Possible broken leg?

[lawgirl5]

I am sick with worry about my 16 year old cat. I took her to the vet on Saturday because she had started peeing outside her box and I was worried of a UTI or diabetes. Anyway...my cat is TERRIFIED of people other than me. When I went to pick her up, the vet said they couldn't get the samples because she was too mean. I suggested that I hold her down. When I went to get her out of their cage she wouldn't even let me reach in. She was like the psycho cat in a horror movie. No joke. Thats how unmanagable she gets around other poeple. I had to grab her with a towel but could feel her fighting and biting. I put her on the exam table and she kept struggling. It was finally determined she had to be gassed to get the samples. I calmed her down alone in an exam room enough to pick her up and put her in a special gas box. They got their samples. SO, I get her home and she is now limping on her left hind leg. Its seems like a bad limp to me. She is really favoring it. I'm soooo terrified it might be broken? Broken hip? I keep thinking what if I accidentally broke it when I was trying to hold her down? Her attitude is her normal loving happy self. She purrs and is eating/drinking. Even jumps up and down from the bed and sofa--to my extreme angst! Is this possible if it were broken? I should hear from the vet on Wednesday about her test results and will mention it then. I'm hoping she pulled something or whatever during her freak out and that it will get better over time. I can't possibly take her to the vet again. I can't have her gassed every time she goes in. I don't know what to do!!!!!

[ringletchk]

She def. needs to go back to vet ASAP. Cats bones are very fragile and there could very well be a break. You certainly don't want a broken bone to heal wrong and then you would have a whole new problem.

You may not know it since cats are experts at hiding pain.

Please see a vet today if possible.

[dlaura]

It may be just a sprain, if she is eating and drinking and going to the bathroom ok I think I would allow her to settle down and see how she is getting around in a few days. Be sure to keep her indoors while she is having issues with her foot and try to get her to rest - a lot easier said then done. Keep us updated on how things go please.

A call to your vet asking his opinion on whether you should bring her back in or not is advisable.

My main reason for giving it a couple of days is to allow healing time if it is only a sprain. The other thing is since your cat has such a violent reaction to going to the vet I was worried she might stroke out or have a heart attack. So, I totally understand your hesitation on taking her in again.

[lawgirl5]

Yeah, there is no way I could take her back to the vet this week. I commute to the Bay Area (70 miles each way) and am not home during vet hours. And even so...I'm serious...I'm not taking her back to the vet unless it appears its not getting any better. NO WAY IN H***! Not after seeing how she freaks out, paying that much money to anesthitize (sp?) her and the fact that they won't be able to get near her without doing it. I'm hearing from others that she would not be able to jump around like that if it was her hip and/or broken and she would let me know it was broken when doing an exam of her leg. I'll see what the vet thinks on Wednesday. I'm sure he won't be happy to have her back in. He said she is by far the worst client they have. If he thinks it needs to get looked at then maybe I'll find a new vet and get some tranquilizers for her before going in. I must admit...I don't really trust the current vet so much anymore.

[That_girl]

I agree with Dlaura, giving it a few days and monitoring her. My mom's cat, Brat is a complete nightmare at the vet, just like yours. She gets sedated through her crate with a long needle. She's bitten the vet more times than not if she's not sedated.

It's just not worth stressing your cat out if it is an injury that will heal on its own. Make sure you do call the vet and let them know what's going on though.

[e1beth1]

Like dlaura said, it may just be a sprain or even a deep tissue bruise from holding her down. My cat's often jump down off of something wrong and limp a couple of days then all's normal. I would keep an eye on her for the next couple days, any decrease in food or water intake should be considered serious, especially at her age and you should take her to the vet right away. If the limping persists after a few days or worsens then take her for a visit and an xray.

As for your vet, please look for another. Why on earth would they gas a cat in a box when they could easily give her a quick shot in the rear while you're holding her down of tranquilizer or even give you a few tranquilizer pills to give her. :eek: Could you imagine being thrown into a box like that, that's awful. Not to mention at her age a light tranquilizer would be a much better option than full anesthesia. I don't think your current vet is in the business for the love of animals or they would have been more considerate.

[dlaura]

I hope you don't mind my asking, but do you have any idea what caused your cat to dispise the vet visits so much? Something must have happened in her past to make her act so badly.

[ferJenna]

Not necessarily, Diane. Some cats just get SO worked up being out of their element, that's how they react. It usually has nothing to do with how they're treated.

e1beth1, That might have been the easiest route. Because they don't know what's causing the problems to begin with, some IM (intramuscular) sedatives can cause more harm than good. It can stay in the body longer than some gases. Of course, it really depends on what kind of gas they used. Also, if they're only out for a few minutes, they usually bounce right back. If they're given certain types of sedatives they're out for awhile, and giving a reversal is just introducing more medicine. In a 16 year old kitty, you definitely have to be careful with how you do things.

I would second everyone's sprain/bruising idea. Especially if your cat gets so worked up from just the visit. I would give it a couple days and if she is still not doing good, then I think a visit should be in order. But like you said, I would tell your vet what's going on when you get the results back.

Do you know what the samples were? I'm assuming urine for a UA, and blood.. But do you know if they're just checking glucose, or doing a CBC (complete blood count). I think for her age, I would hope that they would do a CBC to check all of her vital organs and to make sure everything is still working top notch. Good luck! Please keep us updated :)

[lawgirl5]

She ended up becoming terrified of people years ago because of an old boyfriend. I came home one day and couldn't find her and finally found her hiding deep under the kitchen sink behind all the chemicals. I asked him what had happened and he said he and his friends were playing with her. Turns out, they were all chasing her around the apartment. I suspect they must have done other things to torture her too but I don't know. So from that point on, I've been her only family. So when she is around strangers--not to mention smells, dogs barkking etc. she freaks excessively. I will keep an eye on her and discuss it with her vet when he calls with the test results. If I have to bring her back in, I will insist on some tranquilizers to give to her before we go in. THEN...once she is all fixed, I'll find another vet. I just don't think a vet who has never met her or me will prescribe some tranquilizers just like that. Too many people out there are drug seeking and abuse animal tranquilizers too. I hate to say this, but her test results may make all this for not anyway. I highly suspect she will be diabetic. All I know is they are testing her glucose and also her thyroid (not sure what else in the blood sample) and for bladder issues in the urine. She eats A LOT but has lost weight. I'm not sure how giving insulin works but if its more than once a day or needs to be evenly spaced every 8 hours or so....unless its every 14, I won't be able to care for her. Of course, I may be getting ahead of myself but I have a bad feeling. She seems so happy but her last glucose level was high just not diabetic high. We'll have to see on Wednesday.....

[e1beth1]

e1beth1, That might have been the easiest route. Because they don't know what's causing the problems to begin with, some IM (intramuscular) sedatives can cause more harm than good. It can stay in the body longer than some gases. Of course, it really depends on what kind of gas they used. Also, if they're only out for a few minutes, they usually bounce right back. If they're given certain types of sedatives they're out for awhile, and giving a reversal is just introducing more medicine. In a 16 year old kitty, you definitely have to be careful with how you do things.

Good point ferJenna, I didn't think about it that way but you're right, it would stay in the system much longer than a gas would.

[dlaura]

Not necessarily, Diane. Some cats just get SO worked up being out of their element, that's how they react. It usually has nothing to do with how they're treated.

I had been thinking of a bad vet visit at sometime in the cat's life and didn't mean to imply the OP had treated the cat badly and if that is how I sounded I am very sorry. Guess we have been very, very lucky with our animals and I've never experienced anything like this.


You know, this reminds me of how our cat April was showing symptoms of her hyperthyroidism. She was eating, eating until it got so bad she was asking for food every 15 minutes and yet was having a large weight loss. I wonder if you cat could be suffering the same thing?

I agree tranquilizers next time she goes to the vet beforehand is an excellent idea. Poor little kitty.

[ferJenna]

Diane, I thought you were talking about the vet, not the OP. LOL, now I'M confused :p

Lawgirl, Given her age.. You're right, it could be a number of different things. Hyperthyroidism is extremely common amongst older kitties. Renal failure can also show the same symptoms. The good thing about it, is there are treatments you can do that can often give your kitty a much happier and healthier time. Giving insulin for Diabetes, IV fluids and special foods/medication for Renal failure. There is actually a treatment for hyperthyroidism too. It involves radiation treatment, but can be a bit costly and can only be done by a specialist. It's not recommended if you have children or elderly adults living with you. Basically, whatever is going on.. There are most likely ways to live with it. Of course, if you and your vet feel it's the best thing for your baby :)

[dlaura]

Diane, I thought you were talking about the vet, not the OP. LOL, now I'M confused :p

Yes, I had been talking about a bad vet visit in the past. I misunderstood you and thought you read my post to imply the OP had done something to her kitty and just wanted to clear up any confusion so no one was offended. :) I seem to have caused more confusion. LOL

Lawgirl, Given her age.. You're right, it could be a number of different things. Hyperthyroidism is extremely common amongst older kitties. Renal failure can also show the same symptoms. The good thing about it, is there are treatments you can do that can often give your kitty a much happier and healthier time. Giving insulin for Diabetes, IV fluids and special foods/medication for Renal failure. There is actually a treatment for hyperthyroidism too. It involves radiation treatment, but can be a bit costly and can only be done by a specialist. It's not recommended if you have children or elderly adults living with you. Basically, whatever is going on.. There are most likely ways to live with it. Of course, if you and your vet feel it's the best thing for your baby :)

Our kitty was 16 1/2 when diagnosed with the hyperthyroidism and she is on 2pills a day for the rest of her life. What a difference they've made in her, the meds work wonders.

[special]

How is your kitty today?

have you thought of looking into a vet that makes house visits? this may be the answer for your little one. I know she will be frightened even of someone coming into your house, but at least she would be spared the stress of the vet trip.

As for a vet telling you that your cat is "the worst patient they have", well if someone said that to me they'd never see me, my cat or my money again. It's their JOB to deal with that kind of stuff. That's a terrible thing to say to anyone, and especially to a client who is worried sick about her beloved cat.

[uwllv88]

[QUOTE=lawgirl5]She ended up becoming terrified of people years ago because of an old boyfriend. I came home one day and couldn't find her and finally found her hiding deep under the kitchen sink behind all the chemicals. I asked him what had happened and he said he and his friends were playing with her. Turns out, they were all chasing her around the apartment. I suspect they must have done other things to torture her too but I don't know. So from that point on, I've been her only family.

Awwww, that is so sad, people can be such jerks!!! (I'm glad he's an "old" bf.) lol
If I were you I would try working with her to get her to accept people. Maybe if she saw that not all people will hurt her it could work. Maybe bring a friend into a small room, like a bathroom where she can't hide. Have the friend sit on the floor and talk softly and use something like a back scratcher to reach over and scrathch her head - that way no one will get bit and she will see that she likes being touched. It's funny because just today I had to take my almost 2 yr old cat, Jay Jay, to the vet, his first visit since he was 8 wks old and got neutered & shots. His mom was feral and I trapped her and her kittens and I ended up keeping her and Jay Jay. He also freeks out around strangers but has gotten better since I have been working with him with family. But today after I finally was able to get him into the crate, I was carrying him out to the car and he was so terrified he broke out of the crate. It has 6 snaps around the outside and he actually broke them and took off running. I was so scared I would lose him but he ran out back and I was able to corner him and he let me pick him up. He was panting and so scared. Once I got him to the vet he was just very scared but he let them examine him because there was no where to run I guess. He's home now and he's so happy to be here. I'm glad I don't have to do that very often.