Will my cat be OK???

Yesterday I brought in a few leaves from a small tree to try to identify what it was . (A crabapple)

Tedy jumped up next to my computer and I thought he was sniffing the leaves. I shooed him away and didn't notice that he`d taken one...I found  it mauled under the kitchen table later last evening.

This morning he`s acting nervous, vomited a small amount (clear and only once). he has had a little bit of diarrhea a few times and juts acts like he can`t get comfortable for very long.

He keeps licking his behind and will "Pose" , as if frozen in position at times....and he seems to be holding his tail sort of stiff-like at times.

He does respond to petting, but doesn't seem to want it for very long, as if it makes him more nervous.

He`s not drooling or having any kind of seizures and his eyes look bright, although "worried".

Is he just experiencing a mild distress with flu-like symptoms? (what I`m finding online indicates that he`d  have had to consume a huge amount in order to be severe poisoning, which is usually only found in grazing animals such as cows, horses ...)

I hate seeing him like this. he`s usually so sweet and wanting to attention

Has anyone out there experienced something like this before?

I know that some plants (such as Easter Lilly) are highly poisonous to cats, but it sounds like chewing on a crabapple leaf will only cause mild poisoning and feel flu-like for a day or two....but I want to BE SURE...and there are quite a few Kitty-Experts here on The Cat Site.

Any info would be greatly appreciated!!!!

Thanks! Linda

I'm certainly no expert, but I'd be inclined at the very least to call the vet and ask him what he/she thinks.  There is an ASPCA free number you can call, like poison control for animals.  You can call them, they are vey knowledge (NOT FREE).

Though I'm also thinking it's just mild distress.  Weird though about licking his behind and 'posing'.  What is the consistency of his poop, and is he eating normally?

We have only been up a few hours and I have not seen Tedy eat or drink at all yet .

His poop was a bit runny, but not a lot of it.

He just can`t seem to get comfortable...keeps moving from one place to another (places he likes to snooze in) but doesn't stay long before he moves to another location...as if he is seeking comfort from a place where he is used to napping.

I`m going to call the vet and see what they have to say.

Thank you for responding!!!

My vet would never charge me for a phone call. Call your regular vet and see what they say. The diarrhea and vomiting sounds kind of scary to me. If Tedy ate the leaf yesterday they wouldn't be able to pump his stomach or anything but might suggest something you can give him at home. I could just be working its way out of his system, but I would still call the vet to make sure it is not an emergency.

 Cats are small mammals and may not be able to tolerate it even in lesser amounts. 

I have nothing to add but what's already been said. I would call your vet, and if they say to take him in I would do so.

I did call the vet, and they think that it will work it`s way out of his system, but will take at least 24 hours and that he will display distress during that time.

I told them that he cries out from time to time and I can tell it`s his belly that hurts by the way he acts.

They aren't thinking there is much they can do to help, but I`ve got a 2:15 appointment for them to see him anyhow.(Just to make sure it isn't something else) They said if he suddenly acts worse to call back and they will try to work him in sooner....or if he is better before then that I can call and cancel

Sounds reasonable.  Good luck, and do let us know  what happens.

I just wanted to come back and thank you for caring....and to give you an update on Tedy.

It had nothing to do with the leaf.....his bladder was blocked....I`m so thankful we had an appointment and took him in that afternoon. By the time we got him there he was crying, so I knew he was hurting.

Easter eve we rushed him 45 minutes away to a 24 hour Vet Hospital in another city, since our vet was not open and found he had a urinary track infection. On antibiotics he got better, but a month later was having problems again.....and it was then we found out that the gal at the 24 hour clinic had told us wrong about the amount of antibiotic we were supposed to be giving him. Our vet said the meds should have only lasted a week, and after a months time we still had some left...so we had to start him all over again with a new dose. He was doing great (or so we thought) until last week when he was acting distressed after chewing on that leaf.....but the minute the vet felt his belly he said it had nothing to do with that and that he needed to put him to sleep and drain his bladder.

He still has the cath in and an IV, plus a collar to keep him from trying to remove the other stuff. He looks medically-pathetic...but he has been glad to see us every time we have gone to visit him...just very hard to have to leave him again when we know how badly he wants to come with us.

Normally he`d have come home yesterday (Sat) but since it`s a long holiday weekend, and the office isn't going to be open, the vet recommended leaving him until they reopen on Tuesday so that we wouldn't have to deal with not being able to reach a vet if he started to block up again.

Tedy will be on CD food for the rest of his life. (In fact we are putting all 3 of our "boys" on it, even though it`s expensive food......we don`t want anyone else to have this problem. and I`m hearing that it is not uncommon for older male cats.)

The vet told us about an operation where they do a sort of sex change on male cats so they don`t have this problem any longer, but said he doesn't really recommend it because it`s such a terribly  painful recovery. We assured him that we would not consider it. We love Tedy too much to put him through anything like that just to keep him with us longer.

We are hoping and praying that having had his bladder drained and with this new diet, that we will have him for a long time......but we will take whatever time we can have with him....whether just a few weeks, a few months for years.

It has been hard to come back here before now to report back. Please understand that it wasn't because I didn't care to let you all know....but I`ve cried so much these past few days that when I`m teary I can`t see to type, and when I`m not I didn't want to come back and tell it for fear I`d start crying again. It`s just taken me these few days, and even now I`m close to tears.

We are so excited to get him home with us the day after tomorrow. (LOOOOOONG WEEKEND!) But we are also sort of scared as to whether or not this is the end of the problem. We will not put him through this again.....so it is a bitter sweet thing to be bringing him home and at the same time looking for a suitable place where we would want to bury him if we have to have him put to sleep.

Have any of you had to deal with this and did you have a good outcome after your kitty `s diet was changed? Could seriously use some hope here.

Thanks again for caring.-Linda

About 30 years ago I had a neutered male cat that used to block, and at the most inconvenient times - Thanksgiving Day, for example when the vet wasn't available and I don't know if there even was emergency vet service back then. I don't remember if a change in diet was suggested. My vet suggested the surgery. The cat was so debilitated by this time that I had to bring him home with a catheter stitched into place and an Elizabethan collar, keep him caged, and dash home from work and tempt him to eat frequent small meals of boiled chicken and broth to build him up for the surgery.

The surgery worked just fine - the penis is removed and the urethra brought forward a bit. The cat retains bladder control and my vet explained that in his experience in many instances the crystals no longer form. And that even if they do, since the opening is larger the cat does not block.

In the intervening 30 plus years I'm sure techniques have improved, also pain control. So don't feel that you would be putting your sweet boy through agonizing surgery just to keep him around longer. Sure it is more involved than the neutering surgery but it is life saving with a positive result.

I understand your hesitation. You love your sweet cat and don't want him to suffer. But that is exactly why we did go for the surgery.

Glad you were able to get Tedy into the vet an figure out that it wasn't from the leaf. I've read about lots of cats having that surgery on this forum and it being sucessful, so hopefully those members will share their stories like Catapault did. Your family will have to decide if the surgery is the best option for Tedy.

I've been reading about the rx diets and it seems to work for many cats that have stones and crystals. We will probably have to go this route at our house soon as well but haven't had to use the c/d food yet. Wish I could offer more help.

I've read about raw diet curing cats with crystals. Check out www.catinfo.org. It's written by a vet.

I used to add water to my cats canned to try to make sure they got enough hydration. But it wasn't until feeding raw that they became little peeing machines.

I'd look into Catapault's suggestion of surgery as well. It sounds like a really good solution.

The PU surgery that Catapault describes is a last resort for male cats who have a tendency to block multiple times. If this is the first time that Tedy has blocked, there are lots of other less drastic things to try first: an all wet meaty diet to naturally acidify the urine, corn silk for bladder inflammation, reducing stress.

I am a little confused though. You mention Tedy being put on antibiotics for an actual urinary tract infection. Then you mention putting him on c/d. Were there struvite crystals as well? Because c/d will only help struvites, not an infection, calcium oxalate stones or general inflammation. I also wouldn't put your other cats on c/d as a preventative measure. How c/d works is the additional methionine lowers urine pH. If your other cats are fine, you could lower their pH too much which may increase their risk of forming calcium oxalate stones which require surgery to remove.

And please know that a treated blockage is not a death sentence. It sounds like you got him treatment in time, and many cats have recovered just fine and gone on to live long lives. The condition does need to be managed, but it can be done.

Oh no doubt it is a surgery for more complicated cases, but I don't know what the vet saw for them to mention this surgery to the OP.