Cat issue, need some advice.

Hi Cat Site members, I have a couple questions I need help with. Before I get started I want to say I understand a Vet would be the best option here, and I am trying to get that setup as well, so please no need to remind me.

My 2 year old male cat (neutered, shots up to date) recently started having an issue with peeing, I noticed late last night he kept heading to the litter box and taking his pee position, but he was only managing to pee around 1-2 teaspoons worth each time. Occasionally he pees a fairly normal amount, but still about 1/4 or half less than his normal pee's. He doesn't seem to be in pain, though he acts confused when he looks after each pee and doesn't see much.

I recently moved less than 2 weeks ago and am still looking for a job here, so money is very tight. I bought a huge bag of low quality dry cat food a couple weeks before the move (I now think this was a big mistake) and have been feeding him exclusively this for about a month overall now, maybe a bit longer. As soon as I saw what was happening I got rid of the dry and bought him wet food again, I have also made sure to dip his paws in water every once and a while so he will at least drink a little more water (i have a filtered fountain for him already).

I am looking at a few products  that I think might help and was hoping for a bit of feedback. I notice on reviews many claim very similar symptoms and have had good results without taking to a vet. I am also aware that if he stops peeing completely I will have to head to a vet, I will have to scrape money together somehow. From the MANY articles I read last night I think he may have formed some crystals that are causing a partial blockage that is irritating him to think he needs to pee all the time if if his bladder is empty. He is still very active, eating, drinking and playing about normal.

I am thinking about possibly using supplements for him or neutralising the carbon in his water filter myself. HAs anyone tried anything like that?

If you know of anything else that could be worth a shot let me know.

I appreciate any timely replies, advice or information. Again a vet is something I am trying to setup, I am getting a hold of anyone I can to help me out, but it just might be out of my reach at the moment. I love my boy, this is just the worst timing for both of us, a month ago I lived near a friend who was a vet tech and had a stable job, now I am in a small town where vets are few and far between and pretty expensive. If anyone knows a vet that could help for cheap or free in Rupert/Burley Idaho area, please PM me! Thanks.

I sympathise with your plight, but he could well be heading for a complete blockage from the sound of it, and in that case you will have to get him to the vet within hours to save his life. I had this with one of my cats, and it led to very expensive emergency bladder surgery. So if there is anything you can do now to find the money, you will be saving it in the long run. Plus there is the distress to the cat - I came home one day to find Bonaparte had peed pools of blood on the kitchen floor and was obviously in great pain.

Supplements like cranberry and filtered water can help, but if crystals have formed he will need vet treatment to remove them, possibly a flushing out of the urinary system. Then you may need to keep him on a urinary diet for life. I live in a very hard water area and I give my cats low calcium bottled water, the cheapest option to good drinking water. I look at all labels on the bottles and only buy water with less than 12 mg per litre calcium - some are as high as 100.

Please do get him to a vet . He may not look like he is in pain but he obviously has discomfort from your description of his behaviour.

I feel that, at this point, a vet visit truly is your only option. When a kitty is blocked, he's also in pain, simply because he can't go. 

I do understand that money is tight, but honestly, he really needs to be seen. 

Thank you both for the comments. In the meantime I would like to buy a couple gallons of water for the cat, the tap water out here tastes funny and is probably pretty hard. What type would be the best to get? Is there any type of mineral I need to avoid or get specifically?

I cannot find a vet open on Sunday anywhere near this town (there are only 3 anywhere even close enough). I am going to add some Apple Cider Vinegar to his food based on this posts information: http://www.thecatsite.com/t/249697/...home-remedy-experiences-or-suggestions-please

Thanks again, I managed to scrape together $70 so far.

JennyR said:

I sympathise with your plight, but he could well be heading for a complete blockage from the sound of it, and in that case you will have to get him to the vet within hours to save his life. I had this with one of my cats, and it led to very expensive emergency bladder surgery. So if there is anything you can do now to find the money, you will be saving it in the long run. Plus there is the distress to the cat - I came home one day to find Bonaparte had peed pools of blood on the kitchen floor and was obviously in great pain.

Please do get him to a vet . He may not look like he is in pain but he obviously has discomfort from your description of his behaviour.

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Have you seen the suggestions in this article? When You Can't Afford a Veterinarian, particularly the one about Care Credit?

jcat said:

Have you seen the suggestions in this article? When You Can't Afford a Veterinarian, particularly the one about Care Credit?

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I found it before this site, applied and was denied. I imagine most people seeking advice of this kind wont actually be able to get approved, it is a shame.

anytime you see your cat straining to pee in the litter box its urgent you get them to a vet as soon as possible. i had a male cat who had tons of problems with blockages and crystals. the Vet bills over time ran into 2000+. it is a shame you could not get approved by care credit as i would in the same situation as you right now. is there friends or relatives that would help you with the cost? the sooner you get him to the vet the better. cheap dry food is a disaster to the urinary tract on a cat. i actually completely switched over to all wet. please keep us updated on your baby.

cats4sky said:

 
anytime you see your cat straining to pee in the litter box its urgent you get them to a vet as soon as possible. i had a male cat who had tons of problems with blockages and crystals. the Vet bills over time ran into 2000+. it is a shame you could not get approved by care credit as i would in the same situation as you right now. is there friends or relatives that would help you with the cost? the sooner you get him to the vet the better. cheap dry food is a disaster to the urinary tract on a cat. i actually completely switched over to all wet. please keep us updated on your baby.

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Unfortunately all my money support is in different states, I don't even have a bank account here yet. I will never feed dry food again, I raised him on wet and only started feeding him dry the past few months due to financial issues and because I was supporting a second cat for a friend for a while. I am working on a vet visit as much as I can, but for now I just do not have the option, I cannot even find anything open tomorrow to call and get information. Just a case of very bad luck on timing, a month ago this would have all been pretty much a non issue, I used every last cent getting here/housing and stocking up on food and such for myself.

If you have a local humane society of spca they may offer discounts on care, and just to piggyback on others, the cost of vet care for him is going to increase by an order of magnitude if you wait until there is a full blockage.  And if that becomes unaffordable you may be looking at euthanasia as the only other option....

I know of some folks who have has success with a few drops of ACV in the water, and my vet has actually recommended a small bit of cranberry in the food on occasion.  These are stop gap measures, though, not long term solutions.  A lot depends on the type of crystals kitty might have.  I hope you will be able to get him in to the vet soon.

Wet food is definitely the way to go, you're on the right track there. 

To answer your question about what type of water to buy, here, in a hard water area I need to get low calcium water, because my cat had calcium stones and gravel in his bladder. But these are things you need to ask your vet because every area varies. And a better water may help for the future in preventing crystals or stones but it will not help remove whatever is there now - that needs specialist help.

I just wanted to throw an update out there for anyone who might be interested. Tonight my cat is peeing a little better and seems less irritated, isn't trying to hop back in the litter box every couple minutes and is licking his penis a lot less. I do have a vet scheduled for tomorrow and they are going to test for blockage and crystals for around $65. I bought lots of good wet food and he has been eating his fill, I also bought a couple gallons of purified water he has been drinking. Lastly I got some apple cider vinegar with mother and have been diluting and adding as much as I can get away with in his food, if I add too much he wont touch the food, but I found a good ratio he doesn't seem to mind. He is still active and we ran all over playing laser chase today, he wore me out before I wore him out.

If any of this is working, I don't know for sure, but the total cost was about $10, so I figure it is worth a shot. To my eyes he seems to be getting at least a little better, hopefully the vet can let me know tomorrow. Unfortunately I was unable to get the required $300 I was quoted to have him unblocked, so if things turn serious or the prognosis is bad, I may end up having to put him down. I hope tomorrow is a good day, I can afford antibiotics from Target if that's all that is required. Wish me and especially Roo (cats name) good luck.

Any other tips, advice or well wishes I would appreciate! Thanks for this site.

It's a relief that you'll be able to have him seen by a vet and that he seems a bit better. Mega that antibiotics are the only thing required!

The very best of luck that all goes well.

Last update for those interested. Today my boy is peeing perfectly normal again, I took him into the vet and we talked for a bit and decided on a physical exam only. The vet checked him out and felt his bladder and checked his penis, everything felt and looked ok and it was overall very cheap. He agreed the cat had some sort of blockage, said the diet changes I made were appropriate and that I should just keep up what I am doing. It looks like he passed the blockage on his own successfully and the vet said antibiotics would probably be unnecessary in this case but gave me a script if I wanted to fill it. I now have a vet and he agreed to see him again if there is any future blockage for cheap since we decided not to do tests for the moment. I know tests would have been best to be on the safe side, but money is just that tight right now and this will give me a bit more time to get funds together for a thorough visit in a few weeks.

Overall my kid seems happy, energetic and back to his normal self. I am keeping a very close eye on him over the next couple weeks and if there is any hint of recurrence he will be whisked back to the vet immediately and tested.

I want to thank everyone for the advice, I don't know which if any part worked, but it seems the worst is over and both me and the kid can stop stressing and get back to chasing lasers!

Roo says thank you!



=D

What a handsome boy.  I am glad he has been seen by a vet and the vet sounds like he is willing to work with you.  Many of us have had to prioritize on diagnostic tests because we just can't afford to get all possible tests done.  Vet medicine has advanced to the point where just about everything available in human medicine is also available in vet medicine.  All that high tech stuff is good but it is also very expensive.

thanks so much for keeping us updated. i was worried about your boy. im happy you were able to solve the problem and get him to the vet. now you can have some piece of mind and im sure your cat is happy too.

Thank God! I was so concerned for your furry, and it must have been awful for you to stand by not able to get vet care for him. You can go online to find cheap sources for antibiotics now, in case it happens again, and maybe ask vet if need be he would take a promissory note.

There is also a site called FundMe, look into it. You can post a need there and people will help you out, often in situations like yours.

I am very glad he is feeling better and you now know what to do. All the best for him for the future.

Congrats!!!