Update: Still Not Himself

First I want to thank everyone for their concern and encouraging words. There are regular commenters here and I’m extremely appreciative of their feedback, but I also know only a small fraction of readers leave comments and I can see from the stats that lots of people in many different countries — a surprising number of them — read the blog. I don’t know who you are, just that you’re out there, so it’s nice to hear from some of you and to see new names for the first time.

Buddy and I are appreciative of all the well-wishes.

As for Bud, he yowled quite a bit on the way home and made it clear he didn’t enjoy the veterinarian, which I took as a good sign. If he’s complaining, he must feel at least a little better. It’s the laying motionless with eyes half closed and not saying a peep that’s scary.

One of the first things the vet said when she examined him is “I don’t like the way he looks,” so I’m glad I brought him in. There is no question that he needed help.

When we got home, Bud didn’t need an invitation to leave his carrier. I put down fresh wet food and water and he ate a very small amount, the first time he’d eaten all day. A good sign.

After a little while I sat down on the couch, Bud climbed up under his own power and he slept in my lap.

However, he did not get up when I turned the TV off and went to bed. I decided to pick him up and bring him into the bedroom. I didn’t want to leave him there by himself. I want to keep a close eye on him and I know if he wasn’t hurting he would have jumped off the couch and followed me immediately, meowing to remind me to put some dry food in his bowl in case he gets hungry while he’s sleeping. (That always reminded me of a line by Mrs. Garrett to Arnold Drummond in Diff’rent Strokes: “I packed an extra lunch for you, in case you get hungry while you’re eating.”)

Once again, Buddy didn’t object to being picked up, which is unusual for him.

He hasn’t made a peep since the yowling in the car, which is jarring because normally he doesn’t stop trilling, meowing and chirping.

“Brrrrrrrt! Look! Birds! Birdies!!! Brrrrr! Brrrrr! Snack! I want a snack! Gimme a snack now! Brrrrrrruuuupppp! Watch me! Watch me run, Big Bud! YEOW!!!”

Bud remains lethargic, he’s not purring even when I rub his head and he’s quiet, but on the positive side he’s not throwing up or yowling in pain.

As Julie B wrote in the comments of the last post: “You worry so much when they age.”

At one point the vet said Bud, at nine years old, was “getting up there” to an age when some problems can begin to manifest.

I was about to interject, to say “No, he’s just a baby!” when I realized she’s right. Nine years old is the equivalent of 50 for cats. That seems impossible, but it’s true.

The other frustrating thing, as Carmen B noted in the comments, is the lack of specificity in diagnosis. All those examinations and bloodwork, and the only thing I know for sure is that a handful of common ailments have been eliminated as the cause. Is this a virus? Did he eat something he shouldn’t have? Are the symptoms indicative of an underlying health problem?

Frustratingly I don’t have answers. Bud’s an inside-only cat, and the closest he gets to the outdoors is laying on the balcony. Could he have eaten an insect that caused this? Could a foreign substance have been dropped from one of the balconies above? There are five floors above me, and it’s not unheard-of that sometimes things drop.

Now we’ll see if I can fool Buddy into taking his meds. He ate about 3/4 of a treat I gave him earlier but spat the 1/2 pill back out twice. (I had embedded the pill in the treat.) Does anyone have any experience with Greenies pill pockets? What about pillers, those plastic needle-looking things that allow you to essentially “shoot” the pill into a cat’s mouth?

P.S. Thanks to everyone who offered to help and suggested a GoFundMe. I know people use GoFundMe for good causes, but I would feel very strange saying “Hey, give me money!” If Bud requires more treatment and it’s expensive, I would consider some sort of Patreon setup where people can tip for extra content. Extra blog posts, analysis of cat-related news, things like that. Or maybe a 2024 Buddy Calendar featuring sizzling snaps of the handsome little guy lounging in a sizzling manner, sleeping and lounging some more. I would never gate the content, so it would remain available to everyone, but it would provide a way for people to tip an amount they choose. It’s too early to really think about that anyway. Right now the most important concern is Bud. I’ll update, hopefully with good news soon.

27 thoughts on “Update: Still Not Himself”

  2. Ok. Put pill in pocket and wait half hour. Pill will disolve. Or can you crush pill and put in his food? Still not working? Ask vet if meds can be made into transdermal cream. If yes, it will take one second to rub crean in inner ear.

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  3. I’m so sorry things are still scary for you & for Buddy. I too think my cat is still a youngster but Bud & Oreo are the same age & I understand exactly how you feel. Regarding giving pills 💊. I am never successful with pills so here’s my two suggestions. First, check with your vet & see if Buddy’s medicine comes in a liquid. If it does it’s much easier to put it in a baby type syringe & put it in the cheek area & it’s gone without drama.

    Secondly, if your medicine doesn’t come in a liquid form what’s worked for me because pills don’t is to pulverize the pill & I add it to those new squeeze treats that come in every flavor. You can find them everywhere & even the most finicky cats will lick them up. One brand is Churru & another is called, I and Love and You. It’s available & I have squeezed out the contents of the tube (or 2) & added my pill dust & much to my surprise Oreo went for it.

    I hope this might work for Buddy & give you some peace & hopefully get Buddy healthier until you have more answers from his blood work. Hopefully, you’re correct & he ate a bad bug or something came into the terrace area. No matter what or why, I know you’ll do whatever Buddy needs. If you start a GoFundMe no one on earth is going to say anything bad about you! Making merch to help pay very expensive vet bills is surely a novel idea but it might be a lot for you if Buddy needs you & you’re blogging & doing life beyond the blog.

    Hopefully you’ll not need to even to go that far down the road but if you need to use Patreon or GoFundMe, do it! We’re not here for no reason…I may not regularly comment but I’m reading your content! You & Buddy have been there for me in times that were hard for me & Oreo. Soooooo, if the world goes sideways sometimes, call on those who care, we’ll be there. There are many evils in this world & asking for help if needed isn’t one of them. Best to you & the recuperating Buddy xox D&O👣🐾🐾

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  4. The following is our experience only and if you decide to act on it you must talk to your vet. The closest thing I’ve ever seen in a cat to sudden inappetence and dehydration was in our late diabetic Minx of 16 years. The vets thought she had pancreatitis. With vet prescriptions, we did home fluids and two antibiotic shots a day and after about a week, she began to recover. And lived another year. We don’t know what caused it, other than trying a cat food with higher fat content, in her unbalanced diabetic system, (to the best of my hazy recall, I had) as we tried to find the best foods for her. So a different cat food could perhaps cause pancreatitis in sensitive cats, and a cat who gets into margarine or butter definitely has a chance of getting it. We are not vets, and if you don’t think this is worth running by your vet, there are no worries. A storm of healing purrs going out from us for Buddy, and for you!

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    1. Thanks, Leah. I will ask about potential diabetic indicators. Would that show up in blood work?

      Bud hasn’t gotten into the fridge, thankfully, and his diet is wet food 2x a day and dry at night, although he doesn’t always eat all of his wet food.

      I’m trying to think of what could literally cause problems. He eats Sheba Perfect Portions wet food and Blue Buffalo dry. He’s been off the Temps for quite a while.

      The only other thing I can think of is cheese, which he gets as an occasional treat and always in very small amounts.

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      1. I can’t recall exactly how they did the blood sugar for diabetes (early 2000’s) but I think they’d probably want to do have him fast overnight before the test. More purrs for recovery!

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  6. I can only imagine your frustration at not knowing what caused this. Arrgh! You and buddy have been on our minds these last 24 or so hours.

    Although I’ve never used the Greenies pill pockets, I have tried the things that shoot a pill down their mouth and it proved very clumsy for me. (It didn’t work well.) I’ve always just held them in my lap and opened their mouth from the backside, popped the pills into their mouth, and held their jaws shut while massaging their throat. With Buddy being somewhat lethargic you may not have trouble getting him to take his meds.

    Please do keep us updated. Again, love and prayers to you both. ❤

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  7. Prayers are being sent over the sea. I know the anguish. With my beloved Bets, we used to push the pill into a bit of meat and she would immediately gobble it down – obvious I know but it worked. He’s home and with you which is a really good thing – he is in his own territory with familiar smells. Stay strong – and I pray that he pulls through, as you say he might have simply eaten something that you may not have seen and it has upset him.

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  8. Another Patreon account (Georgia Dunn, Breaking Cat News) solved most of the gating problem by offering exactly the same benefits to members at any level, from $1 and upward each month. Orbsters (her followers) who can afford more will often sign up for a higher level, but Georgia feels it’s important to treat everybody equally. She has used some of the income to help with vet bills for the eldest of her five cats.

    Gwen Cooper’s little cat Homer endured a similar out-of-the-blue episode at age 11. The cause was never found, but may have been something wrong with the liver. Homer did recover, although he did slow down.

    Sincere wishes for your peace of mind.

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  9. My kitty needed an antibiotic so I opted for the injection by the vet bs oral pills as the kitty was vomiting as her had an irritated GI tract. I also use SQUEEZABLES By TEMTATIONS TREATS. They are little tubes of liquidy good. I use chicken so I put the pill in the first lick he’ll get then he has less chance of picking it out. My kitty was sick for about 36 hours as he mended they need time to heal in their time. Always call the vet if he’s not taking the medicine so alternate plans are given.

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  10. Thank you for the update. Cesare, Josie-Pye and I were wondering how Bud was doing. 🤍🌻🌺 I understand worrying about an older cat. Our boy Cesare was full-grown when we adopted him, with an estimated age of 2 or so at the time. But they weren’t sure. Anyway, if he was 2, that means he’s maybe 12 now.

    Even though they are aging, they’re still our babies. I know you love Bud with all your heart.

    We’re still sending him gentle hugs, and lots of prayer.

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  11. I wouldn’t recommend pillers as Buddy will only learn to run when you approach his mouth with one. Tux doesn’t like the greenies. Can you pulverize the pills and put them in tuna oil?

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  12. I missed the first post, so I had no idea the Budster wasn’t feeling well. I’ve had cats manifest exactly what Buddy’s doing, and after a trip to the vet, and some meds they bounced right back. Some didn’t, but that was because there were a couple more signs than what Buddy is currently showing. Re: pill pockets. I’ve had a lot of success with these with most of my cats. A few have been very tough customers who refuse anything that even looks a teensy bit like they’re being dosed. The key is to put some very strong smelling something – juice from a tuna can (or actual tuna), comes to mind, maybe with a cat nip garnish – in the pill pocket along with the pill. It also helps to crush the pill before rolling it into the pill pocket. So even if all Buddy wants is to nosh on the pill pocket itself, and forgo being medicated, he’ll probably get at least some – if not most – of the pill.

    Prayers going up for him to return to his fabulous self.

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    1. I never thought of crushing the pill or adding something stinky to it before you put it in the pill pocket. Those are excellent ideas! The next time one of our cats has to have a pill, I’ll try these out. Thank you for this! 👍

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  14. sadly, i’m having a current experience with medicating a cat and here’s what seems to be working: crush the pill or empty the capsule, cover with friskies ‘delectables’…they are squeezy tubes of the most disgusting smelling cream-like substance, then consistency of baby food and i have to fight off the other 3 to make sure he gets to eat the whole dose. what has decidedly NOT worked are pillersm and greenies -good luck and much love

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    1. Thanks, dee. Is the Friskies delectables like those squeeze bar snacks? Bud thinks those are toys lol. I kept trying to give them to him and he would just play with the paste. I did buy food toppers to make things more appealing. Good luck to your sick kitty as well!

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      1. Not a tube, but a red pouch with a cat on it. It’s the same consistency as the tubes though. We give our cats both kinds. Our cats love the stuff. And as Dee said, they stink to high heaven! 🤢🤣

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  15. Our cats won’t take pills no matter what we do. Tried the pill pocket. They ate the pocket, not the pill! We get all of Meow Meow’s medication in liquid form. Either we give them as an actual shot (it’s so weird giving your cat a shot!) or you use a syringe to shoot it into their mouth. We can’t do the “in his food” method cause he doesn’t eat enough of it to get the medicine.

    I’ve never gotten all the medication via syringe in him, but you get enough that it does its job ( I think that’s one of the reasons why you give them 2 a day). It’s worth the hassle and at least I know he’s getting the medicine he needs. Maybe ask your vet if that’s an option for you too? I’m kind of leary of those things that “shoot” the pill down their throat. I’m afraid it’ll get stuck and they’ll choke on it. I’d much rather go the liquid route.

    Good luck and lots of good thoughts and love coming your way!! 🥰💗🥰

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    1. I don’t know. I’m sorry for the lack of updates. He seemed to be doing better but he was hurting again today and was vocalizing in pain. I hope it’s just a hiccup, as he ate more today than he has been eating, and maybe his stomach is still sensitive.

      I gave him catnip again to help settle his stomach and he’s quiet now and laying down. Hopefully this is just a blip.

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