For the past few weeks, I have been watching Oscar daily, monitoring his habits and behavior. Recently, he started to refuse food, eat less and become more picky, all while acting extremely hungry. His energy levels have gone up and down, and he has suffered from a small amount of vomiting over the past few days. I also thought his stomach felt hard, but I wasn’t sure.
I had made a few vet appointments, all of which I had to cancel because 1) he wasn’t acting very sick and usually began eating great by the time the day of his appointment would arrive, and 2) money, of course.
I finally took him to the vet yesterday. It feels great to start to get some answers. Unfortunately, it cost just over a weeks pay just for the blood work and x-rays.
The blood work will come back with more answers tomorrow. Until then, all we have to go on is a an x-ray that shows a large mass pushing on his liver, kidneys, and part of his stomach. From the looks of it, he has been acting so hungry–but not eating much–because less food can fit into his narrowed stomach passage due to this mass. His stomach itself has room for food, making him feel hungry, but the entry to his stomach appears to be getting pushed and curved.
Oscar may be 14, but he’s a young 14. Many, many cats live to 19 and 20, even with health issues, meds, and surgery. If he were older or sicker, I might not be writing this at all; I’d be accepting what is happening and preparing mentally. However, despite this mystery mass, which I saw myself and can say is quite large, he is still acting pretty normal. He still jumps up onto the bed to cuddle and purr. He still comes to the kitchen at feeding times and grooms when he’s finished. He still enjoys looking out the window at the birdies and the squirrels. His coat, which has always been a good indicator of his health, is at about 90%, still soft and smooth. At the vet, he purred, looked around curiously, and happily licked up the cheese they offered him.
That is why I am going to try to help him if removal of the mass is an option. If I can raise a bit of funds for it through friends, family, and the network of wonderful pet lovers I’ve met while working on GoFetchGifts.com, it could mean getting help for Oscar versus letting his body deal with the mass on its own and seeing what happens as he slowly suffers from nutrition loss. He is currently eating small amounts of very nutritious food, vitamins, and salmon oil with omegas, but every day I worry if this will be the day he stops eating at all.
I will keep this blog updated on Oscar’s progress. In the meantime, please consider helping me help Oscar with a small donation of whatever you can spare today using the secure form below. I will keep a running total here of how much, if any, we raise for his care.
Like many, we live paycheck to paycheck. Some weeks are better than others. We are lucky enough to have jobs at this time, but not lucky enough to have much left over or in savings. GoFetchGifts.com is new and is not yet profitable, but I work hard on it as often as I have time to, as well as on my blogs here and at the Akron Beacon Journal’s pets.ohio.com and my Cleveland Pet Products page at Examiner.com. I pray that one day, all that work will help me provide everything that my pets may need in times such as this, and enough that I can give more to other pets in need, as I have in the past.
Oscar was found 13 years ago in an alley in Chicago, dirty, cold, skinny, and crying to me for food. He looked a lot worse then than he looks today and he has lived a very lovely life. I hope to spare him from as much pain as possible while he still appears healthy enough to fight back.
I took this cute video of Oscar today.
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Oh my is that video of Oscar so precious! Hailey wanted to watch it over and over and really wants to pet him so bad….me too! Please give him pets and snuggles from us and we send you our hugs and kisses too! Hailey says she’s going to your house cuz Oscar doesn’t feel well and she wants to help, she loves you so much, so do I!
Hehe thank you so much Tammy and Hailey!! I took another video of him that day that I should post too. It’s of him eating close up. If I post it I will let you know!
Reading your blog has brought me a bit of comfort to know that someone else out there know’s the frustration I am going though.
I stubbled across this site while in search for some answers for my own kitty who is only 3 years old. Kobe got sick sometime in July with alot of the same symptoms you mentioned. To sum it up, after many tests,and a week of being hooked up to iv’s, followed by a bill of $3000, we still don’t have an answer. They were treating him for fatty liver issues but after seeing that he wasn’t improving they said the only way to tell was with an ultrasound. Since my husband and I are both unemployed, we decided to do what we could and take care of him as best as we could but soonafter I started to notice his eating habbits were regressing and a bludge in his stomach. Soo.. back to the vet we went to hear ” I don’t like the feel of this” They did an x-ray and saw a huge mass but the only way to really know is with a $500 ultrasound. We were also told that if they tried to do a biopsy according to what they see on the x-ray , there would 50/50 chance of survival and we could lose our poor Kobe in an instant if they hit the wrong spot. The best we can do now is give lots of love to Kobe and pray for the best,
As you can see, I understand what your going though I hope the best for you kitty and will continue to followup with Oscar’s progress.
So sorry to hear about what’s going on with Oscar. I just found out today that my female Persian has a large mass in her stomach. She was picky with her food. Then not eating well. The vet gave her Vallium to help her appitite. She starting eating well, but stomach was getting big and she wasn’t having much of a bowel movement. The mass is pushing on everything. She goes for an ultra sound. Then the Vet. will go from there from what it shows. If he’s able to operate he will. If he feels later that she is in pain, I’ll have to let her go. It’s killing me. I’ve had such a bond with her. She turned 16 on Oct. 15th. She’s been my everything…
I’m so sorry Karen. Maybe ask your vet if he thinks a steroid might help the inflammation? My other cat also has a mass on his liver now, and he was miserable until I started him on a steroid. It’s not a cure, only surgery is, but it’s too difficult of a surgery. The steroid is helping him feel better; he even started playing and eating again. It’s important however that cats are given prednisolone, NOT prednisone.
prednisolone, NOT prednisone. whats the difference
Prednisone needs to be converted to prednisolone in the liver, so cats with liver problems needn’t be given that extra stress. Here is some information from a study, which concludes “These data indicate that oral prednisolone is the superior choice for cats.” http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1365-3164.2004.00410_2-6.x/abstract
My six y/o bengal Duke started eating very little and laying around. He lost a lot of weight, I found out yesterday it is a 3.5 by 5.5 mass in the intestinal area. The visit cost me $52 for visit, ultrasound and three cans of critical care cat food. Bless him, he’s always so reasonable. The surgery would cost $600 to $800 to see if it could be removed and if there are any more growths. Not possible since my unemployment just ended. I feel for everyone in my situation. So sorry.
Judith, $52 for a vet visit and ultrasound??? That is amazing! It would cost me $300 for all that, and then $4,000 for the surgery! Where do you live!? I’m sorry about Duke. My other cat has a liver mass now too, and I actually have him on prednisolone every other day. Normally I wouldn’t keep him on it long term, but as a last resort because I cannot afford surgery, it has been a miracle.
What’s your update with Oscar? My 17 year old cat has a mass. I felt it last night for the first time because he has not gone #2 for 4 days. It’s crazy because I was just in the vet to treat him for a cold 5 days ago…after the vet visit, he did not go #2. She said she felt that his kidney was rather larger than the other…but it was normal for a cat his age. We brought him back today to confirm that it is a mass with xrays. She suggested an ultrasound. So that’s my next step next week when the ultrasound tech guy comes in. I would like to know if you have performed surgery? I think my 17 year old cat is too old for surgery? I’m not sure what to do. For 17 years old, a lot of vets has said that he’s very healthy for his age and very strong. If he was weak, and did not eat…it would be a different story but he eats, and drinks regularly. please help!
Hi , I’m wondering what is going on with Oscar? I have a 19 year old Persian who looks jst like Oscar my cats name is monster..he has a mass in his belly and feels hot and vomits clear stuff occasionally , he’s lethargic .. Bt other than that he’s ok.. Just worried ..
Sounds like maybe a liver issue with your cat. Sorry you are going through that. Oscar did eventually pass away at home. He was pretty happy and playful and eating from his buffet until the final day, there was not much warning, just a few hours. I sure miss my sweet boy!