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My cat recently began to struggle to walk. It looked like his back legs were hurting quite a bit and he would not walk to the food/water or the cat box. If I brought him there he would eat/drink a little and would urinate a bit.

The only nearby vet, who was willing to see my cat without an appointment, is a vet that I have had negative experiences with and I am struggling to trust them. They said that he had a fever of 104 °F (40 °C) when I brought him in. The radio graph test found no issues and the blood work was the same. They said the urine was concentrated with a trace of blood, but that it could be a collection artifact. I am still waiting for a urine culture test.

They have me giving him two pain medications, an antimicrobial medication and a medication to help with nausea. They also gave him subcutaneous fluids yesterday and the day before.

Currently nobody there seems to know if he needs more fluids (as I have not seen him drinking water today) and one of the medications will run out today. They have promised to have someone else look at the situation and call me back, but nobody has called me and I do not believe I will get a call back. In addition to this, they have him on i/d digestive care wet food and he only ate about half a can yesterday. I am worried and I am unsure if this is the right course of action. I am not sure if this is the correct place to post this, but is someone able to offer any advice?

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  • Can you get an appointment at another vet for a second opinion? Can you maybe call an emergency clinic for an opinion? – SerenaT Jan 6 at 21:38
  • I did call my regular vet and I left a voice mail. I am waiting on a callback from them, but I don't know when they will be able to get back to me. In addition to that, the other emergency vets are a decent distance away. So I am trying my best not to stress my cat out with a 30 minute drive, since he is doing better now than when we first noticed the problem. – Joshua Scott Jan 6 at 22:52
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    Could you elaborate on pancreatitis? Old cats usually get arthritis which would reduce their mobility, but usually not fast enough to need an emergency vet. One more thing, it is impossible for people here (very few are vets by profession) to challenge the ruling of a vet who actually saw the animal. Still, in case the vet missed something very obvious, it might be helpful for veterinary practitioners or students if you include all the available material, i.e., blood test, roentgens and urine test when it is available. – C.Koca Jan 7 at 0:16
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    Luckily I got a call back from my regular vet just a few minutes ago. She looked over the records from the vet I took my cat to and believes they ran the correct tests. She is still somewhat concerned and has promised to see my cat on Friday if his situation hasn't improved. They suspect pancreaitis as he has no leg or spine issues that would hinder his ability to move and he is only about three years old. I apologize for posting this. I know it is near impossible to diagnose in these conditions, but my anxiety got the better of me when I was not getting a call back from either vet. – Joshua Scott Jan 7 at 0:34
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    No need to apologize. From the symptoms you describe it's clear enough that your cat needs veterinary care. It seems you did all the right things so far. Unfortunately the chances are very slim that you can gain more information from us that you already have from your vets, but this post may help someone in the future who doesn't know what to do while their cat has similar symptoms. – Elmy♦ Jan 7 at 5:51

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