Balor Bass of Black&Tan

Dec 2013-Balor has genetically tested negative for the genes that cause Progressive Retinal Atrophy and Polycystic Kidney Disease.

On July 6th 2010 Balor weigh in at 9.7 lbs. He loses weight in the spring and bulks up in the winter.

Balor had maintained very good health. His kidney function tests were great. This fall/winter he began losing energy and weight. We realized he had stopped eating and switched up his dry food for wet food. He was drinking an incredible amount of water. I took him to the Vet expecting to learn his kidney function was bad. The big surprise was his tests showed kidney function was fine. The monster it did show was that he had severe anemia. My Vet didn't think he would survive. It was a tough time, do we try to help him or let him go. I'm a person who never wants to make my pets suffer just for me, to keep them with me. If I need to let go I want to let them go. That is so much easier said then done in reality. After thinking on how this could happen and researching I believed it to be secondary rodenticide poisoning. The complication here is that there are many types of rodenticides with different affects. With hind sight we had found two mice dead in Balor's stud room. One in his water bowl and the other on the floor under his cat tree. I had also while cleaning the visiting room next to his found a huge stash of cat food under a blanket. Its not unusual out in the rural woods to have mice coming in to escape the oncoming winter. I never thought twice about it. There was no blood on his floor by the mice. I figured he jumped them and dispatched them and they left them as no long interesting. Now I wonder if the one in the water bowl was seeking water. Rodenticide can cause excessive thirst. I also had noted that Balor has for some months been licking the floor. As any Siamese owner knows, Siamese do weird things like this. I didn't think that much of it. Magi used to lick wood surfaces and Fenya has a leather chair she licks. Now I wonder if he was licking up mouse blood trails as they bled out. Something I hadn't noticed. I've seen them since as I moved larger things around to clean

My Vet wasn't sold on accidental ingestion of poison. She was thinking infection or cancer (gastric bleed). We didn't have time to wait so we made a plan to treat all three. I couldn't not try to help him. He was given Sub-Q Vit K for the rodenticide since lower dose anti-coag would cause this reaction, an antibiotic for infection, and Prednisone for cancer. Hitting all possible causes fast. We ran an anemia panel looking for bacteria. A few days into treatment we retested him. His anemia was gone, his kidney's fine. Something had worked. Now we had more time to look at what happened. Balor was regaining weight while on the meds too. The plan was to finish all the courses of treatment and give it a few weeks to settle, then retest his blood again. Keep him on the Pred until we can ultrasound him. The Anemia panel did not show the bad mycoplasma that my Vet said would cause this type of severe anemia. The ultrasound showed no evidence of any cancer. We stopped the Pred and reran his bloodwork on 1/22.

When Balor's bloodwork came back Dr. Gould called me to tell me Balor was in total kidney failure. She wanted to know if there was anything he could have been exposed too. No he has his own room he hasn't been out except to see her. To me this again points to poisoned mice. His kidney function was just measured twice (in the past what is it six weeks?) and was normal. She said it couldn't have been the meds we gave him. All he has had is the same water we drink and store bought canned cat foods. She said when he stops eating its time to let him go. She was surprised he still had an appetite. I had already discussed with her that I would not give him Sub.q fluids. I've done that in the past with a younger cat and I have felt guilt ever since for holding her here too long. He was still eating but we could tell he was losing weight again. He still loved his food and would eagerly lick it but we knew it was mostly the gravy. When I went to see him Wednesday afternoon he cried to me in a most horrible way as he sat up. I found he had given up, soaked himself and his bed. I took him in as an emergency euthanasia. He had so totally given up that he didn't need the sedative they normally use for this procedure. He left us being stroked and loved, very peacefully.

We have learned many people still are using the first generation rodenticides but they are being steadily replaced by newer longer acting second generation toxins that are much worse and harder to counter act. We went to multiple stores to see what was on the shelves and we found them all. All sold under the same name too. The Vit K blocker causes anemia and bleeding, the Vit D3 (second gen) causes acute kidney failure, the next second gen is neurotoxic. https://www.petpoisonhelpline.com/uncategorized/rodenticide-reminder/ We have called an exterminator to come and go over the house and make sure all possible entries are blocked so mice have a harder time getting in.

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Balor Bass of Black &Tan