I don't know where you live, or the nature of the transfusion, it
could be more involved that the usual. But I've had transfusions for
a couple of my FELV cats, and they did extend their lives a bit. Just
have to say that $800 sounds like an awfully expensive transfusion.
Gloria
On Jan 23, 2009, at 4:55 AM, catatonya wrote:
I'm sorry, Jennifer.
tonya
James G Wilson <phaed...@charter.net> wrote:
------- Forwarded message follows -------
From: Jennifer Dykhouse
To:
Subject: Blood transfusion on Felv+ cat
Date sent: Wed, 21 Jan 2009 14:17:45 -0500
Hello everyone,
I thought I'd let you know how the blood transfusion
helped/didn't help my Felv+ cat, so that if you need to
reach that decision, you can see my example.
The day before we did the blood transfusion, Mr. Darcy's
hematocrit count was at 7 (I was told that 30 is the lowest
you can be and still be healthy). He was extremely
lethargic and as a result would eat. He lost 2 pounds in a
month (even with us assist feeding him) and he was
starting to catch a respiratory bug.
Right after the transfusion, which cost 800 dollars and
took about 5 hours, his hematocrit was at 17. That's
great, but I am upset. I was thinking he'd be brought up to
a healthy level, not just a slightly better level. He had
perked up and he is eating turkey baby food now, but he
still is extremely tired and now he has balance troubles.
What I am most upset with was the lack of information
from my vet and the animal hospital. When told about the
blood transfusion by my normal vet, she made it sound
like he'd be back at a healthy level and that it could work
for months and that it was perfectly safe. When we were
handing him over to the vet at the hospital, he finally told
me that Mr. Darcy could die during the procedure and that
it may only last a few hours, days. I am furious. It makes
me feel like money is more important then informing the
owner.
I have decided to not do any more transfusions due to the
fact that he's in the last stage of his illness and going to
the vet really stresses him out. He won't eat for the rest of
the day and since the transfusion may only give him days,
I would rather have him enjoy his last days/weeks. So
right now, we're at the point where the most we can do is
get him to eat and sleep and to pet him and love him as
much as we can.
Now, your cat may have a different experience, but I just
wanted to tell my story.
Jennifer and Mr. Darcy
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