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 MEET
SOME OF OUR PATIENTS: “Smog"
At the ripe old age of 22 years, Smog is definitely a “Senior
Kitizen”. In fact her owner calls her “The Queen Mother”! She
has been remarkably healthy for all her life, only very occasionally
visiting the Clinic for minor problems. However her owner had
noticed that Smog’s thirst had increased lately (polydipsia).
The commonest cause of this in an elderly animal is the onset
of Chronic Kidney Problems but this usually makes the animal
feel slightly nauseous and less likely to want to eat. Smog’s
appetite was as good as it’d ever been. Another condition causing
the symptoms described would be Diabetes Mellitus, again a disease
more common in the older patient. On examination she was in
excellent condition but was definitely a little bit tender around
the bladder region when palpated. She also was breathing a little
faster than normal (which could be caused by the stress of visiting
the surgery) and the owner mentioned that she was straining
more than usual when going to the toilet.
 The
vet gave her an antibiotic injection as she suspected there
may be a bladder infection causing the problem, and a painkilling
injection to make her more comfortable and the owner was asked
to revisit in 24 hours to check if there had been any improvement.
If there was no response, then further investigations would
be needed.
Twenty-four hours later there had been no change in her condition
- Smog was still not herself and so blood samples were taken
to test how her organs were functioning (biochemistry) and to
check her blood cells (haematology). In any cat into double
figures (never mind the twenties!!) you would expect to see
some results either at the high end of normal or even slightly
over the normal range, as the organs tend not to work quite
as effectively with age. Smog’s results were very good - the
kidney function tests were slightly higher than normal but they
weren’t worryingly high and we had seen cats a good 10 years
younger with worse results. Good as this was, it meant that
we were no further forward in diagnosing the problem. After
much discussion with the owner, it was decided to admit her
to have a series of x-rays taken.
As you can imagine, no matter how much you tell them, cats
are highly unlikely to lie perfectly still while pictures are
taken, and it isn’t safe for a person to hold them still and
be submitted to the radiation. The vet would have to give Smog
a sedative, a bit of a worry in such an elderly patient, but
it was the only way we were going to be able to diagnose the
problem. Whilst she was very relaxed under the sedative, it
was possible to have a really good palpation of her abdomen
to rule out any abnormalities there. Unlike the vast majority
of very old cats, Smog still had a decent amount of body fat
covering her, making conscious abdominal palpation a little
more difficult.
 The
investigations revealed a mass near the bowel, possibly either
a tumour or a cystic structure but the only way to tell for
sure would be to give her a full general anaesthetic and have
a look inside her. However, both the owner and the vet felt
that would be just too much for Smog to undergo, so the sedative
was reversed and she was sent home with some treatment for her
elderly kidneys in the form of tablets and a low protein diet.
Surgical removal of the mass was ruled out but as it didn’t
seem to be affecting her quality of life, a decision was made
to treat conservatively and keep a close eye on things. Twenty-four
hours later, Smog was feeling very sorry for herself; she hadn’t
moved much out of her bed and definitely didn’t feel like eating
the low protein diet The owner returned to the clinic with her
and the vet discovered that her problem was constipation. The
x-rays taken earlier had revealed quite a lot of faeces in Smog’s
colon which a healthy cat would pass quite easily, but the sedative
had meant that things had ground to halt in that direction and
that a helping hand was required to “get things moving”. She
was sent home with a small bottle of liquid paraffin for the
owner to give orally. This helps lubricate the faeces and hopefully
make them easier to pass.
Unfortunately another 24 hours passed with no sign of anything
from the back-end and an even more depressed cat so the vet
had to step in with more treatment. This meant another very
short stay with us overnight so we could administer an enema
to get rid of the blockage and also put her on an intravenous
drip as she hadn’t eaten or drunk anything for a few days now.
 The
next morning, Smog had changed from a very subdued cat to one
anxious to go home. The enema had cleared away a lot of the
faeces, and she had passed more naturally in her litter-tray
overnight. A telephone call a few days later from a happy owner
was received to say that Smog was bright, going to the toilet
ok and, miracle of miracles, enjoying the new food.
One month later, Smog was brought back for a routine checkup.
The owner was extremely pleased with her; her appetite was excellent
and she was brighter and more playful than she had been for
a while. The mass was obviously still present, but she was the
heaviest she had been for a couple of years and not all of that
was attributable to the mass!
Smog's story shows that age itself shouldn't put you off considering
procedures on a cat ( although both sides have drawn a line
at investigating her mass). Despite her excessive years, she
has responded very well to everything that's been thrown at
her and we hope that the "Cat Clinic Queen Mother" continues
to reign over us for a considerable length of time!
ABOVE: a tiny Smog on the left,
dwarfed by her enormous son!
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