He has bladder stones, and I don't know what to do...

Go to the threads of "Diggerled" from January of this year. His cat Sasha had the same thing. You may get some info from there.

This surgery sounds very expensive. Can you get another quote from someone else? It can't hurt.

I feel your fear as I have a crystal cat. But definately look into another quote and care credit. Don't let the vet discourage you. It has saved me many times. He should also be readily answering your questions and not beating about the bush. Go to www.carecredit.com

Be proactive. If this vet does not satisfy you, IMO you should look elsewhere.

Good luck and please keep us posted. Vibes for you and your kitty.

I was going to suggest getting other quotes, and a second opinion, too. I wold not like such vague answers. I know a boy kitty who has had this surgery. he's doing well now.

I know you must be out of your mind with worry. Can you have some fund raisers? What kind of community do you live in? Often people would like to help, if just given an oppourtunity. A street wide yard sale "to benefit Toby", bake sales, get some teens involved in a car wash, things like that.

I know people here have set up websites on occasion, for donations. You could look into that, too.

Keep us posted.

Toby

I would definitely get another quote. One of my boys has struvite crystals, and he developed bladder stones as well. He had to have surgery to remove the stones, and while expensive, it wasn't thousands of dollars. I believe my vet charged us a bit under $800.00, so prices can definitely vary.

I know that Pollux had blood in his urine because the stones are jagged... so they were scraping him up inside. Honestly, I don't remember my vet giving us many options. She let us know that in order to fix this problem, he would need the surgery. She also let us know that he can continue to develop the stones, so this may not be a permanent fix. Thankfully, he tolerated the surgery very well, and so far, he hasn't had further issues regarding stones. (It's been a year and a half.)

Hugs to Toby. And good luck.

I too have had the same issue with one of my males. Surgery is the only fix. I think it cost me somewhere between $750-$900. I am wondering if they are planning on doing a more invasive surgery where they make him into a girl basically so that it would be less likely he get a blockage should this occur again. I almost had to put my guy down because he got a blockage (a few months after the surgery)......miraculously he passed the stone. Anyway- they wanted to do that boy/girl surgery and that would have cost between 4-5 thousand.

I definitely think you should look into getting care credit- most places will let you do a year at no interest(but you have to make min payments). Make sure you pay it off in time or you'll get hit with crazy APR. Plus be owing all that interest that accrued.

And I think a second opinion is in order. Good Luck!!!

Hi there, sorry to hear about your kitty. My cat Midnight suffered from many UTI's. I left for college had to leave him behind and his poor diet caused him to develop crystals in his urine on multiple occasions. He needed to be on some pills and antibiotics. I couldn't take him with me since I lived in the dorms, and he didn't get his meds administered like he should have since I wasn't there.

I took him with me when I finally moved into my apartment. He had massive bald spots and was thin and yet again struggling to pee and going in places other than his litter box, which was very unusual for him. I took him to the vet and they did an ultrasound and found bladder stones. I was so scared since he was my baby and I held him the day he was born.

The vet did the surgery and removed over 20 stones! Midnight recovered well and is on a strict diet of science diet c/d. He's been health ever since. It's been 4 years!

Midnight is almost 8 now and no problems. He's got a thick coat and is actually a little on the chubby side now. I think it's a side affect of his diet. I would look for other quotes, as I don't recall his surgery being thousands! After the stones are removed, just keep him on a strict urinary diet. Midnight is not allowed any fish. So I make sure to not buy and treats with fish or any canned snacks with fish.

I hope my story helps you. If you need to talk you can pm me or email me at bad_kitty2001@yahoo.com