Should we put our cat down?? Please help!

[cat_lady14]

Hello, I am looking for some opinions on what to do with our cat. We recently found out that she has a diaphragmatic hernia and were advised to put her down, but we want to know if there are other options first. Here is some more information. She is about 9 years old as of this summer. She is an inside cat. About a year after we got her, when she was just a kitten, she got really sick and almost died. We were told to put her down back then and here she is 8 years later and has lived a fairly healthy and very happy life. She has been to the vet since then (obviously) but never for anything more than routine check-ups, shots, etc. Never any blood work or x-rays. When she got sick 8 years ago, the vet told us that she would continue to have "breathing" problems for the rest of her life due to something that happened with her lungs when she was sick. I would say she has always breathed a little heavier than normal, especially compared to our other cat. But her biggest problem has been with her sinuses. She has always had a little whistle when she breathes through her nose because it's always stuffed up. She has always had a bad sneezing problem where she sneezes out snot and boogers that are wet, yellow and pretty large in size. Whether or not that is linked to the "lung problem" is something I don't know, but we've never really gotten a definitive answer on why she does that. We've been told it could be anything from a lung problem, to allergies and it has always amazed me that there's nothing, no kind of medicine or anything that we could give her to help. Five days ago, I noticed one day that she had been missing and I hadn't seen her all day. While it is normal for her to spend most of the day laying around, it definitely was unusual that I hadn't seen her at all to drink, eat, or go to the bathroom. Around 9pm that night we found her hiding under my parents bed. She does that occasionally but will come out when we call her name or shake the bed. We tried everything and it took three of us to get her to finally come out. When she did, she went straight to the kitchen and peed on the rug by the front door, which she has never done before. She wouldn't eat or drink anything and my dad also mentioned that she wouldn't eat her morning snack either (Temptations cat treats) which is very unusual. I picked her up and immediately noticed that she felt warm and was noticeably EXTREMELY lighter and skinnier. We felt guilty that we hadn't noticed it sooner but as far as we knew, she was still eating and drinking normally. I guess we never noticed because none of us really ever pick her up. The rest of that night and the next day she wasn't acting like herself at all. Normally she is a very friendly and "talkative" cat, but she just kind of laid around by herself not acknowledging any of us. That next day we took her to the vet and had a bad feeling. The vet did an initial exam and told us that her heart and lungs sounded good, but she did have a tiny fever. Based on what we told her, she said it was probably just some sort of stomach infection and that we could do x-rays and blood work just in case, or we could give her a shot of antibiotics and send her home. We decided to go ahead with the x-rays and blood work and the results showed something no one expected. The blood work showed that liver enzymes were slightly elevated but other than that, everything was normal. However, the x-rays were something we'd never seen before. It showed that her stomach is up in her chest cavity. The vet said that it was due to a diaphragmatic hernia which was an opening that allowed her stomach to be pushed up into her chest. She said that normally this is something that happens in animals who have gone through some sort of trauma, like being hit by a car, but since nothing like that has ever happened to our cat, it's probably congenital and something she was born with. We asked what our options were and we were told that there was nothing they could do for her there. They said we could take her home and just see what happens, euthanize her, or they could refer us to a specialist for surgery that would cost thousands of dollars and possibly not even work. We were completely devastated and very emotional. We thought about it and decided to put her down and get it over with right then and there. We had the papers signed and then my dad called and told us to just bring her home over the weekend. We asked the vet what she thought and she said that she doesn't think the cat is suffering right now, but she's probably uncomfortable. She said we could just bring her in on Monday to put her down. Since then, she has been eating soft food and drinking water. We've seen her pee, but aren't sure about #2. She is less energetic and lays around more than usual but is still acting like herself. As of today she is still with us because we don't want to euthanize until we know it is the absolute best option. Given that her condition is congenital and we have no previous x-rays to look back at, she could have been like this for years now and it has never been this big of a problem. We asked our vet if we could still do an antibiotic in case she does have a stomach problem and they said no. We don't want to lose our baby girl. Is there anything else we could do for her? How much could surgery really cost? Any suggestions would be very helpful!

[zodiacqueen]

Hi, you could try a veterinary college that is close to your area.  They, I'm sure, would be the ones to do such a tricky surgery.  It's worth a shot to do an internet search to find a local college.  I would look for you, but I don't know what state you're in.

[CML2014]

What a Lovely way to word that ......Final Kindness......and yes it is, isn't it.

[Piparskeggr]

Making the decision about the Final Kindness is the hardest act of love we will ever make for one of our furry friends.

My wife and I have had to make it several times over the years for our girls and we ALWAYS second guess ourselves after.

From reading your story, I'd be torn, too.  Watch kitty carefully, you will see if it is time to let her go.

[opus88]

making these decisions is always very hard on us...its something we have to do for our furbabies as responsible pet parents, but to know when is the 'right time' is a hard call
you have to watch her closely for signs for pain for cats have the ability to mask it very well, hiding away from you as she did is a classic sign of pain.

she HAS to be able to eat, drink and eliminate so you'll have to be sure she is pooping cuz getting blocked up will only make her more uncomfortable and also make the breathing harder
IF she stops any of the above than it is TIME honey....I know you want to keep her with you for as long as possible...but I know you care abt her enough not to extend her life when she becomes too uncomfortable

I can't answer your question abt cost of the surgery, your Vet would have to do that. She would also be the one to ask abt further interventions and what if anything is available, we are not Vets here only pet parents. I know you are grasping at straws and trying to find an answer

I send my love to you and your kitty...I hope she has some good days left to spend with you, show her as much love and attention as possible as I know you will, when she shows signs like I mentioned plz do what you need to do for her, she knows she is loved and that you are trying to do all you can for her, you are a good kitty mommy♥