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MY CAT WAS TREATED FOR A URI,BUT DIDN' GET BETTET,SO I HAD A CBC DONE WHICH WAS AWFUL.HIS WBC WAS STILL40.63,LMP WAS 24-22,MON WAS 1.13,GRA WAS 25.28,RBC WAS ONLY 2.35,HCT WAS 12.7,Hb WAS 4.7,PLT WAS ONLY 23,MPV WAS 9.0,AND PDW(?) WAS0.0.I WAS TOLD THE ANEMIA,ETC,WAS VERY BAD,AS WAS HIS PROGNOSIS TO LIVE VERY LONG.HE SAID THERE WAS A VERY SMALL CHANCE THAT HE HAD AN INFECTION (forget which)THAT MIGHT GET BETTER WITH TETRACYCLINE,BUT IT WAS A LONGSHOT.HE ALSO SAAID A BLOOD TRANSFUSION MIGHT HELP,BUT IT WAS PRETTY LIKELY THAT HE HAS SOME LEUKEMIS OR OTHER CANCER AND THAT WOULD JUST BE A TEMPORARY FIX.PLEASE HELP ME.I NEDD OTHER POSSIBLE OPTIONS-HE IS ONLY 5 YEARS OLD,AND I DON'T HAVE TO TELL YOU HOW DEVESTATING THIS IS .THANK YOU,BETH PAGE 317-974-2449,Customer (name blocked for privacy)@indy.rr.com If i would get more answers if i paid more,I could maybe find a way,but I don't have a job right now and I have spent bill money already.Also,he is trying to eat dirt and lick concrete.he has plenty of food and water and is eating and drinking ok.THANKS,BETH

Edited by Customer (name blocked for privacy) on October 7 2005 at 2:22 PM

Customer (name blocked for privacy)

Status: Closed Value: $5

Your cat's lab values are definitely alarming. I think what the vet was trying to tell you is that you can try a lot of things, but the severity of the numbers means that there is no guarantee that he'll make it. That doesn't mean you shouldn't try -- if your cat is eating and drinking voluntarily, that means that he is still trying. Definitely keep feeding him. Animals are driven to eat dirt and lick concrete based on cravings for iron, which his body needs to replace the red blood cells that he is somehow missing. Red meat will be iron-rich.

Transfusion will buy time. If he continues to destroy or lose red blood cells and/or if his body can't make new red blood cells, then the transfusion will be a temporary fix. However, you don't yet KNOW the cause of the anemia or whether or not he can rally. Some of the causes of anemia are treatable and a transfusion might buy him the precious time to diagnose the cause of the anemia and get him treated.

There is a blood test -- called a reticulocyte count -- that can suggest whether or not his body is even trying to make red cells. There are also tests to diagnose WHY your cat is anemic.

Critical care patients can get costly. However, if giving your cat this chance is important to you, there are credit companies like www.carecredit.com that offer loans specifically for health care.

Shannon Nakaya, DVM
Veterinarian/Author
www.kindredspiritkindredcare.com

Reply to Shannon Nakaya's Post: THANK YOU.YOU HAVE AT LEAST GIVEN ME THE POSSIBILITY OF HOPE.I TRIED TO APPLY FOR CREDIT CARE,BUT I HAVE TO HAVE A DOCTORS NAME FIRST,AND IT IS FRIDAY NIGHT,SO I WILL LOSE ANOTHER TWO DAYS.IS THERE ANYTHING I CAN DO IN THE MEANTIME,LIKE CAN I GIVE HIM IRON OF SOME KIND(peoples I GUESS?)AND IF SO, HOW MUCH? IF NOT,CAN I FEED HIM BEEF OR CHICKEN LIVER OR SOMETHING EVEN BETTER. HE HAS NEVER HAD PEOPLE FOOD EXCEPT FOR TUNA ONCE OR TWICE WHEN I RAN OUT OF CAT FOOD.I FEEL LIKE I MUST DO SOMETHING BEFORE MONDAY.HE IS STILL EATING ON HIS OWN SO I DON'T THINK HE HAS GIVEN UP YET,AND HE IS THE FIRST CAT OF MANY I'VE HAD THAT I CANNOT LET GO WITHOUT A FIGHT.HE WAS ALL I HAD WHEN MY MOM DIED AND I CHERISH HIM AND ANY HELP YOU CAN GIVE ME.LAST,WOULD IT BE AN UNWISE DECISION TO WAIT UNTIL MONDAY TO GET HIM MORE HELP.THANK YOU SO MUCH,BETH

THANK YOU.I DON'T KNOW IF MY REPLY GOT THROUGH SO I'M TRYING AGAIN.YOU HAVE AT LEAST GIVEN ME THE POSSIBILITY OF HOPE.IS THERE ANYTHING I CAN DO BEFORE MONDAY WHEN I CAN FIND A CARE CREDIT DOCTOR?CAN I FEED HIM SOME BEEF OR CHICKEN LIVER OR SOMETHING EVEN BETTER?.CAN YOU GIVE A CAT IRON SUPPLEMENTS FOR PEOPLE AND IF SO, HOW MUCH?IS IT CRAZY THAT I COOKED A TINY BIT OF OIL IN AN IRON SKILLET,COOLED IT AND LET HIM LICK IT?.I HEARD IRON LEECHES OUT OF A SKILLET WHEN YOU COOK.I QUESS THE DESPARATE MEASURES...STATEMENT IS TRUE.I JUST FEEL I MUST DO SOMETHING BEFORE HIS NEXT APPT MONDAY.HE IS STILL EATING ON HIS OWN, SO I DON'T THINK HE IS READY TO GIVE UP YET,AND HE IS THE FIRST CAT OF MANY I'VE HAD THAT I CANNOT LET GO WITHOUT A FIGHT. IVE NEVER HAD A CAT THIS SICK-THAY EITHER DIED OF OLD AGE OR GOT KILLED IN AN ACCIDENT.MAX WAS ALL I HAD WHEN MY MOM DIED.HE WAS THERE FOR ME AND I CHERISH HIM FOR THAT.THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR LISTENING AND TRYING TO HELP US.I WILL DEFINITELY PAY YOU BACK SOMEHOW BY HELPING YOU OR SOMEONE ELSE AND PAYING IT FORWARD.THE WORLD NEEDS MORE PEOPLE LIKE YOU.THANK YOU FOR ALL YOUR TIME,AND SORRY I TOOK UP YOUR TIME WITH MORE REMENICING THAN QUESTIONS.VERY SINCERELY,BETH,Customer (name blocked for privacy)@indy.rr.com

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