Kitty with Urinary Blockage/Uroabdomen

mommyto · Nov 25, 2013

The Royal Canin Urinary food is what he is on. Our vet said a couple of days on the wet, and then transition to dry. I tried dropping a couple pieces of the dry into the wet this morning, and it did help. He actually ate some. Or it could have been the fact that he was just hungry and ready to give in

) It just cracks me up that he is being such a snob about it, when my other two kitties are practically knocking me to the ground each morning to get at the wet food I have been giving them! I will pick up some tuna on my way home tonight - and see if that helps at all.

He has been doing well with drinking water, from what I observe. He always has been a great drinker, part of the reason this all surprised us. I went ahead and ordered them a drinking fountain (Drinkwell Platinum I think?) that should be here by Wednesday. Our vet seems to think that we should only use the RX food for about 5 or 6 months, but I'm inclined not to switch back. I never want this to happen again! And really, when one compares the price of the Urinary food to the Blue Buffalo we had been feeding, it really isn't that big of a deal. Certainly less than the cost of PU Surgery!!

Oh - we have been giving my other two his dry food, since I want to banish any chance of him sneaking a bit of the old stuff. They are both domestic short hairs, one is 11, the other 16. The switch to the Urinary Formula shouldn't pose a risk to them, correct? I haven't had a chance to ask the vet yet.

Thanks bunches!! Here is my recovering buddy - trying to avoid me this morning when I had the amoxicillian dropper in my hand

) Dude, I can totally reach the top of the toilet! I can't wait for all his fur to grow back - his tail just doesn't look right!

oliver.jpg

mommyto
Nov 25, 2013

peaches08 · Nov 25, 2013

That is an interesting looking tail! I'm glad he's eating a little. Also, if he'll eat a little canned then I'd use this time to transition him to canned forever. I'd switch the others to canned too.

mommyto · Nov 25, 2013

They had to shave most of it so they could attach the open catheter he had while he was resting at home with us. It is normally huge and bushy! He is also short some hair on his paw from the IV, most of the hair on his belly from the fluid removals, and most of the hair on the back of his legs. He normally looks like he is wearing fluffy pants. He also has a patch missing on his chest, but I honestly can't remember why they removed that part. It was a blur of a week

) He will grow it back soon! And will no longer resemble a poodle!

And as for a long term wet diet, I'm fine with that. My only worry would be their teeth. I had always thought wet promoted tooth decay? Or is that just bad wet food?

brooklet425 · Nov 25, 2013

They can all eat the Royal Canin SO food! I have 11 cats and all of them eat the same food as Moses now. It was just easier to have them all on the same diet and the vet said its perfectly safe for all of them to eat. I was told that the only cats that CAN'T eat it are ones with kidney issues. Not sure of the exact reason, but if either of your other ones have any kidney issues then they need to stay away from the Urinary SO food. Otherwise, it's definitely fine for all of them

. We like to think of it as a preventative measure for the other ones.

As for only being on the prescription food for a few months, I would be hesitant to take him off of it. Moses has a written prescription for it from when we moved a couple years ago (so we could buy his food without taking him in for a full appointment at a new vet) and under "refills" it says "This food is for LIFE". So honestly, if there's no medical reason to take him off of it, I would keep him on it - especially if the price is comparative.

Glad to hear that he finally ate some of the wet food. They can be stubborn little creatures can't they?

I have no idea about the tooth decay issue so hopefully someone else will chime in about that.

And I love the picture! He actually looks almost identical to my Moses, which makes me wonder now if the breed is just prone to urinary blockages. I know it's more common in males, but Moses is a Maine Coon mix who seriously looks JUST like your guy! Maybe it's just a coincidence but I found that interesting

.

lunariris · Nov 25, 2013

Good to hear he got through it and is on a special diet.

Our 11 year old girl started having urinary issues at around 6 or 7 years old, and has had them ever since. She is a picky eater but will eat both wet and dry food. It doesn't matter which one she eats, either, she still has a problem. Regular cat food doesn't have a low enough of a pH (isn't acidic enough) for her body to not form crystals in her urine. She has to be on a special urinary diet for life, which is expensive, but worth it. Without it, she gets a urinary tract infection in a matter of weeks, and it's double difficult because she's smart and hard to give pills to.

I usually know when she has one because she'll be a little moody, and will pee outside of the litterbox, and she'll meow when I pick her up-which she usually loves. In males, it's life-threatening as they can block up completely, even without infection, like with your guy. Regular "urinary" foods that Friskies makes in the can and Purina's urinary formulas supposedly "help" but they will still block up and form crystals because they are not strong enough. The prescription-strength is the only stuff that works, and after trying most of them, here's what I've found, at least from our cats' perspectives (other cats can eat urinary vet formulas, however, it is hard on their kidneys so any cats with kidney failure should NOT have it, and it is also prone to cause weight gain, so watch for tubby kitties).

She only eats C/D canned chicken flavor, she hates the fish flavor, and doesn't 'hate' UR dry and it definitely still works, but she's not the biggest fan of it, either. She doesn't like UR's wet food version. I tried Iams low pH/S and she absolutely hates it. I have to mix it with other food to get her to eat it. And if I give any of the cats anything different than her, she'll refuse to eat until she can have what they have. It's so frustrating to balance. We also got a water fountain for them to try to increase her drinking, and she does love the fountain.

But yes, C/D canned chicken seems to be the best. I got the same results from all the other cats in the house (all 9 of them). They vote that's the best taste and works the best from the options for food lol. The downside? It runs about $2 per can, which adds up fast. UR dry usually costs around $50-$60 for a 16-lb bag, and Iams low pH/S is about $50-$60 for a 20-lb bag (best price, but NO ONE in the house likes it....so it's their least favorite in flavor).

She's gone for years without any UTI problems, but this year I had problems getting it through the company and needed a prescription fax- refill etc. and by the time I got it, she had one again. The moral? The C/D is a must-have.

Good luck with your guy.

peaches08 · Nov 25, 2013

Mommyto said:
They had to shave most of it so they could attach the open catheter he had while he was resting at home with us. It is normally huge and bushy! He is also short some hair on his paw from the IV, most of the hair on his belly from the fluid removals, and most of the hair on the back of his legs. He normally looks like he is wearing fluffy pants. He also has a patch missing on his chest, but I honestly can't remember why they removed that part. It was a blur of a week ) He will grow it back soon! And will no longer resemble a poodle!

And as for a long term wet diet, I'm fine with that. My only worry would be their teeth. I had always thought wet promoted tooth decay? Or is that just bad wet food?

Do they know what kind of crystals he had? Sorry if I am making you repeat information over and over.

Diet we can deal with later. For now just get him eating reliably and drinking plenty of water. Does he like any "human" foods? Like chicken?

bastfriend · Nov 25, 2013

I too had concerns about feeding my normal kitty the urinary diet but she's had blood and urine tests twice since I started them both on the Royal Canin S/O Dry (and now moderate calorie version) and she's doing well. The only downside is they both tend more toward constipation because the food deliberately stimulates thirst and dilution of the urine (this is from talking to a Royal Canin representative) and sometimes they don't drink quite enough to stave off some constipation. My vet authorized an experiment with mixing in a small amount of fiber based food that she thinks will be safe and may help.

Another thing you can do depending on your kitty's temperament is buy some pH paper and use it on his urine. If he's tolerant you can get a ladle (yes like soup ladle!) and stick it under him while he urinates in the box - then you've got a sterile sample to do a pH test on or even bring to the vet. When I first read this I thought it was INSANE, but I've tried it and my cat let me do it! With the at home pH test you can observe whether the pH is rising too high and which food changes cause that. My conclusion after a few experiments was that the urinary food is essential and the pH rapidly rises for him with anything else.

sue mccook · Nov 25, 2013

Did the vet rule out crystals or stones in the bladder? Some cats are prone to this because their body
chemistry for some reason produce crystals. I have an 11 year old and for 2 years we have had similar
issues. We had to change his food to a low ash food. Right now he is eating Royal Candida SO dry
and wet from the vet. If they do not carry it he can give you a prescription and you can get it at Petsmart.
Mine was neutered at 9 weeks old and sometimes I wonder if it wasn't a bit early. Hopefully your baby
gets better.

punkin77 · Nov 26, 2013

Mommyto said:
Hello all! I am an avid cat person, but have never really thought to log into one of these sites for help. My three buddies are usually as healthy as can be!

But our luck ran out - our 1 year old Domestic Long Hair suffered a urinary blockage last Friday night. It snuck up on us, totally surprising. The vet managed to unblock him that night and get a urinary catheter in. He went home on Sunday, but back to the vet on Monday morning because he had stopped peeing. The vet tried all sorts of meds to help him out, but didn't re-catheter since he was still leaking urine at that point. Just not peeing like normal. Tuesday, and his belly was all sorts of swollen. The vet withdrew almost 300ml from his belly. We put the cath back in, did scans to check the bladder for rupture. Nothing. So we left the cath in, assumed a tear in the urethra. Next day, a little less fluid, but still leaking. Yesterday, still fluid, but down to only 30ml. The vet removed the catheter and he has been peeing on his own.

Anyone been through this? The vet is concerned about peritonitis, and is talking about surgery to wash his belly and check for any tears. We are taking most of today off from treatment, since the poor fella is SO stressed out. We have to sedate for checks, and we will be going back this evening to do that. I'm so confused by all of this, as far as what is right to do. It seems like surgery to check, when he is approaching no fluid leaking would just be pointless. We've talked about going to a specialist, but it is just out of our means.

punkin77 · Nov 26, 2013

Hello. The same exact thing happened to my cat about ten years ago. They found crystals in his bladder that blocked him from peeing. The vet told us that it's mainly male cats that get these crystals & it is caused from eating wet food with fish in it, he said that wet food is the worst, and to stick to dry food. They drained his bladder, and kept him overnight with a catheter. They put him on a prescription diet dry food, and he stayed on that food for about 5 years, and thenI switched him to regular dry food that I could just buy at Walmart. He is fourteen now, still eating dry food, and doing just fine. He has been on regular dry food for probably six years now and he is doing fine. I wish they would get rid of the wet food to be honest, being that it is not healthy for cats and messes up their Ph balance in their urine. I started out buying IAMS food, now I just buy what is on sale to tell ya the truth. I have 2 other cats in my home, one is 12, and the other 3. They all seem to be doing fine. They are strictly indoor cats.

mommyto · Nov 26, 2013

peaches08 said:
Do they know what kind of crystals he had? Sorry if I am making you repeat information over and over.

Diet we can deal with later. For now just get him eating reliably and drinking plenty of water. Does he like any "human" foods? Like chicken?

They didn't tell me what type of crystals they were. I got to look at it under the microscope, they were long and rectangular. Based on just googling pictures (you got me curious!), I would guess they were Struvite Crystals. I will have to ask the vet next time we go in.

As for his eating, I'm wearing him down

) He ate a ton better this morning. Attention while he eats seems to be the ticket. He has to have someone in the room, petting and loving on him. He was actually meowing to eat this morning, which he practically never does. He's not a talker. Anyway, I'll take it! Easy enough to love on him, no problems there!!

mommyto · Nov 26, 2013

Brooklet425 said:
And I love the picture! He actually looks almost identical to my Moses, which makes me wonder now if the breed is just prone to urinary blockages. I know it's more common in males, but Moses is a Maine Coon mix who seriously looks JUST like your guy! Maybe it's just a coincidence but I found that interesting .

Your guess is as good as mine

) He was a rescue from the Washington DC Humane Society. He definitely isn't full Maine Coon, since he's a tiny dude. I had a friend with a full blood Coon and she was huge!! I'm not convinced he is done growing though - the paws don't seem to 'fit' yet. He just turned 1 in July.

I have no idea if there is a link to urinary problems with them or not - you have to wonder though. My two short hairs have never had this issue, and my first long hair did. Hmmm....

mommyto · Nov 26, 2013

sue mccook said:
Did the vet rule out crystals or stones in the bladder? Some cats are prone to this because their body
chemistry for some reason produce crystals. I have an 11 year old and for 2 years we have had similar
issues. We had to change his food to a low ash food. Right now he is eating Royal Candida SO dry
and wet from the vet. If they do not carry it he can give you a prescription and you can get it at Petsmart.
Mine was neutered at 9 weeks old and sometimes I wonder if it wasn't a bit early. Hopefully your baby
gets better.

Is the neutering age thought to be a factor? We got Oliver at 10 weeks old, and it had already been done. My other two boys got theirs done at 6 months old (or close to it). The whole early neutering thing surprised me, I hadn't realized that had become the norm.

bastfriend · Nov 26, 2013

Hmmm my kitty who had the urinary trouble was neutered at 8 weeks old since he was a feral kitten, you may be on to something.

sue mccook · Nov 26, 2013

I just thought neutering at such a young age, does it stop the
uretha from developing into an adult size. I have heard spaying
Neutering real young their organs do not mature to the adult stage.
Pros and cons on both sides, but my cat has had so many bladder
issues and so I blame it on being neutered at 9 weeks old. I never
had a cat with the issues I have had with this one.

maewkaew · Nov 26, 2013

I think a lot of shelters do neuter kittens at 2 months or 2 pounds whichever comes first.

There have been multiple studies that did not find a difference in urethra diameter for kittens neutered that young. I think they compared 7 weeks vs 7 months. From what I recall , even if it is true the penis is a bit smaller in kittens neutered young, what counts as far as blockages etc. is the internal width of the urethra, and that's what they did not find to be smaller.

I had a cat I adopted as an adult, who was neutered shortly before I adopted him and certainly was fully mature by then. He had larger sex organs and still had secondary sexual characteristics like jowls and thick skin on the neck. But he had urinary tract problems and ended up with a urethral blockage. He was put on a prescription diet (Hill's c/d) for 5 years but it was very high carb and he ended up gaining weight, and despite lowering the amount over and over, to the point he was never satisfied, he still was overweight and became diabetic.

So at that point ( when he was 9 years old) I switched him to all high protein/ low carb wet food , and I even added a bit of warm water to the food, and he never had any more urinary problems the rest of his life ( 6 more years) and I got urinalyses done twice a year.

So anyway that is our experience.

I sure hope your cat will get over it and won't have more trouble.

lillydsh · Nov 27, 2013

Most urinary blockages are caused by the high amounts of urine alkalizing metabolites in commercial cat food. These create struvite crystals. I recommend giving an herb called uva ursi.

mommyto · Nov 27, 2013

maewkaew said:
I think a lot of shelters do neuter kittens at 2 months or 2 pounds whichever comes first.

There have been multiple studies that did not find a difference in urethra diameter for kittens neutered that young. I think they compared 7 weeks vs 7 months. From what I recall , even if it is true the penis is a bit smaller in kittens neutered young, what counts as far as blockages etc. is the internal width of the urethra, and that's what they did not find to be smaller.

I had a cat I adopted as an adult, who was neutered shortly before I adopted him and certainly was fully mature by then. He had larger sex organs and still had secondary sexual characteristics like jowls and thick skin on the neck. But he had urinary tract problems and ended up with a urethral blockage. He was put on a prescription diet (Hill's c/d) for 5 years but it was very high carb and he ended up gaining weight, and despite lowering the amount over and over, to the point he was never satisfied, he still was overweight and became diabetic.

So at that point ( when he was 9 years old) I switched him to all high protein/ low carb wet food , and I even added a bit of warm water to the food, and he never had any more urinary problems the rest of his life ( 6 more years) and I got urinalyses done twice a year.

So anyway that is our experience.

I sure hope your cat will get over it and won't have more trouble.

Well, that's good to know! I never want to go through this again, and if there was a reason to wait with the next kitty, I would have pushed for it.

Off topic, but my neurotic self is starting to worry about the holiday weekend and the possibility of him re-blocking. He looks good for now, but we all know how Murphy likes to go at all of us! What does re-blocking look like? Are there early signs?

sue mccook · Nov 27, 2013

I would like to know what brand of food Mommyto, fed her kitty. I was told food should
have very low ash, no fish, and low magnesium/phosphorus.

Murphy's Law....one of my pets always get sick around the holidays, never fails.

mommyto · Nov 27, 2013

Before the blocking? We were feeding Blue Buffalo Multi-Cat. It was a great food, the guys all loved it. A little pricier than other brands, but they eat less of it and it pays off in the long run. Plus they have nice healthy coats

)

http://www.bluebuffalo.com/cat-food/bc-multi-cat

We are now feeding prescription Royal Canin Urinary SO. Right now, mostly wet, but we do have a bag of dry that I use to sprinkle on a few pieces and trick him into eating the wet. I think we will stick with it long term. I'm going back and forth on staying with the wet long term. I saw one poster mention they had a long standing prescription to use. I'm hoping I can find an online source that is a little less pricey than the $2.25 my vet charges.

Kitty with Urinary Blockage/Uroabdomen

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