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My cat has been having audible breathing noises for a few months. No open mouth breathing, just audible through the nose, on and off throughout the day. She’s developed some weird other noises especially while sleeping or falling asleep some snoring, random sneezing as well. She isn’t overweight or old.
We’ve tried antibiotics but it didn’t help. The vets are quoting between $2-10k for just imaging for polyps, not even removal, if they see any. It’s impossible to afford it. She’s eating and playing and acting normal otherwise. I’m wondering what it can be, is it likely polyps and if I don’t go into debt to see, am I going to make her like unliveable?
I’m wondering if I can even rent a car and come down to a cheaper clinic in the US (I’m in Canada) which may be cheaper than doing it locally. There are very few low cost vets here and they only work with people on welfare so it wouldn’t apply. There’s a huge gap between people who are on assistance and people who aren’t but still can’t a afford $10k in imaging.
I have a 7 month old French Bulldog and she has developed a growth on her lower lip. It is not bothering her that we can tell but it doesn’t look very nice. Her vet said that it could be surgically removed but that is pretty pricey and we are just not in a position to be able to do that at this time. Please help are there other options for this to go away or be taken off.
Hello,
Based on age my first suspicion is that this might be a papilloma. If it is there might be more that arise. They typically are found around the mouth. They will resolve on their own but they can be spread to other dogs so your dog should be kept at home until they go away.
Your vet is correct that the only way to diagnose them is to remove them and submit the tissue sample to a pathologist.
Ask your vet if they think this could be a papilloma virus?
I’m in desperate need to help my cat Kitt she is a 13 year-old Siamese cat who has been suffering from chronic constipation. The past five years it has increasingly gotten worse. It seems to be happening once a month now what can I do at home to assist her? I’ve changed diets numerous time, I’ve tried numerous supplements, laxatives- I’m at my wits end on how to help my poor cat. Are there any other suggestions to treatments I haven’t tried.
Hello,
In my experience constipation on cats is always secondary to something else. Either old wounds, like a fractured pelvis, an underlying disease, or diet.
Has your cat had a thorough examination, bloodwork and X-rays? Have your tried different diets, supplements and fluid therapy.
I hope this helps.
My 17 y old female Australian silky,( who is a rescue from a puppy mill that abused her by breeding her over and over again for several years) has had a serosanguinous-looking lump the size of a plum hanging from her abdominal area for approximately 6 years. Within the past week the lump grew in size a bit and started to leak dark brown fluid. The lump also feels hot to the touch. My dog has also grown more lethargic and unsteady on her feet over the past two days. I made a vet appointment but I have to wait 5 days as he has no other openings. Question 1) is it safe for my dog to wait that long? 2) if so, what should I be doing to help her until we get to see the vet?
Hello,
It sounds like this should be seen as soon as able. If it is open and leaking you can try a soft belly bandage to keep it from being traumatized and protected from licking and infection. You will likely have to have it surgically removed to resolve this. If cost is an issue ask if the local shelter or rescues might be able to assist.
Thank you so much for your comments and advice; much appreciated! We have a ‘male dog-type ‘ sling velcro’ed around her with a maxi pad inside. This morning we went to change it while we had her standing on a large pee pad and the entire sac had burst open. It now resembles a popped balloon. We tried to clean her up a bit and put a new sling with a fresh maxi pad around her abdomen. We are trying not to make the sling too tight but snug enough to support the leaking sac. She feels very warm in her underbelly near and around the sac. We are very worried about infxn. Thank you for the idea of asking a shelter for help. Funds are an issue for us now as we are both on fixed incomes. (We have always paid our vet bills; however, and we are not understanding why our vet can’t get us an appointment sooner😢). Thank you everyone, Marilyn
Dr. Magnifico – My captain (5 month old GSD) started vomiting this afternoon. Threw up all the food he had in his stomach at the time and has since thrown up 8 other times. Mostly foamy mucus and liquid. Had diarrhea once so far that was very gassy and liquidy. He can’t hold any water down. He is now just laying down. I can hear his stomach gurgle every once in a while. I’m held up in the kitchen with him. This started around 6pm, it’s now almost 11pm. I don’t know if I should wait through the night or go to ER now. Help please.
Hello,
I’m sorry to hear about Captain. In puppies we worry about parvovirus, intestinal parasites, foreign bodies and eating something that doesn’t agree with them. With your pup I am not as concerned about the first two.
I am at the clinic first thing. We will fit you in.
Dr Magnifico
Thank you for following up. He is back to his normal self this morning. He has eaten fine as well. I guess something did not agree with him.
Hi, this inquiry is for Dr. Graf or Dr. Magnifico, both have seen my Blink for this mystery issue. Blink has had random nose bleeds on and off for about 6 months now and not really sure the cause. They are extremely intermittent and bleed from different parts of his nose (it’s never a lot of blood but enough to notice) He has no other symptoms and is behaving like his normal self although he does have sneezing fits sporadically. Him and his brother both have always had runny eyes etc. On 4/3, Dr. Graf recommended we start a steroid which we totally agreed to but truthfully we did not pick up because we were worried about the side effects and since the nose bleeds are so intermittent we thought we would watch and see. Today 4/21 was the first time we saw a nose bleed happen again (the last time was 3/27). I have included a picture. We just want to make sure we are doing the correct thing, is it still recommended for him to take the steroid?
One thing I realized that I didn’t mention before is that our neighbor is a heavy smoker (cigarettes) and not sure if this is contributing… we like to keep the windows open when it’s nice out so sometimes you can definitely smell it. Just wanted to add that detail as well.
Thanks!
Hello,
There are numerous things that can cause a nose bleed. Some of them may respond to a steroid. But until you have a good idea of what’s causing it (blood work and X-rays along with a good dental exam), it is just a guess that a steroid might help.
I can call you tomorrow to discuss possible options for this.
Dr Magnifico
Thank you so much! I really appreciate it and will wait your call
We had a cat in our shelter with similar symtoms. Turned out, she had a blade of grass stuck up her nose that wasn’t visible. It took a while but after one of her sneezing fits a bit of it poked out in the front and could be removed. Seems it caused a lot of iritation in her nose, but she had no problems after it was removed.
Dr.Magnifico/Pawbly forum
My sister has a 3.5 year old husky mix that has has started experiencing skin issues over the last few months. She’s tried cytopoint injections and more frequent bathing but is now looking into starting him on probiotics because she read it could be a gut issue. Recently, his ear became inflamed and there was some yeast but Zymox has seemed to really improve it, which is what lead her to think this could be a gut thing. He otherwise is a very happy and comfortable and playful dog but does have several instances a day where he is itching behind his ears or licking his paws.
Are there any recommendations of food or probiotics that you recommend?
He is currently on the Purina ProPlan Sensitive Skin and Stomach food. He has regular stools twice/day, no changes in appetite and no other symptoms other than this itchiness. He is up to date on vet visits and vaccines.
Picture uploaded of his cuteness!!
Hello,
This is a common reason why I see dogs. The difficulty is that every dog is different and there isn’t a blanket recommendation for these cases.
The best place to start is with your vet. And a good foundation for preventatives. From there we talk about diet, complicating conditions and a good baseline diagnostics plan. If these don’t yield anything we try medications to see if we get a positive response to treatment.
In all it can be a slow and gradual process of ruling in or out options.
I wish I could help more. But it has to be personalized.
Best of luck.
Krista
I have a question on a 9 year old boxer, back in January he was treated for respiratory cough, he was treated once, didn’t go away. Had to take him back to vet, and treated again was better but it continue for a few more weeks and finally went away. Now our boxer really isn’t eating properly will not eat dry food at all ,only if we give him people food. We rescue dogs and have 2 other dogs so we only have so much of budget.
Any suggestions of what it could be or what minimal testing we can do?
I start a work up for a cough with trying to decide if this is a respiratory issue (ie the lungs/trachea part of the body reposition breathing) or a cardiac problem (heart). An examination is key to this. After that I talk about an Xray or blood work. I wish I could help more than this but I think it’s time for a second opinion and diagnostics.
My dog has a patch on the tip of her ear that looks like a build up of something. It is dry and hard. I started picking at it and the hair started coming part. What is this and how do I help?
She also has other spots on her body that are just dry and thinning hair. Is there anything I can do to help with hair loss/thinning? Anything topical? We were told she may have an allergy to chicken so she is on a sensitive diet.
I suspect that this is related to allergies and therefore the answer lies in helping the body from the inside out versus trying to get topical products work for the outside in.
Please talk to your vet about the many options we have for treating atopy in dogs.
You may also need an oral antibiotic or medication for over abundant yeast.
Hello ! My 6yo husky have like a filter in her eye. She had this about 1-2 times / years, only for few days and it pass. But now, it’s been more than a week, don’t seem to disappear and worse than the other time. What could it be ? Did she need à vet appointment now or I wait a little more ?
Thank you ! – sorry I speak french, I hope my text is clear !
Hi there! While I am not a veterinarian, I believe that is your dog’s third eyelid. If it isn’t retracting, that could mean there is something wrong, and I would absolutely get your dog to the vet TODAY. I don’t let eye problems sit for too long without vet care – it could be something very simple, like allergies, or something significant that could lead to blindness if not treated immediately. Only your vet can tell you what’s going on, here.
Thanks a lot for your answer ! It retract yesterday, but I take an appointment. It happen few time a years so maybe the vet can tell me why / if I can do something about it. Thank you 🙏
Hello,
Without knowing more details I would say keep looking into finding a place that will help you affordably. I do t know why vetmed has gotten so unkind or unwilling to help people and pets like you, but there are still places and vets who will offer care to help patients. Please keep asking for help. I have lots of videos on polyps and I write a lot about them. In almost all cases I recommend a n exam under general anesthesia to look behind the soft palate. I also take skull X-rays and flush the nares if I don’t find one.
Polyps are most commonly found in young cats. It can be a life saving procedure to remove them. I charge about $500-700
Hi Krista,
Where are you located? If I were able to get to the States (I’m assuming you are there) would it be possible to book in with you? There are no lower cost vets here I’ve been looking for a long time and am willing to travel, at this point it seems likes my only option, or not doing anything.
Also – what about nasal polyps?