Robin,
Unfortunately, based on my experience, this is not
good news. I've lost 3 leuk positive kitties to
anemia. When the hematocrit (red blood cell count)
gets that low, there isn't a lot you can do medically.
I tried prednisone with all of mine. Most it didn't
help but with my one cat, her hematocrit returned to
normal. Then I lost her to a tumor though. My vet
tells me that once the bone marrow stops producing red
blood cells, it is bad news. The only options at that
point are to try to jump start the bone marrow or to
do transfusions. A lot of people recommend liver
shakes, giving iron, using epogen or epoitin. My vet
told me that all of this is useless because these only
work if the cat doesn't have enough iron to make red
blood cells. With leukemia the bone marrow is
physically unable to make red blood cells. It is not
because of a lack of iron but because the virus has
attacked the bone marrow and made it ineffective. A
lot of people still swear by these methods, though, so
I want to mention them.
Transfusions are only a temporary fix because as soon
as the red blood cells die (they have a short life
span), the cat can't make any new ones and they will
need another transfusion and another one. I was told
that after one or two successful transfusions, the
odds of cross-reactivity go up immensely and that in
time the transfusions won't be tolerated. I guess it
is really awful to watch a cat reject a transfusion so
I opted not to do them. I would love to hear how
things go with you. I've always been torn as to
whether to proceed with the transfusions or not. My
cats are all blood typed so I can match blood if I do
one. I've just weighed the options of putting them
through it to buy them another couple months when I
know I can't save them. I've heard most of them do
really well and have a good quality of life after a
transfusion so I hope your kitty returns to normal and
does great. I don't want to sound down here or
pessimistic. I hope and pray that the outcome will be
different for mine every time I get one whose
hematocrit is dropping. I do blood work every 6
months to monitor this level so I know what to expect.
I've had my cats survive with a hematocrit as low as
8. My vet told me once they get to the low teens,
they may have trouble breathing and they may be very
tired and lethargic. They may even pass out because
they can't carry oxygen well. Their heart rate
increases substantially. Mine never really showed any
symptoms other than an increased heart rate though.
They were strong and playful til the last day. Please
keep me posted on how things go. I will pray for you
both and I hope you learn something that I haven't and
that your kitty is just fine. I just wanted you to be
prepared for what could happen.
--- Robin Sarafinchan <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> Our cat, although he tested postive almost two years
> ago, has been very healthy until a few weeks ago
> when he became lethargic and ate less and less.
>
> Blood tests showed his red cell count at 13% so he
> went in for a blood transfusion on Friday. He seems
> a bit better, is eating again, but certainly isn't
> his old self. He is also sneezing a bit.
>
> I am wondering what treatment options I can explore
> and what I can expect from here, what the possible
> outcomes are.
>
> Thanks very much.
Amy Wilkins
Woof Wagon
www.woofwagon.com
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