has the urge to pee all the time for weeks now, help my cat please

I have 1 cat only and adopted him from a shelter at 6 months old. I've had him for 3 years and every things been great until 5 weeks ago when he clawed up my sofa which WAS in perfect condition. That day I just got home from work and I got his cat toy out for playtime which I do everyday. Then I discovered he had pulled the towels off the sofa and clawed both the arms to shreds. That set off all my emotions and Anger was at the top. I always keep his claws trimmed back and I have a cat condo and a cat tower and also 2 scratch post in the same room as the sofa plus I had the sofas covered with sheets and towels. I was very upset and I felt that our friendship didn't mean a thing. I felt betrayed. I walked around for 30 minutes trying to get over it but finally my anger got the best part of me and I hit him with the stick end of his cat toy. I know I was wrong to hit him but I lost control and I'm deeply sorry for that now.
2 weeks ago I noticed he was not producing as much waste in the litter box and he was using it more than ordinary. And then I was getting his food to feed him and his butt was shaking and he lost a small amount of pee on the floor. when I cleaned it up I noticed it looked pink. So I took him to the vet the next day. They said he had crystals in his urine that was causing his bladder to swell and making him think he needs to pee when he does not. They said it was caused by the food I was feeding him (which is Blue Buffalo). They sold me some cat food to switch him over to. I did not have the courage to tell them I hit him.
So now it's been a week since the vet and he still has not improved. And I am wondering if Now he has a health problem that may have been caused by me hitting him with his cat toy.

I love my cat very much and I feel like my whole life has been ruined by my own fault.

Has anyone here had this heath problem with their cat?

Take your kitty to a different vet for a second opinion and ask for a urinalysis and x-ray to be sure there's no blockage.

crystals in the urine arent that uncommon.  He can have this either you hit him or not...

How thorough examination did the vet? just looked at him or did they take analysis of the urine? and or X-ray?

Did they said which type of crystals does he have?  There are two different types - and depending of the type, the diet is different.  One will be essentielly low ph, the other essentielly raised ph...

Drinking much does helps some; it makes the urine never gets very concentrated, and thus - no crystals..

Especielly if he always has dry food.

Thus, wet food is good to prevent urin stone.

If he dont eats wet food, only eats dry, make sure he drinks much.  A cat fountain may be the trick to drick from.

But try to swich to wet food if you can and he eats.

And yes, if the vet didnt do a good analysis, just looked and sold this other food - consider taking a second advice from another, good vet.

Btw.   Which food did he sold to you?

Blue Buffalo seems to make good product, above average,as long it goes for a dry food. The only I dont understand is why they quarantee the C-vitamin content, which cats really dont need, but not E-vitamin content, which cats do need...        

Good luck!  *vibes*

Thanks so much.

   Yes the vet did a urinalysis and looked at it with microscope. And she examined my cat real good. Checked 12 different systems, his eyes & heart, his temperature, skin, lymph nodes etc. We were there for a good hour. She sold me Hill's prescription diet - Bladder health, Formulated to discourage struvite and calcium oxalate crystals. I think she also said that Blue Buffalo had too much sodium.

 My cat acts and eats & drinks normal. I don't understand if he has less pee & poop, then were is all the food & water going? I know he used to pee more than he does now. And I watch him go in the box and swat to pee and only a tiny spot will show and he is drinking water. I'm so happy he is eating & drinking & in a happy playful mode. I have been showing him lots of special attention to help keep him happy.

Again, thanks

I'm so sorry you lost your temper. But I very much doubt that's what caused this problem. In fact, I think the couch clawing was him drawing attention to the problem. Cats have very few ways to let us know they're sick, and they often try to hide it. But when their behavior changes, or they do something like pee outside the box, these are almost always clear signals there is a medical issue.

The diet can take some time to work. Crystals cause inflammation, and cells can slough off the wall of the bladder. The crystals and cells can cause a partial (or complete) blockage of the urinary tract. Male cats have very narrow urethras, and they can easily be blocked when there's a problem.

If you have confidence in this vet, I would take your cat back. If you're concerned, I would go to a new vet. That he is not peeing a normal amount can mean two things - either he's peeing more frequently because his bladder is irritated, and it just seems like a total less amount to you, OR he's partially blocked, and he's not completely emptying his bladder when he normally would. Either way, he still needs SOMETHING, because this is a VERY painful and uncomfortable situation for him. You need to make sure he's not blocked, and he likely needs some type of anti-inflammatory, whether that's steroids or a specific antibiotic that has anti-inflammatory properties.

Three of our male cats blocked over a period of a year, and it was very scary. We switched to the Hill's Pet c/d (urinary health prescription diet), both wet and dry. It took a little while, but it solved the problem. :nod:

We also mix a little bit of water into each of the wet food meals we offer them to increase their water intake. The prescription food creates a neutral pH environment in the bladder, and increased water helps keep the urine dilute. Both are important.

It is also POSSIBLE (not probable) that he has a crystal embedded in his bladder wall. This is NOT common. It happened to our Tuxie. A regular MRI revealed nothing. But the problem persisted, and each time we took him to the vet, his bladder was empty. But he was clearly trying to pee all the time. So we paid for a high resolution MRI, and it showed there was a small crystal embedded in his bladder wall causing pain/problems. He needed surgery to have it removed, and the problem was solved. The diet, thank goodness, kept it that way.

Pet drinking fountains are also a way to encourage increased water intake.

VIBES VIBES VIBES for your boy!