A few months back I took my cat to the vet, feeling that I was doing right by him. He had a on going allergy problem. I had exhausted all other avenues. I had changed his food. I had tried ointments, ... Read More
A few months back I took my cat to the vet, feeling that I was doing right by him. He had a on going allergy problem. I had exhausted all other avenues. I had changed his food. I had tried ointments, drops and a special cone, all things suggested by pet store owners, but nothing seemed to help for long. Eventually I saved the money and I took him to the vet, Loch Lomond Veterinary clinic. They looked him over and said the it was most likely an allergy to something. This was accompanied by an ear infection which further solidified her diagnoses. She told me that they use a steroid to help with the allergy and if that took the allergy away then he just has to keep getting one every 4 to 6 weeks. Well, it worked! He stopped itching and I could take the cone off. However, it didn't last and in a few weeks he was itching again. In that few weeks I noticed some weight loss. I wasn't too concerned because he was a bigger cat and I had recently changed his kitty food to a healthier kind and I was feeding him less. I was trying to lower his weight. So, I figured his weight loss was due to my personal care. When I brought him in for his second needle I did bring it up to the Vet and she didn't seem concerned. She told me to keep an eye on it and she shot him up with another dose. I noticed that he continued to lose weight. He had lost about 7 pounds. He was 18 pounds. That is a lot of weight for a cat to lose in about 7 weeks. However, the Vet didn't seemed concerned...but I was getting to be. So, on one of my many sleepless nights I began Googling the side effects of allergy steroid shots. I found out a lot of things on my own that the Vet should have told me. I was unaware that if your cat is already at risk for diabetes, an older cat or a bigger cat, a steroid treatment like this could give them that push over the edge and some become diabetic after the injection. Repeated long-term use of steroids in cats also puts them at more risk of becoming diabetic. Many cats who develop diabetes as a complication of Depo Medrol (steroids) may revert to a non-diabetic state after the medication is withdrawn. I called around to other Veterinarians and told them about what had happened. They were surprised that the Vet did not discuss any of this with me and that other treatments were not discussed. After I felt that I gathered enough information I called the Vet that worked on my cat and I expressed my concerns. After a few days someone called me back and agreed that someone should have disused the side effects and other methods of controlling allergies and they offered me a free urine test to see if he was diabetic. Well, the news was not good. He was diabetic and then they told me how many hundreds of dollars it would cost to figure out what dose of insulin he needs, over night clinic stays, needles, insulin, blood tests. I don't have much money. I don't have enough money. I have had my cat since he was a baby. He helped my son and I through a messy divorce after our fur babies were not allowed to leave the father's home. He was our first kitten, in our new home. He was chosen by my son, who missed his kitties. Shortly after we got Jacy (my son named him) my son was diagnosed with Aspergers. The kitten quickly became soft comfort after a stressful school day. Many tears were shed on his fur. I was just looking at some past kindergarten work and when the question on the work sheet asked what my son was most grateful for, he answered, "Jasy my cat". My son and his new kitten quickly became friends and 11 years later he still follows him around like you would expect a puppy to follow is master around. Now, he is sick. I stopped taking him to get the shot like the articles advised and I waited for some improvement and I thought I saw it. He gained a couple of pounds and seemed to feel better but it didn't last. I took him for a second opinion at another Veterinary clinic and it was the same bad news. I was hoping it might have been temporary because sometimes it is a temporary side effect. My son is heart broken and so am I but I am also angry that this could have been prevented. The Vets at Loch Lomond Veterinary Hospital should have informed me of the side effects. This could have been prevented. Read Less