Whoopie
Toxic Ingestion and Stricture
Whoopie, a beautiful 7-year-old Domestic Short Hair cat, ingested some antibiotics that had been prescribed to her canine brother. Her owners, thinking they were doing the right thing, induced vomiting using hydrogen peroxide. Although this works well for dogs, it is unfortunately not advised for cats.
Whoopie started having difficulty swallowing and began regurgitating, which did not improvement after being put on a bland diet and taking fortiflora. Her appetite continued decreasing and even when given small quantities she would vomit, which caused her weight to drop. Her family veterinarian performed an overall exam and x-rays revealed an esophageal stricture (a narrowing or tightening of the esophagus that causes swallowing difficulties) and recommended that she come to WVRC’s Internal Medicine department.
Dr. Balog performed an esophagoscopy, which confirmed the stricture and she advised a balloon dilation be performed to the return Whoopie’s esophagus to its desired diameter without complication. There was a possibility of restructuring, which did occur and she needed to have an additional balloon dilation.
Whoopi is now doing extremely well. She gained her weight back and is thriving. We are so happy to hear this sweet girl is back to feeling well!!