full checkup for cat?

[josiespcah6ojsh]

for anyone who has it done for thier pet yearly when she goes in for her regular shots, how else do you have your vet examine her for like blood work?
i was going to more done after her shots 2 weeks ago but forgot and am considering taking my cat back.she has had bacterial infection, high kidney level(from foot long dental floss),and uti
.
laura

 

[kathryn]

I don't do it yearly, but about every other year, when my cats get up in age (8 and beyond), or younger if they seem kind of 'off',' I'll have the vet do a blood panel that checks liver and kidney functions, and she checks blood glucose as well. I think it's a CBC (complete blood chemistry) that they do.

I started doing this after one of my cats was diagnosed with chronic renal failure , and it was how I found out another one had diabetes.

 

[josiespcah6ojsh]

thanks for replying. i will consider getting it done. now i know what the testing is called,cbc

laura

 

[coradora]

Laura,

I just wanted to mention that you might want to get your cat's teeth cleaned if he/she is getting a little older. We recently had to have our sweet orange kitty put down because he got a tooth infection . We were unable to afford to have the tooth extracted (the price was almost $1000) and the infection moved into his jaw. The price of teeth cleaning earlier in his life (he was 12 y.o.) would have saved him so much pain.

Corrie

 

[josiespcah6ojsh]

wow.i will have that done also. she is 10. better safe than sorry

laura

 

[kathryn]

We recently had to have our sweet orange kitty put down because he got a tooth infection . We were unable to afford to have the tooth extracted (the price was almost $1000) and the infection moved into his jaw.

$1000 for a tooth extraction? That seems very high!

One of my cats had two teeth taken out, in addition to other tests and xrays that were performed before the vet discovered that the teeth were the problem) and his total bill was around $600. (It would have been around $300 if the incompetent vet had checked his teeth first!)

 

[coradora]

It probably was high - I was talking to some of the people at our local pet store and they mentioned that that particular vet was know for "being a rip off". I was also not impressed that he did not even bother to see us in person - we were told to drop our kitty off and then the vet phoned to tell me what was going on. He said that because of our cat's age, the would have to do a bunch of blood work and also that the extraction would be complicated because they would have to go into the jaw bone. When I told him that we couldn't afford it he didn't offer any other solutions except antibiotics.

Leo did okay for several weeks - he was drooling all the time but still eating and drinking and demanding lots of cuddles. But when he started losing weight because he couldn't eat anything (I started mixing canned food with warm water) I made an appointment with another vet in town. (There are only two vet offices in our town - it is pretty small.) This vet was warm and compassionate and almost started crying herself when she told us she thought that the best choice was to put him down. Leo's jaw was lumpy and he couldn't close his mouth anymore - she thought he might even have cancer in his jaw. At that point we had decided to use our very full credit card for as much as we could, but it was too late anyway. Gosh, now I am almost crying again - I wish we had done something sooner! He was such a good kitty, so smart and affectionate and talkative. Our house seems much quieter without him reminding me that it is time for dinner

I just hope that others will read this and get out those little toothbrushes for their furry friends.