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Angelica | 5 months ago
Hello My Name Is Angelica I Am From NJ I Have 8 Years Old Maltippo The Cutestes …

Hello my name is Angelica I am from NJ I have 8 years old maltippo the cutestes ever he has ivdd this is 4th time he is having flare up this time he is paralyzed on the left side back and front side I am doing steroids pain killers trazadone gabapentin and muscle relaxer unfortunately its not getting better in terms of pain he screams out of pain amd when I try to take to the bathroom he is in the cage he is on his 10 day today and he is so painful that every time I come near the cage he growls at me he eats and drinks water not as much as usuall but he does. Please give me advise should I keep going ? Would the pain go away? How many days it does for the pain to go away and regain pain free mobility you are my last resort my husband cant take it any longer. Thank you even if you consultation I would pay my email is angelica456@aol.com and cell phone 908 309 9788. Thank you sooo much Angelica Bornhoeft

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  1. Krista Magnifico

    Hello,
    I’m so sorry to hear about your pup. I don’t know what the time frame for the episodes is? Has it been 4 episodes over years or weeks/months? If it has been over a short period of time you might need to get some imaging done like an Xray to try to rule out this not being a cancerous tumor near the spinal cord.
    If the vet still thinks this is ivdd you might need to add additional pain medication like tramadol, a fentanyl patch, or even injectable ketamine. You can also (probably) increase the methocarbamol. These are all things to talk to your vet about. You can always ask for a referral to a neurologist. They may need to do a ct or mri. But threee might be cost prohibitive. Regardless I think a neurologist is your best option at this time.

    I don’t want to make any suggestions about your pups prognosis without an examination. But we certainly have options for pain management.
    Wishing you the best of luck.

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Keturah | 6 months ago
My 6 Month Old Kitten Has Been Having Breathing Issues. I Took Her To They Diagnosed Her …

My 6 month old kitten has been having breathing issues.
I took her to the vet and they diagnosed her with an ear infection but then she got worse.

I did some research and watched a lot of videos and it seems like she had a Nasal Polyp.

I am sure my kitten is not sick with anything that can be spread because my other cat is perfectly fine.
She typically sounds like she is snoring all of the time.
I am not completely sure what she has, I am looking for an affordable vet to do surgery if needed.

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  1. Krista Magnifico

    Hello,
    I’m sorry to hear about your kitten. It sounds like you are concerned about a polyp? Are you trying to find someone who can help?
    Can you give me more information on what you have done and what has been advised for you to do?
    What are your thoughts and plans for this?
    I am happy to help in anyway that I can.

    I just need to know more about what’s going on?
    Krista.

  2. Keturah Post author

    Hi!

    Yes I am trying to find someone who can give me affordable care for my kitten.
    I live around the DC area and the vets are very expensive and out of my budget.
    I have spent a lot of money bringing her to a vet and an emergency vet that did not help her. I was told that she had an ear infection and I believe she got sick from the medicine they gave her and she got worse.
    She now has a constant snore and from watching your videos and other research I think she has a nasal polyp.
    I originally planned on coming to your office but was told it is too far away and I cannot use your clinic to provide my kitten surgery. I am about an hour and a half away. I have called numerous vets to see if they do surgery and have not found one near me.

    If I am unable to find an affordable vet I plan to take some sort of loan out to get my animal the help she needs.

    Thank you for your help.
    Keturah

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Benedetto JAMES | 6 months ago
DR MAG 11/17/25 TY Again For Seeing My Cat Rihanna Last Month. You Diagnosed Her With CHRONIC …

DR MAG 11/17/25

TY again for seeing my cat Rihanna last month.

You diagnosed her with CHRONIC SINUSITIS.

I realize that is there is NO CURE for this condition
but I was wondering if ? an antibiotic or steroid shot
“could help” with her symptoms and how long ? these
shots would last ?….. and most importantly….. are such
SHOTS even worth doing ? If so ? Please let me know.

TY kindly Doctor
benedetto JAMES patrizio

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  1. Krista Magnifico

    Hello,

    I am happy to help. If this is a question about a patient that I have seen please reach out to me at the clinic. I can call you and we can discuss in person.

    Take care.

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CHANTAL | 6 months ago
Need Help With Fragile 5-Week-Old Kitten (Hypoglycemia, Breathing Issues, Fleas) We Rescued A Tiny Kitten On …

Need Help With Fragile 5-Week-Old Kitten (Hypoglycemia, Breathing Issues, Fleas)

We rescued a tiny kitten on Nov 13th. She was wet, cold, lethargic, and had dried blood around her nose. The ER gave fluids and gabapentin and told us not to feed her, but she declined and we rushed her back.

At the second ER visit they suggested euthanasia, but I asked them to check her blood sugar. she was severely hypoglycemic. After dextrose and warming, they sent her home. She has now been with us for about 15 hours since the crash.

We are doing:
Small formula feeds every 1–2 hrs
Karo syrup on gums when needed
Blood sugar checks (so far stable)
Keeping her warm
Steam bathroom sessions for breathing fits

Current concerns:
Breathing fits when waking (fast, open-mouth, “bubble” sounds)
Very hazy/glassy eyes
Slow responses and occasional small twitches
Dried blood still in nostrils
Fleas, and she’s too tiny/fragile for strong treatments

She’s about 1 lb 15 oz and estimated 5 weeks old. She settles between episodes and hasn’t crashed again, but she’s still very fragile.

I need advice on:
1. Safest flea treatment for a medically fragile 5-week-old
2. Best way to clear her tiny nose of dried blood
3. What breathing signs mean danger
4. Whether neuro symptoms are normal after severe hypoglycemia

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Brianna | 6 months ago
I Just Moved Over 3 States, Which Was A Financial Blow. I Expected To Adjust To My …

I just moved over 3 states, which was a financial blow. I expected to adjust to my new life, but my kitty baby (Female 2 yr old Calico Cat) at the end of July – beginning of August 2025 suddenly had major weight loss and impacted anal glands. Being experienced I relieved them successfully externally, but took her to the vet to get antibiotics and anti-inflammatories and to get to the bottom of what caused it in the first place. I had to struggle finding a vet since I moved here, and no one wants to take payments anymore… the doctor that I talked to was horribly mean to me, made sure to let me know that I was un-welcome, but that they would work with me this one time and to never expect this grace again. From the small town in Arkansas that I grew up in, we have always been able to do payments or a tab, the animal always came first… I have literal receipts and statements from other vets showing that I never miss my payments with the vet, regardless of my credit. I did not realize it then, but their goal was to give me the anti-biotics and anti-inflammatory and send me on my way. But not before they tried to express her anal glands internally in an un-necessary manner. They were not gentle about it either, as she is an extremely quiet animal whose cries and screams when upset or in pain are almost inaudible. But when they took her back there, I could hear her all the way from the other room. I noticed that stuff did not look 100% correct when we got home, but everyone kept gaslighting me and saying it was just the inflammation and it would heal and go away eventually and that I just needed to let the drugs do what they were supposed to do. She started eating again and things were looking up, until this past weekend. She suddenly quit eating and I had to encourage her to eat. I changed her diet to the science diet so she has been on that since the visit. She was losing weight so I got her some vetri-cal while I logged her BM’s and everything until I could figure out what is going on to tell someone. Her butthole did look fine, until it didn’t. I don’t have money, so I was working to try and get to where I can take her, because I know they are going to want payment for EVERYTHING up front. But tonight, when I got home from working late, she was anxious to be going to the bathroom. So, I tried my best to encourage her, but noticed that when she was trying to have a BM she was straining and the inner lining of her butthole was trying to protrude with the BM. She pooped successfully crying the entire time, and there is no protrusion at this time. everything looks normal and dark pink to light red. She has an issue with it gaping off & on. But I am shocked and taken aback and sick to my stomach because I need help and I don’t know where to take her. I can pay, but I just can’t pay all at once in this economy, what can I do? Just took these photos a few seconds ago so you could have a reference to see what it looks like right now.

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  1. Krista Magnifico

    Hello,
    I’m sorry to hear about your cat.
    I have been a veterinarian for over 20 years. In that time I have very (very) rarely seen anal glands be a chronic issue, or cause chronic problems in cats if they can be emptied. I doubt that this is your primary issue. I do think that they should be checked at every examination however.
    I also feel that very few veterinarians run payment plans anymore. Unless you are a long standing good client you are very unlikely to see this available.
    If your cat is not doing well I can only recommend that you find a local, kind, compassionate vet to help you. It is ok to tell them that you are on a budget and it is common practice for us to offer a list of options that can be provided over time as you can afford them.
    I also think that it is important to keep up to date on vaccines, blood work and a fecal check.
    Good luck.

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Shannon | 7 months ago
I I Have A 2 Year Old Male Neutered Cat That Has Had Ongoing Respiratory Issues. My …

i I have a 2 year old male neutered cat that has had ongoing respiratory issues. My vet suspects he may have a polyp in the back of his airway and referred me to a specialist. The specialist wanted to rule out any other diseases so treated him for heart worm, upper respiratory infection and asthma. His symptoms only mildly improved with the asthma pump but has recently been getting worst. He seems to only has breathing issues when he purrs. I saw Dr. Krista Magnifico on YouTube doing polyp removals and I am interested in her opinion. I am willing to travel and book an appointment as soon as possible. I called the Doctors office but was told this was the only method of consultation for Dr. Krista.

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Luz | 7 months ago
My 2 Mos. Old Rescue Kitten Was Born With Her 2 Back Legs Like A Pretzel. We Corrected …

My 2 mos. old rescue kitten was born with her 2 back legs like a pretzel. We corrected the paws with a splint already. They are not in an L shape, but are straight now. The next step will be splints that go from half her paws to half way on her thighs. We are making these splints from human finger splints, and a Dr. will help put them on. Dr. will need to use gas so that kitty is asleep when she puts them on. I just need to know if any part of this plan sounds bad. The kitty is healthy otherwise; playful and growing. It will be beautiful to see her use her legs instead of walking with her front legs and seeing her crooked little legs dangle.

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  1. Krista Magnifico

    These cases are best managed by an orthopedic specialist but often that is cost prohibitive. So if you can find someone who is willing to help you I would always recommend trying. Kittens are amazingly resilient and some do very well despite the most challenging problems.

    1. Luz Post author

      Thank you for prompt comment and for giving me more hope. We are trying to make the best possible splints. We are figuring out how to add material so the end grabs on the floor better and she can stand on them. I am also trying to figure out the best way to cover them when she goes to her box. This is the biggest challenge for me. And I am feeling bad that she won’t be able to jump and run and she doesn’t now on the bed, even with her legs dangling. But I hope her legs will be useful in a few weeks. We will keep loving her and playing with her (on her tummy) as much as we can. She’s the child of the family.

    2. Luz Post author

      Hello again. She has her splints back on. I was so very nervous about the use of gas. She’s did fine. I am told she should not be moving hardly and that will be the hardest thing.

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Steve | 7 months ago
Last Night My Dog’s Nail Got Pushed Up In A 45 Degree Angle. There Some Bleeding …

Last night my dog’s nail got pushed up in a 45 degree angle. There some bleeding but it stopped fast. She doesnt seem to be bothered too much when I touch around the area and she is still running around right after that happened. I saw your video and wondering should I pull it out? Please advice

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Nikki | 7 months ago
I Apologize In Advance For The Long Post… I Have A 4 Year Old Hound Mix “Roscoe” …

I apologize in advance for the long post… I have a 4 year old hound mix “Roscoe” who has been seemingly healthy since we adopted him at 14 weeks old. He is neutered, receives regular vet care, is up to date on all vaccines, and is on a monthly oral heartworm and flea/tick preventative. He is a grazer and eats Blue Buffalo Life Protection Formula dog food, and he takes Vet-IQ brand Hip & Joint and Pet Honesty “Super Pooper” probiotic supplements daily. He gets dog treats and basically no table food unless something small is dropped. We do not have a fenced yard and he does not listen well (hound dog… follows his nose) so he is leash-walked twice daily and is never outside off-leash. This evening my husband was walking him and on their walk they encountered two dogs that we were unfamiliar with; Roscoe became upset and was acting like a lunatic and pulling very badly on his slip knot leash. After the dogs passed, Roscoe laid down in a neighbor’s yard and vomited. After a few minutes, they crossed the street and he vomited again in the middle of the street. Once they got to the other side, he vomited again (all vomit appeared to be undigested food) and laid down, refusing to move any further. My husband called me to come pick them up because Roscoe would not get up and walk any further. I arrived with the car (Roscoe is an anxious dog and hates cars and car rides) my husband had to pick him up to put him in the backseat and he sort of collapsed. His gums were pale, his breathing was weird (shallow and alternating between rapid and very slow) ordinarily I would’ve called it panting but his mouth was closed the whole time and the breaths were coming out of his nose. He had a very distant stare and I honestly thought he was dying right in front of my eyes.

We rushed him to the emergency vet and once inside he was wagging his tail and perked up quite a bit from what he had been, but was still not himself. He was able to walk from the lobby into the back, and from the back into a room. We spent about 3 hrs just waiting to be seen, they checked his vitals and everything looked normal but he did vomit 4 different times, which was partially digested food mixed with foamy bile. Abdominal X-rays were normal (3 different views) no masses or foreign bodies were observed (someone is always home with him and we did not believe he could’ve gotten ahold of anything anyway) – we did bloodwork and this resulted in several concerning levels:

His red blood cells, hemoglobin & hematocrit, bilirubin & ALT are all elevated. The ALT is what they consider severely elevated, normal is 10-125, his is 786. Bilirubin normal is 0.0-0.9, his is 2.2.

Red blood cell normal is 5.65-8.87, his is 8.99.

Hematocrit normal is 37.3-61.7, his is 63.6.

Hemoglobin normal is 13.1-20.5, his is 22.2.

His platelets are also a little low, normal is 148-484, his are 114. They visualized them under the microscope and said he does have some large cells present, whatever that means?

The emergency vet gave him sub-Q fluids, an anti-nausea medicine and sent us home with a liver support medication (Denamarin) that we started tonight. We are to follow up with our regular vet on Tuesday for repeat bloodwork to make sure his platelets haven’t dropped any lower but I’m just curious as to what your thoughts are? He was completely fine all day before this happened this evening, he was his usual self. We are worried sick. 😭💔

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  1. Krista Magnifico

    Hello,
    I’m sorry to hear about the situation with your dog. It also sounds like you did everything right in seeking care. I cannot interpret blood work findings as these always need to be done with an examination to make sense. But my suspicion is that the episode triggered a massive adrenaline response and he also suffered the consequences of this and pulling hard on a leash. Hopefully this will be a singular episode but I do think it’s time to seek a positive reinforcement trainer and learn some basic obedience skills. And try a gentle leader or even some mild anxiety medication for the training period.

    I hope he continues to improve
    Keep us posted

    1. Nikki Post author

      Hi Dr. Magnifico,

      I have an update (and more questions) about Roscoe – we followed up with our regular vet 2 days after my last post (so on 10/14) for repeat bloodwork and additional testing and were hoping for some answers but unfortunately we left with more questions. While his ALT levels had come down some (it was 786 on 10/12, 660 on 10/14 and he started on Denamarin on the night of 10/12) his platelets also dropped more (they were 114 on 10/12, 93 on 10/14) which is obviously very concerning.

      Our regular vet tested him for Heartworm, Erlichia, Lyme & Anaplasma on 10/12 – all were negative. He is vaccinated for Leptosporosis, which is why I’m assuming they didn’t test for that? The vet did say that tick born infections can sometimes take awhile to show up, so he proactively prescribed doxycycline which we started the same day.

      Physical examination was normal at both the ER on on 10/12 and our regular vet on 10/14. Gums are normal color, he is eating and drinking, he has had no more vomiting episodes since that evening on 10/12. Our regular vet suggested that he needed an abdominal ultrasound to look at his liver and spleen; we had that done on 10/16 and and the vet told me that everything looked fine, nothing too abnormal (he had a little liver inflammation present but he said that was to be expected with his high liver levels) but otherwise no real concerns. At that point Roscoe had been on the Denamarin for 5 days, and the Doxycyline for 3 days. Since the ultrasound was clear, the vet said that he was still thinking that he likely had an undetected tickbourne illness and that unless something were to change, he recommended that we finish both medications and then recheck his levels in 4 weeks in hopes that everything had come back to within normal limits. Thankfully nothing changed and Roscoe has remained his normal self.

      He finished his medications and I took him back on 11/20 to have his bloodwork rechecked; I was relieved to learn that his ALT was back within normal limits at 79 (it was previously 786 on 10/12 and 660 on 10/14) and his platelets, while still low at 124, were higher than they had been (they were 114 in the ER on 10/12 and dropped to 93 in their office on 10/14) so there was some improvement there as well. However there were some notable changes in some other levels that were already concerning…

      Red Blood Cells were 8.99 on 10/12, 9.46 on 10/14, and 9.62 on 11/20.

      Hematocrit was 63.6 on 10/12, 66.0 on 10/12, and 68.3 on 11/20.

      Hemoglobin was 22.2 on 10/12, 23.1 on 10/14, and 23.4 on 11/20.

      Reticulocytes were 44.1 on 10/12, 127.7 on 10/14, and 152.0 on 11/20.

      MPV was 14.9 on 10/12, 14.8 on 10/14, and 14.1 on 11/20.

      White blood cell count was 9.34 on 10/12, 6.46 on 10/14, and 4.59 on 11/20.

      I’m curious to know your thoughts are about what is or could be going on and what you think our next steps should be?

      I know that a high red blood cell count, hemoglobin & hematocrit are certainly not ideal, especially since they seem to be getting progressively higher, but I’m trying not to freak out too much because my own mother’s red blood cell count, hemoglobin & hematocrit have all been flagged as being high for the last decade (literally every single blood draw she’s ever had in the last 10 years has come back flagged) and none of her doctors have ever been concerned… I even proactively took her to a hematologist who just brushed it off and said yes, they’re high, but I have patients with much higher levels so I’m not concerned… with that said, how worried should I be about Roscoe? (because I am a worrier!)

      I would really appreciate any advice or insight you may be able to provide. Roscoe is still eating, drinking and playing normally and is behaving like his usual self before any of this ever started.

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Jeremiah | 8 months ago
I Just Brought My 4 Year Old Male Cat Home From A Very Very Expensive Trip To …

I just brought my 4 year old male cat home from a very very expensive trip to the ER. 6k expensive. He was blocked and in extreme distress and the ER I went to was down the street. They unblocked him the first night and it went well, inserting a catheter. They kept him a second night to monitor his creatine levels and the output of urine, which was high. The following day they suggested a bladder flush and I agreed to it since they saw a lot of grit in his bladder from the ultra sound. They said it went smoothly and a lot of that material came out with some blood clots. They told me not to worry about the blood clots as those wouldn’t block him. And in the third night they removed the catheter and monitored his ability to pee. Gave me a run down this morning on everything and what to look out for. I’m just worried about him reblocking. Is that something I should lose sleep over? I’m my mind I am thinking that since his bladder is flushed out, he should be good to go with a much lower risk for blocking, right? I’m be heading to the store with his prescription to buy the hills urinary wet food shortly. That’s about all I will be feeding him going forward.

And reassurance would be much appreciated as I’m just freaking out because I can’t afford more of this! 🙁

UPDATE: 31 hour update since we left the vet. He urinated on his own around 2pm on Sunday Sept 14th, the day I got him home. He has a little trouble but interestingly enough, a struvite crystal popped out of his penis! About the size of the head of a needle. I think that’s the crystal that the vet saw on the X-ray the first day he got in, near the penis. He bled in his pee right after this. He isn’t urinating a ton each time he pees, it’s about 4ml to about 6-8mls of urine each time. The blood pretty much dissipated after about the 3rd pee. After that I have him 1ml of Gabapentin. Vet told me that it is used not only to calm them but provide pain relief and allow them to accumulate pee. I was so exhausted, I think emotionally more than anything, that I laid down around 7pm. He woke me up so that he could get under the covers and go between my legs. He hasn’t done that in a long time so I really was enjoying that. I woke up around 11 so that I could give him another half dose of the gabapentin to last through the night. Again, he climbed under the covers with me and slept their through the night with me. I was surprised that I didn’t move at all throughout the night. I think subconsciously I needed him next to me like that and he knew that.

I woke up around 5:30-6am the next morning. This is when he got up and ventured over to the litterbox. His first attempt, nothing came out. And then I came to the realization that he preferred to pee on the pee pads I had laid around the room. At this point, IDC where he pees, just that he’s doing it. So the next 8-10 times, he urinated the same amount that I noted above. I did Google how much a cat’s bladder can hold and it said anywhere between 25-50 ml. And by how much he was peeing, I felt confident that he emptied his bladder this morning. I have him a decent dose of the gabapentin around 7, so now I’m just waiting for him to try to urinate again. It’s just so anxiety inducing because I’m worried about reblocking. The vet has given me direction to give the gaba starting at 10 on Sunday but he fell asleep around that time and I opted not to give it to him. When I called the vet to get some reassurance, they told me what the purpose of the gaba was, as noted above, so I have come to realize that the gaba is more than likely helping with the inflammation caused by the catheterization being in him for 2 and a half days. At this point I’m just waiting to see how he does this evening, mostly because I need to return to work tomorrow. So I’m just praying that he’ll be fine tomorrow and the next coming days. Praying….

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  1. Lucy

    It sounds like things are going well! Hills c/d diet and making sure he gets plenty of fluids to avoid more crystals forming is key. You can introduce a cat water fountain (a stainless steel one) to encourage more drinking or see if he’ll enjoy a watered down churu treat from time to time. Sometimes it takes them a little bit to want to use the box if they associate it with the straining. You can try putting the pee pad in the litterbox to see if that helps bring him back to going in there. Keep us posted!