My baby had similar issues in september. It's nearly impossible to tell the cause. Our vet theorized on everything from electric shock to a brown recluse spider bite to a neurological tumor.

She has recovered, though.

I did lose a cat to AF years ago and it was a rapid death.

Trekaren~ Hmmm, I wonder if it's just an ailment in cats... Kind of like the flu in ppl?

Well, I'm sorry to hear you lost your cat to AF, but maybe since everything I've read say's it is a quick death, my friends cat is just sick & not poisoned.

Thanks for your input.

Mc_Hudd

Did the blood work show liver or kidney failure? Antifreeze already ingested may only show in in liver or kidney failure. Usually the vet does supportive care in these cases, in particular fluids.

Nope, not that the vet has told my friend anyway. This poor cat has been poked & prodded & still the tests show nothing. That's why I thought of the "just a lick" theory. Thought a small amount may make a cat sick, but wouldn't be enough to do serious damage.

I don't know. I feel for my friend, she is worried sick & the vet(s) don't seem to be making her feel much better.
:(

If you have the funds available. And you can find a local practicioner, I suggest you take your cat to an acupunturist who specializes in animals. The reason I suggest this is because when my mother was in the hospital, her room mate have a bad case of diverticulitis, and the hospital could not assist this woman at all, she was in excrutiating pain, and could keep nothing down. Within a week of her seeing an acupuncturist she was markedly better. It might be worth a shot. PS - Have you had the food you are feeding your cat tested?

The lethal dose for anti-freeze is about one lick per 10 pounds of body weight. Anti-freeze poisioning toxicity is fairly easy to diagnose either with blood work or a urinalysis.

The chemical forms a specific crystal in the urine that is readily seen under the microscope. The urine will also have a unique glow under a black light.

I would suggest xraying the cat. It might have eaten something, our dog swallowed a needle less than a week after we got him and only xrays could prove that he did. I fortunately was there when he wolfed down the needle before I could get it out of his mouth. He had to have surgery but he is well these days and we keep anything dangerous out of his reach. Animals will swallow anything. I would have it ex-rayed since they can't find any thing else. The vet said the needle could have punctured our dogs heart and killed him.
Paul

Chickadeedee,

Thanks! Do you know how soon after ingestion symptoms start to show? I thought that if the symptoms show, say, a day after ingestion, there would be no poison in the stomach, but kidney damage would be present.

What I mean is, with songbirds that were poisoned, bloodwork was negative except to show organ failure, because birds process their food within hours. Lead showed in specific tests, but lead stays in the body...so is antifreeze like lead?

Thanks.

Mazer~ It's not my cat... It's a friend's (coworker's). She is already worried about how much this will end up costing, though she's going ahead w/ vet visits. But, I don't think she's the type person to do something like that. I'm also not sure that's readily available around here (MO). Thanks for the suggestion though.

Pipsy~ They actually have done xrays... Sorry, I forgot to mention that. That was one of the first things their vet did... They thought the cat may have some sort of a blockage... Nothing showed up.

I have 2 dogs & that's a big fear of mine... Having them swallow something like that. I try to keep anything dangerous out of their reach, but they find stuff sometimes that I wasn't even aware of.

I had some mouse poison in a closet once & my beagle mix opened the door & ate some! Luckily, I caught him right after he did it & was able to induce vomiting & got it all out of his system. That was such a scary moment. Now anything like that is well out of reach of my dogs, if used at all. Lesson learned!

Thanks for the replies!

Mc_Hudd :)

Miss Elly.The time for signs to show would depend on the dose ingested as well as the size of the patient. Usually things start to happen within hours like vomiting and lethargy. By the time you have symptoms it may be too late because of the severity of the kidney damage.

You can run tests for the ethylene glycol blood levels as well as the BUNÂ and Creat. If there's increases in those the chances to start reversing with treatment may not be successful and the patient dies of renal failure.

The metabolism of birds is very fast so they would process the toxin faster and result in a negative blood level but severe kidney damage. Lead, like other heavy metals, will be in the blood and deposits can be found in bone, hair / feathers.

The heavy metals toxicities usually more of a chronic toxicity rather than an acute ingestion allowing for the chronic deposition in the tissues. There may be a subtle dark depigmentation on the wing primary feathers and other areas as well as blood changes and other schtuff that you probably already know.

Sorry ... that was kinda rambling but hope it made sense.

Yes, that is very instructive. Thanks!

It is such dangerous stuff. I read somewhere that someone is petitioning someone to add a rancid taste and odor to antifreeze, so it is not so attractive to animals (as you know it is sweet!).

There is a product that is supposed to be less pet / animal attractive but still it is lethal.

Other household products such as some caulk for bathrooms contain high amounts of ethylene glycol and those are just as toxic if ingested. Usually if there's a chance that something like that was ingested it is best to start treatment until proved otherwise. As with many medical emergencies time is very important!

We had a border collie die from AF poisoning several years ago. She weighed about 30 pounds and only could've gotten maybe 2 licks in her. Hubby's 'friend' used our garage to change the antifreeze in his radiator, then left a container sitting on a low shelf that he had drained the old AF into. While he disposed of most of it, there were a few drops still in the container (which no one noticed till it was too late). It was a heartbreaking and horrible way for a dog to die, not to mention quick. Now we are just about paranoid about that stuff, and will NEVER let something like that happen again. Now my dogs are not allowed to hang out in the garage at all. I really hope the industry will be required to add something with a bad smell and taste to it!