old old lady.....
Posted: Thu Nov 05, 2015 1:52 pm
Minnie is old...... her exact age is unknown but I took her home when she was dumped from a van about ten years ago, and the vet at the time already said she was old. she has henerally been very healthy once her initial parasites and ovarian cysts were dealt with. she has always snored loudly.
three years ago I found a pea sized lump on her "boob" so she had to have an operation to remove that strip of mammary tissue. it was done within a week and she recovered well (despite fears for her life due to her age under anaesthetic). I know most mammary cancers in cats are malignant. i have been expecting the spread to her lungs ever since.
recently she hasnt been grooming as well as normal and has lost weight. her snoring is worse and she is chesty. I now have her on some very posh food that costs a fortune from the vets,and try to snip the knots out of her (she is longhaired). she was never keen on grooming.......
So we went to the vet last night. she has an ear infection which I am now treating. she also has oral antibiotics to try to help her lungs IF it is an infection. she also has a grade 3 murmur which was never diagnosed before, and is left sided.. so...... she could have an infection (hopefully) or it could be her heart causing the lung issues (second best hope) or it could be the cancer back (probably most likely).
we could do bloods and sedate her and scan her and do loads of tests but she HATES all that. my thinking is that she is old..... and something has to get her in the end...... and OF COURSE we will treat anything that can be treated without too much invasion, but I am not going to have all those tests done on her. she is still eating and drinking normally and is happy sleeping the days away.
if the ABs dont work, we can try diuretics for her comfort. i did this with Brownie who eventually passed in her sleep on my pillow aged 24. i still miss Brownie but I have never regretted the approach we took......
basically I know tht so many tests CAN be done....... to identify what EXACTLY is making her body slow down...... but I dont think those tests should be done in this case. I think I should focus on keeping Minnie happy and comfortable rather than just alive.......
thoughts? i adore this cat...... she has been my friend for so long now, and I really want to do what is best for HER.
three years ago I found a pea sized lump on her "boob" so she had to have an operation to remove that strip of mammary tissue. it was done within a week and she recovered well (despite fears for her life due to her age under anaesthetic). I know most mammary cancers in cats are malignant. i have been expecting the spread to her lungs ever since.
recently she hasnt been grooming as well as normal and has lost weight. her snoring is worse and she is chesty. I now have her on some very posh food that costs a fortune from the vets,and try to snip the knots out of her (she is longhaired). she was never keen on grooming.......
So we went to the vet last night. she has an ear infection which I am now treating. she also has oral antibiotics to try to help her lungs IF it is an infection. she also has a grade 3 murmur which was never diagnosed before, and is left sided.. so...... she could have an infection (hopefully) or it could be her heart causing the lung issues (second best hope) or it could be the cancer back (probably most likely).
we could do bloods and sedate her and scan her and do loads of tests but she HATES all that. my thinking is that she is old..... and something has to get her in the end...... and OF COURSE we will treat anything that can be treated without too much invasion, but I am not going to have all those tests done on her. she is still eating and drinking normally and is happy sleeping the days away.
if the ABs dont work, we can try diuretics for her comfort. i did this with Brownie who eventually passed in her sleep on my pillow aged 24. i still miss Brownie but I have never regretted the approach we took......
basically I know tht so many tests CAN be done....... to identify what EXACTLY is making her body slow down...... but I dont think those tests should be done in this case. I think I should focus on keeping Minnie happy and comfortable rather than just alive.......
thoughts? i adore this cat...... she has been my friend for so long now, and I really want to do what is best for HER.