Last week, I began a series of posts regarding my family’s experience with pyrethroid poisoning in cats. In part 1, I introduced out situation and explained that cats can recover from this situation. In our case, two of our cats were given Vectra 3D, which is a flea and tick product meant only for dogs. This product contains a chemical called permethrin which can cause a number of serious symptoms and even kill them.
Permethrin is the chemical used to treat tick infestation in dogs. The chemical used in flea products for cats and doge in general is called pyrethrin. Pyrethrin can also poison a cat if given in too high a dosage. Collecitvely, the exposure to both chemicals is also referred to as yrethroid poisoning.
In this series, I am emphasizing the importance of understanding the symptoms of pyrethrin poisoning and the fact that cats can recover. Both of our cats recovered from significant doses of these chemicals. Today, here is the first thing you need to know.
Know Your Cat
The most important thing to understand about any toxin is that it can not only cause your cat to be physically ill but can also cause behavioral changes in your cat. Severe behavioral change was the first thing I noticed in Kira.
Kira is normally very docile and friendly, both toward humans and toward the other cats in our house. She suddenly became aggressive and panicky, running and hissing, seeking out the other cats and ambushing them in corners and closets.
I called the emergency vet and asked whether flea products could cause this type of reaction. I did not get an answer that made me feel like I understood what was happening with Kira. The person on the phone suggested that I could bathe her, or I could bring her in for an exam. I was not even sure whether I could catch her, or whether it would be safe to do so.
Trust Your Gut
After observing her for a couple more minutes, I finally was able to catch her. That was when I noticed how much product was on her skin, and that she was attempting to groom herself–and managing to ingest some of the liquid in the process. That was when I decided that the vet trip was in order.
That is the first thing I did right. I will emphasize it here. If you begin to think that your cat should see a vet, do not wait. You are probably right.
Be Alert
The second thing I did right was to remain alert at home after I admitted Kira. Perhaps this falls under some strange cat owner’s instinct. As I explained in part 1, I did not realize that the cats had been given dog product until later on in the morning. The event that triggered the realization was the admission of the second cat to the hospital.
While I was fairly confident that Kira’s problems were due to her ingestion of the product, I just did not feel right going to sleep. Something kept prompting me and Kevin to check on Jade.
We were right.
Don’t Wait
When I checked on Jade, she was having a seizure. If you have never seen a cat have a seizure, learn how to recognize seizures in your cat. The range of emotions that can wash over a person in 30 seconds is astounding. How could two cats have reactions to the same product in one evening? What had we done to the girls? What if my friend was upset with me for waking her up to drive me to the vet at 3:00 in the morning?
My feelings took a back seat to the cat having the seizure in my arms.
I laid Jade very gently on the floor, walked past her, told Kevin not to walk down the hall, and threw on some clothes while calling my friend. Incidentally, my friend said, “I’ll be right there,” and arrived within five minutes. We put Jade in the carrier, I put Angel in the bedroom with Kevin, and we left.
Managing Emotions
As I rode in the car with Jade, I was grateful to live in the same town as the animal hospital. Our animal hospital serves an area that includes several counties. A person might need their services but live as far as 50 miles away. Distance can make the difference in whether an animal lives or dies. Sitting in the car with Jade, I just wanted to get there faster.
All is Not Quiet at the Vet
When my friend and I arrived at the vet, the parking lot was empty. We hoped that this was a good sign and Jade could get help very soon.
How wrong we were!
Once we arrived, the techs took Jade away and started bathing her and giving her Methocarbamol to stop the seizures and tremors. I did not see the doctor for an hour and a half.
When the doctor came into my room, she was exhausted and sat in a chair as if she just needed a break. She had done several surgeries and seen numerous patients just in the four hours since Kira was admitted. She was very gracious to me as we set about trying to figure out why two of my cats were sick. I, in turn, tried to be respectful of her situation.
Finding the Answer
At some point during the brainstorming about how to keep costs down and still get the cats the best care they needed, the doctor asked casually whether they might have gotten dog product. “That would make them aggressive and cause those seizures,” she said.
I went home and found the box from the product. That answered the question about what they got. I also knew then why I still had it in the house.
I didn’t want to tell the truth about the product dosage. I was afraid of being reported for animal cruelty, afraid of having my cats taken away. The vets were very kind to me about this. Our regular vet assured me that this is a commonly treated situation. I kept in touch with the regular vet’s office throughout the time that the cats were in the emergency hospital and during their recovery period.
The other thing I did right concerns our other cat, Angel. She saw me leave with Kira after Kira ambushed her. While I was gone, she yowled in distress.
When I was getting ready to put Jade in the carrier, Angel was hanging around crying again. I put her in the bedroom with Kevin just before leaving with Jade while my friend took Jade to the car.
This is probably the best thing I could have done for her. She was not distressed while Jade and Kira were gone, and she returned over and over to the bedroom for her comfort. Later in the series, I will talk about how the cats reintegrated. This is an important piece of information we needed and did not have. Next in the series: supporting the cats in hospital and transitioning to home.
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