Yes, aspirin can easily poison cats. You should NEVER increase the dosage or frequency of dosages of aspirin without the specific instruction of your vet. Please go back to the prescribed dosage and frequency until you discuss this with your vet. Your cat's life depends on it.

Laurie

Laurie is 100% correct. Aspirin can cause hemolytic anemia in cats. Another option for arthritis in cats is Meloxicam (metacam) which is an NSAID that can be given daily, which may provide more consistentr relief for your kitty. Most cats actually like the flavor of Meloxicam and it can be given on top of food. Some will even take it directly from the dropper (it's a liquid). Ask the vet about that. If you decide to switch, ask how long after aspirin withdrawl is it safe to start to give Meloxicam.

Thanks for advice - where can I get Meloxicam? The aspirin is baby aspirin. I feel now it's a matter of quality vs. quantity.

You should be able to get Metacam from your vet, but if he doesn't stock it, you can order it through most pet supply catalogs with a veterinary prescription. I just ordered some from KV Vet Supply - http://www.kvvet.com

There is no "quality" in store for your cat if you end up poisoning her with aspirin.

Laurie

Laurie - you are so right about "quality." I checked metacam and KVVet says it's for dogs only. Do you know anything about "GP Glucosamine / Chondroitin - Relieves pain and heals damaged connective tissue."
It's the only one that says it relieves pain - Wonder if it's the same as I take?
Jan

If Meg says Metacam is safe for use in cats (Meg is a vet student), I assume it to be true. You should discuss that with your vet.

There are myriads of glucosamine/chondroitin supplements on the market, all claiming to have miraculous effects on arthritic animals. From what I've both read and experienced, it works great on some animals and not on others. Any g/c supplement is going to need to be given over a matter of weeks before any sort of improvement will be seen, if any improvement is going to be seen at all. G/c would be a good thing to give your cat in addition to an anti-imflammatory like baby aspirin or Metacam, but I doubt if any g/c supplement would provide any significant pain relief by itself for advanced arthritis.

If you haven't actually taken your cat to your vet for a thorough exam and blood workup, I suggest you do so. Arthritis may not be her problem at all (or at least not her only problem). At her age, it's possible she may have multiple health concerns that are causing the sort of weakness you're seeing.

Laurie

For whatever reason, metacam is not yet labeled for cats in the US. It is in Europe. We're a little slow on veterinary drugs. But many vets have been using it for long term arthritis control in cats.

As far as quality vs quantity, I had a dog die from anemia and I can tell you that was NOT a quality way to go. Slowly suffocating because you can't get enough oxygen because you have no RBCs- not fun. Obviously though you do need something to control your cat's pain.

Laurie's correct about the glucosamine. Works on some, but not everyone and it takes at least 6 weeks to see any effect. It's not anti-inflammatory and doesn't have any pain control medication in it. Glucosamine works by providing the building blocks for rebuilding joints cartilage. If lack of joint cartilage isn't your cat's problem then it won't help. It also won't help if your cat doesn't have cartilage-producing cells in the joints, which can happen if the joints have degenerated beyond a certain point. But there is no way to know this until you try for 6 weeks and see if it helps.

I've been giving my arthritic dogs Duralactin too. They have a cat formula as well. It's a milk protein product that is anti-inflammatory but nobody really knows the mechanism. It does NOT inhibit the COX pathways like NSAIDs though, so you can give it with NSAIDs.

I second Laurie in making sure your cat has a good PE and bloodwork before starting on any long-term drug therapy. Although metacam is reported safe, reactions to any drug can occur in any animal, so it is important to monitor.

Good luck with your kitty.

As I said my kitty is feral except for the 2 of us and stresses out if another person gets near - so don't know how to get a PE. My vet has a vetmobile and comes to house and will ask her about a PE.
Thank you so much for all your advice.
Jan