[Felvtalk] Charlie

[Margo]

Dear Emily,

          I'm sorry, I'm not getting the emails for some reason, didn't see this until it was tagged on dlgegg's answer.

          Have you considered ImmunoRegulin, or Interferon? DMG? I have two positive cats on Interferon, and ImmunoRegulin at the Vet's office in case of a crash (knock on wood we never need it.)

http://www.felineleukemia.org/ireginfo.html

          I used Zeniquin instead of Baytril when Gribble first crashed, but it's the same family. I would continue that, if the Vet is willing.

          NO STEROIDS, please. The last thing you want to do is immune suppress an immuno-compromised cat. Since he's doing well, I would start him on Interferon and DMG. Can't hurt, might help. Seemed to work for my guys.

Good luck, let us know how it goes. Best to Charlie 

Margo





> Hi everyone,
> >
> > I'm looking for some help in determining next steps for our cat Charlie.
> > We adopted our beloved Charlie three years ago from a shelter. He is now
> > about four years old. We found out in December while doing routine tests
> > that he has feline leukemia (at the time trying to figure out the cause of
> > his IBS- switching his food ended up doing the trick). We were quite
> > surprised- at the time the only symptom that matched were his gums were
> > relatively inflamed.
> >
> > At the end of March / beginning of April Charlie became ill. He lost
> > weight and became lethargic. He kept eating but needed me to keep bringing
> > his food to him in order for him to eat. He underwent different tests- the
> > xrays/blood tests showed that his organs were fine. There was however some
> > bacteria in his urine and so we thought it might be an infection. He also
> > had a slight fever and his white blood cell count was low. We tried him on
> > an injectable antibiotic initially which didn't help, but then switched him
> > to Baytril to which he has responded really well.
> >
> > Charlie started to become sick again once he finished his first round of
> > Baytril, and so we put him back on the antibiotic. He also underwent more
> > tests- this time there was no bacteria in his urine but his white blood
> > cell count was still low. Since this time he has stayed on Baytril (we
> > tried him on a stronger antibiotic but he couldn't stomach it and so we
> > stayed put).
> >
> > Charlie for the past few weeks has seemed incredibly well. He is vibrant,
> > affectionate, and he eats incredibly well (he's even put on a pound).
> > However, his white blood cell count is plummeting. He went from a 3.1 on
> > April 2nd, to a 2.7 on May 27th, to 1.8 on June 13th.
> >
> > At this point it seems as though this isn't the result of an infection,
> > but the progression of his leukemia. Our vet has presented us with some
> > options moving forward but I'm not sure of what we should do.
> >
> > What's challenging is that he is so happy and vibrant right now. We're
> > really afraid of doing anything that might compromise that. He is his happy
> > little cheeky self and we are making the most of every moment.
> >
> > Our vet has suggested a series of tests (more blood, xray, urine, bone
> > marrow) and they don't seem like our best option. Some are really
> > invasive-like a bone marrow biopsy-and incredibly costly. We've maxed out
> > all our credit options paying for Charlie's treatments so far, and there is
> > only so much more we can do.
> >
> > Our vet has also suggested that we try putting him on steroids to see if
> > that boosts his white blood cell count. She mentioned however that if this
> > is an aggressive infection (and not the progression of his leukemia) the
> > steroid could worsen it. She hinted that this is an option that she would
> > at least try. At this point we don't have much to lose, but again we don't
> > want to compromise any quality time we do have with Charlie.
> >
> > Our other option is to just keep him on the Baytril, and let things run
> > their course. We could also wait and put him on the steroid once things
> > worsen.
> >
> > I'd really appreciate any insights anyone can provide. This has been
> > harder than I ever could have imagined. We've fallen so hard for this
> > little guy and it's just been one heartbreaking visit to the vet after
> > another.
> >
> > Thank you in advance.
> >
> > Emily