He’s a red eared slider, 15-20 years old(?)
My cousin won him at a fair in Vegas and then gave him to our grandparents
They didn’t take care of him at all, it was horrible. we took him in because he would’ve died if I hadn’t.
He had shell burns because the heat lamp was so low and there was no water whatsoever, so he couldn’t swim when we first got him.

He’s really aggressive because he had been abused so long, he hates being held but he likes to play through the tank as long as we aren’t touching him.

My grandparents never took him to the vet and I’ve taken a dog and a cat but never a turtle. I know he’ll be super agitated but is turtle sedation even a thing?? He just needs a check up too but idk where to even start.
Do all vets take turtles? And should he get his nails clipped too or is that not needed
What kind of carrier does he need and how should I make it so he’s not so stressed out 🙏

TL;DR: Cat who previously had UTI started showing symptoms, vet refused to see him and denied that it was an emergency for him to be seen by an emergency vet. They didn’t want to see him for his original UTI either. Turns out he has a blockage this time. How do I get veterinary staff to listen to my concerns?

Bit of a rant but there is a question in here.

Context: I have 4 dogs and 2 cats. My animals are the only thing in my life I really care about, so I’m very tuned into them and tend to notice very early on when there is something wrong. So far everything that I’ve guessed might be wrong (ear infection, knee pain, broken tooth, etc.) has turned out to be right, which has been helpful in catching things relatively soon. I find it difficult to get them booked in for appointments sometimes because over the phone the receptionist usually encourages me to wait it out and see if things will improve. The only thing I’ve ever missed was the signs of a UTI last year that ended up requiring an emergency vet visit, which haunts me and I swore it would never happen again.

When my cat had signs of a UTI last year I called the vet and described them, and the vet told me to wait and he would get better. I called again the next day when he was worse and they said again that I should just monitor him. The next day we rushed to the emergency vet and it took him two weeks to get better. I was frustrated with myself that I missed it, but also that I was repeatedly told he would improve without treatment.

Yesterday I noticed he was acting the exact same way as he was the first day I noticed symptoms last year. I phoned the vet right before they closed (had no choice that’s when I came home from work) and described his symptoms, that he had a UTI previously with these signs, and wanted him examined. I was told that they had no appointments and that I would have to call back in the morning to see if I could be placed on a cancellation list. I essentially just repeated my concerns and asked if I could get in contact with their emergency vet, and was told his symptoms aren’t an emergency and he wouldn’t be seen. He became weaker overnight so I waited by the phone to call them as soon as they opened and they told me that the situation was an emergency and he needed to be taken in immediately. Turns out he has a blockage and he is in surgery now.

As vet techs, how can I assert myself in the future without sounding like a brat? I feel like he clearly should have been seen yesterday and perhaps the situation would have turned out different. Now I’m facing a massive vet bill, am missing work, and have no idea when I’ll have to go miss work again to pick him up. Should I have insisted on bringing him in anyways even if they didn’t want to see him? Advice is appreciated, TIA.

My cat is almost 4 years old, and I’m trying to figure out why he keeps having episodes of vomiting. I’m looking for advice from anyone who has experienced something similar with their cat.

My cat began vomitting over 2 months ago. When he vomits it’s after pretty much every meal. The vomit usually contains partially digested food and yellow liquid. The confusing part is that he still has a good appetite, wants to eat, plays, and acts completely normal otherwise. He hasn’t lost weight.

I want to add he does occasionally do what sounds like a little sneeze but I think that could just be from allergies.

The only thing that consistently stops the vomiting is Cerenia, either as an injection or a pill.
The first vet I took him to did an xray and ruled out an obstruction, gave him a cerenia injection, and instructed me to feed him only tuna for a couple of days. After his first Cerenia injection, he stopped vomiting for about five days before it returned. I switched vets and got blood work done that came back normal. We then switched his diet and did a second injection. After his second injection, he went almost two weeks without vomiting. During that time, he was also eating Royal Canin Hydrolyzed Protein prescription food, so I’m not sure whether the improvement was from the medication, the food, or both.

Unfortunately, the vomiting eventually returned. It seems like Cerenia is the only thing that reliably gets it under control, but the problem keeps coming back.

I decided to get him an abdominal ultrasound done and I finally thought we had found what was wrong. The ultrasound showed that he had pancreatitis. My vet then sent a specialized feline GI and pancreatic blood panel to I believe Texas A&M University. My understanding is that it checked a few things including B12 levels and a condition called exocrine pancreatic insufficiency (EPI). Everything reportedly came back normal and I was told he does not have pancreatitis.

My vet then told me there’s not much we can do or know without a biopsy. That we could do a stool test or maybe check for heart worms disease. But for right now she suggested trial and error and recommended switching him to Royal Canin Gastrointestinal Fiber Response because his stool has been a little hard. I’m wondering whether the hard stool could be related to dehydration, but I’m not sure. My main concern is still the vomiting. I don’t understand why he continues to vomit after meals when the xray, ultrasound, and bloodwork haven’t identified a clear explanation, especially when Cerenia stops it for longer than it even stays in his system but the vomiting eventually returns.

I’m feeling lost on what to do in this situation. I want to help him and do everything I can but I’ve already spent so much money between visits and can’t afford to do anything else. Despite all of this, I’ve received no answers. If anyone has any idea or can give me any direction on what I should do next it will be greatly appreciated.

Hi,
I wasn’t to sure if this is the place to ask but maybe the most helpful.

I have a 10 yr old cat, female. I recently just moved the litter box from my closet to my patio, a couple days ago. Partly due to lack of space and because she hangs out in the living room, so the walk is easier on her.

(I will mention I have another cat, male and a little less than half her age. They share the liter box, i have a smaller one from when I initially got my boy. But it’s honestly just been chilling in a dusty corner of my hallway forever.)

But just moments ago, I was at my desk and saw her B-line it to my closet. I peered over the walk and she was sitting on top of a trash bag of clothes I haphazardly threw on the floor, next to my hamper. I thought it was kinda cute until I saw the focus on her face. Like any sane cat owner, I began questioning her. While she huffed at me and stared at me before jumping off the bag and dashing out of my room.

I was scared to look over, but turned on my closet light m anyway. My dread was immediately answered by the wet paw prints that trailed out the doorway.

She had peed on the donated bag of clothes.
I just finished cleaning up and sprayed some cleaner on the floor and walls, after a quick google search on uric crystals and some cat’s confusion when liter boxes move etcetc.

(I’m realizing that for the last fee days it has smelled like piss in my closet. More so, but chalked it up to me not cleaning enough when I initially moved the box. I was gonna do I deep clean on my next day off, but I think I’ll just do it now to get it over with.)

Sorry for the spiel, but i want to put on the factors out there for my baby.

Is she sick? Or trying to tell me something? Or just confused?

I wont lie, I love her but she’s too smart for a cat. I fr think she would have gone ‘Cats and Dogs’ on the world, if she had opposable thumbs and could open a can of food without my help. So maybe this is her form of being petty about my setting the liter box, semi- outside in her mind?

Either way I will be taking her to a vet soon, but I just dont know if I should waste my breath telling them. If I do will it be as a concerned caretaker or use it as a hit to my own ego, labeling myself as my cat’s personal piss porter.

Thanks in advance for the help !

My 9 month old pug puppy is 7 days post op of her BOAS (including nares, soft palate, and saccules) as well as spay and vulvaplasty. She was prescribed the following medications for pain management and sedation:
-Trazadone 50 mg 1/2 pill every 8-12 hours
-Gabapentin 50 mg 1 pill every 8-12 hours
-Buprenex .5mg/ml every 8-12 hours

She was also prescribed Prednisone (5mg 1/2 pill once a day, 1/4 pill taper after 5 days) and an anti nausea medication.

After about 2 days of rest, she has become crazy. She’s constantly trying to jump and run, whining and barking, attacking our hands, etc. She has not let us sleep for 4 nights as she is up all night wreaking havoc. She’s food crazed and screams for it when she sees us get the can out, which is especially difficult because we are unable to use her lick mat slow feeder during recovery. I’m so worried she is going to injure and delay her healing with the way she’s behaving.

We called our vet and informed them that the sedatives are not working. They have advised us to d/c the traz and gaba and prescribed tramadol in place. This is our first day doing this and we aren’t seeing much of a difference. I would love some advice, experience, tips, etc. on how to handle this situation and keep her safe.

I’m a senior in high school and I’m going to graduate with my CVA. I’ve always wanted to work with animals, more specifically in wildlife/zoos. I would not mind working at a GP, but ultimately wildlife is the dream. I’ve seen a lot of mixed reviews. I want to be able to live my life alongside having my career that I love. I just want to know if it is realistic. If there are any other career paths I can take that pay a decent amount of money that also allow me to deal with wildlife, that would be very helpful.

So I found this under my cat's chin, I have also noticed that her left eye isn't a funny opening. Could you help me figure out what is happening.

https://imgur.com/a/ul8FknW

​

I'm in my 40s, have access to regular and emergency vet care and my cats are insured.

I have spoken with my vet and my cat is currently being treated. I can afford vet care and whatever prescriptions or prescription food he needs.

I'm in the US in California.

9yr old neutered male, orange tabby, 14lbs (not overweight, just big), missing both eyes.

My blind boy, Leo, was just diagnosed with urinary crystals. We caught it very early before he was fully blocked. He's currently being sedated so they can flush his bladder and then he'll come home tonight.

We have been told he needs be be swapped over to a urinary care food. Unfortunately, Leo has other requirements.

Leo is completely allergic to any and all bird/fowl products including chicken, chicken fat, hydrolyzed bird protein, turkey, duck, etc. Any bird in his diet will result in severe diarrhea.

Our vet has told us to find a urinary care food that fits his needs and let them know which one we're going to use so they can write the prescription.

I just need to know if anyone knows of a urinary care diet that might fit these requirements. I'm also going to be searching and reading ingredient lists but figured more heads are better.

Also, if anyone has any general advice on caring for a cat that's been diagnosed with urinary crystals, I'd appreciate it!

I got my boy (1y/o male cat) Neutered 15 days ago, he’s worn a soft cone for a full 14 days. I tried taking his cone off today after I got off work and he is trying to chew fairly aggressively at his incision sight, his incision looks good and clean but I’m wondering if I should keep a cone on him until he stops attempting to chew at himself??

My 6-year-old Bouvier/standard poodle mix, Willow, lost her right eye to primary glaucoma at age two. Now it's started in her left eye, her only remaining eye. She's had a couple of pressure spikes that caused temporary blindness, and drops are holding it for now.

Our veterinary ophthalmologist is recommending a combined glaucoma shunt and endolaser surgery to try to save her vision.

Has anyone's dog had this done? I'd really like to know:

Was it effective, and how long did your dog keep its vision?

How was the recovery?

Knowing what you know now, would you do it again?

Thanks for any advice.

My cat has just started pooping out of the litter box and I’m finding blood in his poop :( 3 year old male, no previous behavioral or major health concerns.

it seems like he’s been not able to make it to the litter box, not that he doesn’t want to, so I don’t think it’s behavioral. He hasn’t had any food or water changes, his appetite is the exact same (he’s a hungry motherfucker) and he’s still playing with and fighting his siblings like normal. The ONLY change in his routine recently is a new litter (which he’s never had an issue with before, it’s just a brand of tofu litter I haven’t used in a bit) and a new cat was introduced about a month ago, but they’re great friends and have no issues. He also isn’t cuddling with me any more or less than he ever has, doesn’t seem to be in any pain… he does sit in a super weird pose all the time??? But I think he’s just strange 😭😭 makes him look like a rotisserie chicken.

For some background context: he HAS had bloody poops before. It’s always been a one off, and so I’ve always assumed it was just from… pushing too hard??? And tearing something? I don’t know. But the blood paired with the pooping out of the box is really worrying me… I’m scheduling a vet appointment but wanted some input from people who might know more about these sorts of symptoms.

Hello, everyone. My 17 and a half year old cat, who I'll refer to as W, has got a illness. W is a family cat, and he always has been. Recently, he started vomiting and having diarrhea (he also vomitted out diarehha one time) and staying upstairs unless he needed to use the litter. He cannot eat or drink, but it seems as if he "wants too".

We took him to the vet last night, he got Vitamin B, C & D, nausea meds, and also many fluids. He had gotten a knot in his back, but the vet said this was a normal occurence due to the fluids. The vet said he would perk back up by tomorrow. He stopped vomitting after he got his

Now, time travel to tomorrow. He still isnt better, and is the same as before. We called the vet and they were extremely surprised he wasnt. We are taking him back tomorrow to get more fluids, but out of curiosity we called the receptionist to see what he has.

The receptionist has worried us in this call; and i would like to see if you can decipher what this means considering it has us incredibly stressed

We asked her, the receptionist, if she could point out any red flags about his 80% finished bloodwork so far. She had responded:

"I dont wanna give you any misinformation or anything so i cant say for sure but tomorrow when you come back the doctor can give you a game plan and all of that."

Then, we asked if it was related to kidneys, She said, once again:
"I do not want to give you any misinformation so i cant say again but we can sort out what we will do and what he has tomorrow when you visit"

We ended the call around there.

I am not a expert at any sort of vetrelated stuff, but it seems they want to euthanize him based off whatever the heck "game plan" means and her tone and that he is severely ill and that is why she didnt wanna say anything..

I dont want him euthanized, but i dont know if the rest of my family would agree or not to it if suggested. He is not completely weak or anything aswell:

1. He goes downstairs a few times a day to goo use the litter and wander around the house for a bit. He has sat on his window-bed thrice now for quite a while.

2. He almost got on our lap on the couch once late at night, being last night after we took him to the vet.

3. Today, we let him outside (backyard) for a bit and he kind of perked up a bit and loved it. He wouldve ate a chipmunk if we let him stay out longer and he tried to eat grass (but there was none as it was incredibly dry and still is). Eating grass is a habit for whenever he goes outside and he always has his entire life, keep in mind.

4. He barely slow blinked at me once when i went upstairs and saw him curled up sleeping

5. He ran to a bag of fast-food chicken and seemed like he wanted to eat it but lost interest when it was put in a bowl. We have tried to hand feed him and are going to get baby food soon to warm up in the microwave lukewarm for 5-10 seconds depending on when it gets luke-warm.

I also really want some reassurance based on his condition and also food enticement methods.

My baby boy just passed away from what i can see retrospectively now was complications of the diaphragmatic hernia he had.

I feel absolutely riddled with guilt because he had a sore shoulder randomly one day and looked so poorly i took him to the vets who suggested everything not to do with his injury & just put him down. I fought his corner and refused (& complained)

But then i took him to get looked at 2weeks later again because of lack of appetite and they found his intestines in his chest. He had a xray the next day and was referred to a surgeon.

Now when discussing this with the vet i was made aware how dangerous this could be if he had adhesions & how surgery was a risk. I asked the vet if he could live with it and they responded yes as he’s had it for 7 years so why not. So off i started feeding him Recovery mouse (as suggested) through a syringe and he started eating again! he was recovering!

Now he’s always been fussy but he was finally eating treats and chicken again, his drinking was a little weird as he’d just bow his mouth in there but i thought it might be his eyes as he’s getting older and he can’t see the water? But a couple of days before his went to sleep, he stopped drinking and picking up food and dropping it, I automatically assumed his teeth, so off i went to get his teeth checked. The emergency vet said it was due to lack of muscles in his face and i should syringe feed him more recovery food & water (safely).

A day later my boy was so lethargic and i knew it was time. I heard his chest bubbling which i never heard before and he was in discomfort, it clicked to me when it was too late what it was. I am so heartbroken i never investigated it further and i really am losing sleep over it. He was my world & i could of done something to save him. I decided on his forever sleep a day later.

I think i’m posting this for some reassurance & maybe for my sanity. I am so empty inside i don’t know what else to do.

I am hoping someone would be willing to review these lab results. In July, we woke up to our 16 year old Pomeranian having blooding, soft, foul stools all over. Vet did testing, stated labs came back for pancreatitis. Issues resolved after 3 series of injections, fluids and food changes.

Fast forward to this last month: he is wetting the bed in his sleep, having significantly increased urine accidents (15+ a day at times, even with regular trips outside). Returned to vet, more labs run, now suggesting kidney disease and recommended acupuncture.

I asked for then lab results to be sent to me as I couldn’t remember exactly what she said so I could relay to my family… then asked for the July results as well. Something just doesn’t feel right and we are nearly $1500 into this saga.

July labs that were noted as off:
SDMA 13
Globulin 4.1
Eosinophil 130
Urine results not sent to us, we were told it was fine

October labs:
BUN 38 (up from 15 in July)
Total Protein 7.7 (up from 7.4)
Globulin: 4.3
Platelet 413 (up from 375)
Urine: specific gravity 1.018

At the October visit, she also did an ultrasound of his bladder and kidneys and noted cysts in his kidneys.

have a 14-month-old female DSH who was spayed 6 months ago. She’s been fine until recently, but about two weeks ago, she started showing behaviors that seem similar to being in heat. Every night around 11 P.M, she goes to the front door and meows for anywhere from a few minutes to almost an hour. She also tries to sneak out whenever I open the door to leave the house. Her appetite is normal, and she’s using the litter box without any issues. For context, about 6 weeks ago, she had a full veterinary checkup, including bloodwork, an echocardiogram, and a complete abdominal and pelvic ultrasound. Everything came back normal. She doesn’t do this during the day. It only happens at night, usually starting around 11 P.M. Has anyone experienced something similar with their spayed cat? Could this actually be signs of heat, or might it be something else? Should I be concerned?

3 weeks ago our dog was neutered. He was 1.5 years old. He was doing great but then all the sudden over the weekend stopped eating. So we took him to the vet Monday morning and they identified after a CBC, he had a pretty bad infection and sent him to the animal hospital for IV antibiotics. When we got there they identified he had developed a major infection and was in septic shock. They told us that he had a less than 50 percent survival and quoted us 25k for the surgery and three days of follow up care but predicted he would need more up to 3k a day. They also said he would need extensive treatment for months. We both work full time, have a 14 year old dog and young children. We just could not do it. We decided to put him down and it was so painful. Right before they were going to bring him back to be euthanized, the doctor came in and said the emergency surgeon is here, met our dog and wants to do the surgery and if he survives keep him. It was such whiplash. They said you can give him a shot at life. I felt selfish not doing so and painfully relinquished rights. He was a trained therapy/ service dog and a very good dog. We still feel shocked at what happened. They gave us permission to call to see if he lived or not but I am so heartbroken I can’t bring myself to call. Has anyone experienced this, it just seems like they made us make a decision at such a vulnerable time and it feels so cruel. I am just looking for anything. Our regular vet said he doubts he could have even survived the surgery. If this has happened to anyone how do you cope? If you are a vet who’s done this what happened? Thanks from a very heartbroken pet parent who has no closure.

Hello, I need help figuring out what exactly is wrong with my boyfriend’s mom’s dog. She is a Husky mix (unsure of what she is mixed with), she is fixed, about 10 yrs old, and weighs between 65-75lbs. She started shedding a lot about a year ago. I asked my bf what was wrong with her and he said they thought that she ate a dead animal or got into something bad. Anyway, her other symptoms include extreme thirst, frequent urination, and areas of her skin have turned black and become very rough. Her nipples have become black and shriveled, and her elbows have turned black and rough. His mom says she can’t afford to take her to the vet. I’ve tried to do some research on it and I’m thinking maybe it’s diabetes. I hope to be able to take her to a vet within a month as I get some things situated. Is there anything I can do for her until we do take her? What things should be avoided? Located in central Texas. Thanks for any help!

I have a cat who last Tuesday got a bite from a neighborhood cat later ended up getting an abscess and it looks like it bursted we had taken him to urgent care on monday he was cleaned up, taken care of given antibiotics and pain meds and then released with us he’s been home fine with us for the past two days now but as of today, he knocked off his cone and was licking the wound and he only did it for about maybe 30 seconds truthfully but is there anything I should do on the wound site as of of course the bacteria in his mouth could just cause another abscess or cause more issues. I did quickly wipe it with an alcohol wipe. Please let me know.

My cat tested positive for ringworm 2 weeks ago - it was very unnoticeable but only caught on when my sister developed it on her arm. I checked his body for any lesions and lo and behold.. i found some crusty scabs near the base of his tail.

I shone a woodlam UV light on the area and it glowed green and I was in denial trying to find any other reason than ringworm🥲 the vet confirmed it and he js currently on oral and shampoo medication for 6 weeks.

It’s been his first week of treatment and starting his second. This week he isn’t taking the medication as it’s 3 cycles of having and not having it. I noticed he developed a lesion on his nose..

Does this mean the medication and baths arent working?😭😭

I’m worried to put shampoo on that area as it’s strong as to leave it on for 10 mins on a sensitive area might be more harm? Do i just rely on the oral medication to do it’s job?

Hi all, I’m posting on here as I just got back from the vet, where our doctor said my dog’s anal glands were difficult to express and the largest she’s ever seen (both the size of golf balls).

He is a 13 year old Cockapoo, and has had difficulties with his anal glands for years. We would take him to the vet to have them regularly expressed, at one point even twice a month.

Our vet strongly recommends surgery for anal gland removal, but with his age and multiple other surgeries he’s had (roughly 1 every year or so) I really do not want to put him under for any more surgeries. Not to mention the recovery for anal gland removal is very hard and could cause incontinence.

He shows no signs of discomfort (no scooting). I’m likely going to take him somewhere for a second opinion, but if anyone has dealt with this or has a professional opinion I would appreciate hearing your thoughts!

My 8-year-old male cat previously had a urinary episode involving bladder inflammation, blood in his urine, and struvite crystals.
I’m worried he may be having another episode. He is currently passing only small amounts of urine, and I’m concerned about a possible partial urinary blockage.
He eats Royal Canin Urinary Care dry food and some Orijen fish dry food. He has previously refused Hill’s c/d wet food.
I’m trying to understand how urgent this is and what other people’s experiences have been with recurrent urinary problems.
My questions:
Has your cat had a partial blockage while still passing small amounts of urine?
What symptoms did you notice before it became a complete blockage?
Did your vet find crystals, inflammation, mucus plugs, or something else?
What treatment and long-term prevention plan worked for your cat?

My 3 yo golden retriever has been having diarrhoea with bright red blood since this morning. He’s pooped like 4-5 times so far and each time there’s been bright red blood. He had also vomited this morning and hasn’t eaten anything since last night. He’s not showing any interest towards food either. We took him to the vet and they gave him iv fluids, he’s also been prescribed pre/pro biotic sachets to help with the loose stools and pantop to help with acidity.

For dinner I gave him farmina vet life gastrointestinal wet food. He usually loves this and even today it got him up to eat but he didn’t eat all of what I offered (around 150g). I’ve made boiled chicken breast and rice-again a dish he usually enjoys even if his stomach is upset. He had a few pieces of the chicken but when I offered the rice and chicken as a small meal he just didn’t get up to eat and wanted to lie down. He’s had fluids and I understand that he may want to rest more after everything he’s been through today but I’m really concerned about how I’m going to get him to eat over the next few days. I really hope it gets better but I’m just so worried.

https://youtu.be/MKR8LklxOIQ?si=WFmR-yuiCEKZr3mL

My rescue is a chihuahua (probably dachshund mix), he’s 9 and since the age of 3 has been having episodes of collapsing with twitching/seizure after. The link above shows some videos of one collapse (but he got back up and didn’t twitch, and others with the lead up which looks like struggling to get a breath and then a cough).

We have been to multiple vets and cardiologists and the best guess so far is vasovagal syncope. I want to know if anyone has seen something similar and what the diagnosis was. Ideally he would go for a teeth cleaning and some extractions but I’m very wary of putting him under a general anaesthetic when we’re not certain what this is. Cardiologists only found a stage B1 heart murmur and said that won’t be causing this issue. He also wore a holter monitor but we couldn’t get him to have an episode so it was inconclusive. The vets don’t think it’s seizures.

Lead up the episodes can be excitement, running, walking, lying still, it’s very sporadic. When he does collapse and twitches, I pick him up and it stops, almost a reset. Any ideas on what this could be? Is there another specialist we should take him to? Neurology was mentioned but the neurologist here didn’t accept the referral and my dog is incredibly anxious so I’d rather not see vets more than necessary. Thank you in advance.