I have to say (and I know I'm not medical) but that's a lot of drugs - Minnii's HCM was diagnosed as the worst there can be and we were told she probably only had weeks, and could go at any min and she's just on Beta blockers. She she is thriving for a poorly cat - we were never told to count her resting resps, just to watch out for her panting. She eats well but is still skinny (I expect that is part of it). It's been 3 years since she was diagnosed. Don't lose hope.

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Hi

Biggles HCM was diagnosed after a bout of congestive heart failure. The vet says the heart failure will now be progressive. He is 13 and so may have had HCM a long long time already (when he was asymptomatic). I am sooo sad. His future life is now measured in months.

His medicine is exactly what I expected it to be, so that's good!

The vet is trying to give you a worst-case prognosis. Jazz was told days...he was given an appointment every 3 days, and they always said they expected us to phone up and say he had gone.

It's all about managing his condition now. Don't raise his heartbeat too much - will he let you carry him up the stairs? You might need to take away any toys he gets too excited with...Jazz had a heart attack when he started playing with his duck. He wasn't big on toys, but decided he was going to attack it...it was a horrible night, and it was touch and go if he would make it...his heart stopped, and he stopped breathing.

If he can live a very relaxed, low-exertion lifestyle, with his medication and a good diet, there is no reason why his heart can't carry on. He's acting okay now, and he'll have new medications kicking in to make it easier - once the balance is right, he should get a new lease of life.

With the furesimide, watch his weeing. You might find he bloats up, because he doesn't go often enough, or that he is peeing for Britain - and he might 'leak' a bit if he sleeps for a long time and lies on his side.

I'm glad the vet is happy with him...I hope my experiences have helped a bit, it was a bit scary going through it alone.

As for your daughter...I'm 21, and I cried like a baby for days when he was diagnosed. There was a while when anytime I saw him I was in tears...and then I was indignant that he was okay, and he'd be fine. When he started slowing down, and the medication started to fail, it hit me that he'd be going soon - and while I did cry like anything, I can promise you that when the time comes, it's okay. It's horrible to lose them, but it would be horrible to see them suffer too, so it kind of evens out and although you'll miss him hugely, you'll know it was the right time.

Take lots of pictures. Mine mean the world to me now! And as you can tell, I talk about him all the time. It doesn't really feel like he is gone...

We were told to count his resting heart rate, but were also told that it can't be too slow, unless, of course, it stops. Our boy had a slow heart rate when he was diagnosed, and I seem to recall the Corventol D was prescribed for that.

He has always slept a fair bit in the afternoons, he just sleeps a lot more now, and he has always been a bit incontinent which the vet said was due to damage from having no tail, but he was leaking quite a bit more in his sleep.

Biggles will not be in pain, he will be more tired and will rest more, and may well go on for a long time yet.

One thing I would say is to keep an eye on his kidney function because of the effect of the diuretics. Most kidney disease is not picked up until around 60% function or more is lost.

I hope he does really well.

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thankyou. It has certainly helped talking to you on here. Biggles has always been a sedentary cat. No danger of him overdoing it! I am actually quite optimistic. Vet said next few weeks are crucial. If he remains stable he may do very well. My daughter is 15 and little boy 12. I have tried explaining as best i can. Little boy just keeps asking when will he be ok...can't comprehend it. We already have tons of pictures but we'll have tons more very soon. Biggles has been on my lap for the last hour purring away like normal!

Yeah vet mentioned his kidney function would need to be monitored..i'll make sure that gets done. His respiratory rate at rest is very steady and rarely above 30. She has also advised me on rescue doses of frusemide should i ever suspect he is decompemsating. We go back in a couple of weeks and then i think she saidnext check would be in 3 months. Thankyou for all your advice and reassurance..it has helped me a great deal.