Urinary Problems last straw.....

We have reached our last straw when it comes to our 4 yr old cat Turbo. He has always seemed to have a urinary problem. We have switched foods, been on numerous rounds of medications and he is currently on medications to reduce his stress levels. He still continues to pee, and even today he was laying in the bed he had peed in!  Now he smells like urine, he is matted because the Prozac is making him not want to groom and he is ruining our house. I have an amazing cleaner I am using to keep the house smelling like one big litter box but I really don't know what else to do with him. Any ideas???  At one time I was working for a feline only veterinarian and she was beginning to think that 3-6 mos of an antibiotic was working wonders for some of her patients but I didn't work there long enough to witness the meds working for myself and we no longer to talk.

Can you a list all the things you have tried including foods administered?

kittycorner said:

He still continues to pee, and even today he was laying in the bed he had peed in!  Now he smells like urine, he is matted because the Prozac is making him not want to groom and he is ruining our house. 

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Sounds like something serious is going on for a cat to urinate on himself. How much Prozac is he on and how long has he been taking it? Do you have a copy of his last few urinalysis results? 

My male ragdoll was spotting..and we discovered he had crystals in his bladder. We got one of those automatic water dishes and the water runs all the time? For some reason the running water makes cats want to drink more. The vet put him on SD dry food and he gets wet food. Also we added another litter box. I think your cat is ill.

Healthy cats do not urinate and lay in the urine. Either the dose of Prozac is too high or there is a serious medical condition requiring treatment. 

I don't know all the things you have tried but we had a kitty that refused to use a litterbox. We tried every litter available, every type of box, every location imaginable and nothing, she would NOT use a litterbox. We placed a puppy pee pad right outside the box and she never had another accident. She would only use the pee pad, we have no idea why, it was just what she preferred. And honestly, it was a lot cleaner and easier to maintain than the box. 

Your kitty does sound like something is going on.  I don't know about cats with his problem but I know what I felt like when I was taking Prozac.  "The mortgage is due?  Oh, ok. I'll pay it.  The mortgage is past do? Oh, ok.  I'll pay."  A general melase in my mental abilities.  Yuck!!

What I do have experience in is cleaning pee off my paralyzed cat.  I use warm water on a wash cloth.  Also have just tried mixing a tablespoon of Apple Cider Vinegar with a 1/2 cup of warm water, poured that on the wrag and wiped him down.  I helped cut the urine smell.

Also, for the house, I use Nature's Miracle, Cat formula.  I get it in the gallon size at the Pet Club for $19.  I was told that anywhere you can find the brand they can order the gallon size.  It is great!  Has an enzyme that eats the ammonia. It was recomended to me by a man who was a carpet cleaner.  Works better than any carpet shampoo because it doesn't attract dirt when it is dried up.

Good luck with your baby.

Janice and Buddy

What tests were run at your vet, what treatments prescribed, and what have you done around your house to manage this? It's hard to offer advice if we don't know what you've already been through.

or.... how about another vet?

We were finally able to get him back to the vet today (our 7 mos old son has been in the hospital on and off since birth) and turns out he has yet another infection so we are going to try long term anti biotics  (Clavamox) and see if that helps, we also did a lion cut as well to help him maintain his coat.  I am also going to take the advice of putting down the puppy pee pads where he frequents the most and see if that helps as well.  Keep fingers crossed that this will work for him.

kittycorner said:

We were finally able to get him back to the vet today (our 7 mos old son has been in the hospital on and off since birth) and turns out he has yet another infection 

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How did they determine he has an infection? Most urinary tract issues in young cats are not actually due to bacteria, but are caused by sterile inflammation. The best way to determine whether antibiotics are warranted is to draw the urine sample directly from the bladder with a needle (called a cystocentisis) and have it sent to a lab for culture and sensitivity testing. That way they can determine exactly what type of bacteria is present (if any) and which antibiotic will be most effective at eliminating them. Otherwise you could be wasting time and money on drugs that may or may not work. 

I'm still curious to know what Turbo eats and what other foods you've tried. Sometimes just switching from a dry, carb-loaded kibble to a higher protein, better quality wet food is all that's needed.