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Cat has fluid in belly, high white cells. ER or wait for ultrasound?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Cat | Domestic Shorthair | Male | neutered | 15 years and 3 months old | 18 lbs

Took my cat to our local vet on Thursday for a bloated abdomen. No other symptoms. Vet found fluid in the abdomen on the xray and increased white blood cell count and said we need an ultrasound to get a real diagnosis. To get one in a timely fashion, we'll need to go to the ER. If the cat is eating, active, and showing no signs of distress, should we go ASAP or wait until Monday morning?

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3 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Sara Farmer, DVM

Veterinarian

Published on August 5th, 2017

In my opinion going to the ER would be best, although you may not be able to have a full ultrasound until Monday morning. Some potential causes of fluid in the abdomen include an infection or abscess in the abdomen, diseases like FIP, or cancer. If there were an infection it would be best to start treatment sooner rather than later. An ER vet could take a sample of fluid to examine for signs of white blood cells or bacteria and might be able to perform a limited ultrasound. It's also possible that a specialist could be called in to perform a full ultrasound if needed over the weekend.

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Other Answers

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    Answered By Daniel Fonza, DVM

    Veterinarian

    Published on

    My recommendation for this would be the sooner you get an answer the better. As whatever is causing the fluid accumulation could potentially worsen overnight. It sounds like he is stable at the moment but that may change. I would encourage you to get him in for diagnostics sooner rather than later but if it is not possible for you to get him into the ER and want to wait, then I would wait no longer than Monday if you can help it. I am concerned that with his age, this may be something malignant or infectious. If you have any other questions / concerns feel free to contact me

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    Answered By Dr. Davis

    Veterinarian

    Published on

    If he is acting normally you can wait until Monday. If he should start to have breathing problems or stops eating go in earlier. If they did not run a blood panel they will recommend that also. The liver is enlarged on the X-ray so they may also want to do a needle aspirate to get cells to look at under the microscope. They will look at all the abdominal organs during the ultrasound and get a sample of the fluid also. Then when they get a diagnosis they can develop a treatment plan. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for NCK.

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