To be aggressive or not?

[malkin]

I'm sorry about your kitty's diagnosis. I wish you strength and peace with whatever you decide.

[blackhillsbiker]

The Pill Pockets were a godsend during the last months of our Scottie mix dog's life. I'm not sure how they'd work for a cat, but they would certainly be worth a try. You'll know when his quality of life is compromised. We had a dog when I was growing up who had a heart murmur and lived to be almost 16. We played with him all the time. He loved his squeekie ball. Do what is right for you and your family. With Arthur (the Scottie), DH and I sat down by ourselves and decided what steps we would and would not take.

Hugs!
Deb

[XMcShiftersonX]

Thanks everyone for all of your support and helping me think of all the options. My husband and I sat down and talked this morning about the situation. I showed him some articles I read about the condition and he looked into some other articles.

We decided we'll go ahead with giving him the aspirin as the vet prescribed to prevent blood clots, we'll monitor his weight and switch him back to his old food, just to make sure the weight loss isn't something more. We'll play with him and love him as usual (probably give him even more attention though ).

But we won't get the ultrasound until he starts showing symptoms. I'll check with the vet to make sure I understood her correctly. It sounded to me like she said we don't start treating it until he goes into heart failure anyways. If I notice any symptoms, I'll take him in, but I think until then, I should just let him be a carefree kitty.

I have talked with some people who have had cats with heart murmurs and they had the ultrasound and it turned out to be a different condition, that didn't require treatment, and the animal lived a normal life.

My husband was worried this would be a repeat of our first kitty Ishmael. They didn't know what was wrong with him, but kept prescribing tests and medications - it ended up not helping him at all, in fact with some of the side effects, it made things worse, and because we were forcing him to take horrible medications three times a day, he never wanted to be around us. It was horrible. We finally got the diagnosis of FIP a few days before he died, and there was nothing to treat it with anyways. Hopefully he won't have any side effects from the Aspirin.

Here's a silly picture of the man we've been discussing... Affectionately known as "Colbert-Mofrair," "Colbert-a-saurus," "Batman," "Little Man," or "Little Fang."

-Jessica

[Koronin]

I'm sorry your kitty has a heart murmur. I know nothing about heart murmurs at all. My oldest cat, Tiger, has a health issue. Basically she will stop eating for no reason and we have to give her pills and force feed her. This has happened 4 times. Right now she is doing just fine and sitting with me right now as I type this. We were never able to figure out what the cause of this is. It had been like clock work just about every 6 months, then all of a sudden she's been fine for the past 2 years and our move hasn't bothered her at all. She also has a sensitive stomach, and we've only found a couple of foods she can eat without throwing up. They are on California Natural for this reason. As soon as we moved I went and found a vet here whom I like and am very happy with. (I still haven't found a dentist or doctor for me or hubby yet). Then another of our cats, Ariel, also has health issues. She has both allergies and kidney/bladder stones. She's on Royal Canin SO for the stones, but she's allergic to the corn in it. Go figure, so she gets a bath with an oatmeal foam every so often and that seems to work.

(I've spent several thousand dollars on Tiger over the years, and I truly don't want to know what the total amount has been. She's worth it though. She moved with me from Ohio to NC 10 yrs ago.)

I wish you and your kitty the best.

[PamNY]

Sounds like a reasonable decision. FIP is such a difficult disease -- there's no specific test. I can see why that experience would inspire caution.

Good luck to your kitty, who is adorable. My first cat was black, so I've always had a special fondness for them.

[XMcShiftersonX]

Good luck to your kitty, who is adorable. My first cat was black, so I've always had a special fondness for them.

Same with us! We got Ishmael who was our first black cat at 6 months old, he died from FIP at 9 month old. Then we got Vishnu at 1 1/2 years old and he died from Cancer at 2 years old. And now there's Colbert. Our other two cats are Bengals. I think I will always have a black cat though, even though they seem to have more health problems, there's something special about them. Below I've attached a picture of Ishmael and then Vishnu.

-Jessica

[JennK13]

Oh my gosh! I'm so sorry you guys have gone through losing two cats, so young and so quickly. Up until last year when my Hershey passed at the ripe age of 17, I've also always had a black cat. He was a beautiful black Persian. Hugs to you both, and your kitty. All we can do is love them while we have them, and make them as happy and comfortable as we can - even if that means doing nothing other than love them.

[XMcShiftersonX]

Thank you Jenn! I'm hoping someday I'll be able to have a kitty until their teenage years... I know they're supposed to live that long, I just don't have the best luck! Our other two cats are 6 and 5, though, and we've had them since they were kittens, so maybe there is hope!

[PamNY]

Below I've attached a picture of Ishmael and then Vishnu. -Jessica

That doorknob photo is priceless! Both are beautiful cats.

[XMcShiftersonX]

That doorknob photo is priceless! Both are beautiful cats.

Ha! Yeah, he was trying to make an escape! When we adopted him from the foster home he was staying at, he had a shaved leg and part of his tail. He had been hit by a car near where we used to live and the animal shelter paid for the surgeries to repair his broken leg and tail. I would try to cuddle him when we got him and he would hiss, bite and scratch me. About a month later he was a momma's boy We did use to take him out on leashed walks...