, 2020 21:41
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Thanks to the people who responded to my question a few pages ago. I'll try to keep an eye out for younger cats now, though it's been a little difficult. When yall adopted a cat did they stand out to you among other cats or did you just go with whatever? It's been a challenge looking at pics of cats I haven't formed any sort of bond with yet and picking one. I guess I'm scared that I'll pick wrong and the bond won't form or it'll be a weak one and I wouldn't want that for me or the cat. 
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Jun 6, 2020 00:17
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Anybody have experience raising runts into adulthood? I bought a bonded pair very recently that are a little under a year old, and one of them was the runt of her litter and also abandoned by the mom before the foster found her. I had been worrying about how small she still is compared to her bonded mate when they're already almost 1, and after looking into it, apparently runts frequently have health issues when they grow up and may not live that long? I'm panicking a little bit because I had been waiting to adopt with the aim of getting two young cats who could grow old together so they wouldn't have to be alone even when I had to go to work or elsewhere, and I could spend as long with them as possible and avoid the medical bills and stress of the health decline that comes with final years for as long as possible. Now I'm thinking about how this wonderful little kitty who's already bringing me all this love and joy might leave me early, and also the bonded kitty she would potentially leave behind is the one who's a lot more anxious and needs her mate for emotional support. She already has a kind of perpetual cold that she probably got as a kitten which is a sign her immune system is not too great, the vet told me to give her lysine when I brought her in to find out what the black gunk constantly clogging her nose was, but I didn't think to mention about her being a runt at the time, so I don't know if I should get her checked for more. Should I invest in pet insurance and go back to get a more thorough check? Part of my anxiety is I don't know if I have the budget right now to be giving constant medication on top of everything else. Am I just getting way ahead of myself here and blowing things out of proportion? Their scheduled annual was for the end of the year but I'm wondering if it's advisable to just get it done now to stop worrying so much (or unleash the anxiety floodgates depending on the results). I can see on the adoption papers that she tested negative for fiv and had her rabies shots and all that, but I don't know what else they did or if they ever got a clear idea of how her organs are doing. She did get a b12 shot as a kitten, I don't know if that implies they would have checked or not.
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Jun 20, 2022 04:42
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| # ¿ Apr 27, 2024 06:57 |
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Okay, but would discovering these things early potentially help prolong her life a bit? I don't really have experience with congenital defects, so if there really is nothing to be done even if it becomes known, then I guess I'll come to accept that, I'm just unsure if waiting to find out months from now might let things get worse.
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Jun 20, 2022 05:01
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