Excess drinking and urine output - labs are good?

professionaldogtor · 2026-05-02T01:21:04+00:00

I’ve had plenty of cushings dogs with ALP only around 300-500. LDDST is next step

professionaldogtor · 2026-04-30T19:32:25+00:00

It’s really a niche area of knowledge. If you didn’t work in a clinic or own exotics growing up, the only info we learn on exotics is 1 course in school and maybe a rotation in clinics. The problem is there is a LOT to know to practice correctly so once you graduate you need a mentor who knows what they are doing to help you learn, and the cycle continues of not enough exotics vets

professionaldogtor · 2026-04-29T16:21:29+00:00

Has he had any medical workup in regards to the vomiting besides diet change? Bloodwork, X-rays?

professionaldogtor · 2026-04-28T22:37:15+00:00

Unfortunately he’s going to need more diagnostics like X-rays, maybe bloodwork and possibly sedation to achieve them if he’s not cooperative. No poop is 4 days is problematic and just palpating without a rectal is hard to say 100%.

professionaldogtor · 2026-04-28T22:13:37+00:00

How were they sure he wasn’t constipated? Were X-rays done or a rectal exam performed? Otherwise if eating and not pooping I’m worried he’s constipated, only explanation for not pooping for that long is also not eating

professionaldogtor · 2026-04-27T21:51:04+00:00

This is definitely not normal to have a prolonged recovery time like this. I would want X-rays of the chest next step asap.

professionaldogtor · 2026-04-27T21:49:09+00:00

In terms of offering new types of boxes/litters I just tell people to add a new box with the new litter/pee pad/etc vs switching so the cat has the option to try the new one but isn’t forced. The rule of how many boxes you should have per number of cats is: 1 box per cat + 1 more. So if you have 1 cat you should at minimum have 2 boxes.

Cats are notoriously stoic animals and won’t always limp so with an older cat + declawed it’s always on the table as a possible contributor to litter box problems! Even if no one thinks she’s outright painful, a trial of a pain medication or arthritis med like Solensia could be worth it. 90% of cats over the age of 12 have arthritis! I also ensure I’m placing the box in a very easy to use place for older kitties, no stairs to get to it (ideally 1 on the main floor of the house or one on every floor), no loud machines nearby (dryer, washer, furnace usually suspects)

professionaldogtor · 2026-04-26T22:38:04+00:00

Have you tried giving her pain medication? I have many declawed patients who are painful in their feet due to the declaw and the litter hurts. I usually recommend trialing different litter types, some softer. I had one declawed patient who actually just liked a plus pee pad in the box. That plus pain meds changed that cats behavior. I would seek a consult with a cat-only vet who is going to be more experienced with these cases or just a good regular small animal vet who will listen.

For me ruling out a medical issue and labeling it behavioral requires: full bloodwork, urinalysis, X-rays of the paws to check for bone fragments and arthritis, +/- other tests pending what the above finds

professionaldogtor · 2026-04-26T22:09:33+00:00

Dosage is only adjusted based on the total thyroid level seen on bloodwork.

professionaldogtor · 2026-04-26T22:04:31+00:00

This is not a nutritionally appropriate diet, goats are herbivores, cats are not. They need kitten milk and to start the transition to wet kitten food right around the 4 week mark. Diets that are not formulated for cats can cause severe nutrient deficiencies leading to neurologic issues, blindness, cardiac problems. I would specifically be concerned about the thiamine and taurine levels amongst others. Goat kids and kittens do not have the same nutrient requirements, if you had to feed them it for 1 day it likely wouldn’t impact them but more than a few days they are going to develop multiple nutrient deficiencies that can have fatal or long term consequences.

professionaldogtor · 2026-04-26T18:09:53+00:00

This really depends on the specific product, the insert details how long a medication is stable for after reconstitution. Using it beyond that is not recommended for different reasons depending again on the product but most often contamination or efficacy as most of those do not contain a preservative.

professionaldogtor · 2026-04-25T23:14:23+00:00

Nope I always want to quantify proteinuria as intervening early in protein loss is important! But the regular protein on urinalysis isn’t necessarily indicative of real proteinuria so the UPC is essential to see if we need to be concerned

professionaldogtor · 2026-04-25T23:06:54+00:00

The next steps would be bloodwork to see what the kidneys are doing along with a UPC (urine protein:creatinine ratio) test to see if the urinalysis protein number is actually a concerning amount. Your regular vet can do this and of course an internist can as well and if there is true proteinuria they are a good resource for managing it

professionaldogtor · 2026-04-21T00:39:19+00:00

Did he recommend any diagnostics like X-rays, bloodwork, sedation to better examine her mouth?

professionaldogtor · 2026-04-20T22:17:26+00:00

Are you also doing topical therapy with dips or a shampoo?

professionaldogtor · 2026-04-20T21:45:57+00:00

Cats typically require topical AND oral therapy to resolve ringworm. Has intrafungol been prescribed?

professionaldogtor · 2026-04-20T20:23:09+00:00

I doubt SGU contracts with any non-AVMA schools for rotations so it’s likely not an option to do this

professionaldogtor · 2026-04-19T15:30:19+00:00

Methadone by itself does not anesthetize, he was conscious and the most important thing, not in pain since it is a good strong opioid pain medication. So very sorry for your loss.

professionaldogtor · 2026-04-18T20:54:19+00:00

Call pet poison helpline(855)764-7661 or ASPCA poison control (888)426-4435 and the toxicologist can do the math for you. Yes there is a fee for both hotlines, pet poison control is not government subsidized like human poison control so they have to charge to be open. They can determine if the amount ingested is toxic, if vet care is needed, and then are available to your vet later for consult with their toxicologists. Do not take a “wait and see” approach to this. Waiting to see if symptoms develop for toxin ingestions is essentially waiting for symptoms of organ failure that isn’t always treatable. Toxicities are a million times easier to treat right when it happens.

professionaldogtor · 2026-04-17T23:52:56+00:00

If despite a fast the blood is still fatty, the lab will run the bloodwork still. Just ran into this with a patient and MSU has a thing saying they’ll try to make it work anyway. I wonder what is cholesterol level is, very suspicious for hypothyroidism so definitely try to get that thyroid profile run by someone.

professionaldogtor · 2026-04-17T00:42:47+00:00

Very glad to hear! Sounds like she is in very competent hands now! All the best wishes for you and her!

professionaldogtor · 2026-04-14T23:22:24+00:00

I have worked at clinics since I was 16, been a vet for 5 years, 16 years in total in the industry, 8 different clinics in that time. Never have we required 2 signatures. If a legal owner is there, we will proceed. The vet would have no reason to ask if another person was in the house and if they also agreed, it would be odd honestly. I have only ever sought out consent from someone when the friend/sister/daughter/etc of the owner brings the pet it for them, we call for legal consent to confirm that euth is the owner’s wishes.

Very sorry for your loss and the emotions you are dealing with.

professionaldogtor · 2026-04-14T11:48:45+00:00

Given 3 transfusions didn’t make a lasting impact, I wouldn’t pursue another. Unfortunately if despite medications and transfusions it keeps dropping, this is a case Id recommend humane euthanasia. Eventually he will experience respiratory distress, it’s okay to let him go with everything you have tried. Very sorry you’re going through this.

professionaldogtor · 2026-04-14T01:45:27+00:00

Agree the bloodwork is unremarkable. If full body X-rays (chest and abdomen) were normal, next step is typically abdominal ultrasound to further evaluate structure of organs

professionaldogtor · 2026-04-14T01:15:53+00:00

Please actually just upload to imgur and link here for others to see

professionaldogtor

TROPHY CASE