Can a vet actually do this?
 

A friend of mine has a cat, who is very ill. The cat has some condition (I'm sorry, I can't remember the name) where it isn't eating. At all. Or drinking. The cat is on prednasone, a heartburn-type medicine, and something for neasua (sorry for spelling). The cat seems to be allergic to fish, so any tuna is out. She has tried chicken, beef, even broth to get it to drink. Nothing. The cat seems to have energy (will chase spiders) and still grooms, and is affectionate, but it's an indoor cat, so she knows it's not eating.

She is going through university, and can't afford to keep her cat on these medicines all the time. (And PLEASE don't say she shouldn't have gotten the cat if she didn't have the money to look after it. It's a rather dumb point of view, and when she DID get the cat she was working, but lost her job, so is being sponsored to go to University). She has talked to the vet about putting the cat down, and the vet refuses, because the cat is not "in intolerable pain". My friend says the cat has not improved in a long time, is still losing weight. She knows that soon there will be a time when the meds run out and she can't afford more. She doesn't WANT the cat to be in "intolerable pain". So here is my question:

Can a vet actually refuse to put an animal down if it is currently healthy, but has a condition, and the owner has explained that once these meds are gone, she can't afford more? Where I live, our vet will put an animal down under those conditions, so I'm confused that this vet is basically saying, "No, your cat really has to suffer before I will condone you putting it down". Can he do this? :shrug:

She should try force feeding the cat using a Feeding Syringe, similar to whats used to feed infants medicine.. It's not going to be easy, but it's very important to get the cat to eat & drink..

Personally I would not give up on the cat, If I were in her situation I'd post a listings (Kijiji or Craigslist) to give the cat away to someone who can care for and pay the vet bills, be sure to let them know that it does have a condition and it's sick.. Someone might adopt it and be willing to help..

[QUOTE=Yamcha;1045945]She should try force feeding the cat using a Feeding Syringe, similar to whats used to feed infants medicine.. It's not going to be easy, but it's very important to get the cat to eat & drink..

Personally I would not give up on the cat, If I were in her situation I'd post a listings (Kijiji or Craigslist) to give the cat away to someone who can care for and pay the vet bills, be sure to let them know that it does have a condition and it's sick.. Someone might adopt it and be willing to help..[/QUOTE]

How can you suggest force feeding the cat when you do not why is not eating?
The OP does not know what is wrong with the cat. My last dog could not eat because he had cancer , force feeding him would had been horrible for him.

I know someone that had a dog that old and very sick and they called a vet to have the dog put down . The vet wanted to see the dog before agreeing to putting her down. The vet said people will put a healthy pet down and he will not do that.

It is within the veterinarian's rights to refuse to euthanise an animal that, in their opinion, is not ill enough to warrant it. If this is the route your friend wants to take she can get a second opinion, but she'll be required to pay the office fee for the vet to perform an exam.

I, personally, would try and rehome her. There are people/rescues that will take on a special needs cat.

[QUOTE=Barkingdog;1045947]How can you suggest force feeding the cat when you do not why is not eating?
The OP does not know what is wrong with the cat. My last dog could not eat because he had cancer , force feeding him would had been horrible for him.

I know someone that had a dog that old and very sick and they called a vet to have the dog put down . The vet wanted to see the dog before agreeing to putting her down. The vet said people will put a healthy pet down and he will not do that.[/QUOTE]

I'm no expert, but one of my cats had a similar issue, and my vet instructed me to force feed him.. So I was just passing on what she had told me..

But your probably right, It would be better to consult your vet and see what the problem actually is before doing that, I just suggested it because it wouldn't be good if the cat dehydrates or starves to death..

If your friend is no longer able to afford the meds for her and euthanasia is what she sees as the only option, she should talk to her vet about signing the cat over to the clinic.

Many vet clinics will adopt animals from their clients who can no longer afford expensive medical care and once the cat is well again the clinic will offer the cat up for adoption to their clients or keep them as a "clinic cat"

There are other options available if your friend is in Canada there is a company that provides loans or credit cards for the express purpose of paying high vet bills, the company is called [URL="http://www.petcard.ca/index.html"]PetCard[/URL].

I don't see why a vet would put a cat down due to food allergies it doesn't seem ethic to me and I totally agree with the vet. They're there to save lives not to put them down because they have treatable conditions.
There are other options before going for that. If she can't afford the treatments I totally understand but I don't think that's the way to do it.
Once I had a terrible gastritis that kept me from barely eating, I lost weight (that was the sweet part, the only one) and with just a tiny, tiny plate would get bloated and sick, among many other very painful symptoms for months. That's no reason for any living creature to be put to sleep.
Consider adoption, aid programs, no kill rescues.
Putting down an animal is not a thing to be taken lightly and certainly not something to be used to be free of a "nuisance" or an economical burden.
There are other vias, options, explore them please.

I seem to have given you guys the wrong impression. The cat is NOT "just allergic to certain foods". He -is- allergic to fish, but before this, he could eat everything else. The vet does not know -what- is wrong with the cat. It is not cancer, nothing treatable. The prednesone and other meds he has the cat on is a "Well, let's try this and see if it does anything." treatment, but the vet has said it has NO idea what is wrong with this cat. My friend has tried the syringe, but the cat just throws it up again. She has mentioned sending the cat to someone else, but the vet has said, "I don't think anyone would want this cat." so she hasn't gone that route. However, seeing your posts, I will suggest that she contact some of those places you mentioned in the above posts. Any particular ones you would recommend? She's not comfortable with just going on Craigs list as she has heard some pretty horrible stories about people getting pets there to kill, so she would rather go one of those routes where someone trusted could take on the cat. And my friend lives in the States.

[QUOTE=Koteburo;1045966]Putting down an animal is not a thing to be taken lightly and certainly not something to be used to be free of a "nuisance" or an economical burden.[/QUOTE]

[I][B]Don't assume my friend is not heartbroken about this. She has never considered this cat a "nuisance".

I understand that people do tend to take animal's lives lightly, but it really annoys me when people assume that anyone considering putting down an animal is doing it because they don't "want" the animal or it is a "nuisance".[/B][/I]

[Quote]There are other vias, options, explore them please.[/QUOTE]

[I][B]Why do you think I came here?[/B][/I]

I'm sorry to hear your friend is having these problems, I would suggest a rescue if possible, but PLEASE AVOID CRAIGSLIST AND KIJIJI. You are right, they are not a good source. Nor is a newspaper ad for a free cat. Perhaps her vet would let her advertise the cat for free to his current patients? I wish her the best of luck.

[QUOTE=Yamcha;1045952]I'm no expert, but one of my cats had a similar issue, and my vet instructed me to force feed him.. So I was just passing on what she had told me..

But your probably right, It would be better to consult your vet and see what the problem actually is before doing that, I just suggested it because it wouldn't be good if the cat dehydrates or starves to death..[/QUOTE]

A pet can has similar issues but it could be a difference health issues . I know when I call my vet up they'll tell me they really need to see my pet as the symptoms my pet has could be causes by a number of things.

I don't know if the cats condition would allow it, but has the vet tried an appetite stimulant such as Cyproheptadine Hydrochloride? It isn't expensive and might be worth a try.

I didn't mean to bother you or sound aggressive honestly I didn't
But I do believe that probably for what I read the cat's condition is treatable and that your question was if the vet could refuse and not so much about options but if you're really trying to explore them even way, way better. Where there's a will. there's a way.
And I totally understand how hard it is to cover treatment and the vet bills are usually dreadful but at the same time I'm trying to advice on your furry friend's best interest and now that we're clear that we're all looking for that, I'm glad good ideas have been suggested by different board members :)

will the vet either accept ownership [ IE surrender ] or know an organisation that will ?

[QUOTE=Kovarr;1046031]I seem to have given you guys the wrong impression. The cat is NOT "just allergic to certain foods". He -is- allergic to fish, but before this, he could eat everything else. The vet does not know -what- is wrong with the cat. It is not cancer, nothing treatable. The prednesone and other meds he has the cat on is a "Well, let's try this and see if it does anything." treatment, but the vet has said it has NO idea what is wrong with this cat. My friend has tried the syringe, but the cat just throws it up again. She has mentioned sending the cat to someone else, but the vet has said, "I don't think anyone would want this cat." so she hasn't gone that route. However, seeing your posts, I will suggest that she contact some of those places you mentioned in the above posts. Any particular ones you would recommend? She's not comfortable with just going on Craigs list as she has heard some pretty horrible stories about people getting pets there to kill, so she would rather go one of those routes where someone trusted could take on the cat. And my friend lives in the States.[/QUOTE]

I would not use to Craigs list , someone might take the cat to to feed to their pet snake. Has any x rays or ultrasounds been gone on the cat to see if there is any blockage or a grown ? The vet does not know if any one else will take the cat and I think that was wrong of the vet to tell that to the owner. The poor cat , I hope someone will try to find out why it can't keep food down .

[QUOTE=Koteburo;1046055]I didn't mean to bother you or sound aggressive honestly I didn't
But I do believe that probably for what I read the cat's condition is treatable and that your question was if the vet could refuse and not so much about options but if you're really trying to explore them even way, way better. Where there's a will. there's a way.
And I totally understand how hard it is to cover treatment and the vet bills are usually dreadful but at the same time I'm trying to advice on your furry friend's best interest and now that we're clear that we're all looking for that, I'm glad good ideas have been suggested by different board members :)[/QUOTE]

You're right, and I'm sorry I snapped. I'm just upset by all this, and it seems most of the people (Noone here) I have asked have all given me the "If you can't afford an animal you shouldn't have gotten one" reply, which just really ticks me off. To me, that's like saying, "If you can't afford to get your kid the best clothing, you shouldn't have them." Obviously people expect to be able to afford medicines for their pets, but sometimes life throws you a curveball. So I apologise for seeming snappy. I know you were trying to help. :)

And yes, I was basically asking about the vet, because where I live, our vet -will- euthanise a pet if the owner explains that they simply can't afford the medicine anymore. My vet is very good with letting people pay off things monthly and everything, but we live in a very poor area, and sadly we have a lot of strays and things. Our SPCA is struggling to make ends meet, and I guess he has seen a lot of animals simply abandoned, so he feels it's better to just put it down rather than have it suffer. Sadly, we have no rescue places or people. Our SPCA does what it can, but it's really struggling to make ends meet. Unfortunately, what the cat has is something called hemobart which makes it unadoptable for the vet clinic because apparently it is very contagious for the rest of it's life? (I have zero knowledge of cats, I have only ever had dogs).
I DO appreciate all the advice I am getting, and I'm sending all of it to my friend in the states. Hopefully she can find an answer soon.

I'm wondering if maybe your friend could look at some of these links for financial aid for the meds:
[url]http://www.humanesociety.org/animals/resources/tips/trouble_affording_veterinary_care.html[/url]
[url]http://www.pgaa.com/financialaid.html[/url]
[url]http://www.imom.org/fa/others.htm[/url]
[url]http://www.uan.org/index.cfm?navid=163[/url]

[QUOTE=Kovarr;1046139]Unfortunately, what the cat has is something called hemobart which makes it unadoptable for the vet clinic because apparently it is very contagious for the rest of it's life?[/QUOTE]

Haemobartonella is an infectious parasite that attaches to red blood cells. The body tries to kill the parasite, thus killing the red blood cells which causes chronic anemia. Therefore, it is a type of immune-mediated hemolytic anemia (IMHA). It is infectious mostly in the same ways that human HIV is (through blood). It seems to be questionable if humans can get infected with Haemobartonella - some sources say no, but others are saying recent evidence says yes.

If the cat does indeed have Haemobartonella, the vet should be willing to euthanize the cat in my opinion since the treatment is often a long, expensive process. People euthanize dogs and cats with broken legs, and the treatment for Hemobart can definitely be just as expensive. Plus, the cat will usually still be a carrier for the rest of its life.

[url]http://www.cat-world.com.au/haemobartonellosis-feline-infectious-anaemia[/url]

I hope it's not Haemobartonella. I really feel so bad for that little guy.
This is awful :wall: poor baby. A diagnose if a bit of shooting in the dark or detective work. I hope is not that. Maybe it's not.
I hope he lives and gets better.