So Miss Sugarplum is having Health Issues again. This time, it’s some kind of abdominal mass that barely shows up in an X-ray but is pushing her intestines and stomach out of the way (and is thus responsible for the vomiting and diarrhea she’s had lately; literally, she puked 15 or more times today and I suspect she’s been barfing when I’m not around, though I don’t want to ask what happens to the stuff that doesn’t just dry onto the floor). Tomorrow, she goes in for an ultrasound to see what’s what. With luck, it’s a cyst that can be drained. Without luck, it’s a tumor. Either way, it’s $500.
UPDATE: Well, the mass appears to be neither a cyst nor a tumor but a lipoma, since when it was aspirated, fat came out. So it’s still there, and she’s on a special diet now, both to get her to lose weight so the lipoma shrinks and because the damn thing is pressing up against her bowels and pancreas, and the vet wants to treat this as an irritable bowel/tetchy pancreas issue as well as a lipoma. I just bought a case of food, too, but luckily the nice folks at the local pet food store will let me exchange any unopened cans, and I’ll just stock up on Junebug’s food instead.
Oh, and did I mention the mammary tumor? When she stabilizes, she’ll need to have a mastectomy. Perhaps the vet can get a skidoo.
Sorry to hear it. I hope she’ll be okay.
Totally non-professional opinion from a non-vet and occasional reader - keep an eye on this lipoma. My dog had one, and had it for years. It eventually became a mast cell tumor (or, it was misdiagnosed from the beginning). These can be scary. Perhaps ask your vet about this? I wish I had been better educated about these nasty little things. It’s worth finding out more.
That said, I certainly hope your Miss Sugarplum feels better in a hurry, and that my attempt to help doesn’t case any undue alarm. Perhaps my experience was totally unique.
How is she doing?
I hope she feels better!
She looks very similar to my dog — a rat terrier/chihuahua mix.
She’s doing better! Very perky, no vomiting that I can see. Which doesn’t necessarily mean *no* vomiting, mind you.
Octo, Junebug’s the dog. She’s fine, has been for a while (at least until next time she needs her anal glands squeezed). Sugarplum’s the kitty.
Oops — I was looking at Junebug’s picture and must have gotten mixed up.
I will keep fingers crossed for Sugarplum.
I’m glad to read that Sugarplum is feeling better and I hope she continues to mend!
I feel ya on funding the vet’s boat. I feel like I’ve paid at least one room of the vet’s new office single-handedly. We’ve been trying to figure out why Miss Billie Holiday Kitty has lost so much weight. X-rays, this thyroid blood test, that thyroid blood test and an ultrasound (plus a UTI) later and the best we can find is she has ennui. (The ultrasound tech let me attend Billie’s procedure and he showed and talked me through the whole thing.)So we have her on an appetite stimulant and she’s already gained back 1/2 a pound (and, after 7-1/2 years of trying, I have her eating canned food, which makes giving her meds so much easier).
Sending healthy healing vibes to Sugarplum–and your bank account!