New to the forum and new to maine coon bellies

[Catlover]

Thanks for all the positive comments guys. Wendy- chester sounds very sweet, it's good to know that there are other dainty MCs out there. I think Sylvester is probably destined to be a little bit runty but I don't mind- as long as I can't feel his bones so much!

He's becoming quite naughty and I get woken before my alarm every morning. Today he roamed about the bed giving my partner and I nips in strategic places until we got up and fed him. He's a real character- we love him.

[Catlover]

Hi there
Had Sylvester at the vet again today so that he could get his booster (last week the vet felt we should hold off giving him it until his runny stools stopped!) and he's put on 0.3 kg in a week (he's now 4.8 kg). So that's encouraging!

[FreyjaRoMaine]

Great news, Catlover - can we assume that his runny stools have also stopped? Is that the last of his injections now?

[Catlover]

His stools are not quite right yet (sounds awful but I would describe them as 'moussey'!!) getting better though. We have some antibiotics for him but have been holding off since he seems to be improving on his own.
As for the injections, he may have to go back one more time as worryingly he doesn't appear to have had FeLV vaccine. He was allowed out a bit in his last home so I am a bit concerned about him already contracting the virus. The vet seemed less concerned and didn't seem to think blood tests were necessary if we are keeping him in.
He also seems to show signs of a heart murmur :(. Both his parents were n/n for the hcm gene so I take it that it is unrelated to that particular gene. A bit ironic really as I research cardiomyopathy for a living!
So feeling encouraged by the weight gain but also have a few niggling worries about this little cat. He's not worried at all- currently batting a kinder egg about the room!

[Antonia]

Hi Alison, just looked at the pics of Sylvester and I think he's gorgeous. He does indeed have wavy belly fur, it looks ever so cuddle-able.

Could the loose stools be related to dietary change? Our Monty gets runny stools from rich foods, but not from stuff like Whiskas.

That is a bit unnerving about the heart murmur. I can imagine that you worry a bit. Was the vet very concerned about it?

[Catlover]

Hi antonia
Yes I definitely think the whiskas could be the culprit- currently researching some wet food options which is a bit kinder to the belly!
The vet didn't seem so worried about the murmur- she said his heart was beating very fast (she'd just gone to town cleaning out his ears!) so it was difficult to really say much about it and that it doesn't necessarily mean that he has an enlarged heart. She just said that she'd see us next October for the booster. I guess all I can do is provide him with the best diet possible and make sure his life is as chilled and as stess free as possible!

[mcguy]

We had a MC mix that lived with HCM for several years and also now have a MC girl that is hetero for the known HCM mutation, so have some experience with heart issues. Murmur is certainly not definite for HCM, and HCM cats do not always have discernible murmurs. If you really want to find out what your guy's heart status is you need to get an echocardiogram done by a vet cardiology specialist. In the US these are called Board Certified Veterinary Cardiologists. While there are many other vets that perform echos, our experience has been that you cannot really trust their conclusions, so it is rather a waste of money (or worse). E.g., one of our girls was diagnosed as having advanced HCM when she was echoed due to rapid breathing following a minor surgical procedure. Luckily we were able to get her in to see a cardiologist nearly immediately, and the HCM diagnosis turned out to be completely wrong! (She has a unusual but benign structural feature that the non-cardiologist had never heard of and so misinterpreted as thickened heart wall.) We had our hetero girl echo'd at 4 years and will have her done again next spring at 6. She showed no heart structural changes at 4, so we are hopeful. You may also not want to spend the time/money since your guy is asymptomatic, as current best practice is no treatment for asymptomatic cats. Certainly keep an eye on his breathing rate when resting/sleeping. It should be 20-30 breaths per minute. Significantly higher can indicated developing heart issues.

[Pepsi2670]

Hi, you also asked about grooming. My boy was in a mess when I got him and I had to have him shaved down both sides as he was felted up. I bought a very small slicker brush which has worked great.

It's a brush meant for small mammals and has a head about 1" x 2" which is great for getting behind his ears and other awkward places. It doesn't hurt him at all as it's not scratchy, but the wires are so close together that it gets right through the fur and pulls out the loose undercoat. It leaves him lovely and soft. He even lets me do under his tail with it!

He gets excited when I show it to him and leaps up on a stool ready to be groomed. I would really recommend these little brushes.