My 3 year old cat is lethargic and won't eat

Roxi's mom I would push for a answer to if she has Addison's or not!!!! If it is Addison's they have to be on meds Prednisone at the least. And usually a hormone replacement injection. It is as simple as a test dose and blood test afterwards and then another dose and another blood test. (as some of the website that I given have said.)
This disease is not a treat for a few days/weeks and be done with it, it is a lifetime of treatment to level their bodies or they may not make it. that is the one thing that my vet made sure that I understood.... Buster has to have his prednisone every morning. He has to have his DOCP injection at the interval that we have worked long to find out (and still working on we are at every 56 days so far. that's the longest she has ever seen between injections but his electrolytes still come back normal) not 57 days not 58 days and not even 54-55 days but every 56 days.

Just giving my experience use what you want but if you don't feel like you are getting the diagnosis you need you may want to visit another vet. The fact that she is doing better is great but from what I have experienced it doesn't take much for what they call an Addisonians Attack to take Buster down a notch or two. And he is a 85 pound dog your talking about a 10 cat.
good luck and let us know how she is doing. Sorry if I sound pushy but having the experience and coming soo close to loosing Buster has made me pay very close attention to him and how he is acting. And the importance of making sure he is getting what he needs to live a happy life.

 

I am still waiting to hear back from the vet. I too am very concerned after reading the links you provided, that she may "relapse" or get worse again if not continually treated. I have left another message with the receptionist. if I do not hear from him, by end of day, I will drive over there and try to talk to him personally.

 

WOW. :shock: Ummmm, Not really sure about this one. It appears that the Doctor wants to keep her off any medications and see how she does... Yeah, that was my response too! Are you kidding me?! Does she or doesn't she have addisons, or was he just taking a chance? I'm going to make an appointment at another vet. Need to know one way or another.

 

good choice on the 2nd opinion. When in doubt - my tilly was diagnosed with FIP about 3 years ago. I took her in as she'd lost some weight and was a bit lethargic acting. She was eating okay just didn't have the right look.
Vet came back with a death sentence for her. Even said he'd back me if I decided to have her put to sleep.
I got a 2nd opinion.
FIP is nearly impossible to diagnose and Tilly's white blood cell count was elevated leading my vet to say FIP. Other vet said they were slightly elevated and if I'd brought her to him and said PTS he would have said no as she is healthy.
She's fine - and has been. She had an infection of some sort.
I wasn't happy with my vet and luckily there are 4 in that clinic - I now ask to not have him when I make an appointment.
Please let us know what the 2nd opinion says

 

Roxi I am very glad to hear that you are taking her to another vet. If the first one thought about Addison's and he wants to keep her off meds that's not the right route to take. I feel like he is not sure what to do and that's not ok. It is your baby and it is your responsibility as a pet owner to make sure that they are getting what they need.

KUDOS to you for speaking up for her!! If it is Addison's she needs meds it is a must. The adrenal glands are not doing what they need to do to support her. People get Addison's too and they don't get untreated.

Not all vets are good ones sad to say. My vet and Buster went through the ringer to get to a diagnosis. They thought he was in acute renal failure and told me that he would need to be put down to be humane. The day before I was going to do it she said I want to do one more test..... Addison's mimics kidney failure!! That afternoon she called back and said good news Buster will be fine and he is already doing better. He's got Addison's.

I wait anxiously to hear what the new vet comes up with. I would say to them that the first vet suspects Addison's so that they can rule that to be fact or not first.

Good luck and hang in there.

 

That does seem ridiculous. If he suspects Addison's and she responded well to treatment, then why not confirm the diagnosis with a simple blood test rather than wait and see if the cat suffers again?! That is like playing Russian rootlet with your pet’s life.They would NEVER say that to a human patient - “We could test you and give you treatment, but why don’t you just go home and see if you have death-inducing symptoms again. If you do, give us a call. ” :shock: What?! I don’t think so! And if they suspect something else was the cause, then they need to tell you and not leave you hanging.

It is just like anything else - I have had good vets and bad vets. Sad to say, but I swear some people get into vet medicine because they think it will be less hassle and lawsuits than treating humans. Good for you for insisting on more answers! Just like children, we need to be their advocates. I used to think all vets where the same until I had a bad experience a couple years back. I have gone through a couple vets in my area and have settled on one I really like. I mostly like him because he takes the time to explain everything to me. I am not a vet and 99% of a pet's care is at home. Pet owners need to know what is going on in plan English and what to do about it.

 

I agree with you lovemykitties!!! I had bad vets and good vets!! I love my vet that diganosed Buster she did everything she could she bonded with my big brown sad looking eyed dog when he was near death. She is the internal emergency vet at Alameda East (yes the clinic shown on Animal Planet "Animal ER") but agree'd to see my 2 other fur babies (something she doesn't do normally) They question me every time I call for her I have to say just ask her she wants to see my guys. They say well the office visit costs more I say I know she's worth it and so are my babies.

Please Roxi let us know how it goes!!

 

Well??? how's Roxi??? I have been wondering since last week the progress or diagnosis?? I hope that all is good with you and fur baby!!!

 

Roxi's Progress since we last posted

Hi All.
Sorry I have been unable to update everyone on Roxi's progress, but I have had my own medical emergency. Turns out that I have a nodule on my Thyroid that is growing into my esophagus. I have been to the emergency room several times, and looks like I will be having surgery to remove this lump sometime next week. Pretty scary. I have not been able to eat solid food for 2 weeks.
Enough about me. Because I have been sick, I have not taken Roxi to the vet for her second opinion. Good thing. Cuz my cat is completely, and perfectly normal once again. She is now jumping on the bed which is over 3 feet tall, and is slowly putting on tiny amounts of weight. She is running, playing, and just my wonderful ball of fluffy love again. I think that the vet was wrong in his addison's diagnosis. I have not been able to contact him, but once my medical issues are addressed, I will re-address Roxi with him.
I will keep all informed if there is any changes. I'm sure that there are only 8 lives left for my kitty, but am very thankful for that.!!

 

OMG take care of yourself and good luck with surgery!!!!

 

Good luck with your surgery! If it makes you feel any better, I have a friend who just had her Thyroid removed and she said it was not as bad as she thought. She actually felt better than before the surgery and was able to eat after only a day.

 

good thoughts on your thyroid. My mother, her sisters and a friend of mine have all had them surgically removed. Easier than having babies.
My husband was fortunate he didn't have a goiter on his and his was killed off with radiation.
Good luck and positive thoughts for you
you will have to take a little pill everyday for the rest of your life though.

 

I'm so sorry to hear Roxi's Mom. Good luck with the surgery!

 

Thanks everyone for your kind thoughts. I will know about the status of my surgery tomorrow. Pretty terrifying. ON a lighter note, My Roxi, well, she is awesome. Runing, playing, just like before. I called the vet, and told him, and he was glad that he may have misdiagnosed the Addisons. Still dont' know what cuased it, but she is wonderful and almost able to jump on the counters again. Her hind legs are getting strong, and is putting on weight again. I hope that you all know how comforting this has been and that as strange as it sounds, gave me the strength to help be strong for my little furball. Now I'm trying to be strong for me. Thank god my kitty is there to comfort ME now!

 

Best wishes for you and Roxi.