Hi. I just recently sent you a picture of our new cat, Beau. We only had him for about a month, and I am very sorry to say that he died yesterday due to feline urologic syndrome (FUS). The day before he died, my husband noticed that he wasn't eating well. The next day we both noticed that he was walking funny. I should have taken him to the veterinarian at that time, and I think he may have recovered if I did. But I didn't, and a few hours later he was very despondent. Despite the best medical efforts at the emergency veterinary clinic and at our home veterinary clinic, Beau died.
Beau was a very beautiful cat. He loved attention and being petted and groomed. We adopted him from an animal shelter. He had been in a cage for over a year. I had noticed him about 6 months before I adopted him because he would purr when I walked by his cage. But I didn't think I could handle adopting another cat until just recently. I feel bad that I let him stay in that cage for 6 extra months. Also, I may have caused his FUS by not switching him slowly from the shelter diet to the diet that our other cats eat. I was told that FUS may be caused by the cat's diet and that FUS is more common in male cats than female cats. With our other male cat, I had switched him slowly from the shelter diet, although with the female cats, I didn't bother, but I guess they were okay anyway. All cats (and dogs) should have their diets switched slowly and carefully.
Marilyn
November 11, 2004
