Hi. I have an 18 yo Orange Male Cat named Sweet Potato.


Here is a picture.

https://www.curezone.org/ig/i.asp?i=96721


We took in his mother when she was pregnant with him, and she gave birth to him, and around 7 other beautiful kittens in my house. We kept the mother and kittens until the kittens were old enough to be adopted. We couldn't keep all of them, because we had 2 cats already. We gave away the mother and kittens, but kept Sweet Potato because I loved him so much.

He had a UTI when he was younger, and a couple of minor IBS flareups, but has been, for the most part, in excellent health throughout his lifetime.


It's only within the past year or so, that his health has spiraled downward.

It started with him throwing up every couple of days.

At times, he would feel too sick to eat anything. He would also get a constant uptake of saliva to his mouth, which he would continuously need to push back down.


We took him to the Vet.

They gave him some fluids, and started him on B12 shots.

They also recommended switching his diet. (I forgot which brand, but the foods involved deer,venison,rabbit)


I don't remember if it was during this visit, or others, but at some point he was diagnosed with Crones Disease.


We tried the different food, but he refused to eat it, so we stopped giving it to him.

Overall, he appeared to be doing fine. (well minus the saliva still coming up into his mouth)


After another couple of months, he started throwing up again.

He also started losing a lot of weight. He was also losing a lot of bone mass in his back leg/thigh area. The muscle on his back legs was literally wasting away.


We took him to the Vet again.

They took blood tests.

The tests showed that he had Hypothyroidism.
I don’t remember the exact diagnosis, but the tests also showed some slight Heart Disease (shrinking Heart Valve/Ventrical?)

We started him on Methimazole/Tapazole for his Thyroid.
We also started him on Atenolol for his Heart.
We also changed his dry food to Natural Balance Limited Ingredient, and his wet food to and Instinct Nature’s Variety. (deer,venison,rabbit,he actually likes this brand)


He was throwing up less frequently, but had been losing mass in his back leg/thigh area at an alarming rate.


We took him to the Vet again, and they recommended adding Steroids to his regimen.

Now I am a person who is very much into holistic healing, and I was growing very weary of the amount of drugs that we were giving him.

I insisted that we stay away from the steroids for the time being, and that we also send him to a Holistic Vet, particularly, one that included Chiropractic care.


We went to the Holistic Vet and they gave him a full checkup.

They gave him a Chiropractic Laser Treatment, and also put him on a couple of Homeopathic Remedies, one being, Thyroidinum, for his Thyroid, and one being, Phophorous, for his Heart.


We continued with the Chiropractic treatments, and it appeared to be helping him with his bone/muscle loss.


He then started throwing up again a few months later. (and at times stopped eating again, as well)


We took him back to the Holistic Vet.

They saw that he was dehydrated and anemic, so they gave him some fluids.

They did some blood tests.

The results showed that his red blood cell count was low and something about his Kidneys. (I don’t remember exactly what)

They added a Homeopathic Remedy for his Intestinal Tract called Hydrastis.

They recommended a Homeopathic Remedy for his Anemia and a supplement for his Kidneys, both of which, I have yet to purchase. (this was very recent)

They also recommended to start giving him the steroids every other day.

I put it off for awhile, but have, for the past week or so, been giving him the Steroids.


I have stopped the Chiropractic treatments for the time being, due to Insurance issues. I originally started the treatments before the Insurance kicked in, because of the massive bone/muscle loss in his leg area. The Insurance has been reluctant to cover any future treatments, because they are claiming that it was a pre-existing condition.


His condition now is not looking very good.

He hasn’t been throwing up very often, but has had a lot of saliva coming up into his mouth. He has been drinking a lot of water. He has been, for the most part, eating pretty well, but has still been excessively hungry.

He has been very weak overall. He has been a bit wobbly, particularly when getting up after a nap/after sitting down for a period of time.

His weight appears to be ok in the stomach area, but I can still feel his ribs when picking him up. I can feel bones in the spine area. I can feel bone protruding out from the spinal area where his tail begins. The muscle mass/bones in the back leg/thigh area are not as bad as they once were, but still not where I’d like it to be.

He has also been sneezing a lot of late.


Now I should mention that his Teeth and Gums have been filthy for many years on end.

I strongly believe that his Teeth may be playing a major role in his stomach issues. I have tried to sound the alarm during Vet visits. The response has been that there are more pressing issues, that his Teeth are very dirty, but not dangerously so, and that he is too weak right now to be put under anesthesia.


I have recently been looking into DIY alternatives.

Would you reccomend Tooth Spray/Powders such as the ones below?

http://products.mercola.com/healthypets/pet-dental-gel/
http://www.petzlife.com/catalog/oral-care-products.html?limit=15
http://plaqueattackweb.com/home
https://www.swedencareusa.com/product/proden-plaqueoff-powder-cat-40-g/

What Brand of Toothbrush would you recommend?

http://www.petzlife.com/catalog/oral-care-products/petzlife-complete-brush-3-sided-toothbrush.html

What brand, if any, of Tarter Scrapers/Plaque Remover tools would you recommend?

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B017RNU85O/_encoding=UTF8?coliid=I1ABTOOZXXHM1V&colid=GF2MZD7K4RU8&psc=0


Also, is there any advice/product recommendations that you would recommend in general?

Any help would be much appreciated!