Bosco in very critical condition (suspected poisoning)

Ref: http://myanimalcare.org/2012/10/20/boscos-sudden-high-fever/

As I sit here writing this post, Bosco is fighting for his life at the clinic. I just got home.

To all my friends, I only ask that you join me in praying for Bosco to be strong, to be at peace and to be free from pain and suffering.

 Although the clinic is closed today, the vet was kind enough to let me visit.

But he said Bosco looked very down.

 He wasn't interested in food at all, and had to be force-fed.

But the biggest blow came when his temperature was taken. It was sub-normal. So low that the thermometer did not even register a reading. Something was VERY wrong. It has gone to the other extreme, which is worse (than having a high temperature).

 I held Bosco to keep him warm.

 

Then I drove out to buy a hot water bottle.

But he did not want the hot water bottle and kept moving away from it.

 He wanted to sit with me.

 



 

 But he was meowing; he was trying to tell me something.

The vet told me there was nothing else that could be done for Bosco. The signs do not look good at all even though he could walk and was alert. He is going down and we were going to lose him, he said.

I texted my friend, Cathy, and she said as long as Bosco had not given up, it might be good to get a second opinion. I spoke with the vet and he agreed. The strange thing is, Bosco's bio-chemistry test results came back and everything looked normal. The vet said we still do not know what is the cause of his condition. It could be too many things.

We left the catheter (for the drip) on Bosco, and Cathy came over to drive me to another clinic. This clinic could do lab tests and has an X-Ray machine. We have to try everything.

While waiting, Bosco urinated on me and his urine was extremely yellow. The urine was syringed to be test but it looked really bad. "Nothing" could be seen from it and this was very bad.

Further blood tests were made, and we were shocked to see that the colour of Bosco's blood had turned from red to BLACK. It was black. Not dark red, but black. All symptoms point to suspected poisoning. By now, the blood tests showed his liver and kidneys were deteriorating. The prognosis is VERY grave. I have to be prepared for the worst now.

This vet was very sure it is not FIP.

If it is poisoning (the most likely cause), the only thing which can be done is to put him on drips to flush out the toxins. We do not know what toxin he had ingested, so an antidote is not possible. It must be a very deadly poison because in milder cases of poisoning, putting on drips would have solved the problem. And Bosco had been on drips since yesterday, at 1pm when I brought him in immediately at the first sign of trouble.  I already wasted no time. In fact, when I called, the vet said I could wait and monitor him for another few hours. I didn't even take that chance. And at that time, all I saw was his salivation. I already brought him in.

The vet said cats are actually very sensitive to many chemicals, including some kinds of plants. But cats are also very careful in choosing their food. The kibbles that I feed him (and the rest) are kept in closed containers. The home-cooked food is served fresh. I don't think it is food poisoning from the food that I feed because everyone else seems to be alright. It must be from something that Bosco had ingested by himself. Raven goes around with him, but she seems to be fine.

This vet now will do everything possible for Bosco, but he said it would take a miracle to save Bosco's life. Yes, miracles...we can only pray for that to happen now. What can be done has already been done.

Bosco was put on drips again, and the light blue gadget you see in the photo is a "warmer". It warms the fluids before it enters the body. He is also on a heating pad. His body still feels very cold, especially the extremities (the paws). I held his paws to keep them warm.

 He still responds to me when I talk to him.

Luckily Cathy was free, and we stayed until the clinic closed. I'm very thankful Cathy came with me and drove me to this clinic.

Before we left, I told Bosco to stay strong, to get well soon and that we will come see him tomorrow. "Raven is waiting for you at home, so please get well and I'll take you home. You're a strong and brave boy, Bosco."

Bosco is at peace and I cannot see any signs of pain on him. Maybe he is already too weak.

The deterioration is so acute and sudden. He was still able to walk around at the first clinic, but by the time we got to the second clinic, he was already very, very weak.

The clinic is closed now, but the vets were all still there and the senior vet (who attended to Bosco) will still be going in in the evening again. He will call me if there is any need to (but this would be a case of "no news is good news", so, "no phonecall is good, I suppose"). The hospitalisation area is also monitored by CCTV and the vet will keep a check on all the animals. Cathy and I will go in tomorrow and hope to see Bosco feeling better.

Dear friends, please join me in praying for Bosco. Please pray that the fluids will flush out the toxins and Bosco will get well soon.Thank you so much.

And thank you very much, Cathy.

We moved this bench out to the front porch yesterday specially for Bosco and Raven to sit on.

Raven must miss her big brother very much.

We're now going to wire-net the gaps in the gate so that Raven cannot go out of the house. She is so small, she sneaks out very easily. We also do not know what may be poisonous in our garden, if there is any. There are tiny toads coming in. Could that be the cause?

As I now write this and I look at my 7 cats around me, I know Bunny's Place is a fair and necessary compromise for total freedom outside.

I had actually planned to slowly introduce Bosco to the brood. When Bosco first came a month ago (on 27th September), he was sneezing yellow mucus and had eye discharge. Two days of Vetri DMG did the trick and the discharge stopped. After a week of monitoring, I took him for neutering. Then, Raven came with mange and I had to put Revolution on both - that was 11 days ago. Raven did not react to the spot-on, but Bosco did after 4 days. The "burn" spot was quite bad so I brought him to the vet's but the vet said it was alright. Just some iodine would do. I had wanted to get him and Raven vaccinated but seeing the burn spot from the Revo, the vet advised me to wait a bit. And the next day was yesterday when he stopped eating.

I sure miss having Bosco sit next to me on the sofa now. I would do anything to have him back, safe and sound.

Updates at 4.49pm - The first vet just called me. Bosco's hematology blood test results from yesterday just came back and it is quite shocking. Bosco practically has no white blood cells (the reading is ridiculously low). There are many possibilities the that could lead to this, but now, it may not have been food poisoning. It could be blood poisoning due to an acute infection. It could also be parvo virus (though he did not have the classic symptoms). The black-coloured blood indicates that there is a lack of oxygen and very poor circulation. This explains why his body temperature is so low.

I need to protect Raven now since the cause of Bosco's condition is unknown. The vet advised me to give Vetri DMG and to let Raven be in a stress-free environment as far as possible. I should also get Raven vaccinated tomorrow.