Reminder to all: Urinary issues

monaxlisa · Apr 3, 2009

Hey guys, I just wanted to post this just to remind everyone that if you ever see your cat having trouble peeing, please don't hesitate to get to the vet.
I work in a vets office and today a lady brought in a male tabby that had been very lethargic, not eating or drinking, hadnt been used the litter box since the day before and had thrown up (also yesterday). We took him out of his carrier to get a weight on him and he had started leaking blood, so we thought maybe the blockage had come unblocked and he would be ok. They were put in the exam room and the Dr went right in and expressed the bladder-it was mostly blood that came out. While the techs were running an analysis the vet came back out and told them to stop, he had died on the table. It was so sad, I felt really bad for the lady because it was so unexpected. The techs think the bladder got so full that it ruptured, released calcium into the bloodstream and that stopped his heart. So please please please, if you ever see kitty having peeing issues, dont wait to call the vet. Vomitting is especially a bad sign.
Of course not every time it will be this serious. Mine was throwing up and yowling in the litter box but was still able to pee and he's fine now, it was just a little infection.

nance · Apr 3, 2009

Aww how sad....I had that happen to a friend of mine too...I told him over and over to take the cat to the vets....he wanted to wait just 24 hrs to "see" if he would get better...I tried all I could to get him to take his cat in...telling him what I had gone thru with my cat....and trying to tell him how serious the condition was....Well in the middle of the night he had to call the er vet....same thing...the cat died on the table....he was distraught...blaming himself .....this is a good warning to let let ppl know its nothing to mess with...As soon as u see a cat straining in the litter box or out of the box..or see blood in the urine.....its a clear sign there is a serious problem and they need to see a vet right away....

pami · Apr 3, 2009

It also needs to be reminded that this is a very very painful thing for a kitty, once he starts straining, its an emergency. A horrible and preventable way to die.

mycherona · Apr 4, 2009

Through my own research about urinary problems, I have come to the conclusion that dry food is big cause of urinary problems in boy cats. It causes calcium to build up in their urinary tract, and block them. Each time they get blocked, their kidneys get damaged. Ultimately, if they survive the blockages, they will die sooner due to kidney failure. I won't get into the whole science behind it, but wet food is truly better. After losing too many boy kitties in my family to urinary problems, I now feed my boy only wet EVO food. It's all he's ever had, and wet food is all he ever will have. If you feed your boy kitty dry food, please please please consider switching him to wet food. I can't stress this enough. We want our furry friends with us as long as possible.

anjhest · Apr 4, 2009

Originally Posted by mycherona

Through my own research about urinary problems, I have come to the conclusion that dry food is big cause of urinary problems in boy cats.

I agree 100%. Taxi (who is 4) has already had 3 UTIs in the last couple of years. Out of concern that this might eventually kill him, I started doing some research.

Since switching him to wet food, I have noticed an increase in his urine output and a decrease in his litter box visits. While this sounds contradictory, it isn't.

Before switching his food, he had developed some anxiety about urinating. He would constantly visit the litter box, only to squeeze out a drop or two. I took him to the vet a few times only to find out that his bladder was actually empty and he had no UTI. Now that he's eating wet food and consuming plenty of moisture (I often add a few tablespoons of water to his food), his bladder fills up and he is able to urinate properly and satisfactorily.

katiemae1277 · Apr 4, 2009

Thanks for the reminder! I just took one of my cats into the vet this morning and he was blocked, the vet said I caught it very early

blaise · Apr 4, 2009

I have to say that I very seriously question the wisdom/prudence of attempting to express a cat with a suspected urinary blockage.

Urethral Obstruction:
If the bladder is intact, it is distended, hard, and painful; care should be used when palpating the bladder to avoid iatrogenic rupture....emergency care involves immediate relief of obstruction by catheterization...
http://www.merckvetmanual.com/mvm/in.../bc/130615.htm

mrblanche · Apr 4, 2009

We had a friend who called when she first noticed a problem. She's a truck driver, so she understood when I said her cat felt like she would if she had drunk a large soda, needed to go to the bathroom, but her co-driver told her he wouldn't stop until he had finished his 11-hour driving shift. She got him in ASAP, and her cat is in good shape now.

audiocat · Apr 4, 2009

Originally Posted by anjhest

Since switching him to wet food, I have noticed an increase in his urine output and a decrease in his litter box visits. While this sounds contradictory, it isn't.

Before switching his food, he had developed some anxiety about urinating. He would constantly visit the litter box, only to squeeze out a drop or two. I took him to the vet a few times only to find out that his bladder was actually empty and he had no UTI. Now that he's eating wet food and consuming plenty of moisture (I often add a few tablespoons of water to his food), his bladder fills up and he is able to urinate properly and satisfactorily.

My boys have juicy canned food 3 x's a day. Plus, I see them drink water quite often too. They can pee A LOT at one time. Their pee clumps are huge. They each pea twice or maybe three times a day. I scoop twice a day so I see a large clump or two from each of them each time.

momofmany · Apr 4, 2009

Originally Posted by mycherona

Through my own research about urinary problems, I have come to the conclusion that dry food is big cause of urinary problems in boy cats. It causes calcium to build up in their urinary tract, and block them. Each time they get blocked, their kidneys get damaged. Ultimately, if they survive the blockages, they will die sooner due to kidney failure. I won't get into the whole science behind it, but wet food is truly better. After losing too many boy kitties in my family to urinary problems, I now feed my boy only wet EVO food. It's all he's ever had, and wet food is all he ever will have. If you feed your boy kitty dry food, please please please consider switching him to wet food. I can't stress this enough. We want our furry friends with us as long as possible.

While I agree that wet food is better, don't get lulled into a false sense of security if that is what they eat. I've had a cat block while on wet food. There are other genetic factors that can contribute to a cat having bladder issues, and there are some foods (fish flavors) that are harder on a bladder than non-fish flavors. And I've had input from 5 different vets on blockages, and the general concensus is that it is triggered more often than not by stress. Diet can contribute, but its not the sole culprit.

It's interesting that you mentioned Evo. There is debate among FLUTD cat owners on whether the dry Evo causes bladder issues. My cat first blocked for the first time while eating, in part, Evo dry. It happened within a few months of switching him over and I've read that others have had the same experience.

I'm not down playing wet food at all. I just want you to think more broadly than that.

ldg · Apr 4, 2009

I am just SO GLAD we have a 24 hour vet! We've needed them.

Laurie

anjhest · Apr 4, 2009

Originally Posted by LDG

I am just SO GLAD we have a 24 hour vet! We've needed them.

Laurie

Me too. Countless times. I would say that more often than not, we use our emergency fund for after hours veterinary visits.

merindah · Apr 5, 2009

I'm new at cats and am wondering if this issue happens mostly to male cats?

Thanks.

mschauer · Apr 5, 2009

Originally Posted by merindah

I'm new at cats and am wondering if this issue happens mostly to male cats?

Thanks.

It is more dangerous in males because their urethra is narrower and so can more easily be blocked by the crystals. Females are probably just as likely to get the crystals but less likely to block. They can get blocked also though. My Jeta is a female and she is prone to struvite crystals but has never blocked. I feed her raw meat to prevent the crystals.

snickerdoodle · Apr 5, 2009

If my poor Persian male hadn't have squatted in the kitchen, he would have died. That way when I picked him up I saw the blood clearly. He was very close to death, I'm sure, and I'm glad I him to a doc when I did, but I wish I would have realized much sooner how sick he was. The catheter they tried to use got stuck because he was so inflamed from the crystals that it tore off inside his bladder! Now that he had his penile amputation and has been on his special food, he has been healthy as a horse! His urine output is amazing now, I also set him in the tub and let the faucet on a small stream, and he drinks from people glasses ^-^ Please pay attention to your furbabies, they can hide sickness very well, but in my case it was my ignorance and figuring I had a whiny cat. I don't ever want to imagine how painful that must be! Information saves lives!

stubbys mom · Apr 5, 2009

I was blessed with an extremely heathy cat, Kitty, until cancer robbed his life away very quickly. I found this forum at that time and bever thought of crystals or UTI, etc. I have a male 2 yr old Manx and a 6 month female torty. I feed dry in the morning and wet at night. How do I prevent a problem and how do I know when I have one? Thanx

grogs · Apr 5, 2009

Originally Posted by MonaxLisa

Hey guys, I just wanted to post this just to remind everyone that if you ever see your cat having trouble peeing, please don't hesitate to get to the vet.
I work in a vets office and today a lady brought in a male tabby that had been very lethargic, not eating or drinking, hadnt been used the litter box since the day before and had thrown up (also yesterday). We took him out of his carrier to get a weight on him and he had started leaking blood, so we thought maybe the blockage had come unblocked and he would be ok. They were put in the exam room and the Dr went right in and expressed the bladder-it was mostly blood that came out. While the techs were running an analysis the vet came back out and told them to stop, he had died on the table. It was so sad, I felt really bad for the lady because it was so unexpected. The techs think the bladder got so full that it ruptured, released calcium into the bloodstream and that stopped his heart. So please please please, if you ever see kitty having peeing issues, dont wait to call the vet. Vomitting is especially a bad sign.
Of course not every time it will be this serious. Mine was throwing up and yowling in the litter box but was still able to pee and he's fine now, it was just a little infection.

Reading a story like this always gives me the chills because, save for some good timing, this could have been my Thufir. The first fortunate bit of timing was that I was home that day instead of working, so I was able to see Thufir was not feeling well and I heard him vomit a couple of times. That didn't particularly concern me at the time because, with 4 cats, it happens occasionally. The second bit of good timing was that I cleaned the litter box early that day. I normally cleaned it around bedtime, but this day I cleaned it at around 5 pm. When I did, he hopped in and tried to pee, but couldn't. At that point, I had a pretty good idea what was going on, if not necessarily just how bad it was. The 3rd and final lucky break is that my vet stays open until 8 pm 3 nights a week and this was one of those nights. When I called the vet and told them what was going on, they told me to bring him in immediately. I'm sure I would have taken him to an after-hours emergency vet, but I remember being in denial (he's not that sick) so I may have drug my feet a bit and that could have been the difference. Having the girl at the vet tell me on the phone that it was a serious problem and that I wasn't just over-reacting really mobilized me to get him into the vet immediately.

mycherona · Apr 5, 2009

Originally Posted by Grogs

The second bit of good timing was that I cleaned the litter box early that day. I normally cleaned it around bedtime, but this day I cleaned it at around 5 pm. When I did, he hopped in and tried to pee, but couldn't. At that point, I had a pretty good idea what was going on, if not necessarily just how bad it was.

Cats do try to show you when something is wrong, and this is a great example. I've had cats do this as well, and I've also had cats who will go outside their box when something isn't right. They're pretty smart - they just need us to pay attention. I know it's a little weird, but I have a pretty good idea of how long my cat spends in the box, and if he's in there longer than normal, I check on him to see if he's ok.

fifi1puss · Apr 6, 2009

My cat I had growing up had this probelm and it was horrivle watching how much pain he was in. Now that I have my own cats I am watching them like a hawk. I think it is so important to be aware of their litterbox habits. I even now who's pees and poos are who's by sight and where in the box they are located. I also am a nosy mama when they go i will watch occassionally to make sure they are not straining.

I freaked out when I first got reeree because he meows all the time. I have since learned he just likees to talk. But when I first heard him do it in the litter I was right there!

sweetpea24 · Apr 6, 2009

It will help yes but sometimes the urine is too alkaline or acidic which will lead to crystals. When a cat is unblocked, usually the urine comes out with some blood because the crystals are irritating the urethra. I work at an animal hospital and have seen the horror stories. One cat had to have his penis cut off to make more room for the urine to pass. I'm so paranoid now that my cats will get blocked. I look for foods with low magnesium and no fish based foods. I feed both dry and canned mainly for economic reasons (even though, working at an animal hospital, feeding any canned is economically not viable) but would feed canned or raw if money allowed. Anyway, the OP is right, as soon as you see any straining, see the vet. The earlier you can catch it, the less it may cost and the less your cat will suffer. Then they will likely have to eat a prescription diet like Royal Canin Urinary SO which costs a mint. And seems to be costing more every week as some of our customers have yelled in my ear.

Reminder to all: Urinary issues

TCS Member

Thread starter

TCS Member

TCS Member

TCS Member

TCS Member

TCS Member

TCS Member

TCS Member

TCS Member

TCS Member

TCS Member

TCS Member

TCS Member

TCS Member

TCS Member

TCS Member

TCS Member

TCS Member

TCS Member

TCS Member