swollen cat

[tingirl]

My boyfriend has an old cat of 14 years. We are very worried as his belly has recently swollen enormously. The vet said this was putting pressure on his heart and also found he has a heart murmur. He is now on a course of tablets for his digestion and heart. Anyone had any similar experiences? Thanks.

[Noweia]

The swelling is probably due to the heart murmur. A heart murmur make the heart pump less effectively, so blood tends to back up and slow the circulation down. This causes fluid to be forced out of the blood vessels and into the tissues. Commonly the abdomen fills with fluid (ascites/dropsy) and this is what causes it to swell up.

Your vet will probably have given you diuretics for your cat, to try and get rid of the fluid buildup. These drugs will make you cat urinate more (and probably drink more - so have water freely available). You will see an improvement in him as some of the fluid is cleared.

What else did your vet tell you about it?

[tingirl]

My boyfriend mentioned the possibilty of muscular weakness, especially in the hind legs, caused by the weight gain.
Thanks so much for your info by the way.

[TerenceGamer]

I have - we fed our cat too much and it died of obesity. Yours sounds similar - shouldn't have fed it too much Arthur should you...........

[Athley]

Terence Gamer you sound like a horrible person

[skylight]

Hi tingirl, I have to apologise for the ignorance of some people.... if they cannot contribute a sensible answer, why bother.

[Athley]

Hear Hear skylight!!

[divegirl]

terencegamer is a troll! IGNORE.

[tingirl]

Thanks to those who helped. Those who decided to air their irrelevant personal comments are insensitive and plain stupid.

[Athley]

Please let us know how the cat is. Hope he's OK you've obviously done the best thing and are caring for him. He sounds very loved!!! :o)