Help... Nervous Wreck About Cat's Urinary Blockage Recovery

Ask your vet for nutrical paste. He is not getting enough calories now, though it's good you're giving him fluids. You could also get a pate style wet food and water it down with broth so you can syringe with a needleless syringe.

I would just try to get him to eat anything but of course not any dry food. I had this problem with my cat and he would not eat any vet food, I don't know if that is what you are trying to feed him, but as soon as I gave my cat the canned food he used to eat he started eating, not alot but slowly more and more. He now is on just canned food only no dry and is doing well, knock on wood, I would even try people food, like cooked chicken maybe some ham and see if he will eat that. He is probably stressed out and still does not feel good as that takes a few weeks good luck!

Hi dawnk, 

This brings back memories. Spencer is still with me and doing amazing, and living proof that a cat CAN survive a blockage.

As others mentioned you must get him to eat. What is not mentioned in this thread (I think I had then started another thread) was that after Spencer came home from his long emergency vet stay I could not get him to eat, and he developed fatty liver because of that. I knew better than wait too long after the blockage experience, so after a few days of barely eating we were back to the vet and he spent a night there. 

There they forced-fed him with a syringe and when I went to pick him up, they taught me how to do it so I could feed him that way at home. 

This means I mixed some Royal Canin Recovery canned food (available from the vet) with water so that it would be easier to go through a huge syringe they gave me. I then opened Spencer's mouth with one hand and squirted that paste down his throat, then closed his mouth by hand so he would have to swallow. 

Yes the cat will regurgitate some and fight you off, it takes a lot of patience and you might not always get him eat the whole recommended serving. 

I forced-fed Spence that way for 3 weeks til he started eating again. I have other cats and one morning he just went and started eating dry food with them. I called my vet screaming and jumping with joy  

This happened almost 3 years ago and Spencer as I said is doing great, he's never been sick again. My 4 cats have since all transitioned to canned food.

If Ray really won't take the syringe, did your vet talk about having a feeding tube installed? In my opinion it would be super important that he eats more than broth right now, try mixing it into a paste with canned food. 

Spencer did also leak pee after his very first visit to the emergency vet and this was not a good sign in his case. Cause we were back to the vet the next day and he had to be "unblocked" again. 

Good luck and let us all know how Ray's doing <3 <3

dawnk said:

Hi Spencer's mom,
Trying to get through this with my boy Ray. In the middle of feeling like a 'wreck' still.
It's Tuesday and he had his urethra done LAST Monday and then LAST Wednesday, so tomorrow will be a week. Took him home Friday. The vet thought I would be back on Saturday to put him down, she said he just wasn't recovering. He was leaking pee all over until a day ago, that seems to have stopped, but still blood in the urine. He will not eat. When you say 'syringe' fed your boy, can you explain? I've been giving my boy water and broth by syringe, but it's just not enough and he fights so violently everything, I have to wrap him to give him meds, it's a two person ordeal for the meds, etc. and even that is a struggle.
Thanks, Dawn

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sending prayers to you and Ray

Hi Dawn,

When our cat lost his appetite after developing cystitis (after also going through a blockage, except one caused by another bad vet, and then needing PU surgery) our vet prescribed some medication to boost his appetite. We could give it in very limited amounts - something like 1/8 of a pill every other day. But it worked immediately. Right after giving him this pill, coupled with a dash of Hill's Critical Care canned food on his normal food, he went to town (literally within about a minute). Has the vet discussed anything like this with you? I can't remember what the medication was called.

I know all too well about vets losing faith - after 3 surgeries, including a PU, the vets sent my cat home to be put to sleep the next day with minimal post-PU care instructions and only a couple of days of medication. When he miraculously peed on his own at home the next day we had no idea what to do and could not get in touch with that same hospital, it was a mess. 

Has your vet prescribed anything like pain killers or anti-inflammatories? The blood could be a sign of anything from infection to inflammation and crystals. From what I understand sometimes when the cat has had pain peeing before they "spasm" and can't relax enough to pee, even if there is no physical obstruction. The vets kept prescribing Metacam for both pain relief and anti-inflammation for us. Although I really hated giving that drug to him (having read so many horror stories) they refused to prescribe anything else and thankfully he saw no horrible side effects yet.

Good luck, sending best wishes to you and Ray!

My cat had the same thing at two years old, he would not eat the vets food at all so I decided to just give the canned food he was use to. That got him eating again, it took about two to three weeks for him to go to the bathroom normally, I mean pee the right amount, as I was checking him daily and could tell by the litter box how much he was going. I am now just feeding him canned food only, so far so good, I try to  get canned food that is low in magnesium, etc. Good luck I would stick to canned only Pam.

Hi everyone! I know this is a really old post - I was just shooting in the dark that maybe someone would answer. I am at a loss and absolutely heartbroken. I'm currently going through this exact same thing with my Milo (6 1/2 yrs old) and it is not looking promising that he is going to over come this as of last night. We rushed him to emergency on Sunday night after watching him very closely over 12 hours and noticing he wasn't able to urinate and suddenly in pain. My husband and I are both animal scientist and have advanced degrees in animal physiology so we knew to get him in asap. We are also familiar with UTI's, as one of our other cats had it last year.

Milo's initial blood work showed his creatinine level at 10.63 and his potassium was also very high. Obviously extremely dangerous. We did xrays to check for stones and he's clear. As soon as they placed the catheter in Sunday night he immediately started improving - his creatinine was 2.1 by yesterday morning so they decided to remove the catheter to hopefully send him home today. Our worst nightmare happened when the vet called at 10pm and said he was straining to urinate again only achieving dribbles after he was normal all day, his bladder was firming up and she was concerned that he was re-blocking and thought another catheter would be the right thing. We agreed that we want to give him the best shot. She mentioned this morning that she thinks his urethra and/or inside lining of his bladder is spasming (which I read via this thread seems pretty common) so she put him on a new med last night to hopefully relax the spasms and the inflammation/irritation.

He seems to be on a similar road as many of you have mentioned so I'm hopeful but so scared - my question is Did anyone else have their kitty relapse within 12 hours and re-block needing another catheter that fast?? AND if so DID the second catheter work? We are absolutely worried sick about him and emotionally drained, I cannot imagine my life without him right now BUT I refuse to let my sweet boy suffer. His quality of life is too important to me. He was just running and wrestling with our other kitty Saturday morning! He is not eating for the vet but I have been making multiple trips a day to sit with him and he eats great for me so I'm not worried about his eating. Just the reblocking - we are just at a lost with what to do to help him.        
 

Stacey Boehmer said:

 
Hi everyone! I know this is a really old post - I was just shooting in the dark that maybe someone would answer. I am at a loss and absolutely heartbroken. I'm currently going through this exact same thing with my Milo (6 1/2 yrs old) and it is not looking promising that he is going to over come this as of last night. We rushed him to emergency on Sunday night after watching him very closely over 12 hours and noticing he wasn't able to urinate and suddenly in pain. My husband and I are both animal scientist and have advanced degrees in animal physiology so we knew to get him in asap. We are also familiar with UTI's, as one of our other cats had it last year.

Milo's initial blood work showed his creatinine level at 10.63 and his potassium was also very high. Obviously extremely dangerous. We did xrays to check for stones and he's clear. As soon as they placed the catheter in Sunday night he immediately started improving - his creatinine was 2.1 by yesterday morning so they decided to remove the catheter to hopefully send him home today. Our worst nightmare happened when the vet called at 10pm and said he was straining to urinate again only achieving dribbles after he was normal all day, his bladder was firming up and she was concerned that he was re-blocking and thought another catheter would be the right thing. We agreed that we want to give him the best shot. She mentioned this morning that she thinks his urethra and/or inside lining of his bladder is spasming (which I read via this thread seems pretty common) so she put him on a new med last night to hopefully relax the spasms and the inflammation/irritation.

He seems to be on a similar road as many of you have mentioned so I'm hopeful but so scared - my question is Did anyone else have their kitty relapse within 12 hours and re-block needing another catheter that fast?? AND if so DID the second catheter work? We are absolutely worried sick about him and emotionally drained, I cannot imagine my life without him right now BUT I refuse to let my sweet boy suffer. His quality of life is too important to me. He was just running and wrestling with our other kitty Saturday morning! He is not eating for the vet but I have been making multiple trips a day to sit with him and he eats great for me so I'm not worried about his eating. Just the reblocking - we are just at a lost with what to do to help him.        
 

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Yes, I did. Mine reblocked the next day whilst still in the hospital. After the second cath as he had pulled out the first, three days, later he was sent home and he's been fine on canned food. Can you be sure the clinic will feed him canned rx food if he'd have it? Spasms are common after being blocked, I am hopeful the medicine will work for your kitty.

Yes it's normal... Spencer did "reblock" within 24 hours, on Christmas night and I had to rush him to the vet emergency clinic. He was there for a week... Yes it was worth it!! I don't regret a thing, Spencer is thriving now and has completely switched to canned food. It CAN get better!

Thank you for this information..as I have a 9 year old cat that I am watching for UTI

this week.

He has never had one before and is on grain free dry food and wet food

each day.

He also has arthritis in the spine so not sure if he peed some out of the litter box

because crouching in the litter box was hard to do at that time ..just once yesterday

or whether there is a slight UTI.

He   peed last night in his own clean litter box in the room he sleeps

SheriT , Bro

SheriT said:

 
Thank you for this information..as I have a 9 year old cat that I am watching for UTI

this week.

He has never had one before and is on grain free dry food and wet food

each day.

He also has arthritis in the spine so not sure if he peed some out of the litter box

because crouching in the litter box was hard to do at that time ..just once yesterday

or whether there is a slight UTI.

He   peed last night in his own clean litter box in the room he sleeps

SheriT , Bro

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Sheri, is there some reason to suspect he has a UTI? 

Hello Community. I know that time has passed since the last post but after reading everyone's experience I felt I had to express my feelings of the matter. I also am experiencing the same as everyone, I'm a first time cat owner so everything is new to me. I'm glad the Internet exists anyways I have a 3 yr old medium hair tuxedo cat, had him since he was just 5 weeks old, slept under my armpits or on my chest. He really grew on me as if he was my son. So after getting really sick I had rushed him to the hospital on a Sunday and they said it could be recurring problem and could be costly. I would be heart less if I just worried about money and not my cats health. Told the doc do what you gotta do. Oliver was put on a catheter and IV fluids, he had blood in his urine and almost had kidney failure. I was so worried, doc said he would have to stay 72hrs under the doc's care. The cost was ridiculous but with help from friends n family I pulled the money to save his life. He did well in his recovery and when I picked him up he was alert and walking, I was so happy but the doc only gave me muscle relaxing meds for spasms and antibiotics for the inflammation. No recovery instructions were given besides change his diet, add water bowls everywhere and have an extra litter box around. Cool, I could that but he failed to mention was how quickly my oliver would get blocked again. 3 days of IV fluids did flush him out but he still had crystals in his bladder. I don't know how he got blocked again but after a day at my house he starting weird. Not peeing when he went to the litter box then I saw he was straining again. I had no more money to take him to the vet again. I just spent $1700.00 but I'm not saying the expense was a problem, it was not having money for this type of emergency again. Rent, bills those were just around the corner. I couldn't pay another $600 a visit. So I went online looking for similar problems with other ppl. One site had said cats are known to go for days without drinking water even when it's around them, so some ppl had been hydrating their cat by giving them water with a syringe every hour, so I started doing that to help him get hydrated, I felt like that wasn't enough and I felt that I might be getting him more bloated with water, so I searched home remedies for urinary problems and I ran across one simple but effective solution. Apple Cider Vinegar, everyone had claimed that by giving a certain amount 1 tablespoon vinegar and 2 tablespoons of water to dilute the solution would help the cat fill full which in return help him pee. I had nothing to lose and if it didn't work I could take Oliver on Monday to the vet. So I gave it to him diluting it with a lot water after. Till Sunday morning when I noticed he was getting really bloated so I stopped and I started rubbing his belly and he actually let me rub his belly and not trying to be perverted but would push going towards his penis. When I noticed what looked like a grain of salt on his penis. I thought it was litter sand and I took it off. Later on in the day he jumped on my bed and he wanted me to rub his belly so I didn't it again. Pushing but scratching slowly down his gentials and again I saw that grain of salt again. So I pulled it off, he then jumped off my bed and went to the litter box but nothing. Poor little guy, we'll hoping he would survive another day I took him to vet. This time my local vet and he noticed right away Oliver was blocked and I asked how? He said look at his penis he's plugged. I was like u sure it looks like litter sand. He said it could be??? After diagnosis it was gonna cost $570 for him to be on a catheter again. I only had $80, vet said he needs at least $300. I called my mom but she wouldn't have the money till 3pm. So took Oliver home and went to work but right before leaving, I rubbed his belly and removed that grain of sand again and this time. I decided to fill the hot tub with some water and I left. Work wasn't easy with my Lil guy at home. When I received a call from my mom saying if I had spilled water on my bed I had said no, she then said "mijo" your bed is covered in pee.... I was mom stop playing... she no for reals, Oliver stomach is wet and your whole bed is wet. I then told her to grab oliver stomach and feel for his bladder. When she did this move on his belly, oliver started peeing without control. I was excited to hear the good news so left work and went home to see Oliver in his box and releasing all his pee from his bladder, he was peeing everywhere, the tub, my bed , dirty laundry on the floor. I wasn't mad I was glad he had finally released all his pressure. He looked really skinny but his urine had no blood, I was so excited just to see that. I had called the vet to cancel the appointment, when he asked what could have caused the release. I joked around and said Oliver probably got scared being back at the hospital but i also had told him about the Apple Cider Vinegar remedy I had given him over the weekend and the vet had said I did a good move. Vinegar has a lot acidic properties that help brake down enzymes but help you feel full to help cleanse the digestive system. The vinegar helped oliver break down the crystals which I didn't know I was pulling off his gentials. He looks 80% better. Now I just got get him to eat but I know he still nauseous from his episode over the weekend and weak from the blockage. I'm blending science diet food with water and feeding him with a baster. He eats a Lil and he is drinking a lot of water but I'm just glad he's getting back to normal. Now this is just my experience and their is no scientific proof of this Home Remedy but after reading the health benefits of Apple cider Vinegar and after seeing the results myself, I would say it doesn't hurt to try. It worked for me and I hope my experience can help others in the same situation.

I had a series of similar episodes with Bonaparte a few years ago. He was in and out of hospital and had bladder surgery twice. When he finally came out we put him on a vet urinary diet, and he only drinks low-calcium mineral water. I buy the bottled water that has a 6 or less concentration of calcium - some are as high as 73 mg per litre. There have been no problems since.

@Kid Oliver Oh my gosh, I totally just freaked out reading your post! Your cat could have died! Urinary blockages are life threatening! Are you sure he's okay? I'm so worried! Please read this thread http://www.thecatsite.com/t/319080/cystitis-dexamethasone#post_4004316 it has tons of great info on blockages and crystals. Make a new thread and ask questions if you need to. My cat had a blockage years ago and he now eats only high quality canned food. Again, please ask questions, crystals are a common problem caused by feeding cats the wrong food and I had to learn all of this stuff when it happened to my cat.

Hello,
My cat was unblocked on Sunday. He's eating and taking his meds. My only problem is he's peeing on everything and anything on the floor and squatting to pee every couple mins. He has 2 letters and both and always clean. Just wondering if anyone else had this problem? And how long it lasted? He is on anxiety medication because he had this problem of peeing outside the litter last year and we just started him back on his regular med since he's been off since Saturday when he went in to be unblocked.

chrisnut319 said:

Hello,
My cat was unblocked on Sunday. He's eating and taking his meds. My only problem is he's peeing on everything and anything on the floor and squatting to pee every couple mins. He has 2 letters and both and always clean. Just wondering if anyone else had this problem? And how long it lasted? He is on anxiety medication because he had this problem of peeing outside the litter last year and we just started him back on his regular med since he's been off since Saturday when he went in to be unblocked.

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How's he doing now?  I've heard it's pretty common after a cathether for there to be some issues for a little while.  Did you talk to your Vet yesterday about what is going on? 

Maybe something in this thread will help you:  http://www.thecatsite.com/t/253999/post-urinary-tract-blockage-issues

6 yr old keeweek same problems as listed and home now but dripping, not a stream, frequent and drips when not trying. urinates on floor as well. Eating special food and on meds. Poor kitty.

What I'm writing to ask is how long it took this behavior to cease once your cats were home.