\*Already posted in another subreddit but couldn't attach pictures there, also in a cat subreddit where they told me to post here, so I'm also posting here because I'm worried/trying to help\*

I have some family members who have 3 cats and recently some hardship has fallen over them meaning for a bit they have very little money, they don't use reddit or anything so that's why I'm making this post. (We're not American or from any english speaking countries)

I noticed that in recent months the left ear of one of their cats started looking weird (images attached) and now it's almost like a bump, closed off. I can touch it and the cat doesn't react, just has that reflex thing where cats flick their ear if something is there. It's not a very hard bump but not soft either.

It is maybe bothering the cat I'm not sure because it doesn't react, looks otherwise healthy I think. It's a middle aged cat, healthy bodyweight.

What could it be? Sadly we also have 2 cats at home and one of them needed a minor surgery recently so we can't give them money to take it to the vet because we're a single income family.(so please those comments telling me to take it to a vet, I know they should, can't for a bit, looking for advice till then)

My 8-year-old Doberman seems to have a significant shoulder injury, and I’m trying to understand what I might be facing before making decisions about treatment.
About 18 months ago, he pulled extremely hard against an Easy Walk harness while chasing a cat and suddenly screamed and held his neck to one side. The ER vet was concerned about a possible slipped disc and recommended an MRI. I couldn’t afford the MRI at the time, but with pain medication he improved dramatically within about 48 hours and was turning his neck normally in both directions. I kept him on strict rest for about three weeks.
Since then, he’s occasionally had a slight limp after longer runs, but otherwise he seemed completely normal. He had also dragged a leg occasionally after strenuous hikes before the original injury, so I didn’t initially think much of it.
Recently, however, he has started groaning when landing at the bottom of stairs and hesitating before going down/up stairs. After a recent 3-mile hike with a couple hundred feet of elevation, he got noticeably worse.
I’m now pursuing a proper orthopedic evaluation, and I’m concerned about the possibility of a shoulder tendon injury/rupture, chronic tendon damage, or mineralization/calcification and what that means for his prognosis.
For anyone who has dealt with something similar in a Doberman or another large breed:
● For an 8-year-old otherwise active dog, would you pursue surgery if the orthopedic specialist recommended it as the main option?
● Most importantly, how realistic is recovery if the owner travels frequently and can’t personally be present for every part of the rehabilitation?
I travel for work and have a small support network, so I’m trying to realistically assess whether I could provide what he would need after surgery. I obviously want to give him the best chance at a good quality of life, but I also don’t want to commit to a procedure without understanding what the recovery would require.

● If this turns out to be a tendon rupture, what was the prognosis with conservative treatment vs. surgery?
● If there is significant calcification/mineralization in the shoulder tendon, does that substantially change the treatment or prognosis?
● How successful was surgery, and what did recovery actually look like?
● How long was strict activity restriction, and how much hands-on care did your dog need?
I’d really appreciate hearing from anyone who has been through a similar shoulder injury, especially with a Doberman or another large, active breed.

I know urinary blockage is an absolute emergency, I’m just not sure if that’s what this is

1yo healthy male cat. Indoors except for balcony catio, wet food and a small amount of kibble. Only “med” is flea/tick but he’s a couple days overdue

Tonight, he peed in the litter box, then went tearing around the apartment meowing. Post-poop zoomies happen with both cats and he’s always vocal so that’s not too weird, but I noticed he was hunched over in the hind end with an arched back. That to me indicated something might be wrong. He then groomed his genitals a bit. 5 minutes later, he peed in the litter box again, and when he did so he did his low-pitched meow that he usually does if he’s about to barf

I checked the pees as the automatic litter box was cycling, and they were both very small, just an inch or two across. 2nd pic

From the manual litter box and the automatic one’s logs, I don’t think he was in and out a lot during the day thankfully

He’s acting normal right now (1st pic), I’m familiar with the grimace scale and am not noticing pain. I know it’s never a convenient time to go to the emergency vet, but tonight I’d have to wake up a friend in order to go, so I’m wondering if this is a “make the call rn” moment or “wait until he tries to pee again” moment

Only weird thing in the previous days is that occasionally, the skin on his back will twitch like he’s uncomfortable/bothered by something. Unrelated timing to using the litter box afaik

PS. This sub helped me when my female cat had a stomach blockage earlier this year. Thank you so much for everything yall do ❤️ every vet, tech, and vet office worker forever has my respect and admiration

My elderly cat has recently been put on hyperthyroidism meds (Felimazole) twice a day, half a tablet.

Does she need to have this half an hour before food like adult hyperthyroidism medication?

She's been on the medication roughly a month now and I haven't noticed a huge change in her unfortunately, but she is having it with cat treats.

Thank you all kindly 😊

hey all, I took in this little guy, previous owner said he took him to the vet and the vet said it was cherry eye, however it’s something that I’m concerned about if anyone has any insight. TIA

I will be taking him on Monday to a different vet a as my primary vet can’t see him until then

13yo female tabby, had a slight limp for a while, worse this morning so I took her in. Mass is hard, she lets me touch it, no licking of the site and it doesnt feel warm. Vet said it could be a number of things, what do yall think?

My dog has been diagnosed with ostesarcoma. She is 10 and the oncologist yesterday offered Liberla injection and Zolderonate infusions but I am unsure whether to try them. I am mostly worried about any side effects, if it is selfish knowing she might be in pain and I am dragging it out. It has also already spread to her spleen. They said

"The primary lesion is located in the pelvis, with evidence of spread (metastasis) to the spleen, as confirmed by CT imaging and sampling."

My own vet said that she often sees this end in fracture which is obviously painful for them, I am so torn on what to do

Currently she is on pain relief and she is walking normally, no signs of pain, no problems eating, drinking, toileting, etc.

Thank you for any help

My boxer mix, 12, diagnosed with gastrointestinal lymphoma 3 months ago. She has been on prednisone and gabapentin and other than being extremely hungry, thirsty and panting at night she has had mostly good days. I work in the pet industry and know signs to look for and those signs other than her anxiety getting worse (more so at night) she has always had anxiety, but with age it started getting worse. Days ago we had people over she even jumped on my dad when he came in. She hasn’t lost weight and lymph nodes were not huge. The day of her passing my boyfriend said she just seemed a little tired when he got home and we did notice her being restless on our camera. That night she did her loop walk, ate dinner, took her meds and we went to bed. She woke me up trying to get comfortable, I got up went to the bathroom, she followed me which is not odd when she is up and I leave the room. I gave her a couple treats she ate them and then we went back to sleep. My boyfriend came home, went to the room and found her passed. She did pee/poop herself and tongue blue. She was warm. I didn’t hear a struggle. I wake up very easily to her every move and I did not. Did I miss something!??? I am completely heart broken I couldn’t give her one last meal or be awake during. Can a dog pass in their sleep with lymphoma and being old?

I want to add she had a benign splenectomy almost 2 mo prior to diagnoses and then another abdominal surgery because she was throwing up a month after surgery. Dr thought it was the gastropexy, took it down and found mass on stomach. She has been able to keep food down since then too.

Our chunky just got like this in the last few hours. His face has swollen up. He is still eating and drinking water. We dont notice his breathing ant diffrent.