Urinary Issues again

After a surgery to remove an area of inflammation that would not go down Macy has been stable for two years. Until this October.

We are back onto the good for a bit and back to frequent urination and in and out of the litter box. This has what we have done so far:

Diet RX food, that he has never gone off of. He will now eat the RX wet along with the dry. Last urinalysis showed no signs of crystals or infection but there are red blood cells so back on the bactrim again for 21 days.

The only thing the vet annd I can figure out is stress. This all started up right after we went on a week of vacation, and two new strays in the neighborhood that like to come up to the windows of the house, which gets Macy going plus Sonny gets excited and in turn will attack Macy which the vet calls deferred aggression.

The Vet wanted to try a high dose of Omega three fatty acids which is poured onto Macy's wet food which of course he now will not eat.

I am debating on stopping the antibiotic because when Macy sees me with the pill popper he runs and hides. Any noise or if anyone comes to the house he runs and hides now.

So I guess I am looking for advice on what to do next? The Vet suggested anti anxiety meds which I am seriously thinking about asking her to try.

Is there a chance that what was in his bladder that was taken out to have grown again? The last time the biopsy came back just as bladder wall inflammation, so tumor growth.

I try to stay positive but it is so disheartening to go through this all over again.

Do you have him on Cosequin or another GAG?  They help with inflammation.  If I were you I would ditch the dry food all together and just feed wet, whether it be the vet diet or otc diets.  Cats need moisture in their diet to keep their system flushed.  I would add additional water to the canned food so it's soupy like.  This site has some great information about cystitis (which is inflammation of the bladder wall).  http://catinfo.org/?link=urinarytracthealth#Cystitis   They don't have to have an infection to have cystitis.  Is your kitty on any pain meds or anti-inflammatories?    I would look into ways to reduce his stress, do you have a Feliway Diffuser in your house?  I would suggest you get one.  You may want to put him on anti-anxiety drugs that is up to you depending on how anxious he gets.  One thing that can be helpful is a little Rescue Remedy which is a natural remedy that can help in stressful situations  I use it for my boy Munchie who HATES car rides, I give him a few drops of it before the car ride and he is much better about them.

We have tried Cosequin before and it didn't seem to help.  He was doing great on eating weet food until I added the omega three so I may discontinue that until I can get him stabilized.  I have been looking at  the feliway but debating on the spray vs the plug in so I could spray every room.  Any comments if the spray is as good as the diffuser?

How long was he on the cosequin?  It can take 6-8 weeks of continuous use to see a difference.  I have a kitty who has Interstitial Cystitis.  I have been giving her only canned food with additional water, and cosequin for 4 years now and she has not had a flare up, up until now which she has a bladder infection.  Before she was having flare ups every 3-4 months.  I only have experience with the spray so I can't tell you the difference.  It works well for my cats.

I want to say that he was on it for a good 3 months and it did little, but that was before the surgery and they removed the area of inflammation that the specialist suspected was either a crystal that got stuck in his bladder wall and was grown over or the pocket that cats sometimes get when their umbilical cord spot doesn't seal all the way after they are born.

I know at the end of October he did have a bladder infection with crystals from either getting into Sonnys wet food or the Purina RX they placed him on.  Second urinalysis showed no crystals but still some white cells so second round of antibiotics and this time there is just red cells so third round of antibiotics we go.  Maybe he is still inflammed from the crystals and infection?

I was thinking oof the spray also since I could spray every room with it instead of a plug in every room.

RBC's could indicate inflammation.  You may want to ask your vet about an anti-inflammatory/steroid to help bring the inflammation down. 

I been thru this, from the beginning, so I know, all that you do and have tried, and what has worked, so I agree, its the stress, stress is another biggie, it ranks up there with grains. I also had one, and it was stress related.

I don't usually advocate kitty crack, lol, but in Macy's case, I would do it.

You need to finish the antibiotics, and you need to add a little water to his wet, ya gotta flush him out, and ya gotta get rid of the current issue, then go with the drugs to calm him down. 

The kittens, are good about taking pills, because I make it a positive experience. I give them a few licks of baby foodies off my finger, thru out the day, each time, saying "its mediciny time". They associate the words, with the baby foodies. So when its actually mediciny time, say the words, they come running, give a few licks off your finger, dip the pill in the baby food, and put it in his mouth. 

Or do the same thing, thru out the day, say the words, put a little baby foodies in a dish. When its mediciny time, smush the pill into a powder, and mix with a good amount of baby food, in the dish.  

Sorry Macy is having probs again.      

your longtime pal

The Big B 

Big B so good to see you here!  You have always been there and had great advice!

I understand about getting rid of the stressors but I can't put him in a glass box mol.  Sonny I think he tolerates but when he gets his issues Sonny attacks him with a mission.  I know I can have a heart trap the strays and take them to the shelter but living out in the country it's going to be impossible to get rid of them all, although the two he seems to have issues with is one that likes to stare him down and the other has actually jumped on our screens of the house to get at both Macy and Sonny. 

I am going to go back to adding water to his food and see if I can get more into him, but he really has no interest in the baby food no matter how hard I have tried.

Kittycrack huh?  That's what Sonny eats and I have been putting it up thinking Macy was getting into it and causing issues.

CPRcheeta I am going to talk to the vet again after Christmas and see if she thinks an anti-inflammatory would be a good idea, there has to be more than omega threes that could help him.

By kitty krack, I meant the drugs, mol, not the dry foods, mol.  If the strays are upsetting him or Sonny that much, then I would give Macy the calming drugs. From memory, seems like Finn knows about a calming collor that really works, I would go on her site, and ask her about it. 

If you can, feed Sonny in a seperate area, then pick up his bowl, so Macy can't get into it, in case, that was the cause. But I tend to think, its the stress. 

The offer is still open......Macy can come livey with the kittens, he would has softy kitty blankeys to sleepy on, and gets to watchy the Dallas Cowboys, MOL.    

the Big B   

Question I just though of, have they ever flushed out his bladder?  We have done this at the vet I work for with a couple of kitties who have chronic issues, we sedate the cat of course then flush out it's bladder with a solution that has DMSO in it.  I found this article which has a couple of good treatment ideas for cystitis on page 3  It talks about using Cranberry Extract to reduce adhesions of bacteria to the bladder wall.

FlintMcCullough said:

 
By kitty krack, I meant the drugs, mol, not the dry foods, mol.  If the strays are upsetting him or Sonny that much, then I would give Macy the calming drugs. From memory, seems like Finn knows about a calming collor that really works, I would go on her site, and ask her about it. 

If you can, feed Sonny in a seperate area, then pick up his bowl, so Macy can't get into it, in case, that was the cause. But I tend to think, its the stress. 

The offer is still open......Macy can come livey with the kittens, he would has softy kitty blankeys to sleepy on, and gets to watchy the Dallas Cowboys, MOL. 

  

the Big B   

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LOL I thought you were talking about fancy feast wet food   I will check with her, I have her as a friend on facebook

Will you take Sonny instead?  He is a little devil still, I thought he would grow out of it.

cprcheetah said:

 
Question I just though of, have they ever flushed out his bladder?  We have done this at the vet I work for with a couple of kitties who have chronic issues, we sedate the cat of course then flush out it's bladder with a solution that has DMSO in it.  I found this article which has a couple of good treatment ideas for cystitis on page 3  It talks about using Cranberry Extract to reduce adhesions of bacteria to the bladder wall.

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hmmm the vet has never mentioned it, so I will add that to the list of things I want to ask her.  I will read the article now and see if I can get any tips from it, thanks!

I don't remember, that flushing his bladder, is one that you tried. I would also call his specialist in Buffalo, and ask her too.

So......when can Macy come to lives with the kittens, MOL. 

The big B watches over me and the kittens, I will ask him to watch over Macy too. ((((((((((((BIG HUGS)))))))))))     

The others seem to have more specific experience with the bladder issue, so I will only comment that for the Feliway you should get the diffuser for household use. The spray is more for targeted areas. You would use the spray for putting on a towel inside a carrier, for instance. The diffuser will (hopefully) create a calming effect over a room or two.

FlintMcCullough said:

 
I don't remember, that flushing his bladder, is one that you tried. I would also call his specialist in Buffalo, and ask her too.

So......when can Macy come to lives with the kittens, MOL. 

The big B watches over me and the kittens, I will ask him to watch over Macy too. ((((((((((((BIG HUGS)))))))))))  

  

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Thanks Flint, but Macy likes his waterbed too much mol!  Thanks to the big B, I miss him terribly and so glad if he will watch over Macers, the poor boy needs a guardian angel

Macy had been through so much that I can't remember if he has been flushed either, part of me is saying no tho.  The specialist is another good idea, Macy likes going down the interstate at 75mph lol.

Raintyger said:

 
The others seem to have more specific experience with the bladder issue, so I will only comment that for the Feliway you should get the diffuser for household use. The spray is more for targeted areas. You would use the spray for putting on a towel inside a carrier, for instance. The diffuser will (hopefully) create a calming effect over a room or two.

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So would one diffuser do if I put it in the center of the house?  Our house structure is very open and I would put it near the bedroom where he likes to stare out the window at the other cats, and that is the main room he hangs in.

If Sonny is red, he can come livey with the kittens, MOL.  

I really miss the Big B too, its really hard at Christmas, its our 2nd Christmas without him, but......he been here all day, the kittens been watching him, they look up at the ceiling and meow, they see him, so he is here with us, on this Christmas Eve. 

A very Merry Christmas to you, Macy and Sonny, on this Christmas Eve!!  

FlintMcCullough said:

 
If Sonny is red, he can come livey with the kittens, MOL.  

I really miss the Big B too, its really hard at Christmas, its our 2nd Christmas without him, but......he been here all day, the kittens been watching him, they look up at the ceiling and meow, they see him, so he is here with us, on this Christmas Eve. 

A very Merry Christmas to you, Macy and Sonny, on this Christmas Eve!!  

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Yep Sonny is red so he is yours mol.  Give the kittens a bump from Sonny and Macy and you and yours have a great Christmas too!

macy's mom said:

 
So would one diffuser do if I put it in the center of the house?  Our house structure is very open and I would put it near the bedroom where he likes to stare out the window at the other cats, and that is the main room he hangs in.

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There are square footage recommendations on the package. It would only work on a room or two, depending on size, and not the whole house. Your best bet is to get enough diffusers for the rooms that the cat hangs out in.

ok thanks I will look at the specs for what I need