Help, to endoscope or not?

A good friend of mine has a female kitty that just swallowed 2 toy mice fur (rabbit leather). One of the mice was ripped out of the mouth in time, the other was very leathery. I don't think the pieces are any larger than 3X3". His vet recommended an endoscopy if the chunks don't pass by this weekend. So far she's eating and pooping just fine and has passed 2 hard chunks that don't resemble fur bits. So far she's on furball remedy treatments to help eliminated the mice parts. Do you think she'll be ok? I told him that Pumpkin loves to chew toy mice tails and ears and swallows them whole all the time with no dire consequences and Milo will eat whole animals from the outdoors. He ends up vomiting rabbit fur bits after 1-3 weeks. We used to have those Marty mouse (5" long) that Pumpkin loved to shred and eat and she's been fine. I told him to get second opionions about getting an endoscopy on his kitty. Endoscopy just seems to be very invasive and you have to anesthetize the cat. Is it really necessary for a peace of mind? Ultimately it's his choice but I wonder what you guys and gals think?

 

can't they do a simple x-ray to see if the toys is lodged?

 

An x-ray should show if there is a blockage after a couple of days, normally there would be a definite view of a gas pattern in the intestines past the blockage. I think that waiting a few days as the vet suggested is appropriate, (unless vomiting and loss of appetite occur sooner) IF there is any question (there can be a partial blockage which may not be as clear on an x-ray) then a barium series can be done, that generally involves feeding the barium solution orally and taking a series of x-rays, as for an endoscope....the amount of times I tried to talk the last hospital I worked at into getting one.....other than the anaesthesia its really not invasive, its a light in a 'tube' thats fed down the eosophagus into the stomach and intestines, if there is a blockage a 'tube' is passed down with a 'clamp' on the end, grab the 'blockage' and its out, (most of the time)its less risky, almost no chance of infection (like a peritonitis) unlike if the abdomen and /or intestines have to be surgically opened up.
For any of my pets I would absolutely opt for an endoscopy over surgery if it was possible.

 

Thanks for the advice. I will let my friend know. :qm1:

 

Good luck...Ill keep my fingers crossed that the' mice' pass naturally though

 

Thank you DeLaUK. My friend needs all the support right now. Personally, I think his baby is going to be fine since his kitty has no signs of being sick. He's not taking any chances and has opted to go with the endoscopy. I will keep you posted.

 

The x-ray today showed the mouse part in the stomach. His vet thinks he can get it out with the endoscope. If not, it will be a simple surgery. Please say some prayers for a full recovery without needing surgery! Thanks!

 

hoping the mouse removal is easy and successful

 

Keeping my fingers crossed....hopefully it will just slide right out with the endoscope.

 

Fingers and paws crossed here...hopefully it'll all work out without surgery.

Keep up posted, please.

 

Why can't the vet just induce vomiting to remove the soft foreign object?

 

From what Ive been told and what Ive also seen (as that would make sense to me) theres a couple of risks involved, the 'item' may get stuck on the way back up and the cat could choke, also increased risk of aspiration, if when the cat vomited it just flew right out it would be fine but if it did get stuck the cat would possibly panic and aspirate which at the least would most likely turn into a pneumonia or at worst could be fatal.
Sometimes even with the endoscope it may be too big to bring back up safely which is why the next option would be surgery. The vet may even want to take an additional x-ray just prior to the endoscopy to see if the mouse has travelled into the intestines, but if its still where it was on the last x-ray its unlikely after this time its going to progress by itself.

 

My friend's kitty ended up with surgery and is recuperating at home. The kitty is a little wobbly and walking backward but her owner is a nervous wreck. Because the mouse part was not seen by the endoscope, it probably passed through the system. But the vet found a rubber plug and a long string that would potentially made her sick and have blockage. It was fortunate that he saw her eat the mouse and took her to the vet. It would've been more fortunate had she not eaten anything. :roll: Let's all hope for a speedy recovery! [-o< Thanks for all your help!

 

Hope all goes well with her recovery....and I hope her owners nerves settle soon.

 

All fingers finger crossed in hopes everything goes alright. I'm sure it will . But if it hasn't moved, I would opt for endo/surgery.
As long as there's no blockage and the cat's not sick(vomiting, sucked up, not eating), the surgery/endoscopy should go alright.

I lost my puppy to foreign material blockage(rock), so my prayers are with you! Keep us posted.

 

Kitty has to stay in a crate for 5-7 days to facilitate healing. The poor kid hates it. On the day she came home, she developed a swollen nose so off she went to a emergency vet overnight. Then she started vomiting 4x and the vet thought about taking an x-ray to see any new changes. After consulting with her regular vet, it was determined that a blood test would be sufficient and the x-ray not necessary. The blood test came back normal and the kitty only threw up 1 more time. The next morning, she got transferred back to her regular vet. I heard that she looked really cute with an IV in her leg and an orange bandage around it. If she threw up again, she would need a barium study to make sure everything's going through ok- making sure of no leakage, etc. Incidentally, she would only let my friend feed her. :roll: Her vet gave her something to settle her stomach and had an x-ray which came back normal! She's getting better and has to have IV's still, and a neck collar. She's eating small meals and recuperating. My friend thanks you all for listening and your support. He's been quite stressed and traumatized from this ordeal and is very thankful that his little kitty is getting better every day! Please continue to pray and cross your fingers for my friend and his little kitty. :qm1: I'm positive your help has made quite a difference!

 

Here's the update. He just told me that she vomited and her vet may go ahead with the surgery if the vomiting persists. Right now she looks too healthy for surgery. Does anyone know what may be causing the vomit? It's been up and down with her health. Please, if there's a kitty God, keep her safe! [-o<

 

I dont know what would cause her nose to swell up after the initial surgery, did they rule out something like an allergic reaction to any of the drugs used? (Thats just a guess....).
Vomiting is not uncommon after anaesthesia or when theyve had surgery on the stomach itself but it should always be monitored closely and controlled, the last thing you want on a 'traumatized stomach' is additional irritation from vomiting, has she had any normal bowel movements after eating?
The usual routine (that Ive seen....different vets have different protocols) weve usually kept the patient for about 2-3 days post surgery and on IV fluids, injectable anti-biotics and anti-emetics if needed, the beginning of the last day we start giving them water, then food in very small amounts, if they can keep it down okay, no vomiting, no signs of infection (like a peritonitis) then they can go home where the owners are instructed on monitoring and signs to watch for in case theres a problem.
Hopefully the vomiting is just a continued reaction to the anaesthesia.
Keeping my fingers crossed for your friend and his cat.

 

Great news everyone! She's definitely on the mend. She's eating, pooping, and off meds! Best of all she has not vomited since. Her dada built her a "fort" so she has room to move without being able to jump and injure her abdomen and the stitches! Thanks again for all your support! :y_the_best:

 

Great news!