Ben is Burt’s brother. He was admitted shortly after Burt, suspected to be another sporo case, but it turned out to be just bad wounds. However, the wounds were deep and quite slow in healing.
It took about two weeks before Ben was declared fit enough to be discharged, and Norshidah sent him back to her elderly mother’s place. They bought a cage and Ben was confined. During this time, he escaped once, and that was all. At other times, he was confined in the cage.
A few days ago, according to Norshidah, Ben stopped eating and appeared unwell. This morning, Nor texted me to ask if she could bring Ben to the vet for a check-up.
When Ben was brought in, he vomited inside the carrier. The vomit was blackish, which indicates blood. When blood mixes with the acid in the stomach, it turns black.
Poor Ben looked really down. Notice the blackish vomit on the newspapers?
He seems a bit scrawny, and the vet says this would not happen as a result of not eating alone.
There must be something else.
We discussed the possibilities – it could be a kidney problem (again!). When the kidneys don’t function well, toxins are not eliminated. When toxins accumulate in the body, cells don’t reproduce at its normal rate. The lining of the intestines replaces itself with a new layer of cells every 11 minutes. When this doesn’t happen, bleeding occurs. Hence vomiting blood could be due to kidney failure or insufficiency.
That’s Norshidah.
Ben weighed only 3.2kg, which is pretty light for a cat his size.
The vet checked Ben’s supposedly healed sores/wounds. Oh oh…it has not really healed.
The vet decided it’s best to take a swap and check for sporo again.
Here’s another differential diagnosis – Ben had been put on antibiotics for quite some time. Sometimes, unintentionally and unknowingly, the antibiotics may have killed off some bacteria which is needed for the body to be in “harmony”. When this “harmony” is disturbed, other problems can flare up. The vet related an incident in the past where a cat was sent in to be treated for some skin problem. Medication was given for some time, and unknowingly, this medication had killed off some bacteria in the body. Once that bacteria was absent, it caused a fungal infection to start. The cat was finally consumed by that fungal infection (it was candida albicans, a very common fungus).
Scary, isn’t it? So it comes as no surprise in modern medicine where what heals you can actually kill you later. Well, so much for modern medicine. Yet, we cannot do without it.
Ben’s other wounds have also not healed properly. There were traces of blood inside the wounds.
Ben’s temperature was subnormal too. This means his body is not producing enough heat, which further indicates that his metabolic rate is below normal.
The plan now is to be put Ben on drips first, then do bloodwork to check the liver and kidneys. Ben will also be tested for FIV and FeLV – this is purely for a better prognosis of his condition. He will also be put on medication to control the bleeding and the acidity in the stomach.
I had to leave before the vet was done as I had an interview waiting for me with Her World today. The interview and photo shoot lasted quite long and it was very tiring (for someone who doesn’t do these sort of things every day, it would be).
It rained after that and I had no time to go to the vet’s again for updates on the sporo test, etc.
Will update again tomorrow.
We have pledged our usual subsidy for Ben’s medical bill.
We hope Ben will recover.
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