Dear Most Esteemed and Knowledgeable Kitties:
My cat has a urinary blockage and is at the vet right at the moment. We had to admit him a second time since he became blocked again within a day. He has struvite crystals. Both times we’ve taken him in, the catheter was not able to be passed through to his bladder. The first time the vet was able to get the catheter about 85% in and the second time only about 30%. The vet though it may be a spasm so my kitty has recently been given an anti-inflammatory in the hopes that it will make it easier to insert a catheter later.
My question is what other possibilities are there if this latest attempt is unsuccessful? My vet mentioned that a perineal urethrostomy (PU) may not be very helpful since the obstruction is pretty far up the urinary canal.
Any further informaion for my own peace of mind would be appreciated.
~Josh
Siouxsie: As you no doubt know by now, urinary blockage is a very serious and potentially fatal condition which is much more common in male cats than female cats because of the male cat’s long, narrow urethra. We’re glad you got your cat to the vet promptly because you saved his life in doing so!
Thomas: Any time you see a cat — male or female — exhibiting the symptoms of a urinary tract infection or blockage, it’s critical that the cat get treatment as soon as possible.
Dahlia: We’re not veterinarians, and we wouldn’t presume to second-guess your vet on what he or she is doing to help your cat. We are quite certain, however, that treatments for stubborn blockages do exist (your cat is not the only one who’s ever had such a blockage) and we trust that your vet knows all the options available and is doing all he or she can for your kitty.
Siouxsie: We can reassure you that blockages are treated successfully in a vast, vast majority of cases.
Thomas: Once your cat recovers from his blockage, you’ll need to focus on prevention of infections, inflammation, or crystal development in the future.
Dahlia: You mentioned that your cat has struvite crystals. Struvite crystals are formed when the urine is too alkaline. Another type of crystals, oxalate crystals, are formed when the urine is too acidic.
Siouxsie: Generally, treatment of crystals involves a diet that helps to give the urine a proper pH (acid-alkaline balance) in order to prevent the development of crystals in the future.
Thomas: Your vet may recommend that your cat eat a prescription diet in order to regulate the urine’s pH. There are prescription diets available for cats with struvite or oxalate crystals, as well as an array of other chronic illnesses.
Dahlia: The late, great Sinéad O’Kitty (may she frolic forever in the mouse-filled fields and roll in catnip whenever she wants) used to have a problem with urinary tract infections, and our vet recommended a few things to help prevent future recurrences.
Siouxsie: First, always provide lots of pure water. The most economical way to make sure water is pure is to purchase a pitcher filter and only give your cats water that has been run through that device. This is particularly important if your tap water is chlorinated or has other chemical additives such as fluoride, because these chemicals not only make water taste unpleasant, they can increase the pH of urine (chlorine is very alkaline).
Thomas: Second, don’t feed seafood-flavored cat food. Ever. Our vet has found, through many years of work in the field, that for some reason tuna and other seafoods irritate some cats’ bladders and may contribute to development of stones or crystals.
Dahlia: Of course, make sure your cat’s litterbox is clean and that you are using unscented litter in an open-topped box. Dirty boxes, chemical scents, or covered toilwra can cause a cat to be reluctant to use the box. I mean, really! How would you like to have to walk barefoot over puddles of pee and pieces of poo every time you had to go to the bathroom? And scented litter in a covered box is a kitty gas chamber.
Siouxsie: Some vets recommend increasing the amount of canned food you give your cat, so that your cat consumes more water. Mmmm, gooshy foods!
Thomas: Finally, reduce the cat’s stress level as much as possible. If there have been major changes in the cat’s life, make sure to make time to keep things as normal as possible. If the cat is extremely anxious or stressed, consider using Feliway, a synthetic pheromone that promotes a feeling of calmness in cats.
Dahlia: So, Josh, we hope we’ve managed to reassure you a little bit, and that the tips we’ve given here will help you to prevent future infections and crystal development in your cat.
JaneA Kelley is a punk rock cat mom and award-winning blogger. She is a regular columnist for Catster Magazine, and she and the Paws and Effect Gang share a home in the beautiful Pacific Northwest.
My 3 yr old cat Shadow had the same problems eralier this year. I wasn’t sure what was wrong with him. The only thing I noticed was that he was taking a real long time to urinate. Then I found blood in his urine and rushed him to the vets. He too had a hard time with the catheter. His blockage was at the entrance, so the vet manually removed the blockage by pressing down on his bladder. He put him on a strict diet of C/D both wet and dry. He was on it for almost 3 months and he’s good as new. Knowing this may happen again I’m more aware of him when he’s in the liter box and I feel his abdomen periodically to make sure nothing hard is forming again.
My boy, Norton is now 13 yrs old. He suffered at least half a dozen obstructions over a period of a few years, several years ago. We said goodbye more than once. Long story short, he had a perineal urethrostomy. He suffered one last obstruction a few months after the surgery, but made it through. Vet recommended C/D diet and that seems to have worked. Happy ending!
Thank you all for your insight. I’ve learned a lot over the last couple weeks and appreciate all your feedback.
Just to update all of you, my vet was finally able to pass a catheter. I’m not sure how after all the previous problems, but there could have been many contributing factors.
Either way my kitty just came home this morning and is looking and acting much better. He is now on the canned s/d diet and urinating on his own a little bit at a time.
The amount of urine is not as large of an amount as before he got sick, but he’s flowing and more seems to come out each time. I’m taking this a good sign and thankful he’s doing better.
My male cat has the same problem right now. I have taken him to the vet 5 days out of nine. He is being treated with an anibiotic and prednesone. I have switched his food to CD wet and dry. The vet assures me that a proper diet will help decrease the chance of this occuring again. Right now we are in the phase of getting the infection cleared up. This does take some time. As I said he has been fighting this for the last 10 days. I hope your cat and my cat have a great recovery. beecause they are a big part of the family.
My cat Auron (4) lost his battle with cystitis about 3 weeks ago, I was told nothing about a Catheter method just that his urinal tract was blocked and the best option was to euthanise. Brilliant to know there was actually something that could have been done!
Thank you so much for the info and comments :) My kitty is so very sick right now :( It is good to have comforting stories to lean on, of course, God first. But thanks again!
Richie, that is so horrible, I am sorry for your loss :( I can’t believe your vet would not tell you! That is wrong, I would complain aboutt hat one. mI however am dealing with the same problems as all you guys. My kitty was in the hospotal because he was blocked, just over a 3 weeks now, was cathetorized twice. Came home. Although he is finally acting pretty much like himself again, eating, drinking, playing, cuddling, he STILL has trouble peeing!! He still has all the UTi signs, peeing outside the box, crying after he pees (AFTER he pees, like it burns or something) licks himself all the time, doesnt pee huge amounts but pees. So my vet put him on another antibiotic (baytril). Its been a week now and I am not sure on any improvements as of yet!! Is this normal?? How long is this going to take? I know he was pretty inflammed and irritated down there cause he needed two cathetors but I think it wouldn’t still hurt after pee pee’s by now. Like I said, it’s been just over 3 weeks. I just want my little man to feel better :( I should note that I am bringing a urine sample to the vet as soon as I can get one so they can do a urinealisys to see if there are still crystals. If thats the case, that means the Medical Urninary SO food that he is on, is not working (he’s on both wet and dry but I am thinking of switching to all wet soon). Is this possible or id his uti just really not gone away yet?
What is C/D diet??plz help my cat is going through the same thing
Richie: that is very tragic and i would find another vet if you have other kitties. We all go to a cats only vet because she so much better than any of the other vets we used to use (2 of us have had UT probs which were never really resolved until we started seeing our current cats only vet). .
Mom tricks me into drinking extra water by putting it on some dried food several times per day. I drink the flavored water but leave most of the crunchies. I also eat canned food, the kind with chunks and gravy.
I had urinary tract blockage once and occasionally have mild attacks of idiopathic cystitis when I get stressed. When I was blocked I had to be catheterized, then take phenoxybenzamine 2x per day for 10 days, and have subQ fluids, 100 ml per day, for about a week. The phenoxybenzamine is an antispasmodic which relaxes the urethral muscles, and the subQ fluids keeps my urine diluted and makes me pee more. Initially I had to eat Royal Canin SO in the can, but now I’m not on a special diet. We just make sure I get plenty of extra water. If I have a mild attack and start having difficulty peeing again, I take phenoxybenzamine for a couple of days until I’m normal again, and if there is a lot of blood in my urine I have to take prednisone to reduced the inflammation. I’ve never had to take antibiotics.
Odie… I”m very interested in your story. My cat Austin has had a blockage & had a catheter twice to remove them. All of this happening over the space of about 3 weeks. He is now home, 7 days after the catheter being removed. He’s peeing really well, eating wet food etc. The only problem is he’s having these ‘freak outs’, his whole back ripples, he kicks his legs & his ears flick. I’m assumed its spasms & pain. He has been on an anti-spasmodic since the catheter was removed and bupronorphine for the pain, which all helps. But as the drugs wear off, the ‘freak outs’ come back. They’re not as bad as they first were, but they are still there. Do you know i this is normal? How long is this likely to drag on? I’m concerned about giving him these strong drugs for too long.
I lost my beloved cat of 10 years Saturday due to a blocked urinary tract and I can’t help but feel guilty because I did not keep him on the special diet recommended by the vet after his initial episode which required surgery 2 years ago.This past 8 months I wasn’t able to financially maintain his special diet completely and I can’t help but feel I let my cat down and caused this second situation. I’m not sleeping good and I’m crying everyday and night out of guilt. Even though after the first episode I was told he still may never recover but he lived 2 more years and I can’t help but feel my actions shortened his lifespan.
My cat Oliver became blocked about 6 days ago and had to be taken to the emergency vet to be cathertized and held at the hospital for two days. He is under 2 years old so it is very surprising that this happened to him. we even waited until he was 9 months old to neuter him to be sure he was able to fully grow, I also might add he is a purebred American Shorthair. We treat him like our baby and it is very distressing to see him have to go through all of this. Our vet has suggested that PU surgery may ultimately be required but since it has only been 6 days we have decided to keep him on on his meds and see if he improves without it.
The emergency vet cost us about 1,200 and we have spent near an aditional 400 at our regular vet taking him in for check ups, additional medication and to have his bladder expressed twice a day. our estimate for surgery to correct this is anywhere from 900 to 1,100 dollars. We feel he is TOTALLY worth it. but as you can see it is quite the financial burden, not to mention he will have to be on a special diet for life and a case of food which is 24 cans of the s/d or c/d diet is about $42.
we have a very good highly recommended vet but i feel sometimes that she thinks we are nuts for waiting it out. i just want to give him every chance to heal, his attitude is improving every day and even expressing his bladder seems to be getting easier, i think it is only right to give him the opportunity to let his body heal with the aid of medicine before we consider going a surgical route, and no it isn’t about the money.
No where online and no one that I have talked to seem to be able to give a set amount of time it takes for a cat to recover from a UTI let alone a blockage so I am just trying to be patient and loving with Oliver. I hope that by the time we make it through the 10 day supply of medication we see some significant improvement.
Hi – I read your post about Oliver and I am going through the exact same thing with my cat Shadowfax – what ever happened with Oliver?? How is he doing?? How are you doing with the expenses?? Hope all is well!!
Marie just reading your story, u must not blame yourself. Try to think of the wonderful 10 years that your beloved cat had with you. He is at peace now.
I think my 17 year old cat has this problem although he has urine tests 2 days ago which were normal ph.
He is in and out of the litter tray but not doing much, when he does pee he howls at the end of it. It’s now the weekend so we are just sitting it out til the vet opens. I would not put him through the surgery at his age to be honest anyway. He had anaesthetic a month ago for xrays and did not recover very well.
Has anyone had a normal ph urine test on a cat with a urinary infection or blockage.
After reading all these posts, it seems to me that this condition never goes away. I can’t imagine putting him through the caths and/or surgeries, to most likely be in the same place and have to put him through it all again. My 6 yr old male has been going through this for a month. He was perfectly fine and then one day started growling and hissing out of the blue. I took him to the ER Vet and they concluded that he may have an infection (gave him an injection of antibiotic, anti-inflamatory and pain meds). They were unable to get a urine sample (good beause his bladder was empty, but bad because we didn’t know what was really going on).
I followed up a week later at the vet and got another anti-inflamatory injection and was instructed to get a urine sample. I managed to get one last iThurs was told of the sulvrite crystals and got the same recommendations (gel medicine to break down the crystals and wet only scrip diet). I don’t have the food yet, but have been giving him the gel and he hates it. I have to confine him and force it down. I feel so sorry for him. The anti-inflamatory injections are only temporary. The first round, lasted less than 10 days. The second, hasn’t seemed to help at all. He growls after urinating and hisses every day with the exception of yesterday (at least while I was home). He still excessively cleans the area, which tells me the discomfort is not subsiding.
On that note, If you’re trying to get a urine sample, the only thing that worked for me (asside from having the vet keep him a night) was buying a new box and filling it with aquarium stones and to be honest, I think it was a bit of miracle that it happened at all. I just happended to sense he had to go and I picked him up and coaxed him to the new box and he went. The vet said to place saran wrap in his box, which didn’t work at all, as I suspected since he’s far too picky. I actually got the aqaurium pebble tip from the receptionist.
H’s still not going in any of his boxes (he has 3) at all and I have to keep him confied in a room that he’s already destroyed while I’m at work all day. Even when I’m home, he’s going on the living room floor, practically right in front of me. He’s also urinated on my bed (which forced me to close that room off as well and this is where he likes to sleep). I’ve switched him to wet food only twice per day and since he’s not used to just eating wet food especially at fixed times, he’s eating very little and not drinking much water. I have a bowl of water in every room (which I change daily). I even purchased a fountain, which he won’t use. I tried to get him interested, but he won’t have it.
It just seems like the humane thing to do is to put him down. It breaks my heart to think about this, but his quality of life is diminishing and after 3 weeks of treatment, changing things around, nothing appears to be helping. More than all that, he’s still in pain and discomfort every time he urinates and I would feel HORRIBLE if he were to go through the pain of becoming blocked (especially if I’m at work) because I was too selfish trying to keep him around.
Lastly, my asst spoke to a friend over the wknd, who happens to work in a vet clinic and she was a little more “real” about the situation. Her intial reaction: “oooh, that’s not good.” I’m hoping to speak to her today and get her experience and opinion about how this will liklely end. Although, like I said, reading these posts have pretty much answered that already. I think the vet is trying to be optimistic for my sake, as most of them (not in Richards case) never want to have to make the final decision.
The sad part of it all, is that he still has the same personality (adorable, crazy, naughty, lovable all wrapped into one), it’s so hard to let him go. I’m just getting to the point where I have to accept this and do the right thing for him. It seems like all I think about is what I want, meanwhile, his quality of life lessens each day. He won’t suffer, be in pain and confused about why I’m changing everything any longer. I know it will be a peaceful transition. As difficult is that is to write and think, I’m feeling more and more it’s the right thing to do.
As of now my cat ( 1 year old ) is still in the hospital. He was admitted on Sunday because of a blockage. The vet seems to be optimistic but it is a long process.First the talked about taking home Saturday and then Monday.My Bill so far is reaching 3000$. :(((
We want our baby back. Hoping for the best.
Thank you Jeanette Im really trying to let the guilt go and I appreciate your words of comfort.
**Response to Lindsay from December 12, 2011 at 11:59 am**
Lindsay,
I read your post after putting my awesome indoor cat Tyson (6 years old) down this past Saturday April 7th. It gave me some some comfort knowing that you experienced a very similar challenge and were looking at this with the same type of perspective that I have re: multiple surgery’s and inflating costs while affecting his great quality of life.
I noticed Tyson going in and out of the litter box a lot on Thursday but didn’t think too much about it since it is always clean and located right near my office door. Friday rolled around and he started grooming his “private areas”, tried peeing in the clean laundry hampers (which he did five months ago after a tramautic event – my parents brough over their dog to my house and he started marking his territory in the bathroom). We believed that we curbed “this behavioural issue” by closing the bathroom door and everything seemed to be normal while taking him down to the litterbox with lots of positive reinforcement. Then it got progressively worse on Friday evening (started peeing blood, vomitting and growling if I came near him), obviously I knew he was in a lot of pain so I took him to the emergency vet the first thing in the morning. The vet took Tyson into a room and relayed the information that he had a blocked urethra and it would be between $1700 and $2300 to unblock (catheter, observation for 36 hours, IV’s etc) it with no guarantees that it didn’t move to the kidneys or contaiminate any other portion of his body. The vet also mentioned it if it did not work then he could bypass the urethra with surgery and essentially essentially morph him into a female so that he could pee from his stomach with the removal of his member……… I was horrified that my little buddy would have to go through all of these costly surgeries, change his quality of life with no guarantees that his life would be back to somewhat normal. Given that we also have a 15 month old son (money wasn’t really the issue), I didn’t want my little buddy Tyson to be in a home where he couldn’t be the awesome cat that he was by continually monitoring him, change his diet or have the ability to monitor him so closely since we both work a lot nor did I want a relapse of this event (couldn’t imagine if Tyson were to be in pain and to swat his claws at my son since he wasn’t decalwed) then I would feel even worse. I had to do what I had to do. I felt extremely guilty for making the decision to put him down and I kept running through the sequence of events over and over again….. what if I could have done this or why didn’t I notice earlier etc etc really beating myself up over and over again……
I won’t be ever close to an animal like Tyson (we also have a dog) and I keep thinking that I hear him but my heart is broken knowing that I’ll never see him again….
I miss my little buddy Tyson and I will love him forever.
I am going through a similar issue with my Tomahawk. It started about a month ago and I have taken him to the emergency vet twice which is an hour and a half drive since i live out in the country. He would get well in between blockages, playing, snuggling, etc… and then it would happen again. Money is a bit of an issue, but i am at the point of his quality of life. I took him to the local vet yesterday where he stayed overnight with a catheter, and no one was there with him. I brought him home this morning and he is very depressed. He also seems to be in a lot of pain. In two weeks I am driving a u-haul across country which i know he will hate. I just don’t know what to do.
I am really hoping he recovers this time and stays well. He is only 3 and has a long life ahead of him. Other than this issue he is very healthy!! I want to do the right thing.
For those of you who have lost a pet; Lindsay, Tyson’s owner and Maria… I am reading an excellent book called Animals in Spirit. It is available on Amazon. It brings so much peace to the thought of letting your cat go. If I do have to let Tommy go, I can feel the peace and comfort of knowing he is happier, healthier and grateful that he had my support to go on. It is very hard for pets if they feel like they have to stay for us. I am working very hard at taking this advice if it is needed.
I appreciate your stories. This is a very hard thing to go through, not being sure of what to do… Good luck to everyone who reads this thread. I wish the best for your pets that they will heal and be healthy to share a long and happy life with you.
Though we will not see our pets again in the physical, we can take comfort in the fact that they too are an equal part of the Oneness and carry on beyond this life. Find peace in the belief that you will be reunited one day.
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_0_13?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=animals+in+spirit&sprefix=Animals+in+Sp%2Caps%2C208
^^^ Link to the book that soothes my soul. I lost Tommy’s two brothers in the same week almost two years ago and this book is helping me find serenity knowing they are in a better place and that they fulfilled their purpose.
my cat simba that is 2. he’s going through the same.. he’s a big part of my life and I know my other cat nala misses him.. I just hope he returns to his healthy self real soon. been in the hospital since Saturday.. I have been giving him purina ur… is that a good food for him.. he loves it. I hope everything works out… anyone have advice about day to dsy things to look for best food and medicine?
Hi Shelly,
I have a 3 year old cat going through this right now, and I’m really worried about him. I hope Simba is happy and healthy now – would you be able to provide any updates on whether the food prevented a reoccurence?
Thanks!
Tuesday noticed my 12 y/o Gilbert trying to urinate on a rug, but nothing was on the rug when he left -after setting some time. Also noticed long trips to litter box- no urine. Knew he had a blockage. Took him to vet as soon as they opened & he had his bladder drained – cathetered for 2 days, flushed him out, removed the crystal that was blocking. I brought him home Friday with CD diet food and he was eating becoz he had not eated the whole time at the vet.
I expected him to be in pain & recooperating, but he is still miserable. he is leaking urine and now he is not eating or drinking- but i am giving him food & water thru a syringe. I am praying he pulls thru. the vet’s cost to save our babies is unreal. they wanted 600+ but finally got the price down to 460 aft being quoted 350…we put off paying mtg. just want him to pull thru… he is so worth it as he is a part of the family & as much of a child to us as anyone with children.
he is such a sweet kitty & has given us some great memories and helped me get over losing my last cat to cancer.
please send positive vibes & prayers his way.
Hoping all of ur kitties are healthy & survived this. it is so hard to watch anything or anyone u love suffer…
if u have any advice I am open for suggestions.
thanks
he had not eaten… not eated… :/
sorry
Really? You’re calling grammar out? Situational awareness with compassion would be more appropriate.
He’s calling his OWN grammar out. Did you read the names on each? They’re the same silly.
Hi TK Wallace,
I can definitely sympathize with your situation and I wish Gilbert the best recovery ever! It’s so hard to see them like this, and you feel so helpless. Did the vet give you any medication to help with urinary spasms? I believe the leaking urine is due to this, and I do notice a difference when I give my cat the medication. I’m not sure what the drug is, but I’m sure your vet could recommend something, and it only cost about $20.00.
Best of luck! I’ll keep you updated if anythign works for my cat Fluff.
Hello, First I would just like to say that I am sending my best wishes to anyone whose poor kitty is suffering from a urinary blockage, and that these posts have definitely helped as I can see people are going through the same thing we are. Our 3 year old male cat Fluff had a full blockage about a month ago. Had to bring him to the emerg vet, they unblocked him ($2000.00 later) and he was fine for 3 weeks. Now about a week ago he was straining to urinate again, brought him to his regular vet, he had to do the catheter twice in one week, and now Fluff is back home. He’s been home for about 4 days, and is still dribbling slightly bloody urine everywhere. I’m really worried that the vet screwed up the catheter or something because there was no blood before. I cant afford to bring him to the vet again (spent $3500 in the last month) so I’m just monitoring him at home and trying to keep him as stress-free as possible. I found a clinical study where they took a group of cats suffering from FLUTD and gave half of them the wet Royal Canin Urinary S/O and the other half of the cats the dry Royal Canin Urinary S/O. 39% of the cats had a reoccurence, compared with only 11% in the wet food group. So I’m trying to only feed him the wet version, but he hates wet food so it’s been very difficult. Im just wondering whether anyone else has seen blood in their cats urine after the use of a catheter? If so, did it eventually stop on it’s own? There isnt much blood, its just slightly tinged red, other times its almost clear, its either from the inflammation in the bladder, or an injury caused by improper catherization. And please if anyone has success stories of no more reoccurences after trying something please let us know!! I’m willing to try anything at this point for my poor sweet Fluff <3 Thanks!
Update on Fluff: There is no longer any blood in his urine! :) He is still licking the area quite frequently though, it makes me wonder if he should be wearing a ‘lampshade’ to stop him from licking as it might be ittirating it more. Also does anyone have any tips on getting a cat to switch from dry to wet food..I try sprinkling some dry food on top but he usually just picks off the dry pieces and walks away.
Another update on Fluff: We made him wear an e-collar for 48 hours and it really helped alot. We found he was licking the area so much that it was very raw and bleeding on the outside. Once we stopped him from licking it healed within about 2-3 days. It was hard to watch as he would pee and then moan cause i’m sure the pee made the area sting since it was so raw, so he wanted to lick it but the collar wouldnt let him. Now I’m very happy to report that he’s peeing in the litter box with no issues!! Once in awhile he’ll go back a second time to pee again but definietely a huge improvement. I have him on the dry Royal Canin Urinary S/O formula – I try to get him to eat as much of the wet version as possible but he hates wet food. I also bought him a water fountain and leave extra bowls around the house. Keeping my fingers crossed that he never gets blocked again! Good luck to all of you! Trust me it feels like theyre never going to get better but it just takes patience :)
I’m sorry for all the losses, and very heartening to read abt kitties making through the condition. My cat Peppy experienced the same thing and was rushed to the vet early morning but catherization was unsuccessful on multiple attempts, even under general anasthetic. My only options were then PU surgery or to let him go, and the vet said that PU surgery was simply a salvage solution not a cure, and the chances of placing the catheter in wasn’t high even after the PU surgery because the initial attempts to insert the catheter made it past the penis anyway before it got blocked again. And it would open him up to risk of infection and complications. So I decided to let him go while he was still recovering from the anasthetic so to minimize the pain he was feeling (his penis looked traumatized from the catheter insertion attempts). It all happened so fast and I miss him terribly. Am trying to come to terms with it, would like to know if anyone experienced the same or if there was anything else I could’ve done to save him?
You are not alone and this same scenario just happened to me yesterday and I have been having the hardest time dealing with it. Feeling guilt wondering if there was anything else I could have done. Thanks for sharing your story, because after reading yours and several others who had to make the same decision, I am feeling more and more confident that we did the right thing. Knowing that I’ll never have to see him suffer like that again makes it easier to accept.
My cat is currently going through this situation as we speak. We cannot get him to the vet until the morning and having to watch him in pain is terrible. The worst part is that when we take him, I know that we won’t be leaving with him. Pepper has had this issue before and we could barely afford the first surgery. If the diagnosis is that it is blocked again, my family sadly has no choicd but the euthanize him :(
I can’t stop crying and I don’t want to leave his side. I keep hoping he’ll pull through but I know that it’s nearly impossibe. I can’t imagine a day without Pepper and I have no idea how I will cope with his loss.
About 2 months ago we had to rush our cat Sulu to the emergency vet because he was not able to pass any urine. His diagnosis was struvite crystals. A catheter was put in place and the crystals were flushed out. He was put on the Royal Canin S/O wet diet which he really likes. A couple weeks after his blockage, we took him for a urinalysis which came back crystal fee.
After two months it still seems he uses the litter box more frequently than our other cat (about 6-8 times a day and has much smaller clumps). Our other cat urinates about twice a day and there are two very large clumps from when he goes. I was hoping the amount of urine would get larger. Does it take awhile for them to begin passing normal amount of urine or is this a sign he is still suffering from the blockage?
My indoor kitty blocked. Vets tried to unblock him but couldn’t. He had pu surgery at Univ of Georgia June 2013 and it saved his life. I have been feeding him canned and dry CD food since then and he has been fine. I do notice that he licks/chews at the pu area a LOT. Has anyone else experienced this with their cat? Has been going on quite some time, but it’s rather unnerving. Wondering if it’s scar tissue?
My indoor cat started displaying symptoms of cystitis 2 weeks ago. I took him to the vet who diagnosed him with FLUTD as he had been displaying other symptoms of stress too. She administered antibiotics and prescribed an anti inflammatory along with tablets for cystitis (a 2 week course) I already had a feli way diffuser so she said that should help. 2 days later I noticed my cat was really lethargic and I took him to the out of hours vet who had to insert a catheter as my cats urethra had become blocked. The following morning I took him back to my own vet who advised that his bladder had become blocked again, he required immediate hospitalisation.
She inserted a catheter, put him on special diet and flushed out his bladder. He had the catheter in for 2 days and all the signs were positive. We were allowed to take him home and follow the course of medications prescribed. A further 2 days later I noticed that the cat had become frantic with the litter tray again, constantly in and out, peeing small amounts around the house and cleaning himself all the time. I called the vet who asked me to bring him up as they were concerned he had a partial blockage or spasms were cruising difficulty for him to pass urine. He was prescribed Valium and I was advised at this Stage that he was on every medication they could prescribe for him.
My cat was very lethargic over the next two days and he was still managing to pass some urine, albeit small amounts and he was due to go in for his check today. At his appointment today I was so upset to hear that his bladder was full again and that it couldn’t be emptied. He was already heavily sedated, on full medication and royal canin diet and yet nothing had helped. This was the 3rd time he had blocked in 1 week and hadn’t shown any signs of long lasting improvement. After discussion with the vet I agreed that euthanasia was he right option.
I am devastated. My cat was only 2 years old. He wasn’t responding to any of the treatments prescribed and was in so much pain and I couldn’t help him :-(
So glad I found this site. You are ALL wonderful pet parents.
We are going through this with our 13 yr old DSH.
He blocked a few years ago however our vet was able to use a catheter on him one time and he was good, no issues for years.
Well the last few days we have had him back to the vet twice, last time this morning, where he used the catheter and flushed his bladder out. He does this as an outpatient so he is home with us, doesn’t stay over night with the vet.
I have been so worried about him! Normally when he gets back from the vet he bounces back pretty quick but he has been very lethargic today. He is eating, which is good, but I haven’t seen him go to the litter box yet, which concerns me. All he wants to do is sleep.
We finally got him to start eating the Special Diet so I really hope that works and he is back to normal soon. This is NOT fun at all. Hate seeing him in pain.
Thank you all! It’s nice to know our kitty is not the only one going through this.
My cat couldn’t pee and we took him to our regular vet who after holding him 6 hours told us that we would have to go to the emergency vet as she could not handle him there. So off to the emergency vet we went,btw the emergency vet has some serious high tech stuff there. While there they decided to do the catheter and flush his bladder as it was safer than surgery because his levels were so high making surgery risky. They flushed him three times and he kept getting blocked. The vet called us and told us surgery was the only route. So they opened up his bladder and found his little bladder was filled with stones everywhere but if he hadn’t had surgery we would be saying goodbye to our little Tank who is only 6. It cost us 2000.00 but my fiance did that carecredit card and it was enough to cover it and we have a year to pay it off without charging us interest. Tank is home now and he is so happy to be home. He has been peeing alot and I was actually worried about him eating but he ate some a little bit ago. He has been home since Thursday and he had the surgery on Monday and I can tell he is feeling better since it all began. The surgery did cost us alot but if Tank gets several more years out of this I will be happy because he is worth it. I thank God that we could do that carecredit. I had even contemplated looking up those grants that people setup for emergency vet costs. I had a friend that did that for her dog with cancer. I know the surgery was a big risk but I figured I wanted to give him the best chance as I would if I were sick. I am glad I did because Tank seems to be doing well and he was in stage 4 renal failure and now his blood test results are normal.
My cat Cajun has had irritable bowel syndrom for along time and we recently have been giving him steroid shots. Now , he started have what appeared to be UTI a few weeks ago. 2 rounds of antibiotics and he was still not doing well in fact last night and this morning he seemed mostly blocked. He would strain for over a minute and only a spot or even nothing would come out. Jumping in litter box many times to do this. A few times he made a painful sound.
Due to the fact that this was getting to the point of hospitalization and catheter I decided to euthanize him. For many reasons. A) even if we got rid of the blockage he still vomits most days due to the progressed IBD. 2) altho some may say how selfish , I felt I could not afford to keep spending on him just to give him a few more weeks or even months of life in which he still suffers from IBD. 3) hard cat to medicate and it is very stressful as he runs from me and it is often a fight. Medications for the IBD. My vet told me he was on his way to complete blockage and with his other problems and my lack of ongoing funds that some people seem to have , it may be time for euthanasia. All the hospitalization for urinary blockage would be very hard on him allready being a unhealthy cat. I could not stand to see him in pain anymore. So, altho to some it may have seemed premature, I chose to set him free from a life of pain, pills, etc.. By the way , he vomited most every day from the IBD. I feel I did the right thing but of course am also second guessing. I guess that is human nature. i miss him !!!!
My cat Arnold has had two blockages in his bladder. More recently this past weekend. He was catheterized, and I flushed him out for 2 days before the catheter came out. I believe he was dragging his but on the floor. Took him back to the vet and they said he was unblocked. He has been on meds for 4 days now, Prazosin and Alprazolam. How long before the Prazosin does what it is supposed to do? He seems like he is blocked again, and I am tapped financially. I am so worried. I know there is surgery they can do, but uncertain if this is necessary right now. Gonna call the vets shortly. Any thoughts?
My baby just went through this and I’m petrified he’ll get blocked again because now we are broke. He’s our family and we can’t bear the thought of losing him. He’s still bleeding and using his box a lot but seems to be passing urine fine. He’s having accidents everywhere also and thats just not like him. He doesn’t seem quite himself and I’m really afraid. Any advice?
Hi Everyone I am so saddened and sorry to read all the stories of your Kitty’s with blockages. We are going through this at the moment with our 9 1/2 yo DS Bengal ‘Henry”. He has never had a blockage but has had to have 3 catheters in the last week and we are now on the verge of PU Surgery. Its heart wrenching and so expensive we are in the 1000’s at present but can afford much more and used all our savings to try help him. This morning he pulled out his IV line and catheter himself and when we visited he was back to his old self looking so happy to see us rolling around so the thought of Euthanising him while so happy due to cost is heartbreaking. So now we are just waiting and hoping he wee’s on his own. Will let you know how it all goes but thank you for this site reading everyones stories makes me realise we might not be so crazy spending all this money on our Henry. :)
This is such a terrible condition. I live in NYC and our persian/himalayan mix just got FLUTD. He has been in the hospital for 2 days and the cost is astronomical! 2 days of treatment is costing over $4,000. I have other male cats so I am wondering if anyone has any recommendations on prevention. Wishing everyone the best of luck with their babies. I am praying our baby can come home with us tomorrow because each day is just breaking my heart piece my piece. People I know think I am crazy but I just can’t stop tearing at the thought of him being in pain. Good luck everyone, there isn’t anything worse than the thought of having your babies sick!