Cat is on steroids and starving

[Rodge2]

Cat's on steroids - injection that lasts 1 month - and has become ravenously hungry. Got me up at 4.15 this morning with his yowling and had to administer an emergency snack. At this rate he'll be enormous by the time it wears off!

[wolf63]

The thug in my avatar has feline asthma and the initial treatment was steroid injections every month. He was a greedy cat to start with and the injections made the situation much worse.

I tried feeding him just before bed, locking him out of the bedroom, shooting him with a water pistol when he tried waking me - the list goes on.

Needless to say he won the war.

I opted for a much more expensive treatment and he has to use his inhaler twice a day. I have to bribe him to do this - cat sweets.

If your cat is going to be on the injections for a long time you might consider buying something like this - http://www.kongcompan...cats/treat-dispensers The idea is to stuff it full of sweets and let them chase it around the house - he gets exercise and some sweeties too.

Good luck - as a cat slave you already know how devious they can be.

;-)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fFV7NI-NXY4

[Rodge2]

Thanks for idea of cat kong - very well might try it. Hopefully he won't be on it much longer - has had a balance problem and keeps keeling over. The treatment (antibiotics & steroids) worked well the first time, but the problem came back after the steroid wore off.

I am just hoping it does not develop into longterm steroid treatment, as like yours he was greedy before too, and I'd only just got the weight off him (he was my mother's cat and she just used to feed him when he wanted it!!.. result...6.7 kilo cat). He's 5 kilos now and slimline. Oh well, at nearly 16 I suppose you have to say he's been very lucky and some problems are inevitable.

[wolf63]

Frankie is only 6 so I see inhalers in my future - for a long time.

You/your cat have done well with the diet. Frankie and his sister (Princess Merlin the stupid) are indoor cats and their only regular exercise is racing around trying to kill each other.

Merlin is long haired and curvaceous - solidly built with huge paws. She seems bigger than her brother but he eats twice as much - it seems like life is unfair for girls in the cat world too.

When the vet told me of the long term problems that could be caused by steroid injections I was horrified, so they will only be used as a back up.

Being a slave to a feline god is difficult at time. ;-)

[Rodge2]

I hardly dare ask.. but what are the long term problems?

[wolf63]

This link is the best that I could find - it is brief and gives only the relevant details. I think the vets just give you the worst case scenario when it comes to side effects.

I hope things improve for both of you.

http://www.macdonaldvets.co.uk/steroids.htm

[Rodge2]

Thanks for the info. Have had him back to the vets for a check on how he's progressing. Vet said he could not be more pleased with him, so that's comforting. Is only staggering occasionally - esp when he shakes his head. Has 2 more weeks of anti-biotics and the steroid should wear off in 2 weeks, although he seems a bit less affected by it already. Hopefully after that he will be clear of it. Thanks again.