[thankfulheart]

A few weeks ago we noticed that my kitty looked like his belly was swollen. It came up really fast. We took him to the vet and they tried x-ray but he had too much fluid and couldn't see anything because of it. The vet was afraid it was FIV but wasn't sure. He recommended draining the fluid and sending it off for analysis. Some other thoughts on the fluid were a possible tumor causing the fluid to build up, chyloabdomen which is a lymphatic problem from what I can tell. They took 800 cc from his poor belly. He had a rough time after because he got dehydrated...so they gave him fluids and he perked back up. We waited a week for the test to come back and it was inconclusive! In the meantime his belly has filled back up and he's almost as big as he was when we took him for the drain. I talked to the vet's office today and the next thing he recommends is drain a little of the fluid and ultrasound to see if there is a tumor or if they can see anything else. If it is then I guess he would recommend surgery. The thing is...a little over a year ago he had a bladder blockage and spent almost a week in hospital. We got help from a non profit that helped with his bills but our portion was still close to $1300 which I'm paying for on a credit card. That is why the $450-500 estimate for the ultrasound and fluid drain is such a mountain. Because that's just diagnosing him...that's not saving him. There is possible surgery or other treatment AFTER that. So...my head says, have him put to sleep, but my heart is breaking. I bottle raised him and his two siblings from their first day...they are 10 now. We love them so much, and he is such a gentle sweet giant. Right now he looks very bloated and he's not coming downstairs as much as he used to. He still does some but doesn't stay long. He used to come down and get in my lap just about every time I sat down at night. But he's still eating and begging for food, he's still purring and coming for loves when we are upstairs and he his bright eyed and beautiful! The vet says if I do nothing his fluid will eventually fill up and push on his organs, he'll stop eating and lose weight...go down hill...suffer...the thought of that makes me sick . I guess I'd just love some prayer and understanding. Nobody understands that he's not just a cat...he's a very loved member of our family and a gentle sweet soul. Every time I think about putting him down I just can't stand it.