Cat acting odd, could it have been the Convenia after-all?

My cat had Convenia injection Monday here in HK, the vet told me no side effects and my stupid self believed him before researching the bloody drug. He's trying to recover from Struvite and UTI. He's on Marbocyl and the Convenia shot and acidifiers now after a course of Batryl and some other drug. His behavior has been a little odd since the shot; seems a little sloppy getting down the cat tree after sleeping, his need for food is there, but not his usual piggy self, and his farts are terrible! Still using litter tray, still playful, super vocal; much more than before, like really whiny and needy, which is odd. He also seems a bit more tired than usual... I had posted before about his odd clinginess and I have a feeling it has something to do with this shot. 

Either way, he's acting weird and these Hong Kong doctors just keep prescribing him on med after med and nothing seems to be fixing his UTI... This is so stressful, especially after reading people's posts about Convenia killing their cats?! I mean how I do I know if he's slowly dying right infront of me? Is there a way I can get that Conevnia crap out of him? Its only day 4, what should I expect lol "zombie kitty" or dead kitty.

Should I take him into the vet tomorrow to get his blood count checked to rule out anemia induced by the Convenia shot? Or will I expose him to these FIV FIP etc etc etc horrible immune diseases from the vet, I read that can happen too. He's also been sneezing since the shot, I dont know what the hell that's about and vet is clueless. He was given Convenia 10ML, and it's day 3, should I wait out the 5 days that some people suggested and maybe the side effects will start to wear off? What's your experience and advice... this UTI has become an utter nightmare. 

What do I do...

Unfortunately, there's no way to get the Convenia out. That's the risk with these long-term injections. Once it's injected, it's in the system for up to 2 months. And just FYI - there are possible side-effects from ANY med or supplement.

I can't rememberif a culture was done on your kitty's urine? It seems like the vet is throwing various antibiotics at the UTI, and nothing seems to be working. It is very helpful in these situations to have the culture done so you know which bacteria to treat and which antibiotic will be successful.

Is a second vet's opinion an option?

Hi dustylylac - welcome to the forum!
 

First, just from what you've described, I'd urge you to take a deep breath and relax! The symptoms you've described are mild and very commonly seen - yes, they're weird to you because he's acting differently......but, not seriously differently. Mild lethargy/tiredness are 'normal'.

Relax, too, about exposing him to a virus like FIV etc.

I wouldn't be rushing off for bloodwork testing - if he were anemic, you'd see a drastic change in his activity level. Check to see the colour of his gums......if they're pink, he's fine....very pale/whitish, that would indicate a problem.

Here's a question for you: was a culture done to determine exactly which/if any bacteria is/was present in the urine....or, is the Vet making an assumption about an infection? "Struvite" is a type of stone....stones and infections are different and not mutually dependent (although they can occur simultaneously).

Now, surely there is a cat-only veterinary practice in Hong Kong......no? While a feline specialty practice is no guarantee of competency, I think it's a good place to start seeking a competent Vet.

Here's some reading for you:

• http://www.catinfo.org/?link=convenia
• http://www.catinfo.org/?link=urinarytracthealth

That second article, in particular, really requires slow reading, so as to absorb and understand the concepts she's conveying. She's a well-respected Veterinarian, btw.

Hope that helps!

What a nice post to wake up to Thank you. Well he went to urgent care Saturday night for walking funny and meowing in pain, after an Xray it was discovered he was completely full of air. So we had to give him a little gentle help in the back end, and one minute later he was doing human sized farts in the kitty litter tray; I hate to say it but both my partner and I needed the laugh after all this UTI stress for 3 weeks now. But on the way to the emergency vet (who I dont usually use) I grabbed a urine sample and had her test it, just incase it was his kidneys or something. She did say he tested negative for crystals finally which was good news and suggested I go back to my normal vet the next day to have his urine rechecked. She suggested Convenia and also some weird procedure where they stick a needle through the cats gut into his bladder to get the purest culture (sounds burtal right?). So next day went to my vet, told him he's still licking even after his 3 courses of several pills, and still sort of straining in the cat box. He didn't know what to say, so I stupidly asked about Convenia; he lit up and immediately shot up the cat while telling me no side effects; my fault, yes. But he did however say he would not even consider the needle in the belly procedure as its super painful for cats. He called the emergency vet about the urine I had given her, and he told me it tested at 5.0 now not 6.5 like 3 weeks earlier... it's too low now! **&$*#^$*%&($*!&!!!!! Crap. So he put my cat on half acidifier in the morning and night, Hills S/D still being continued and I have now re-introduced his old Weruva wet food back into his diet (vet approved) since he hates S/D and there really isn't much else I can buy out here in Hong Kong except Cat Big Macs. This guy is the 3rd Vet I have seen and was rec by a friend. The other two I researched online. There is a vet out here that is only cats "nine lives" but I'm worried it would be littered with cat viruses, I'm starting to get a little paranoid now lol

His temp was 100.8 last night, his gums around the top of his teeth are blackish pink (he's black)... but his tongue is white ontop and pink under and the roof of his mouth is white? His pupils are dialating reacting to light levels and his energy and appetite are still around 75-80% today, I guess day 4. 

Thanks for the articles, those are very informative, I read her stuff about UTI's a week ago, and I think she's right that vets just throw pills at whatever they think the UTI is.