Day of the Iron Gate,  21st Day of Autumn, 525 M.E. (Helios): The good news came back from the lab regarding Eliot - he's in quite good shape for a cat his age. No leukemia, no kidney disease, no liver problems. 

We still can't rule out cancer of the tongue, however. He's desperately thin and it may be because eating hurts his mouth. The matted fur may be because it hurts to lick his paws while grooming. There were black stains on his front paws which the vet thinks may be from drooling, and I've seen him drool on several occasions. A lot of indications all point to something wrong with his tongue, and the vet saw a sore there.

They gave me some pain meds for Eliot (Gabapentin) but I haven't given it to him yet, some 24 hours since we returned from the vet. First, he doesn't seem to be in any pain. Second, it's a sedative and I've  read that it makes cats drowsy and dopey, and I don't want to sedate him if there's no problem. Also, some doctors question whether it actually dulls the pain cats experience or just sedates them into not exhibiting any symptoms of pain. The old guy has enough problems without being dazed and confused all day.

Of course, he may not be in pain, but his mouth might still be sensitive and it hurts to eat or groom. But I'm not sure being zonked out all day will improve either (junkies aren't noted as voracious eaters or to be fastidious about their personal hygiene).

Whatever the case, the vet didn't try to argue for giving him the meds.

The next step is probably a dental cleaning and oral examination. He'd be under anesthesia and this would be the best way to examine the sore on his tongue. In the worst-case scenario, if the sore is a cancer, we would have to move on to quality-of-life care, as the vet euphemistically put it.