A Second Opinion For Bunny

I was very worried about Bunny, especially about the possibility of him having high blood pressure, so I consulted two vets yesterday. One of the vets suggested we get Bunny’s eye pressure checked and he has the instrument.

So, today, we brought Bunny to this vet.

The instrument used to check Bunny’s eye pressure is called a tonometer. It looks like this:

Photo from the internet.

A tonometry test measures the pressure inside your eye, which is called intraocular pressure (IOP). This test is used to check for glaucoma, an eye disease that can cause blindness by damaging the nerve in the back of the eye (optic nerve).

Bunny was very cooperative throughout the procedure. It was non-invasive in that no sedation was required. The instrument bounces off a small amount of pressure from the eye and Bunny didn’t seem to feel any discomfort at all. He obediently allowed the vet to carry out the whole procedure (five times on each eye so that an average reading can be taken). The tonometer measures intraocular pressure. Readings of 10-20mmHG is normal and above 25mmHG means there is glaucoma (high eye pressure).

The eye pressure is indicative of blood pressure, so checking the eye pressure would provide the information that we need, ie. if Bunny have high blood pressure.

Other instruments for checking blood pressure in cats may not be very accurate as a cat’s blood pressure may spike when stressed. There is a “cuff” which is used to check a cat’s blood pressure and also another method whereby the cat is sedated and something is injected into the jugular vein. I definitely would not want Bunny to be sedated.

So, on both eyes, five readings were taken and all readings were between 15-19mmHG. Hooray! This means Bunny’s eye pressure is normal (though on the higher end, but is still normal) AND this also indicates he does not have high blood pressure.

The vet also taught us how to check for elevated eye pressure – just press around the eyes and look for the cat’s reaction. He showed us by pressing around Bunny’s eyes and Bunny showed no discomfort at all. The vet said if Bunny had high blood, he would also have high eye pressure and it would definitely be painful if the area around his eyes were pressed.

Now, that is something we can definitely do at home!

If the eye is blood-shot (red), that could also indicate high blood pressure. Bunny did not have this.

We were so relieved to know that Bunny doesn’t have high blood pressure!

But, Bunny IS 80-90% blind and this is probably due to degeneration, also possibly due to retina detachment (a part of aging), more so when Bunny is FIV+. He will be able to live with blindness and he would have to depend on his hearing, not his sense of smell. His hearing may be heightened gradually but for now, he will be very sensitive to sounds. The slightest sounds might startle him too.

The vet showed us how to check if a cat is blind. He carried Bunny and approached a table. If Bunny could see, his paws would reach for the table. Bunny didn’t. That means he could not see the table.

The vet also listened to Bunny’s heart and detected arrythmia (the heart beats with an irregular rhythm). This is also due to aging and his condition. Nothing much needs to be done with this, but Bunny can go on Coenzyme Q10. It is a supplement that would help with his heart condition. It does no harm at all. If the human CoQ10 is used, then a rule of thumb is to use one-quarter the dosage, but dividing into one-quarter could be a problem so I opted to buy the pet product for Bunny. At least the dosage is correct.

This is the CoQ10 for Bunny. It’s softgels and can be punctured and the oil mixed with food. It’s from Petdiatrics, a reputable brand.

Since we were there, I requested the vet to take a look at Bunny’s anal wound as well. The vet said it looks very clean and should show signs of healing in 3 days (exactly as Bunny’s vet said too).

These are photos taken early this morning:

From my untrained eyes, it does look like it’s healing.

Bunny feels safe sitting with me.

We did the Hibiscrub flushing and Iodine flushing this morning and Bunny was very, very cooperative. He’s such a good cat. Doesn’t have the Cow characteristics although he is Cow’s brother! Cleo and Pole have Cow characteristics, especially Cleo. She has the bully-strain in her.

By the way, this morning I did not use the big syringe; instead, I used a spray and it was just as effective.

This vet said judging from the wound, there is probably no need to flush anymore, just dab on Iodine would do. Now, this would be much easier. I would also have to ensure that the iodine does not touch the anus as that could sting. The vet also said the the wound is in a tricky place as it is near the anus (have to keep it very clean) and there is a lot of movement of the tail, which could affect the healing process.

I asked about Vincent’s stomatitis, just to know what other options we could have in case Vincent’s stomatitis recurs. This vet recommended weekly steroid injections (into the skin, not the gums) for about 4 times in a row. I asked if gum injections would be less harmful than skin injections, and the vet explained that steroid injections (whether through the skin or into the gums) would eventually end up in the blood stream, hence, both are also systemic. And gum injections require sedation which further compromises the kidneys and liver. Now yes, this makes total sense. So, at least we have another option now – weekly steroid injections for about 4 times. This is just in case Vincent needs treatment again.

And since we were there, we also asked about Cleo’s blotches of lost fur. She has had this before and I was told previously that it was probably due to stress. And yes, Cleo stresses herself out very frequently. She has “issues” with everyone else. The vet said the first thing to rule out would be flea-bite allergy. Apparently, fleas could bite somewhere and blotches of fur would fall out elsewhere because the flea secrets saliva into the blood stream. The first line of treatment for such a case would be to use an anti-flea product. Due to previous bad experience with certain brands, we opted to use Advocate this time.

Today’s visit to the vet has been extremely fruitful. I learnt so, so much, especially about what kinds of supplements are available for pets nowadays. It’s really, really good to know that so many helpful supplements are available. We discussed the uses of Omega 3, 6, 7 and 9, turmeric, Transfer Factor, cordyceps, etc.

With high blood pressure out of the way for Bunny (oh, what a relief that is!), the next thing we could do for him would be to rule out diabetes. This would require a blood and urine test.

One thing at a time. Bunny seems to be coping with his blindness. The only thing left would be to help him so that he doesn’t bump into Cow and incur the…WRATH of COW. A friend suggested we put a bell on Cow. Now, I think we might just do that.

Please note that the above is only a sharing and I am writing based on memory after an hour-long consultation. All possible errors and mistakes are exclusively mine.

Please always consult a vet for professional advice for your pets. Every pet’s needs are different.

Source: https://myanimalcare.org/2016/06/22/a-second-opinion-for-bun..

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