To bring in the New Year, we would like to introduce you to Luna the gorgeous, playful Russian Blue kitten.
Luna’s owners came home to find lily pollen all over Luna’s face. Luckily Luna’s owners called us straight away as they remembered lilies being dangerous to cats.
Not everyone is aware, but lilies are highly toxic to cats and though they may be beautiful to look at, a cat could die of kidney failure if any part of these toxic species are eaten and not followed by treatment immediately within a few hours. In fact, as little as two leaves, a tongue full of pollen or drinking the water from the vase can make your cat sick. If left untreated, lily toxicity can become fatal in as little as three days. It is crucial to start therapy before any signs of ill health occur.
We recommended to bring Luna straight down so we could do a baseline blood test to check the kidney parameters and to start her on intravenous (IV) fluid therapy.
The reason for the IV fluids is to keep Luna hydrated and support blood flow to the kidneys preventing them from getting damaged by the toxins. To monitor the kidneys for damage, we repeat the same blood test over a few days to make sure the values are not increasing. We also monitor the urine output and bodyweight as this is also an indicator of kidney function.
Luna was in hospital for a few days and thankfully the blood results came back clear each time. Thankfully, due to the owners quick thinking and ringing us for advice we saw her quickly enough and started the treatment in time.
Well Done Luna!