vermin

I have a 10 year old non-spayed female domestic shorthair cat with a lump on her belly approximately 1 inch in diameter and protrudes about 3/8 of an inch from the surrounding belly. The veterinarian ran a test to see if it was cacer: negative. He said it should be removed just to be on the safe side. I don't have $600.00 for cat surgery.
However, I do have a razor-sharp ex-acto knife and a bottle of super glue which could be used to close up the skin.
What I'm not sure about is the anesthesia. I like this kitty and don't want to see her in any more pain than absolutely necessary. I did a google search for anesthetics, and it seems like the most effective ones require close monitoring and a lot of equipment I don't have.
So here's the plan:
From what I could tell from the web site it would seem that my best bet (with available tools) would be aspirin and lorazepam to make kitty nap and reduce pain (acetaminaphin should never be used on cats), and toothache medicine (anbesol) as a local anesthetic just before cutting and after closing. All tools would be sterilized with alcohol before the deed, and I was thinking about having a hot soldering iron standing by in case I can't get a blood vessel to stop bleeding. I'm not expecting a lot of blood, but I'd rather be prepared. Gauze bandage and first aid tape after applying antibiotic ointment to the glued incision, and a cardboard neck cone for a day or two to keep her from licking it. Maybe a light layer of antibiotic ointment before cutting just to make sure the area is clean.
That's the plan at this point. Not being a vet I'm sure there must be something I'm missing. If any of you have any ideas to improve the chances for success in this little endevour or if you can point out reasons why this won't work, I'd be glad to listen. So far this is just a plan that keeps improving, no date for the surgery has been set.

Oh, yeah, I don't have to worry about shaving any fur; she's been licking it so much all the fur on her belly is worn away. Another reason I'd like to do this soon.

Any help or advice you can give will be appreciated. Thanks

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JustJess

Start saving the money, because it's utterly crazy to perform surgery on an animal you have no experience or knowledge of. You don't have the right tools, you don't have any knowledge of her anatomy, and you will most likely kill her, as she lies bleeding out on your table. What happens if you slip (and you will)? Who's going to blot the blood away so you can see? Don't forget, sewing stretchy slippery super tough skin is nothing like patching your jeans. If the surgery doesn't kill her, this might. Oh, and figuring anesthesia for her body weight correctly is a job for professionals only - it's a delicate balance, and there are very good reasons why even VETS don't like to knock out an animal if they don't have to.

Other options: research animal charities in your area - most vets volunteer at such places to provide care to low-income pet owners. Talk to your vet about costs and ways to cut down on them. Also find out just how medically necessary this procedure is, if it's not cancer... is she in pain/discomfort? If it's not cancer, what is it? It might be worth a $40 xray to find out.

And good luck.

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My heart knows me better than I know myself, so I'm gonna let it do all the talkin'.

Brewmaniac

If you love your cat and it sounds like you do. Do the kind thing and just have the vet put her down. It will be hard but the kindest thing for her. Or seek out other Vets, just don't do it yourself.

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"That's a joke... I say, that's a joke, son"

james t kirk

You can't be serious.

I know, why don't you get a friend to try cutting you open first to see how well your plan works.

If it's not going to kill her, just leave it be.

I have a lump on my back like you just described. I went to doctor 15 years ago and he told me to just leave it alone.

I would suggest you do the same.

vermin

Additional info:

The cat is 10. I've had her since she was 6 weeks old. She is not some stray I have no knowledge or experience of. The point of the hot soldering iron is to cauterize any blood vessels that the superglue can't seal. The reason for the superglue is so that I don't have to sew any skin. I've read about the military testing cyanoacrylites (super glue) for use as battlefield "instant bandages". The lump is right under the skin so there is no muscle tissue to cut or organs to push aside. I'm not worried about the actual performing of the surgery, other than the anesthetic. She doesn't seem depressed or in pain so putting her to sleep isn't an option. The only reason I'm considering DIY surgery is because it seems to be slowy getting bigger and the lack of cat repair funds.

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thingstodo

I so agree with the Captain.

Are you i n s a n e ?????????????????????? Crazy - nuts - whacko - out of it - whatever else I can't think of?

I can't believe you'd even consider this, much less do this. You don't deserve this animal!

If you can't afford the treatment, at least put the poor thing to sleep!!! How'd you like if is someone operated on you, gave you a stick to bite on, closed up with super glue and some high heat and then gave you a bottle of bourbon to sip on?

I'm sorry, but I'm jst beyond distress if this is real and not a joke to get peope all riled up!

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vermin

To re-state the important points: I'm not going to do anything if I can't figure out a way to anesthetize Baby (cat's name). That was the point of this thread. To try to find out if anyone out there knows of a reliable and safe anesthetic that can be used on a 6lb cat. The project is off if such a thing doesn't exist. I'm not trolling for outrage, I'm seeking legitimate advice.

I don't feel intimidated by the concept of surgery. I really don't think it's as complicated as it might seem at first. The anesthesia really is the trickiest part, which is why I'm not sure I can do this. Too much and she doesn't wake up. Too little and she wakes up and goes apeshit from the pain. Just the right amount will only allow a certain amount of time for the procedure to happen. I don't think I'm crazy, nuts, or whacko. If I can put together complex scientific equipment, why shouldn't I be able to make two or three quick cuts with a razor sharp knife, remove an infected blob, and re-connect the tissues? The only trouble besides the anesthetic I can forsee is if I get the skin open and the blob seems to be embedded in an organ or maybe growing inside the intestine. I wouldn't want to kill her by plugging up a necessary passage or removing something vital to life. I'm still continuing researching cat anatomy and hoping to find some diagrams or even photos of what I can expect to find inside. I'm not going to go ahead and do anything until I'm confident that I can do it successfully. This thread is another aspect of my research in the hopes that someone knowledgeable of cat anatomy and physiology can provide me with tips or links to web pages with tips or info.
By the way, I showed my wife this thread so far and she is very much less than thrilled at the thought of me attempting to "heal" her cat. So none of this might happen due to my fondness for my own testicles. But it would still be interesting to find out the information.

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timalkin

Dude, at home surgery for a cat is not good. I'm sure you can work out some type of payment plan with the vet. He'd probably settle for $50/month. Do you have any useful skills you can donate instead of money, like fix his air conditioner or something?

If you love your cat, don't cut it open.

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Trinity: "What do you need?"

Neo: "Guns. Lots of guns."

-The Matrix

thingstodo

I think the research part is probably interesting. Just remember, if it were that easy, vet school wouldn't be more difficult to get into than regular medical school. And wow, this is your wife's cat, huh? Better listen to her or she just might do a little surgery of her own or even try out that super glue.

I include the following as it might provide a little guidance in your decision making, especially 4, 6 9 and 10....

Ten Commandments For Pet Owners
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1. My life is likely to last 10 to 15 years or more. Any separation from you will be painful.

2. Give me time to understand what you want from me. Don't break my spirit with your temper, though I will always forgive you. Your patience will teach me more effectively.

3. Please have me spayed or neutered.

4. Treat me kindly, my beloved friend, for no heart in all the world is more grateful for your kindness than mine. Don't be angry with me for long, and don't lock me up as punishment. After all, you have your job, your friends, your entertainment, I only have you.

5. Speak to me often. Even if I don't understand your words, I understand your voice when it's speaking to me. Your voice is the sweetest sound I ever hear, as you must know by my enthusiasm whenever I hear your footsteps.

6. Take me in when it's cold and wet. I'm a domestic animal and am no longer accustomed to the bitter elements. I ask for little more than your gentle hands petting me. Keep my bowl filled with water. Feed me good food so that I may stay well to romp and play. By your side, I stand ready, willing and able to share my life with you, for that is what I live for. I'll never forget how well you've treated me.

7. Don't hit me. Remember, I have teeth that could easily crush the bones in your hand, but I choose not to bite.

8. Before you scold me for being lazy or uncooperative, ask yourself if something might be bothering me. Perhaps I'm not getting the right food, I've been out in the sun too long, my ear may hurt, or my heart may be getting weak.

9. Take care of me when I get old. For you will grow old, too.

10. When I am old, or when I no longer enjoy good health, please do not make heroic efforts to keep me going. I am not having fun. Just see to it that my trusting life is taken gently. And be with me on that difficult journey when it's time to say goodbye. Never say, "I just can't bear to watch it." Everything is easier for me when you are there. I will leave this earth knowing with my last breath that my fate was always safest in your hands. I love you.

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If you're wringing your hands you can't roll up your shirt sleeves.

Stangers have the best candy.

thingstodo

My own little bit of research tells me that this is far more complicated than you might imagine Guess that's part of the cost. Read on.

http://www.petshealth.com/dr_library/anesthesia.html

Anesthesia and Your Pet
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When a pet requires surgery, often the owner's first concern is the idea of anesthesia. We as veterinarians are very sensitive to your apprehensions and concerns. Although, anesthetic protocols have become considerably safer and much easier to both administer , we are very respectful of these medications. We now have at our fingertips ultra-short anesthetics, totally reversible anesthetics, and very safe and effective gas anesthetics which have dramatically decreased the risk to your pet. Along with the pre-anesthetic testing, anesthetic monitoring, and pain control, anesthetic accidents have been tremendously reduced.

When thinking about your pet and anesthesia, remember that they are not people. Obvious though this might be, it's important to separate the human experience of anesthesia from what an animal experiences. For instance, humans often awaken from general anesthesia feeling nauseous and with a thumping headache. Recovering pets, on the other hand, are rarely nauseous. And because veterinarians routinely administer pain medication (analgesia) as an important part of general-anesthetic protocol, they usually awake headache free.

Again, while anesthesia is not totally without risk, the risk is mitigated by two factors: today's exceptionally safe and easily adjusted dosing of the anesthetic drugs and veterinarians experienced in how to anesthetize their patients - from small kittens to feline senior citizens. Also, many of our pets now have pre-anesthetic testing. This also will minimize the risk involved.

While owners tend to think of all anesthesia as general anesthesia, veterinarians administer anesthetic drugs for other purposes, too. For instance, veterinarians routinely inject short- acting anesthetics to immobilize and relax a distressed patient. These may administered intramuscularly, subcutaneously, or intravenously or by inhalation through a mask. There are now a variety of anesthetics to choose from depending upon your pet's condition.

Your cat's doctor also relies on anesthesia as an integral part of more advanced diagnostic techniques. As in human medicine, it's now standard in animal medicine for a veterinarian to use less invasive, nonsurgical approaches to take a peek at what's going on inside a cat's body. Endoscopy and biopsy are examples of less invasive diagnostic procedures where anesthetics may assist in the detective work.

General anesthesia has a number of benefits. Some pertain to the patient; others to the doctor. Anesthesia brings about a loss of consciousness in the patient so the patient has no awareness of what is going on and, upon awakening, has no memory of what happened. Anesthesia also blocks any sensation of pain. In addition, anesthesia brings about muscle relaxation and suppression of reflex movement in the patient.

Anesthetic drugs are administered in one of two ways: they can be injected into a vein or muscle or inhaled as a gas. Scientists don't completely understand how anesthesia works. But they do know that once the drugs enter the bloodstream and travel to specific receptors in the brain, they induce a state of anesthesia. Moreover, once they're no longer needed, the drugs are quickly expelled from the cat's body. This speedy expulsion is critical because cats can have difficulty eliminating drugs from their bodies.

A fundamental goal of anesthesia is to use neither more or less anesthetic than necessary to get the job done. The depth of anesthesia required to keep a pet pain free, relaxed, and unconscious depends on the type of procedure and the individual patient. More painful procedures, such as abdominal surgery (spaying or ovariohysterectomy for females) and orthopedic surgery, require deep anesthesia. On the other hand, teeth cleaning requires only light anesthesia. The age and health of a pet also influence anesthetic depth.

It's very important to plan for general anesthesia. Planning includes a review by your pet's doctor of the patient's medical history as well as a physical examination. During this preliminary phase, you and your veterinarian (who is both the surgeon and anesthetist) work as a team. Your pet's doctor looks to you to provide as full a medical history as you can. (Make sure you mention any previous difficulties with anesthesia.) Depending on the age of your animal, your veterinarian should also recommend tests to check out your pet's liver, kidney, and heart functions. Knowing the health status enables you vet to put together the proper anesthetic protocol and be on the lookout for any unusual developments during anesthesia and recovery.

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The Stages of General Surgery:

Preparation: During this initial stage, the anesthetist sedates the patent and inserts into a front or hind limb an intravenous catheter through which injectable anesthetics and other fluids can pass as needed. This catheter also acts as a gateway for emergency drugs if necessary. Your pet will receive pain medication at this stage to smooth its recovery from surgery.

Induction: The anesthetist takes the patient into the unconscious state by administering injectable or inhalant anesthetics. For animals under 20 pounds, at our practice we use a gas anesthesia, isofluorane, to induce our patients. This procedure give us total control over the stages of anesthesia as well as rapid induction and recovery. Other recent developments are a new generation of injectable anesthetics . One drug allows rapid induction and as soon as the medication is discontinued, rapid recovery. Another injectable anesthetic is totally reversible by administering a follow up medication after your pet's procedure is performed. Maintenance: Once the patient is unconscious, the anesthetist maintains optimal anesthetic depth. Although for certain shorter, more superficial procedures, injectable anesthetics are sufficient, inhalants offer the anesthetist the advantage of moment-to-moment control, which may be an important consideration for an older or sick pet. During maintenance, the patient inhales anesthetic gases either through a mask over its nose and mouth or via a tube inserted into its windpipe (intubation).

Intubation establishes an unobstructed airway that could be vital should complications arise. (Your veterinarian should consider intubating older or sick pets, and breeds that are subject to breathing difficulties - such as Persians or Pekinese).

To maintain a safe anesthetic state, the anesthetist monitors the depth of anesthesia; the rate and quality of the patient's pulse and heartbeat; the lungs; the body temperature (to prevent hypothermia); and the mucous membranes (for abnormal color). Many anesthetic monitors are now available to our profession to also assist in monitoring of our patient. These sophisticated devices include heart monitors, instruments to measure your pet's oxygen and carbon dioxide levels, respiratory rate, and blood pressure. Most animals have a dedicated person whose sole job is to monitor the patient while we, the veterinarian, are treating your pets.

Recovery: A good recovery is an uneventful recovery.
So you see, anesthesia is actually a series of procedures rather than a single event. And certainly, time spent preparing is time well spent. Above all, remember that anesthesia is your cat's ally in certain times of need.
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How Anesthetic Gases Work

Anesthetic gases travel to the lungs via a tube inserted into the cat's windpipe (intubation).

The anesthetic moves through the branching structure of the lungs until it can go no further, ending up in an alveolar sac.

The anesthetic gas transfers from the lungs to the bloodstream by crossing from an individual alveolus into a neighboring blood vessel (a pulmonary capillary). Once in the bloodstream, the anesthetic travels to special receptors in the brain where it does its "stuff."
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The Young and Old

With appropriate preanesthetic preparation, both the very young to the oldest seniors are acceptable candidates for anesthesia. As pets age, though, they process drugs differently from younger animals, and they especially dislike being away from home. So veterinarians monitor senior very carefully and try to get them home as quickly as possible.
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Recovery

Animals recover best from anesthesia when they're kept under observation in a warm, quiet, undisturbed environment.

__________________
If you're wringing your hands you can't roll up your shirt sleeves.

Stangers have the best candy.

vermin

According to the last post and the other things I've read, anesthesia isn't just a "small obstacle easily overcome by the equation drug x weight= time available for cutting". My wife is checking with other vets in the area to see if we can find someone cheaper. Otherwise she'll just have to live with it. Thanks for the comments, the 10 commandments for pet owners was nice.

Her christmas present this morning was 1/3 of a can of tuna (3 cats, each get 1/3). Dog got a pack of rawhide chews.

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If puns were sausages, this would be the wurst.

Bossnass

I don't know where you looked into medical vs veterinary school, but my wife the med student and my brother in-law-2 (husband to my sister in-law) the small animal vet would disagree with you. We recently had this discussion ("more difficult to gain admission", not "home feline surgury".

I've personally witnessed an amputation of a dog's leg after it was kicked by a horse. A small shot of horse tranquilizer, some rye as antiseptic, quick work with a wood saw, a brand, and a leather sewing needle. I don't think it was cruel or inhumane, and the little aussie shepard was (slowly) herding again two weeks later. Certainly it was dangerous to give the dog horse tranquilizers but at the time he was yelping and whining and no one had the heart to euthanize him or to drive for hours to the nearest vet with him in that state.

That said, I still think it is a little edgy to perform an elective surgury on a pet, but it looks like you've also come to that conclusion.

ratbastid

Okay, here's another thing you probably don't know about the surgery itself.

Feline abcesses (which is what most "skin lumps" are) are usually liquid inside, not solid. The general practice is to lance the abcess and create a large enough incision to install a plastic drain, which they the suture in place and remove a week or so later. While the cat is wearing the drain, they put it in an Elizabethan Collar so it doesn't mess with it.

What you see on the surface of the skin is just the tip of the iceburg. When my cat had an abcess, there was a small bump on her skin--just enough to disturb the fur over it, which is how we first noticed it. The abcess under her skin was the size of an orange.

Any mis-step that results in the liquid contents of the abcess being released into the cat's abdominal cavity can result in sepsis, systemic infection, and death. Or at least very high vet bills for something you can't handle with an x-acto knife.

I applaud your DIY instincts here, but surgery is best left to professionals. (Anyone who wants to take that sentence as part of your signature is more than welcome. )

thingstodo

To your first point, I know several MDs and Vets that would agree with me, which is where I learned that opinion. The key word here is opinion. Perhaps there aren't as many vet schools as med schools? I don't know. The real point here is that there is a great deal of training that takes place and years of practice. And I am talking about the US.

As to the dog, why amputate? I certainly understand the need for emergency surgery to save a life. However, was that a life threatening injury? How about some horse tranqs and then a drive to the vet four hours away? While the dog survived, I sure don't understand - based on what was said here - that that was responsible pet ownership. But I'm sure there is more to the story.

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If you're wringing your hands you can't roll up your shirt sleeves.

Stangers have the best candy.

thingstodo

Glad to hear about your decision. I'm sure everything will work out. That 10 Commandments always kicks me in the gut!

Merry Christmas to all of you!

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If you're wringing your hands you can't roll up your shirt sleeves.

Stangers have the best candy.

vermin

The blob on the cat was turning black and smelled horrible. I took her to the humane society to be put to sleep today.

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If puns were sausages, this would be the wurst.

JustJess

Oh, vermin - I am so sorry to hear that. I'm sure you made the right decision - that was a quick infection rate, and you surely saved Baby from needless suffering. I am so so sorry. My condolences to you and your wife.

__________________
My heart knows me better than I know myself, so I'm gonna let it do all the talkin'.

thingstodo

Awe, man. I'm so sorry to hear this news. That's one of the toughest things you can have to do. Those times are burned into my brain. I hope at some point you'll be ready for another pet...and perhaps you'll adopt from the same center.

__________________
If you're wringing your hands you can't roll up your shirt sleeves.

Stangers have the best candy.