Hello from Gemma Snow [emoji184]

[Kahlarenee]

Hi everyone! Gemma and I are new here! I’ve had Gemma since October 2018 and got her from a family member who breeds Persian cats. Gemma was the only hairless one in the litter so she is not full sphynx.

Gemma lost her left eye in 2019 due to a scratch from one of our other cats on her cornea but she is still my playful baby and does not even notice she is missing her eye.

I have read about HCM on a lot of Facebook pages and currently I am very nervous she may be showing signs. She has been coughing the past week like she is coughing up a hairball but nothing. It’s like she is stuck and is having a hard time breathing. I’ve requested an appointment with a feline cardiologist in my area to get her scanned. It may just be my anxiety telling me something is wrong but any advice is appreciated!

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[Yoda mom]

@Kahlarenee awh.
Welcoming you and beautiful Gemma. Keep us updated on her appointment results. All paws are family. Thank you for sharing her adorable photos. Byw, what is her silliest habit? Fav toy? Hugs n positive vibe head smooches.

 

[Yoda mom]

@Catzzzmeow

 

[Kahlarenee]

@Kahlarenee awh.
Welcoming you and beautiful Gemma. Keep us updated on her appointment results. All paws are family. Thank you for sharing her adorable photos. Byw, what is her silliest habit? Fav toy? Hugs n positive vibe head smooches.

Thank you so much! We are on our way now to get her checked out .. Gemma’s favorite toy is a plastic straw and her catnip phone we got from the cat lady box subscription! She carry’s it around and makes a chirping sound. It’s so adorable because otherwise, Gemma doesn’t really meow or make much noise. Her silliest habit is probably her night time zoomies with her brother, they are quite funny when they play. She also loves getting beard rubs from her dad


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[Catzzzmeow]

Positive vibes are sent and will be looking for your update.

 

[Kahlarenee]

Positive vibes are sent and will be looking for your update.

[mention]Yoda mom [/mention] and [mention]Catzzzmeow [/mention] my baby has got asthma she started steroids today to get the inflammation down in her lungs and then we follow up at her primary vet on the 19th to talk about getting an inhaler for future flare ups.
Her heart looks super healthy! The cardiologist just recommends she get bloodwork done once a year to keep an eye on high NT-proBNP levels for any heart issues or other issues. I’m relieved it isn’t her heart causing her irregular breathing but still sad my girls got asthma. Working on better air circulation in my home for sure so my baby stays healthy.
The vet also recommended she could lose 1-2lbs. I currently feed all my cats Hills science diet for sensitive stomach and sensitive skin dry food. I’ve tried giving Gemma a raw diet but she refuses to eat it.

Any suggestions on a better food brand for Gemma and my other cats? It has helped my senior cat to stop vommeting so I may keep the Hills for her.


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[Yoda mom]

@Kahlarenee , hugs, glad you got a diagnosis and treatment plan. we have members that can assist with their asthma care routine. you are not alone. sooo happy her heart super healthy!!! sounds like a great vet and that they also mentioned the proBNP !
mine hated raw. I feed nutrisource cat and kitten food (helps my bengal with IBD with vomitting and I feed on a raised food dish, and a bowl of hills urinary hairball (the fiber good for poo issues and no UTI's here. mine are 10, 13, and 13 1/2. they like the hills too! I stick with what works. perhaps portion Gemma's food. with the hills working for vomitting I would tend to stick with and portion, we have members that are sharing their weight loss journey here too. we gotcha!

tagging @kauna about asthma and weight loss journey.

 

[Kahlarenee]

[mention]Yoda mom [/mention] thank you so much for the encouragement! I will be doing some more research here in the group since I just joined! I appreciate the feedback and advice


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[Yoda mom]

@Kahlarenee , all paws are family. I joined here over a decade ago. it is truly an amazing knowledgeable, supportive ,caring bunch. Kauna and others will surely chime in. you got this! hugs n head smooches. never hesitate to ask questions. following closely for updates. I am off to feed my crew ttys!!

 

[Yoda mom]

@Catzzzmeow , @Sheldon13

 

[kauna]

Hi @Kahlarenee!

I’m sorry to hear about Gemma being diagnosed with asthma glad it wasn’t her heart though. My Agnes had asthma, allergies and eventually HCM. I have a whole post here about her asthma. We were prescribed 2 inhalers, one maintenance and a rescue inhaler (like they do for people) She was given a low dose of steroids in the beginning to help with the inflammation. I am one of those people that don’t like to give steroids to cats long term due to potential side effects. I would get an Aero-Kat to start getting her used to it (it is a mask that fits over her nose and mouth and has a chamber for the inhaler so she breaths in the medicine. here is a ton of info in the link below.


Using AeroKat | Trudell Animal Health

Agnes was on a prescription food for her allergies and it worked wonders. It was royal canin Ultamino. She never liked raw and we were constantly trying new foods because of her skin infections this worked.

My current duo are on smalls cat food and doing well. They were on weight loss food since I adopted them. I believe @Yoda mom tagged you in that thread. I was feeding them tastefuls morsels in savory sauce as wet food and instinct raw boost weight management dry.

Let me know if I can help in any way or if you have any questions I’d be happy to help where I can.

Best wishes to your girl and you’re in good company here!

 

[nudebea]

Hello and welcome. Gemma is beautiful. Im sorry to hear of her asthma diagnosis although very glad that she has a healthy heart. x

 

[Toa and Ross]

Welcome to sphynxlair. What a beautiful girl she is!

 

[babymeow]

So sorry to hear about Gemma's asthma . I don't know much about asthma or litter but maybe try looking into litter as well?