My old cat's swollen stomach got worse after meds, what should I do?

There are many different issues that could be causing her abdomen to swell, ranging from fluid build up to organ enlargement or tumours. Unfortunately there is no way to shed any light on what is causing it without taking her to a vet for a thorough examination. They may need to run some tests also.

There are a few things that could be causing Chunnu's belly to be larger than normal. First, if she is having heart or liver problems, this can cause fluid to backup into the belly. This fluid can usually be diagnosed with x-rays or ultrasound, and if there is a large amount of fluid it can easily be removed. However, the fluid will usually come back in a matter of days or weeks unless we cure the underlying cause. Another potential cause for a large belly is intestinal parasites. I recommend that Chunnu have a good dewormer or have her stool tested by a veterinarian. The other potential cause is that she is gaining weight in fat. As cats age, they started to shift more weight to the belly and can appear bigger there than when they were younger. If she is eating well and her activity is normal, you could just continue to monitor her belly from home, or see your vet for re-evaluation.

Hi Taylor! I'm very glad that you found Lily, what a relief for you! Likely, her stomach problem is related to intestinal worms. That would cause her constipation and a swollen stomach. Lily will need a deworming treatment as soon as possible. I recommend Drontal, which is available by prescription only from the vet. Drontal is my recommendation for Lily because she could also have tapeworms from being outside so long, and OTC deworming treatments do not contain the medication needed to kill tapeworms. In addition, after being missing for so long, she will need a check up from the vet to make sure she is healthy, and the vet can prescribe her the Drontal while at the visit. I would have Lily seen by a vet tomorrow for a health check and Drontal. Tonight, you can give her a teaspoon of canned pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling) mixed in with her food to see if that helps her poop. Please have her seen by a vet first thing in the morning.

If she has been swollen around her bladder, then this could just be an actually problem like a hernia or something benign like a fat pad. Since she is vomiting and then swelling has been there for awhile now, I would have her checked out at least once to ensure it looks okay. Your vet will be able to tell you whether it is anything to worry with or just to continue to watch. The vomiting could be a complication of a hernia or a different problem like hairballs, eating food too fast, an infection, etc. I hope this helps!

I think there's enough going on here that it would be worthwhile to take her for a recheck by your vet. It's not terrible looking, but there is some swelling along the incision margins and a small defect in the top of the incision. I would expect her incision to look better than this after a week. For now, I don't recommend you do any sort of treatment at home, because this may make things worse. As long as you get her to the vet in the next day or two, she should be fine to wait. I hope that helps and your kitty gets better soon.

Mabel is such a cute kitty!! A small amount of bruising around the incision can be normal, but swelling can indicate a possible breakdown in the stitches holding the muscle together and should be checked out sooner rather than later, especially if Mabel seems painful. If the sutures Di breakdown it is possible for intestines to then become trapped beneath the skin and this can be very serious. I would recommend placing an ecollar on Mabel and confining her to a kennel or large box until you are able to have her seen. Excessive activity following surgery is not recommended and can exacerbate any complications that may develop. I hope Mabel feels better soon!

I am so sorry you and Mimi are going through this. It is perfectly acceptable to seek a second opinion from another veterinarian or veterinary office at any point! If you aren’t comfortable with the testing or diagnosis you may want to reach out to Mimi s doctor first to discuss things again (maybe he had concerns based on the x-Ray? Or maybe fluid was actually examined and cancerous cells were seen?) and in more depth. If you are still uncomfortable though at all , there is no reason not to make an appointment with another vet for their opinion. Anytime a cat has a belly full of fluid, something very serious is going on. And It is unfortunately true that abdominal fluid (aka ascites) in an older kitty is often cancer. The more common cancers we see are lymphoma and adenocarcinoma and mast cell disease. However, there are several other causes including heart failure (the veterinarian would likely be able to rule this out based on exam and x-rays) or infection. Fluid cytology (having fluid submitted to lab to be examined under a microscope) and abdominal ultrasound often can help us start sorting out what could be the underlying problem. Again, I’m sorry Mimi is dealing with this.