Any success treating a cat with a "straddle" blood clot?
 

My cat while hospitalized for congestive heart failure threw a blood
clot that cut circulation and paralyzed his hind legs.

Has anyone here had a cat with a similar problem that they were able to
treat and help recover from?

Thanks.

Any success treating a cat with a "straddle" blood clot?
 

Yes, I did the same thing (get a big storage box-clear). It is
approximately 16 inches tall by 3 foot long by 18 inches wide. It works
wonderful. My female cat kept peeing over the side of a regular liter box.
Well this kept her tail inside and everything else as well.

If they are little kittens, you can try one with a door and that way you
will have a better chance that it will keep his job inside. Although little
kittens can easily jump over a 16 inch tall liter box. They have so much
energy, there is nothing they can't do.



wrote in message
oups.com...
My cat while hospitalized for congestive heart failure threw a blood
clot that cut circulation and paralyzed his hind legs.

Has anyone here had a cat with a similar problem that they were able to
treat and help recover from?

Thanks.

Any success treating a cat with a "straddle" blood clot?
 

Any success treating a cat with a "straddle" blood clot?
 

wrote:
My cat while hospitalized for congestive heart failure threw a blood
clot that cut circulation and paralyzed his hind legs.

Has anyone here had a cat with a similar problem that they were able to
treat and help recover from?

I'm really sorry to hear about your kitty. What does the vet say? The
problem with saddle thromboses is they tend to break up and then
relodge in other areas, which can cause even more damage. I would
probably treat the cat and see how he does after a week or two, if you
can afford the treatments..

-L.

Any success treating a cat with a "straddle" blood clot?
 

-L. wrote:

wrote:
My cat while hospitalized for congestive heart failure threw a blood
clot that cut circulation and paralyzed his hind legs.

Has anyone here had a cat with a similar problem that they were able to
treat and help recover from?

I'm really sorry to hear about your kitty. What does the vet say? The
problem with saddle thromboses is they tend to break up and then
relodge in other areas, which can cause even more damage. I would
probably treat the cat and see how he does after a week or two, if you
can afford the treatments..

-L

My cat did have saddle thrombosis and did recover. He was given
warferin to thin his blood and break up the clot. I gave him nightly
paw massage (not quite sure why) and lots of cuddles. He didn't walk
for a week and I was about to give up...so fed him what should have
been his last supper - lovely raw steak. He got an attack of the
squits the next morning and dragged himself up rather than lie in his
own mess...

And he lived happily for another 2.5 years (he did die a few months ago
but was over 20)

So...lots of TLC and maybe:)

Any success treating a cat with a "straddle" blood clot?
 

-L. wrote:

wrote:
My cat while hospitalized for congestive heart failure threw a blood
clot that cut circulation and paralyzed his hind legs.

Has anyone here had a cat with a similar problem that they were able to
treat and help recover from?

I'm really sorry to hear about your kitty. What does the vet say? The
problem with saddle thromboses is they tend to break up and then
relodge in other areas, which can cause even more damage. I would
probably treat the cat and see how he does after a week or two, if you
can afford the treatments..

-L

My cat did have saddle thrombosis and did recover. He was given
warferin to thin his blood and break up the clot. I gave him nightly
paw massage (not quite sure why) and lots of cuddles. He didn't walk
for a week and I was about to give up...so fed him what should have
been his last supper - lovely raw steak. He got an attack of the
squits the next morning and dragged himself up rather than lie in his
own mess...

And he lived happily for another 2.5 years (he did die a few months ago
but was over 20)

So...lots of TLC and maybe:)

Any success treating a cat with a "straddle" blood clot?
 

On 10 Jul 2006 10:21:37 -0700, wrote:

My cat while hospitalized for congestive heart failure threw a blood
clot that cut circulation and paralyzed his hind legs.

Has anyone here had a cat with a similar problem that they were able to
treat and help recover from?

Thanks.

I was sick and missed this. One of my cats had this. I found him
unable to walk; somehow during the night he had dragged himself down
the steps and was hiding in a box.

I took him to the specialty vet and they figured that he had about a
50% chance of making it, so I told them to start treating him. But
they did an ultrasound of his heart and found that there were more
clots ready to come out and that they thought that it was pointless to
continue treatment, so we euthanized him.

It can be treated but the cause is the underlying heart condition. If
that can be treated, then it's possibly worth doing. That is,
depending on several factors including your financial situation. I
hate to mention that, since it sounds crass, but spending $2000 to
keep a cat alive for a few months, likely in a debilitated condition,
isn't necessarily a good move.

I think it cost me $1500 just for the two days that they woirked on
LuckyBoy. I spent well over $4000 on Nico (lymphoma) and he lived six
months. I think that both were a mistake and I'll give great thought
before doing what are really heroic measures the next time.

Part of the problem is that we just don't know how much they are
suffering. And being scared and in a hospital counts as suffering.
They don't know why they're there, only that you aren't there and that
they are in a strange place. When I went to get Nico after four days
in the hospital he clung to me with his claws, and ripped his paws
trying to get out of the carrier in the car ride home. I finally let
him sit in my lap while driving on the Long Island Expressway. He was
leaking liquid pop into my crotch.

No one gets out of here alive. The only question is when, how, and the
quality of life while alive. Since our cats can't tell us how much
they're suffering, we just have to do the best that we can. Good luck
and let us know how it goes.

Any success treating a cat with a "straddle" blood clot?
 

dgk wrote:
On 10 Jul 2006 10:21:37 -0700, wrote:

My cat while hospitalized for congestive heart failure threw a blood
clot that cut circulation and paralyzed his hind legs.

Has anyone here had a cat with a similar problem that they were able to
treat and help recover from?

Thanks.

I was sick and missed this. One of my cats had this. I found him
unable to walk; somehow during the night he had dragged himself down
the steps and was hiding in a box.

I took him to the specialty vet and they figured that he had about a
50% chance of making it, so I told them to start treating him. But
they did an ultrasound of his heart and found that there were more
clots ready to come out and that they thought that it was pointless to
continue treatment, so we euthanized him.

It can be treated but the cause is the underlying heart condition. If
that can be treated, then it's possibly worth doing. That is,
depending on several factors including your financial situation. I
hate to mention that, since it sounds crass, but spending $2000 to
keep a cat alive for a few months, likely in a debilitated condition,
isn't necessarily a good move.

I think it cost me $1500 just for the two days that they woirked on
LuckyBoy. I spent well over $4000 on Nico (lymphoma) and he lived six
months. I think that both were a mistake and I'll give great thought
before doing what are really heroic measures the next time.

Part of the problem is that we just don't know how much they are
suffering. And being scared and in a hospital counts as suffering.
They don't know why they're there, only that you aren't there and that
they are in a strange place. When I went to get Nico after four days
in the hospital he clung to me with his claws, and ripped his paws
trying to get out of the carrier in the car ride home. I finally let
him sit in my lap while driving on the Long Island Expressway. He was
leaking liquid pop into my crotch.

No one gets out of here alive. The only question is when, how, and the
quality of life while alive. Since our cats can't tell us how much
they're suffering, we just have to do the best that we can. Good luck
and let us know how it goes.

Any success treating a cat with a "straddle" blood clot?
 

On 13 Jul 2006 10:21:39 -0700, , clicked their heels
and said:
On 10 Jul 2006 10:21:37 -0700, wrote:

My cat while hospitalized for congestive heart failure threw a blood
clot that cut circulation and paralyzed his hind legs.

Has anyone here had a cat with a similar problem that they were able to
treat and help recover from?

I treated for it with a 9 year old cat, about 14 years ago. She
recovered from the paralysis in about 6 weeks (improved daily). She
used her box throughout, and was a mostly happy little cat. 8 months
later, she had failure again and another paralysis. She had just
gained use again when she had her 3rd, and we decided to say goodbye.
She went on her own before the vet appt. If I had to do it again, I
would have said goodbye right away. I was prolonging her life for me,
not her. Her condition would never get better, only worse, and the
number of meds, complications, etc, was just not the best thing in
retrospect. I had never lost a pet before and wasn't prepared for
that, so I was an optimist. I hope I don't make that mistake again.



--
Janet Boss
www.bestfriendsdogobedience.com

Any success treating a cat with a "straddle" blood clot?
 

Sad to say I euthanized. Given the concurrent congestive heart failure
that they were balancing against while giving him glucose to keep his
blood sugar at survivable levels, the critical care vet said she
expected him to die in a day or two. She recommended euthanasia saying
all it would do is end a few hours of anxiety and pain. I was very
reluctant never having done something so final as that. I asked to
bring him home so at least he could die outside on the porch where he
loved to be but I was worried he wouldn't survive the car ride and his
last moments would be stuck in awful rush hour traffic so I ultimately
agreed to euthanize there.

He was pretty out of it but gave me a final weak rub with his head
which made me desperately want to call the thing off. The vet was
experienced but I'd be lying if I said I don't have doubts about
whether she was mistaken about his chance for recovery and am haunted
by fears I unnecessarily cut his life short. My first time dealing
with this. What a brutal decision to have to make and thing to
experience.

I know death is inevitable and with the underlying heart disease and
risk of future clots his life span probably wouldn't have been very
long even best case scenario. But damn if I don't worry that I made a
horrible mistake.


dgk wrote:
On 10 Jul 2006 10:21:37 -0700, wrote:

My cat while hospitalized for congestive heart failure threw a blood
clot that cut circulation and paralyzed his hind legs.

Has anyone here had a cat with a similar problem that they were able to
treat and help recover from?

Thanks.

I was sick and missed this. One of my cats had this. I found him
unable to walk; somehow during the night he had dragged himself down
the steps and was hiding in a box.

I took him to the specialty vet and they figured that he had about a
50% chance of making it, so I told them to start treating him. But
they did an ultrasound of his heart and found that there were more
clots ready to come out and that they thought that it was pointless to
continue treatment, so we euthanized him.

It can be treated but the cause is the underlying heart condition. If
that can be treated, then it's possibly worth doing. That is,
depending on several factors including your financial situation. I
hate to mention that, since it sounds crass, but spending $2000 to
keep a cat alive for a few months, likely in a debilitated condition,
isn't necessarily a good move.

I think it cost me $1500 just for the two days that they woirked on
LuckyBoy. I spent well over $4000 on Nico (lymphoma) and he lived six
months. I think that both were a mistake and I'll give great thought
before doing what are really heroic measures the next time.

Part of the problem is that we just don't know how much they are
suffering. And being scared and in a hospital counts as suffering.
They don't know why they're there, only that you aren't there and that
they are in a strange place. When I went to get Nico after four days
in the hospital he clung to me with his claws, and ripped his paws
trying to get out of the carrier in the car ride home. I finally let
him sit in my lap while driving on the Long Island Expressway. He was
leaking liquid pop into my crotch.

No one gets out of here alive. The only question is when, how, and the
quality of life while alive. Since our cats can't tell us how much
they're suffering, we just have to do the best that we can. Good luck
and let us know how it goes.

Any success treating a cat with a "straddle" blood clot?
 

On 13 Jul 2006 10:35:12 -0700, , clicked their heels
and said:

Sad to say I euthanized. I'd be lying if I said I don't have doubts about
whether she was mistaken about his chance for recovery and am haunted
by fears I unnecessarily cut his life short. My first time dealing
with this. What a brutal decision to have to make and thing to
experience.

It's really tough and I feel for you. I can only say that hindsight
is so much clearer, and if you hadn't made this choice, your buddy
wouldn't have the peace and freedom from pain that he's no enjoying.
You did the right thing, as brutal as it feels right now.


--
Janet Boss
www.bestfriendsdogobedience.com

Any success treating a cat with a "straddle" blood clot?
 

On Thu, 13 Jul 2006 13:28:34 -0400, Janet B
wrote:

On 13 Jul 2006 10:21:39 -0700, , clicked their heels
and said:
On 10 Jul 2006 10:21:37 -0700, wrote:

My cat while hospitalized for congestive heart failure threw a blood
clot that cut circulation and paralyzed his hind legs.

Has anyone here had a cat with a similar problem that they were able to
treat and help recover from?

I treated for it with a 9 year old cat, about 14 years ago. She
recovered from the paralysis in about 6 weeks (improved daily). She
used her box throughout, and was a mostly happy little cat. 8 months
later, she had failure again and another paralysis. She had just
gained use again when she had her 3rd, and we decided to say goodbye.
She went on her own before the vet appt. If I had to do it again, I
would have said goodbye right away. I was prolonging her life for me,
not her. Her condition would never get better, only worse, and the
number of meds, complications, etc, was just not the best thing in
retrospect. I had never lost a pet before and wasn't prepared for
that, so I was an optimist. I hope I don't make that mistake again.

That's really key, I did the same thing with Nico. I couldn't bear the
thought of letting him die when perhaps it was just his time. He did
live six more months, but he never climbed the cat tree again.

Any success treating a cat with a "straddle" blood clot?
 

On 13 Jul 2006 10:35:12 -0700, wrote:

Sad to say I euthanized. Given the concurrent congestive heart failure
that they were balancing against while giving him glucose to keep his
blood sugar at survivable levels, the critical care vet said she
expected him to die in a day or two. She recommended euthanasia saying
all it would do is end a few hours of anxiety and pain. I was very
reluctant never having done something so final as that. I asked to
bring him home so at least he could die outside on the porch where he
loved to be but I was worried he wouldn't survive the car ride and his
last moments would be stuck in awful rush hour traffic so I ultimately
agreed to euthanize there.

He was pretty out of it but gave me a final weak rub with his head
which made me desperately want to call the thing off. The vet was
experienced but I'd be lying if I said I don't have doubts about
whether she was mistaken about his chance for recovery and am haunted
by fears I unnecessarily cut his life short. My first time dealing
with this. What a brutal decision to have to make and thing to
experience.

I know death is inevitable and with the underlying heart disease and
risk of future clots his life span probably wouldn't have been very
long even best case scenario. But damn if I don't worry that I made a
horrible mistake.




We just can't win on this. Either we regret making them suffer too
long or we regret euthanizing them too soon. You made the right
decision on this one though even though it hurts. My thoughts are with
you.

Any success treating a cat with a "straddle" blood clot?
 

Hey just wanted to say that while I'm sorry to make people recall their
own sad experiences, I do appreciate hearing people's feelings on
situations like mine. Thanks for all the thoughtful replies.

dgk wrote:
On 13 Jul 2006 10:35:12 -0700, wrote:

Sad to say I euthanized. Given the concurrent congestive heart failure
that they were balancing against while giving him glucose to keep his
blood sugar at survivable levels, the critical care vet said she
expected him to die in a day or two. She recommended euthanasia saying
all it would do is end a few hours of anxiety and pain. I was very
reluctant never having done something so final as that. I asked to
bring him home so at least he could die outside on the porch where he
loved to be but I was worried he wouldn't survive the car ride and his
last moments would be stuck in awful rush hour traffic so I ultimately
agreed to euthanize there.

He was pretty out of it but gave me a final weak rub with his head
which made me desperately want to call the thing off. The vet was
experienced but I'd be lying if I said I don't have doubts about
whether she was mistaken about his chance for recovery and am haunted
by fears I unnecessarily cut his life short. My first time dealing
with this. What a brutal decision to have to make and thing to
experience.

I know death is inevitable and with the underlying heart disease and
risk of future clots his life span probably wouldn't have been very
long even best case scenario. But damn if I don't worry that I made a
horrible mistake.




We just can't win on this. Either we regret making them suffer too
long or we regret euthanizing them too soon. You made the right
decision on this one though even though it hurts. My thoughts are with
you.

Any success treating a cat with a "straddle" blood clot?
 

Hey everyone, I realize this thread was started many years ago ... my heart goes out to the original poster.

I want to share my experience because as I understand it ... most people euthanize in this situation and they've never heard that they have other options.

You do have other options, but you may need to do your own research and learn some new skills.

It has been six months now since the harrowing night when my beloved cat Harvey suffered this condition.

I was pressured by several veterinarians t euthanize him. I refused to do it.

Using a combination of conventional medicine and energy healing, I had the clot on one side cleared within about 3 hours, and the clot for the other leg cleared in about two days.

He was still limping about three months later so I applied more energy healing. He began what appeared to be a self-initiated physical therapy regimen of shaking his right leg vigorously on a regular basis. He no longer limps and is able to jump to the high cabinet again (50 inch vertical leap) as of a few days ago.

I believe heart failure was preventable in our case. Unfortunately the very negative attitudes of the veterinarians we encountered those first couple weeks led to him not being properly treated.

Heart disease is often reversible in hyperthyroid cats, and had he been treated immediately for hyperthyroidism … I believe he would not have ended up in heart failure.

But … we did go through heart failure. It was awful, and we survived.

Harvey was down to a scary 7 pounds and we had a number of scares after that with his respiratory rate. He had way more Lasix than he should have had … because it became very clear to me as the weeks went on … what slowed down his respiratory rate was not the Lasix but the thyroid meds … He needed a higher dosage.

It has been a long journey, and probably we would not have survived it without the energy healing. I’ve seen miracles with my other cat as well, when we had a harrowing experience with severe kidney failure.

Both my cats are here today because I said no to euthanasia. Harvey is up to 10.2 pounds, no longer requiring Lasix or appetite stimulants. Indeed, the only meds he is on now are nutritional supplements (which should probably be used in all of these cases), and sporadic thyroid meds and ranitidine to deal with the side effects of the thyroid meds.

I truly believe that veterinarians could be achieving much better outcomes in straddle thrombus cases, if they were thinking more constructively. Of course, energy healing helps a lot.

I thank God every day that Harvey is still here and happy, with full use of his back legs …

Don’t give up. Learn some new skills. You can thank me later …

p.s. I want to add that hyperthyroidism can be the cause of heart murmur, and so may be reversed with proper treatment of the hyperthyroidism.

Beyond that though, in my extensive research, I learned that many people have seen reversal of heart murmurs with appropriate supplementation (e.g., CoQ10, L-carnitine, B vitamins, omega 3s, etc.) …

If heart murmur is the usual cause of straddle thrombus, then vets ought to be more focused on healing heart murmurs. But if your vet is clueless, then by all means, do the research yourself as I did.