Meet Ollie!
Isn't he a handsome man? Ollie is our vet assistant, Madison's cat!
Ollie is a 7 year old DSH (domestic short hair). Despite not being very old, Ollie had ongoing weight loss issues that could not be explained with lab work and x-rays alone. He was vomiting and having intermittent diarrhea as well. Thankfully, with the help of diagnostics that also included an abdominal ultrasound, his symptoms are now controlled and he is gaining weight back.
Ollie has Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) and takes Zofran (Ondansetron) daily to manage his nausea symptoms as well as Vitamin B12 and Cerenia on an as needed basis when he has a flare up. Thanks to starting off on the right foot early, BEFORE medications were needed daily, Ollie is the best boy for medicating and takes his meds using either the textured surface trick or with a pill popper!
The point is that we do not always know "what lies beneath" or what is brewing in the early stages of disease that we can get ahead of if we knew it was happening!
The next time you brush off your cat’s annual visit and think to yourself, "Oh, they're fine." Just remember it is easier, less stressful and often less expensive to catch things early. Cats are the "Masters of disguise" after all and without diagnostics we would often never know #whatliesbeneath
