r/vet

Not a minor. posting from Texas, USA. Went to urgent care vet and advanced care vet. 5.5 yr neutered male bobtail. Cannot afford much more vet care.

TLDR; my normally sweet cat rapidly developed severe pain, extreme sensitivity to touch, and aggression when handled. X-rays were clear and bloodwork is normal (kidneys/pancreas fine, glucose slightly elevated). Gabapentin helps with the crying, but he now has muscle/leg spasms, back twitching, rapid breathing, and eye widening.

Long version:

Hi everyone. Wanted to see if anyone could offer any advice as the vets have felt entirely unhelpful. My cat who has historically been the cuddliest, sweetest cat for the past few years has declined very quickly. On Thursday I went to trim his nails and when I picked him up he squirmed out of my hands like I scared him. I thought it was weird but didn’t think much more of it. Then I left for a trip Friday. On Saturday my sister went to move him and he hissed at her and snapped but overall still seemed normal. Unsure of his actual behavior over the weekend as I am his main owner and was out of town. Then Sunday he seemed normal and scurried over to greet me as soon as I got home. He went to climb on me so I went to pick him up like I always do and he bit me and flipped out and started yowling in pain, hiding, hissing etc. vet said his abdomen was hard. We got x-rays done and those came back clear (did not send to radiology) but no foreign object ingested, bladder was small, had a little fecal matter present but not much. Got sent home with 1ml gabapentin 2x day. Did not eat or drink at all. Then the next day he had not drank any water and had not urinated (but did eat some wet food) and was wincing at the slightest pet or anything touching him. He would bump into something and scream/yowl in pain. so I took him to the regular vet. He peed on himself in the carrier but I was just glad he peed. He got bloodwork done that just came back this evening and vet said pancreas markers are normal kidney is normal, just slightly elevated glucose. Gabapentin has seemed to help him not cry in pain but still sensitive to touch and will whimper if I am hovering anywhere on her fur but his head. I was at work all today, so not sure of behavior, but he was in the exact same corner crouching where I left him in the morning. He ate a little wet food (only eats when I put it directly in front of him) and peed. Very slow moving but was waiting by the back door to go outside on the deck. Since Saturday he has just been loafing with his bed down and body stiff, but as soon as he went outside he was twitching a little and he laid in this chair and started having larger twitching and leg spasm up, rapid breathing, wouldn’t say pupils are dilating but eyes are widening then squinting then widening. Still has not drank water or passed bowel movement since at least Friday, maybe before then.

My little baby had pyometra (Chihuahua, 7y/o).

Left is her uterus, right is from a healthy cat (both pets had the same body weight). It weighted 250g. 7% of her body weight. She is doing very well now, but i was freaking out.

Symptoms: brownish discharge, fever, no appetite, generally felt sluggish/weak.

When this thing bursts, chances of survival are slim...

Only one out of 5(!) Vets i called saw her immediately, because he understood it was severe and all others didn't think it was an emergency... was a bit frustrated, but all went well in the end ♡

She is a completely different dog now. Has her sass back. You can literally see the quality of life it has brought her back.

My 11 year old GSP started experiencing swelling in her ankle nearly a year ago. Oddly enough, while the swelling doesn’t look great, she only showcases discomfort every 3-4 days when she’ll refuse to put weight on it. It’ll last for about 6-12 hours then she’s fine again - running and jumping per usual. We’ve tried resting and limiting her activity to help minimize the issue but for a year now, no matter what we do, she continues to not put weight on it every 3-4 days. We’ve spoken to vets that have ruled out quite a few things. Their best guess was that a bone spur was pinching her tendons so we went forward with a tenotomy. It’s been about 6 weeks and there’s some improvement but it didn’t fix it. Has anyone else experienced this issue? Thanks

I noticed a small pool of pinkish red liquid on my 12 day old French bulldog pup so I instantly take her to the vet and the first thing they say is spina bifida then they get crazy and come back and say they aren’t sure what it is but think it’s spina bifida … she was not born with the laceration and has only popped up lastnight I have kept disinfectant on it before every feed and put a small dab of animax with a bandaid over the top and it seems to be healing just fine with no fluid underneath that I can see in the past 12 hours just looking for advice she is moving fine and feeding fine

Started last night — 7 week old kitten was constipated, had some poop hanging out his butt so I put his lower half in warm water to get things moving.. Succeeded, was drying him off, he started licking himself and hair started coming off easily.

At first I thought maybe it was dried wet food, despite syringe feeding him so I knew it wasn’t super messy… but no. In a matter of maybe 10 minutes, he licked all the fur off one of his paw fingers.

Contacted shelter via email, shelter said bring him in anytime, so I brought him to the shelter and the vet was currently in surgery. I had to leave him there but figured my email would be relayed.

Went to pick up later today, staff said the vet gave him a checkup and a bath — He’s been pretty snotty due to a URI so not surprised, but the vet did not comment on his hair loss (or constipation/straining). Got home and he’s lost even more hair, on his legs and belly. He’s still licking hair off now, but he’s not scaly at all.

I will be calling tomorrow to see, the vet had already left for the day so maybe her diagnosis/thoughts weren’t written down, but does this sound familiar to anyone?

(Last photo cat tax, about 5-6 weeks old, pre-hair fallout)

Over the last 2 years I’ve really struggled with my 12 year old cat. It all started with a visit to the vet about her teeth. Turned out she had tooth resorption. She had several teeth removed in 2024 and during that time the vet did standard blood work during the procedure. He did let me know her blood platelets were low but she had clotting during the surgery. He ended up sending the blood sample out to their lab, he explained that testing in house can show false low platelets. At the time I had no idea what all this meant so I went on about my life not knowing the risks. Fast forward to 2025 my cat had a large red boil on her bottom and I feared it was a prolapse so off to the ER she went. They again did bloodwork and they said her platelets were at 0. The bump turned out to be her over licking and because of her low platelets her healing was slower. All her other levels were normal except the platelets. I did follow up with her normal vet and he started her on a high dose of Prednisolone and then tapered her down to repeat bloodwork. Her platelets then dropped once off the steroids so he wanted her back on a low dose, 0.3ml and then rechecked her blood levels which had come up some, I can’t remember the exact number but he was content with it and decided she had some sort of immune deficiency given her RBC & WBC were normal. Her levels were nowhere near “normal” but he was okay with it as they weren’t zero. So fast forward to this weekend she went in for normal routine exam and rabies. She had a small sebaceous cyst on her back and this new vet she’s never seen before wanted to look at it, she’s a longed haired cat so he had to shave her down a bit. Unfortunately he nicked the cyst and caused it to bleed. He gave me a topical steroid powder to put on it and sent her on her way. He also did a full bloodwork panel as well. So that leads to today, her cyst was still bleeding and I had no choice but to take her to the ER again where they treated the wound and once again did bloodwork. Her last bloodwork was February and her levels were fine, so today they say her platelets are back at zero but her RBC & WBC is normal. She prescribed an antibiotic for infection and Yunnan Baiyao for the clotting. She also upped her Prednisolone to 0.6ml every 12 hours. She also recommended me seeing an internist/oncologist for further care. Now that leads me to my issue, I’ve put out so much money on her in the last 3 years that I know I can’t afford much more. Sending her to an internist they’d do further testing and possible bone marrow biopsy. But then what? I know I couldn’t afford treatments if it was cancer. Make her go through all that just to not be able to get her treatment? Has anyone else seen or dealt with this before? She eats, drinks and acts normal. Her Red & White blood count is always normal, just low platelets. I’ve had her the entire 12 years she’s been alive and I want what’s best for her, but I just don’t have much money left to continue extensive testing. I can afford to keep her on steroids but that’s about it. So I’m looking for advice or opinions on this.

Lab 3 years old, he have this kinda redness n stuff for long enough now whenever i clean it reappears n that too with foul smell in his ears! That spreads when he shakes his head!

I looked closely for a foreign object and haven’t found one. Only what appears to be a growth on her pad. Wondering if this warrants a vet visit.

Could it be a hair ball stuck? Any direction to what could it be would be really aprecciated i’m very worried. This had happened on a lower scale with a cough like episode two more times on the past but not at this level. As I my usual vet is on vacation I don’t know who to ask.

I took her to the vet yesterday.
They gave her fluids, for potassium and b12, and steroids and a sedative.
She is NOT a cat to eat random things, or get into anything, she barely even eats treats unless they’re the ones she typically eats. Doesn’t chase mice.
Doesn’t go outside. Don’t have any houseplants.

She’s clearly disoriented as fuck.
It’s like she can’t tell up from down.
She can’t walk. She wobbles and it’s like she pulls herself forward with her front paws and her back legs kinda just kick back a bit, but still move, she’s not paralyzed.
She won’t let go of us when we would pick her up, grasping very hard, as if she was scared of falling.

(these videos were taken on the way to the vet and at the vet)

Doc said she’s either got some toxic thing in her from something she ate or it’s neurological.

It’s been 26 hours since the visit.
She’s been in a large cage with blankets. Laying what seems to be I HOPE comfortably. The only thing she’s doing is readjusting her laying position, and lifting her head when we move or she hears something.(better than yesterday, it was like she was in pain the whole time)
She isn’t drinking, I’ve just been booping a drop of water on her mouth every hour to let her lick it.
We had to give her nausea meds, when trying to take a tiny piece of wet food and feed her, she would gag last night.
But this morning she ate 5 tiny treats, still no water.

I don’t want to keep her alive if she’s dying. I don’t want her to be in pain or suffering and I understand steroid aid in pain.
I just don’t want to put her down, too early, and it’s something that she might’ve somehow eaten and she would’ve gotten better.
I understand that this is progress but it doesn’t mean she will be better.

They ran tests and said her heart and literally everything else looks good,(low b12/potassium which they gave her on the spot) so it’s a little odd to be stroke/seizure like.

What do yall think this looks like?

Hello doggo woke me up and was licking foot like crazy and saw this thing. Very very soft feels like it could explode any minute. The whole underneath of her paw looks fine. She is pacing around though and keeps wanting me to pet her. Should I put a boot on her? It’s Friday night and wouldn’t be able to get her to vet till Tuesday unless you all think it’s an emergency. Thanks for any help!

7 year old male Pyrenees mix has been having urine dribble issues and anal gland issues. Anal glands has been a ongoing issue that has required vet draining for past few years this summer the anal gland became impacted and vet is now suggesting removal which he is scheduled for here early September. But also as of late he has started having urine dribble issues an occasionally has light blood mixed in. Last night after dinner my wife came home to find this blood clot and blood on the ground all indications point towards it came from his genital area. Upon checking him there are no signs of an active bleed. his demeanor is fine no signs of pain, pushing on his stomach and area surrounding genitals show no signs of pain. He obviously needs a vet and will get to one but the issue is I am out of town as I am military and will not be back for another week.. My wife does not drive as she doesnt know how and does not have a car. We are also new to the town so we do not know anyone to give her a ride either. So if any medical professionals here could 1. Give me any educated guesses on what were possibly dealing with and 2. How urgent is this do I need to make some calls and try to find someway to get him to a vet or can it wait till next week.

Looking for advice about my 7-month-old Shiba Inu ❤️

Hi everyone! I’m hoping someone might have some advice or experience with this. My 7-month-old Shiba suddenly started vomiting last Sunday. He vomited yellow liquid once, then clear liquid another 4–5 times that day. Since then, he has had repeated gagging every hour (about 4–10 times), although he hasn’t continuously vomited.

He is otherwise acting completely normal — eating, drinking, playing, and having normal pee/poop. His stool has always been a little soft and sometimes has mucus.

We took him to an emergency vet on Wednesday because the gagging wasn’t improving. They said he looked normal and prescribed Sulcrate every 8 hours, omeprazole every 12 hours, and Cerenia as needed, thinking it could be esophagitis/reflux.

He was doing okay on the first two medication (gagging remained), but Friday he suddenly vomited 5–6 times again. We started giving the Cerenia (anti nausea pill) and today will be his last pill, but he is still gagging.

I’m starting to worry that we may be treating the wrong thing and wondering if further testing should have been done.

A few things that might be relevant:

The night before this started, he had two small pieces of bacon and a tiny piece of ground beef (first time he had ground beef).

We gave him water from a park fountain the day before.

About a month ago, he swallowed/chewed a tennis ball and had to be taken to the emergency vet to induce vomiting. He later passed some pieces in his stool, and we’ve been extremely careful with him since.

He’s still energetic and eating normally, but the persistent gagging for a full week is really worrying me.

Has anyone experienced something similar with their puppy? What could cause this, and would you recommend asking for X-rays, bloodwork, ultrasound, or other testing? ❤️

I’m a first-time dog owner and just want to make sure I’m doing everything I can for him. Thank you!

She was fine yesterday but not it seems like her eyes are swollen

So I took my void to the vet last week on monday, They did blood work and a exam and the blood work came back good besides SDMA and GLOB. We were here to update his vaccines but he was being a stubborn boy so we had to sedate him the next day. Come the next day before they were going to take him back they found a bump next to the kidney so we did a couple xrays and found something very abnormal. So we did the xrays and got his vaccines updated and the next day we got an ultrasound done sent that off and got a called pretty much saying "there's something abnormal but we don't know what so we recommend doing a fine needle aspiration". We have that today this after noon and I'm so scared. I know nothing will comfort me and I'm only making it worse doing research on all the possible terrible things it could be but. Only two things I was told it could be is Renal Lymphoma, Renal Carcinoma or Nephroblastoma.

-8/15/26

Well I got a call from the vet and it was pretty much inconclusive. Was on the phone for twenty minutes had my girlfriend, dad and I. All the info we got was "His lymphocytes are increased which is a sign of renal cell adenocarcinoma" I asked so we don't know if he has cancer or what type or anything else she said she doesn't know and cannot tell us yes or no. I was recommended doing another FNA with a bigger needle but its a bigger risk or doing a kidney biopsy which I'm sure will be $5k+. Going to get a second opinion I think. She also said "well if he's acting fine and eating and drinking then there's not much a urgent concern in my opinion. I know its not their cat but like he's my world ITS A LITTLE URGENT TO ME. I'm trying not to be upset but It really hurts when the vets you are taking your baby to seem to not care at all and just want more. I'm gathering all the info and paper work to present to another vet that I think will be better. I hope my baby doesn't have renal cell adenocarcinoma I've read its pretty much a death sentence and not a long life expectancy. He's as pretty as ever with his little bracelet on he's been getting treats he loves and lots of attention.

-7 years old on the 25th

-Black shorthair

-He's eating well he's on rachel ray indoor

-He's not as playful before the vet visits and all and he is only hiding in his one spot he loves but still sometimes comes out to cuddle.

I don't know what else to do besides trying another vet. I feel like I'm going to be told the same thing.

Here's some more info. reports and xrays

We've been to two different vets that are still currently trying to figure out what this rash on my dogs leg is. For general information he is a 5 year old Labrador and nothing has really changed diet wise generally we have put him on steroids antihistamines antibiotics etc nothing he did have two patches on his front legs that have since healed but they never looked quite as bad as this he also used to have on his paws this is a new thing. We put a cone on him to stop the licking. I apologize if this isn't very well written or the most informative any help is appreciated.

I changed her bed cuz the old one is dirty and I don’t want her leg to get bacterial infection

My dog has broken the nail of his left thumb claw. Dew claw? He's already licked it clean, but there's this white-looking spot under the nail. I don't know if that's bone, or just the nail bed. Has he broken his bone as well?

My dog is old, has heart problems and can't stand much stress. It's also a Saturday, and on weekends I can only go to the emergency clinic which I can only do in emergencies. Otherwise I'd go anyway.