Manx incontinence

Kitty is my 11lb Manx girl of just over a year old. She is wonderful and a puurfect indoor only cat. We noticed her poop problems right away but did not have a diagnosis of low anal tone until a couple of months ago. It's really not a big deal to me and easy to pick up, but the vet recomended 10mg daily of Amitriptyline to hopefully tighten her up and keep it from getting worse. The dose was too high for sure (she laid on the couch with her tongue hanging out for two days!) so I gave her 5mg for almost two weeks, but then stopped when I noticed some weird changes in her. That's when I noticed a pee smell in the bed where she sleeps with us...

She never had a pee problem before the meds, and we've been to the vet and she doesn't have a bladder infection or anything. They say it's most likely all related to her neurological problem that occurs in no-tail Manx when bred from too many other no-tails. Now when she sleeps, a little wet spot of pee is under her! So frusterated! Any advice or tips or past experiences would be greatfully taken, I just don't want this to get worse.

I had a Manx and lost her to a Seizer at age 11. She would drip pee sometimes too. She had some kind of spinal problems because she was a Manx.

Sometimes you just have to trust your gut that the vet might be very wrong about dosage...

Our Manx Moggie started having incontinence when she is in a deep sleep, about 6 months ago. We are going through another round of antibiotics to see if it would help the problem. My vet thinks it may be temporary bladder muscle damage from recurrent infection. I guess we'll see. I bought a portable upholstry cleaner and we deal with it when we need to. We also layer extra blankets on the furniture where she likes to sleep. It's easier to throw the extra blanket in the wash than break out the upholstry cleaner.

I know it may get worse but we are hoping for the best and dealing with what we need to as it comes. She is a happy energetic cat and that's all we need to know right now.

Tracey

Glad to see you are coping with your manx girl any way you can. There are drugs that help tighten the bladder which are used when a cat has become paralyzed and incontinent after a back-end injury. I don't remember the name but do remember the shelter vet using them, but they worked, and they didn't have the cat end up with lolling tongue and crossed eyes!  I think drugs are the only way to go because I don't believe there is a surgery that will tighten the muscles, and there certainly isn't a physical therapy for such internal organs.

I have a diaper cat but you don't want to go in that direction unless there is no other choice because female cats who are diapered are very prone to developing bladder infections.

Hopefully others here will have good suggestions based on their own experience. You could try visiting this forum:

http://handicappedpet.net/helppets/

where they have people who have looked after seriously disabled cats and dogs for many years.
 

Is there any way you could find out what drug was used to help the kittys with back injuries? Mine broke his tail last week and he has been unable to go on his own ( Currently the vet is trying bethenicol but I'm not sure if there is anything else out there we could try? Its so sad

angie128 said:

Is there any way you could find out what drug was used to help the kittys with back injuries? Mine broke his tail last week and he has been unable to go on his own ( Currently the vet is trying bethenicol but I'm not sure if there is anything else out there we could try? Its so sad

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Broken tails need to be put in a cast because bone movement prevents healing. Does your cat have one?

How did he break his tail?

About Manxes: It looks like all rumpies need special care, whether they have spina bifida or not. From TICA's Manx breed profile page:

While the lack of tail is the most striking characteristic, it is important to keep in mind that the nerve endings are still present but are not protected so care should be taken when handling the area where the tail would have been or the stubby tails. Pressure in this area can cause the cat pain. Children should be cautioned to be careful when petting the cat and not to poke at the missing tail area. Also, because of the structure of the cat, the cat's hindquarters should always be supported when it is being picked up or carried to ensure there is no additional pressure on the spine.

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I found this on www.fabcats.com by searching "Manx spine problems":

Manx Syndrome is the name given to the condition which results when the mutant tailless gene shortens the spine too much. It can seriously damage the spinal cord and the nerves causing spina bifida as well as problems with the bowels, bladder, and digestion. (In addition, cats with partial tails are prone to arthritis of the tail and this can cause severe pain).

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That explains the bladder incontinence in your rumpy.