Help for Benny

My cat Benny got his second dose of vaccination about 2 weeks ago and has difficulty walking and that happened when he got his first dose too but, after the second one he's constipated and got a rash on his bottom too. I tried home remedies like 1/4 teaspoon of coconut oil but I don't know if it's working or not. I am a student and I cannot afford the expensive visits to the vet. Please let me know if there's anything I can do to make it better.Thanks

Hello and I'm sorry to hear that Benny is having trouble, although your question worries me more broadly;  one guarantee about getting a cat is, that he will get sick at some point and it could be any point;  cats don't always give any warning. Even the very best looked after of cats get sick. While it is great to hear that he has been vaccinated, vaccinations cannot prevent all sickness, just make the spread of certain infectious diseases less likely.   I could give you advice for constipation, but if it turned out to be hip pain that was responsible, or urinary constipation (which can look exactly the same), or a rectal blockage, then I could allow things to get ten times worse by doing do, thus making Benny suffer.  Part of the commitment of cat ownership is to have access to at least a basic level of medical treatment when it is needed; in the UK, this is seldom free.  Indeed, the costs can be surprising because human health-care is free at the point of access, so people typically underestimate the cost.  You could speak to charity clinics, for example the PDSA if you are in the UK, who might be happy to take on Benny's healthcare.  This may be means-tested.  The cats protection league or local rescue centres may also have suggestions.  If not, then my responsibility is to your patient and I would recommend seriously considering rehoming your pet in order that they can access veterinary treatment, rather than simple hoping that they are not / will not get ill. This is quite a contentious topic, so here are some articles by different members of the Vet Help Direct team: https://vethelpdirect.com/vetblog/2022/10/10/cost-of-living-how-to-save-on-pet-care/ https://vethelpdirect.com/vetblog/2021/03/01/can-you-afford-a-pet/ I hope that something here is helpful.  

Hello and I'm sorry to hear that Benny is having trouble, although your question worries me more broadly;  one guarantee about getting a cat is, that he will get sick at some point and it could be any point;  cats don't always give any warning. Even the very best looked after of cats get sick. While it is great to hear that he has been vaccinated, vaccinations cannot prevent all sickness, just make the spread of certain infectious diseases less likely.   I could give you advice for constipation, but if it turned out to be hip pain that was responsible, or urinary constipation (which can look exactly the same), or a rectal blockage, then I could allow things to get ten times worse by doing do, thus making Benny suffer.  Part of the commitment of cat ownership is to have access to at least a basic level of medical treatment when it is needed; in the UK, this is seldom free.  Indeed, the costs can be surprising because human health-care is free at the point of access, so people typically underestimate the cost.  You could speak to charity clinics, for example the PDSA if you are in the UK, who might be happy to take on Benny's healthcare.  This may be means-tested.  The cats protection league or local rescue centres may also have suggestions.  If not, then my responsibility is to your patient and I would recommend seriously considering rehoming your pet in order that they can access veterinary treatment, rather than simple hoping that they are not / will not get ill. This is quite a contentious topic, so here are some articles by different members of the Vet Help Direct team: https://vethelpdirect.com/vetblog/2022/10/10/cost-of-living-how-to-save-on-pet-care/ https://vethelpdirect.com/vetblog/2021/03/01/can-you-afford-a-pet/ I hope that something here is helpful.  

In the short term, you asked about coconut oil.  In my day, this was recommended between owners as a treatment for anything from diarrhoea to skin disease; however in reality, it only helps a small number of cases, and of those I'd guess that most would have improved without the coconut oil i.e. the improvement was simply due to time / a self-limiting problem or something else.  Coconut oil may also cause problems in other cases.  It therefore sounds as if you have a horrible decision to make, between finding a way to finance Benny's healthcare (I mean generally, not just today) and possibly rehoming him to someone with the resources to take this responsibility on, given the constraints of charity healthcare for animals in the UK at this time.  I wince when I say this, but I'm afraid that the responsibility for pet health-care does rest with the owner and owners do have a legal responsibility to provide healthcare should it be needed.