Unexpected Vet Bills Hit When Pets Show Vague Symptoms

“Hi, I have a two year old cat we took in as a kitten when we found her in our truck engine. Shes always been small but recently started noticing that she looks and feels really thing and not eating as much. (She will eat the gravy around the meaty bits in her canned food). One day she had very loose stool and smelled terrible along with bile colored vomit) I took her to the vet and they ran a full panel. The vet showed me the findings and said everything appeared normal. He chalked it up to stre”

“Beginning by stating my cat has already been seen by a vet many times for occasional tummy troubles! His vet is thinking IBD or a food sensitivity based on the whole situation and timing of flare ups. He has finally been referred out for an abdominal ultrasound on Wednesday. From my understanding, if abnormalities are found, it can get more invasive and expensive trying to get a definitive diagnosis, and many people do not do a biopsy unless they can afford it and there is a significant concern”

“So this is my first post here but my cat all of a sudden he’s a type to love food and come to you all the time is now hiding underneath my couch and I put food next to him and he didn’t seem to care. I have seen him go to the restroom ok. It was just this morning. He acted kind of strange, should I be concerned? I still need to take him to get neutered, he is less the 1 and half years old. I don’t know any medical history we got him last December from a family moving back to their country. Thank”

“Hello! I have a stray cat and she went outside for two days when she came back, she wasn't eating anything. I mainly give her chicken. She wasn't eating that then I tried offering her boiled egg yolk because she loves that, but she was still not eating that. I tried giving the chicken broth through syringe and she somehow drank that. She was coughing alot like smthg was stuck inside her or if she eats something it's like it becomes painful for her to swallow anything. She sleeps all”

“My cat has a sore on the back of his neck. He’s about 15 years old. He had a period when he couldn’t pee for a little while — about ten years ago (I don’t remember the diagnosis). The vet told me to buy him special food and I’ve tried to do so. Anyways for the last 4/5 years this sore has been growing. I thought it was due to flea medicine but I stopped giving it to him last year. It’s still growing… I’m in the upper Midwest USA. submitted by /u/Old_Drummer_6324 [link] [comment”

“Hi everyone! I’m new to Reddit and it’s my first post, so if I’m in the wrong thread please let me know! I adopted my cat back in May from a rescue. The rescue told me that she’s 6 years old, but one of the vets she’s seen since I adopted her suspects she might actually be around 10. When I got her the rescue said she has a history of chronic soft stool but I was under the impression it wasn’t constant. Well, it is constant and we can’t figure out what’s wrong with her. First blood test was to c”

“Note: I live in Germany, so some medication might be unfamiliar to you. I also translated some of the text with the help of AI. The first photo is her currently with all her cold like symptoms, and the second one was taken before all the stomach-related health problems started… Maybe some of you have experience with this: My 10-year-old Ragdoll female has had a chronic calicivirus infection for ages, as well as a mildly enlarged heart (she has been taking Atenolol and Furotab for the past three”

“I have a tuxedo tabby cat. He's 11 years old and neutered. Last two vet visits, the weights were 7.14 and the last, 7.25. He was 9 lbs at his highest weight. He's been diagnosed with Asthma in the past and been treated for it. We moved to Central California a month ago and have a new vet here. We moved from the midwest and his last visit there was around 6/20 because he had recently started making sounds breathing noisily. He was put on Prednisone and given an inhaler. The Asthma diagnos”

“My 13 year old male DMH stopped eating suddenly on Monday and went from his usual 18 feeder visits a day down to 4. He was lethargic, squinting, hiding, not interested in attention at all. Took him to the ER Tuesday. They ran bloodwork, urinalysis, chest and abdominal x-rays, and an abdominal ultrasound. Everything came back clean except an elevated white blood cell count, and they couldn’t find a source for it. Sent home on ondansetron with instructions to recheck the WBC in 3 to 5 days. Since”

“Some background first: 8 years old. Male. Rescue from Vietnam, and he came with me to my home country Sri Lanka. Overall healthy, physically fit. Fully indoors. Do routine yearly blood tests since he turned 4. Had dental surgery in June 2026 to remove 5 teeth in the back. Vet care here in SL isn’t super advanced. Sometimes it’s hard to find medication and specialized food. Like Denamarin - which we import from Aus via a friend. There's a link in this post to xray images & reports on my d”

“I do trust my vets but feel like I need a second opinion about a situation that escalated during July and now August. First visit to a vet: Constipation, letargy, refusal to eat. My cat is longhair so first assumption is a hairball. Prescribed laxative and anti-hairball paste. Cat passes down one hairball and vomits another huge one. She's fine for a few days, then refuses to eat (no additional vomiting at this point). Second visit: blod work, ultrasound. Turns out her kidneys are not ok, bu”

“My male 13 year old cat has been losing weight steadily and is now under nine pounds. He's been having vomiting issues multiple times a week. He's had blood work twice and an X-ray, all fine. Our vet finally suggested an anti emetic - metoclopramide 5mg/mL. It really seemed to help with the vomiting so I was excited, but I took him in today (2 weeks after we got the script) for an ingrown claw* and he's down from 9.1 lbs to 8.8 lbs. So maybe his paw has been hurting and that's be”

Hi guys, I'm posting here because I honestly don't know what else to do at this point. My cat (Yuki, adopted, 1year and 2 months old) has been sick for almost 2…

“hi all, first let me just start by saying that my vet and i are thoroughly investigating this, but it’s been a slow process and my vet is out of town this week, so i’m wondering if anyone has any advice or anecdotes about their own experiences. TL;DR: my young cat that i adopted in december keeps having one-sided anal gland issues in the same gland. she keeps scooting and over grooming her belly. she also tested positive for cryptosporidium felis (PCR showed low burden) and we are about to try t”

“My 10 year old female cat has been struggling with picky eating for a month,she would not eat anything that was dry food.As time passed she would eat less and less.She has thus lost a lot of weight over the past few weeks.We have tried blending her wet food to make a soup-like texture and we have tried feeding her her fav treats.Nothing seems to be working. Since last week she cannot feed herself and seems to struggle to open her mouth,as if her jaw is frozen .Our vet noticed the bone of her man”

“Hello, The cat I'm currently caring for(not mine, owners have said it's my decision on what to do since they're not here to decide) possible last ate a full meal on Saturday evening. For me it's Tuesday morning right now. Core information as per the rules: she is a female cat, spayed, lives outdoors, 13yo., last vaccinated against parvo and cat flu at one year old, no other vaccination, I live in Germany. I will omit her name fir privacy reasons Saturday she was already behaving”

“I was laying in bed with my cat and felt under her chin. There was a bump that my husband and I then examined. We gently cleaned it with warm water. The lump is raised and appears to have some drainage. Any idea of what this is? She doesn’t seem to be bothered by it unless it is touched. She has never had this issue and is around 1 1/2 years old. I do have pictures I can message. submitted by /u/OKingfisherO [link] [comments]”

“My cat is a ~4-year-old female, neutered, domestic longhair, weighing about 3 kg. I adopted her around 1.5 years ago in the Middle East and subsequently relocated her to Australia late last year. She has had a long-standing upper respiratory infection, which I suspect may have originated with Feline Herpesvirus (FHV). More recently, she was diagnosed with a Pseudomonas infection based on a mucus swab/culture and antibiotic susceptibility testing. Unfortunately, the Pseudomonas was resistant to e”

“My 13 year old cat wasn't drinking, eating and losing weight so I took her to the vet 4 days ago and they believe that she has hyperthyroidism (her t4 levels are in a gray zone) And prescribed her with Mirataz (for weight gain) and methimazole (for thyroid) aswell as something to give her an appetite and vitamins and fluids since she was dehydrated. I've been giving her medicine since and she was eating well and drinking and using the bathroom but since yesterday she hasn't been drin”

“Essentially my kitty (12F) had a pretty bad vomiting episode that landed her in the hospital for a week where they found her stomach covered in ulcers and potential for cancer. They did a biopsy and it came back negative for cancer but the vet is still very suspicious. They told me that as long as she’s eating, to let her eat anything (in the bounds of cat food at least). So i’ve been giving her her normal routine of food which is Nulo pate (rotating duck and chicken recipes) with the occasional”

“My male cat Milo (6 years old) has a number of health issues. A moderate heart murmur, stage II kidney disease, has FCoV and has had it since he was a kitten, and he had a full dental extraction in early March which he's fully healed from to combat infections in his gums and around his teeth. Recently though, about a month ago, my husband and I noticed he looked fairly thin. Like notable to us who see him daily thin. Not like bones poking through, but a healthy cat thin, which was odd... He&”

“My sweet girl is 10y and has always been a bit of a scarf n barf kinda gal. We have been to the vet many times over the years for this and i was told it was likely due to my moms cat who is a food bully. when I moved out, I got her a slow feeder and it seemed better but she would still vomit more than I would think is normal. She’s never been a big eater and has always been a picky cat—however earlier this year she went a couple days without eating and the vet did blood work, suspected thyroid i”

“My cat (Sigourney) went to the vet a few weeks ago about a lump that I found on her belly. She’s 9 and a half months old and I’ve had her since she was 2 months old (Was already desexed) Im very much a helicopter parent when it comes to her as I lost my soul cat a few weeks before I rescued this little one. My biggest worry is that I over think everything because of what had happened. When I saw the vet she had told me that it’s likely a hernia possibly due to being desexed to soon, and said tha”

“On the 30th midday my baby became uninterested in his food and treats. He’s nine and has stasis once a year, I believe he has an underlying gut issue. We went straight to the vets. By the 5th I’d ran the course of baytril and emeprid. And he was eating and happy at dinner time. But sleepy all the time. I still had metacam so called on the 7th to see if I was to continue. They said I can stop and monitor. On the evening of the eight he looked uncomfortable so I returned to giving him it. He took”

“We recently took our senior (11) cat to the vet. She has an old tail pull injury that we wanted checked out. Thankfully it’s high enough on her tail that it hadn’t and shouldn’t affect anything important, but she’s basically lost feeling in most of her tail. While we were there, we did blood work that came back healthy for her. She also got updated shots because we’re welcoming kittens into our home soon. A week after the vet visit is where the trouble started. She was very lethargic, even for h”

“I have 2 cats. This is about my youngest. British Shorthair mixed with something else. 1.5 years old, 2kg, was seen by a vet but my concerns not taken seriously. Reaching out to this reddit is my last option. I have had 3 different vets tell me that she is just picky and that her loss of appetite is from her being in heat. Got them in November 2025, tried 10+ food brands, all types of texture and flavors and she doesnt want anything. Vets say this is normal and that my kitty is spoiled and thats”

“We took our cat to the vet because he was throwing up a bunch and for a basic check up, the vet called us back and said he was not worried about anything on the blood test results. The only thing on the test that were abnormal were his INDEXX SDMA which was at a 15 and his AST which was at a 14. I looked up these results and saw it had to do with the kidney and liver, he has had uti issues in the past and i know that could maybe relate to the kidneys which makes me a little nervous. He is 11 yea”

“I have a long-haired cat named Sage and she is four years old. about two weeks ago, I noticed as I was petting her on her right leg below her knee, There’s this tiny little pea sized ball. It’s not attached on her body. It’s like on her skin because I can lift it and pinch it and squish it around in my fingers and can easily move it, it has also not grown since i first noticed it. I’m terrified if they are going to say it’s cancerous or if maybe it’s just a cyst. it kind of feels like it has a h”

“Hello, some quick info on my cat: 9 years old, female, bengal cross, she weighs 2.4kg last we checked although it used to be 3.4kg before the illness, she has been experiencing weight loss, vomiting, constipation, and behaviour changes (she gets very aggressive around food) It started in October, she started projectile vomiting this really bad smelling brown stuff but it was very infrequent. I took her for a blood test in November as they suspected hyperthyroidism but that was ruled out. They sa”

“Hello, My 11 year old cat has lost about 5.7 pounds (going from 15 -> 9.3) in the span of a month or so & has maintained that weight since. He’s always been a hungry boy but his appetite has become ravenous, however, everything else like his urination, drinking habits, and fur has not changed. He hasn’t been throwing up either. I have taken him to the vet for a check up and blood work which ruled out: Hyperthyroidism, Kidney issues, diabetes, and FeLV. We were then told it could be some s”

“Domestic shorthair, male, neutered, 2.5 years old, 10.4lbs. His name is Scorch and he is very loved and needs help. He has been under care for 2 weeks and keeps declining day by day. The vet is closed so we have no other help tonight. My older cat, MK, is Domestic shorthair, neutered, 3 years, male, 12lbs. Both 100% indoors. History: MK got sick first with diarrhea 2 weeks ago. It turned from semi solid to liquid over several days. Fecal/ovo test done, negative. Was acting normal. Vet was called”

“We came back from vacation today after 17 days. Cat sitter has been visiting daily to feed him and reported a couple of days ago that he had eaten much less and his eye seemed watery. We have a 4 year old Russian blue. Today when we came home I started immediately mopping the floor and saw that he had shed a lot of hair. I assumed it’s because he was stressing out due to being alone. I brushed him several times, and while he usually doesn’t like it, his reaction was different today. He was whimp”

“hi! I have a fairly healthy four year old tortie cat named Turtle. She's bossy, loud, kinda fat, determined and stubborn. Turtle was gagging slightly on Friday the 31st in the evening. She was not vomiting, so we waited it out and thought she just had an upset tummy. The next morning her gagging was more intense, with no vomiting, but we took her to one of the ER vets in town. After an x-ray, a foreign body was discovered in her stomach. During this time she was extremely lethargic and not a”

“My girl's abdomen was unusually hard so I took her to the vet last Friday, a cloudy xray had them send us to get a "good" US. US and now CAT scan and turns out she has a 13cm x 11 x13 liver tumor suspected to be hepatocellular carcinoma occupying the right lateral and medial liver lobes. The surgical consult resulted in her referring us to a bigger animal hospital and while risky she stated if it were her dog and we had the financial means she would at least go get a consult. There”

“Hi vets, thanks for reading my post. Our cat Bitsy is 13 and in generally good health. She's an outdoor girl and likes to go exploring the neighborhood in summer. A few days ago she showed up for dinner with seemingly swollen back feet. On both feet, one of the claws is sticking out (forwards) more than the others. I've looked as close as I can and I don't see any blood or cuts anywhere, things just look a bit mishaped. She can walk, climb and jump just fine, though she looks a bit u”

“Hi everyone! My 3 year old large male long hair cat has a lump near his upper but below neck spine that appeared about a week and a half to two weeks ago. For rules he is probably 15 pounds? He was put on a diet six months ago lol. I originally noticed it petting him/brushing him and it was smaller than pea size, thought it was maybe a small mat but further inspection just showed a lump under his fur. No head or unnatural appearance. Since then it has slowly (each day I check it in the morning a”

“I’m not sure where else to post this but my cat is about 8 years old and I feed him wet food about twice a day. Two days ago I noticed he hadn’t eaten much and lost energy and I decided to take him to the vet today. They said they couldn’t find any problems with the physical exam and wanted to see if they can do test but the problem is I can’t afford tests they’re requesting. For now I came home with anti nausea medication and hope that works. This morning he had a few treats so I continued to f”

“Hello, I have an elderly cat (10 years) who is semi active/semi non active at her age. Not what it used to be but its there. She is 15 lbs and I want her to lose weight. She still has a fat pouch and a bit of weight on her sides. I feed her 4/12 cups and it is 200kcl. If I give her wet food along side will this help her get hydration and lose weight. I saw people and some videos saying it helps them naturally have a metabolism. Thank you. If anyone needs more info I will reply. 😀 if not is ther”

“Signalment (species, age, sex/neuter status, breed, body weight) -cat. -about 11 years old. -female/spaded. -short haired tabo, I believe. -fat, probably like 18lbs. • Short history -I was about to give her chin scritches and noticed a large lump on her chin. • Clinical signs (vomiting, coughing, fever etc) -Null. • Length of time you have seen these changes -a few days ago. • Links to any vet reports, test results, X-rays etc. that you already have -Null. Other than that she is declawed. I did”

“Species: Cat (Name Tigger) Age: 17 this month Sex/Neuter status: Male, Neutered since he was very young Breed: Long Haired Orange Domestic House Cat Body weight: Normally 19lbs 2 weeks ago 15lbs and I'm thinking around 10lbs now (I know he was overweight before, he's been on many diets with limited treats and nothing ever helped) History: He has always been a very healthy cat never showed his age and was always very playful, lively and loving. Around 1 month ago he started eating less an”

“Hi all, I have a 9 year old domestic shorthair female outdoor/indoor cat, She is spayed and is around 5kg (Haven't weighed her in a while) Recently, within the past week I believe she has begun to become really picky with food, when she comes inside she has a nibble or two and then will sit at the door but refuses to go outside. She has begun trying to get under my bed which is very difficult to get to and I also worry it will he claustrophobic or she will get stuck. I don't see her drin”

“I noticed a black bump on my cat about three weeks ago while petting him. He's 5 years old, neutered, 8.7 lbs, and your general run of the mill domestic longhair. Our vet said he looked perfect at his wellness visit in April. He's on Advantage Multi year round. I've been keeping an eye on the size of the bump since I've noticed, and it looks unchanged to me. The bump is on his back, ever so slightly raised, perfectly smooth, and has a perfectly even oval border. It's about 4”

“I dont know why but, this started yesterday, it looks brown/red with hair and she constantly scratches at her neck, my cat is female, spayed, and she has been avoiding me recently, thank you very much for any help!! free to comment below, if any questions for me also have a,good day! She is a grey tabby cat, Usa Female tabby Name: Tórbo I dont habe any pictures of her, I will update when I get one She gets,bad,itches and bites herself a,lot She has,patches of fur missing from behind her ears I h”

“My cat is a 10ish year old neutered male domestic long hair/maine coon mix. He's 16.5lbs and I'm in the US. He is indoor only. In late June he was lethargic but I wrote it off to the heat. July 6th he was taken to the emergency vet because he had eaten nothing in 24+ hours and would barely move. His platelets were extremely low with his RBC only a bit low. His WBC was slightly elevated. His A:G ratio was .4 and everything else was normal. The vet said he'd ingested a toxin, had an in”

“* Species: Cat * Age: 11 yrs old * Sex/Neuter status: Female, Spayed * Breed: Domestic-Shorthair * Body weight: 8.2lbs * History: No health issues in the past * Clinical signs: N/A * Duration: Not sure what duration is specifically meaning, but this problem has escalated from just losing weight while actively eating, to now just not eating. * Your general location: California Hello! So I took my cat (Juggy) to the vet a week ago due to the decline in her weight. About a year ago, I noticed she w”

“Hi I am from India , my cat is a black male cat in June my cat started having mild diarrhea but at that time we didn't think much of it But I went on a trip for the end of June for 5 days and he was with my parents when I came back he had lost His weight so I took him to the vet in a few days there the vet gave him some drip and asked us to not give him milk ( my mother was giving him milk mixed with water since may end so i suspected it could be the reason of diarrhea so doctor recommended”

“Since my vacation my cat hasn't been eating at all . I have been administering food and water through a bottle to prevent malnutrition during this period. In addition to his regular diet, I have administered liver and kidney supplements to my cat, as well as dewormer. Despite his initial interest in eating, he tends to chew and then lose all interest. However, his dental health appears to be in excellent condition, with no signs of inflammation or infection. For all intents and purposes, his”

“I have a young female cat that’s around 3 to 4 years maybe. I don’t really know as she was given to me by some neighbors. In March I took her to the vet due to FHS symptoms. She had a back x ray and blood work done. She was also diagnosed with FIC and put on The Hills cd multicare stress line. I got her the dry food in the chicken flavor and the 5.5 oz cans in the chicken and tuna flavor. My cat gets fed 3 times a day. The first day she ate half of the 5.5 oz cans for breakfast, some dry food fo”

“- 3.5 year old male persian cat, neutered, 5.9 kg (i think) - clinical history: two days of persistent vomiting (~7 times a day), reduced appetite. other cat passed away 10 days ago so he is quite depressed as well. has a history of asthma like attacks. - location: australia Hi, i took my cat to the vet because of persistent vomiting over 48 hours and a reduced appetite. he will eat squeezeable treats and temptations, but not his dry digestive care food. the vet said he has an upper respiratory”

“Hi everyone. I’ve written here multiple times about this issue. F27, cat is female, 3 years oldc neutured. We have been to the vet multiple times and did multiple tests. My cat has had reoccuring fresh blood in her stool since November. In December we did bloodwork and abdominal ultrasound and everything was perfectly fine, she got put on a GI diet and it got better. The blood started again in May I think, I dont even know, went to the vet again they said she was fine, said to put her on GI fibe”

“Hi everyone, Just looking for some advice/insight or to see if anyone has had a similar experience. She's a 7-month-old desexed female Domestic Shorthair , weighs 2.85 kg , and up until recently has been a typical crazy kitten. About 2 weeks ago she became quieter than normal, was hiding a bit, and just didn't seem herself. I then realised she was really sore over her upper back (between her shoulder blades/mid-back). She cries out if I touch the area or pick her up the wrong way, has st”

“My 6-year-old has been perfectly healthy until about 6 days ago. He just all of a sudden had no interest in food. He seemed to be very nauseous and was not acting himself. He was swallowing hard, licking his lips a lot, hunching his head forward. After a day of not eating normally, I took him to the vet. They did bloodwork which came back normal, gave him a shot of famotidine, and sent me home with sucralfate. For a couple of days he would be interested in food, but was still not eating normally”

“My cat is a 2 year old orange tabby, he’s been really tired lately, and keeps getting eye crustys, and has a hard time breathing. He also dosent eat a lot, is there anyone t he counter remedies can try? I’m short on money and vet bills are expensive. He’s 7 lb right now, and it’s been going on for a little over a month. The wheezing started a few days ago. submitted by /u/anonymous-9294 [link] [comments]”

“We noticed our 2 year old male cat lost weight so we weighed him last night. He had lost 4-5lbs since February. Tonight I wanted to check his mouth and we found this redness and looks like growth to me. He won’t eat dry food anymore so we gave him cat soup. Does anyone have any advice? Also, we have an appointment tomorrow morning. Thanks. Not sure how to add a photo but if someone can tell me I can add it. submitted by /u/Novel-Wing-0907 [link] [comments]”

“Hi everyone, I'm hoping someone has experienced something similar or has ideas we can discuss with our veterinarian. Our cat is a 2-year-old, indoor-only male who is normally the most active and playful of our four cats. Over the past several days (maybe a week), he has gradually become much more lethargic. At first we thought he was just being lazy, but it's become obvious that something isn't right. His biggest symptom is that he will get up, walk a few steps, and then just "p”

“Hi all! Wondering if this is serious enough to warrant a trip to the vet. My cat (11yo, Ragdoll, male) seemed to have trouble opening his jaw super wide (when playing or yawning) starting about two weeks ago. There was no disruption to his eating patterns. His behavior, eating, and potty habits have all returned to normal since last week after a few days of me noticing the first incident. But this morning he yawned a big yawn next to me and seemed to have jumped in pain. He had a full dental bac”

“We noticed he had an enlarged stomach a few weeks ago, and recently took him in because he was being suddenly low on energy (which isn’t normal for a cat of this age) Turns out he has a lot of free fluid and enlarged lymph nodes in his abdomen and we’re now having to decide what’s the next steps. We’re still waiting to find out whether or small cell or not - but is this really it, he just seems too young. I’ve barely seen anyone else diagnosed this young Just at a loss submitted by /”

“My cat Astro is 16 years old and I am quite worried about him. he is very very skinny, but he eats a LOT. His appetite is always very high, to the point of he quite literally doesn't think about anything else but food. We used to feed him dry food for breakfast and wet food for dinner, now we feed him wet food breakfast lunch and dinner so he can gain some weight. we give him treats all the time too, he is eating more than what you should feed a cat in a day. he usually finishes off my other”

“My cat (Zelda, 15, spayed) has started licking her nipple very hard in the last month or so to the point where she created a blood crust. She hasn't changed her behaviour at all, she's playful as usual, cuddly as usual (with a few select people), eats as usual. No weird behaviour except this licking. The misfortune is that she's not the type of cat that easily goes to the vet or is easily food into a transport box, so we're not sure what to do. Moreover we are very tight on money”