Cat in hospital with FLUTD, please help.

My cat was vomiting and straining in litter box and I thought he had eaten something and had a blockage.

It turned out it was that his bladder or urthra is blocked. He has FLUTD and enlarged bladder caused by crystals.

They are putting him on antibiotics anti inflammatories and pain killers and he will stay there catheterized for 3 days.

They said he should heal but if not he may need surgery to have his penis removed???

Isn't this cruel and horrible? 

He is only one and a half years old, I don't know how he has this already.

Please someone explain this flutd thing to me.

FLUTD stands for feline lower urinary tract disease. You can read more about it here: http://catinfo.org/?link=urinarytracthealth

I have no experience with a urinary issue prone male cat having the penis removed. Hopefully your cat will get better on the current treatment and won't need the surgery

It is more likely your cat will not need this procedure yes it sounds awful but a small percentage of male cats will keep getting blocked over and over and this is the only procedure that will help. My cat was blocked once a few months ago and it hasn't occured again. If the vet has not explained to you what happens next we will be happy to explain it. Though amputating part of the penis sounds cruel it's always a last resort the alternative would be euthanizing a cat. Again these are extreme cases where medication and diet does not help and the kitty keeps getting blocked.

I'm sorry you and your cat are going through this. It's startling how many cats go through various forms of urinary tract problems these days. We need more public awareness of the causes of this!
At least you've caught your cat's problem in time and he's at the vet.
Just because he's having this blockage now, doesn't mean he will necessarily have the surgery.
Here is an interesting thread about this surgery. It's long but I think you will find it interesting:

http://www.thecatsite.com/t/264960/my-experience-with-blockages-and-pu-surgery

And another by someone whose cat had the surgery then had problems. It's very informative:
http://www.thecatsite.com/t/282195/theodore-has-taken-a-turn-for-the-worst-advice-please

i hope you can find the help and advice you need here and that your cat's condition isn't as severe.

Thank you. I hope so too. it seems weird that he has it so young. But maybe that means it can be corrected by diet.

I have had him on expensive dry food for some time now, but obviously he needs wet. I will try to get wet with the PH for uti cats.

My cat has been in the hospital since Monday Night. He will be released Friday. He is catheterized for a urinary blockage.

I think I read they are sedated and on pain killers the whole time? Does anyone know about this?

I feel bad that he is there and I hope he is sedated and not too upset.

Your vet has definitely recommended the safe way of keeping your cat in the hospital. He will at least be on pain killers the whole time. I convinced my vet to take mine home every night through being cathaterized and it was a bit of a mess. Your kitty's cathater should have been removed today. My kitty didn't really notice being cathaterized the pain meds is really becuase of the irritation. Your kitty will be fine and is in the safest place being under observation and he will be ready for you to take home with no worries.

My cat is back from 4 days in the hospital for a urinary blockage. He was catheterized and they said it was caused by struvite crystals.

They said he did pass urine today but it he was slow and drippy.

They said they believe that it is caused by inflammation from the catheter and that he should be ok.

Anyone have any feedback on this?

My cat is back from vet after 3 days of catheterization.

They said he passed urine today but it was drips whatever that means. They barely speak English.

He has been home for 4 hours and has gone to the litter box 6 times without becoming able to pee.

I basically paid 1100 for nothing. He is still blocked.

My question is, how long can he go without peeing till I have to bring him back?

12 hours is the most a cat can hold its bladder. You risk kidney damage if you wait too long. I would keep a close eye and see if he passes anything on his own.  My cat urinates 3x a day. First thing in the morning at around 9 am, than 4 pm, than around 9 pm. Of course it depends when you are feeding and if it is wet or dry food.

If he is dripping any urine it is a good sign as he is not fully blocked. Dripping a small amount of urine just means he has been "going frequently". Anytime a human or cat has a urinary infection they will experience burning pain and feel like they need to go frequently even if their bladder is empty.  So passing small amounts frequently is good.

If he can't pass anything at all, you should take him back in.

Make sure you switch him to a urinary prescription diet. Immediately if you can.

It's alarming to me that only one person has replied to this post.  With everything I've read about crystals and blockage, this is an emergency.  The pain is ex·cru·ci·at·ing and yes, a  horrible death is what follows.

What do you mean they barely speak English.  Where are you?  For 1,100 bucks I damn well wouldn't be letting them giving me a cat that's dripping.

Seriously, call the credit card company and put the charge in dispute.  Then get the cat to an emergency vet. 

I was just rereading your posts - you need that sense of urgency back, it su**** when you're on the hook for that kind of money and the cats still ill.  Did they release him because you reached your credit limit?  If so you can't let him suffer honey, you need to make some hard decisions because the kitty is completely dependent on you to act on his behalf.  He's powerless and that calls on you to be his hero, which means not torturing him to death by denying him medical care or a peaceful passing.

I took him back, I didn't wait

The first blockage was crystals and the second was maybe inflammation or spasms or I don't know.

I am now up to 1700 and surgery is next at 1000-2500.

I'm so sorry, that just blows, but at least you took him back.  When I was young no one would have presented you with the Sophie's choice of spending $3,000 - $5,000 on your pet.  Banks didn't extend credit for that and most vets wouldn't have even thought of making the suggestion.  People had to accept that they had limited resources and there was a limit to what they could spend on their pets.  Now people have to feel horribly guilty because money is seemingly the only thing standing in the way of treating their pet.  And frankly I think it's wrong to dangle thousands of dollars of treatment in front of someone who just applied for care credit.

Again I'm very sorry, I had a sick pet this past week and it was horrible.

And to anyone whose reading this - get pet insurance - as I've written elsewhere, my insurance is $10 bucks a month and once the bill hit's $1,000 the policy picks up the tab. 

I can't get cat insurance here. Only For Dogs. This dog orientated country.

Again, that wasn't aimed at you, just hoping when people read your post they revisit the idea that the insurance isn't worth it (assuming it's available.)

Welcome to The Cat Site; sorry it's under these conditions.
As I understand it it may take a while for a cat to start to pee normally after having a catherter inserted, although I am by no means an expert. Is he on any medication (what kind)?
Any idea why he became blocked in the first place? As you may know, a urinary blockage in a cat--especially male--can be life threatening.
Did the vet offer any suggestions on how to prevent a recurrence?

Is your cat on bladder medication? Pain meds? There is a lot of inflammation and pain and he will hesitate at first going to the bathroom because of pain this is normal and you did the safe thing by taking him back. I know its frustrating but it's important to stay cautious. As long as your cat is presently on these to medications he should start to go about a teaspoon of urine several times a day. You will need to follow him to the bathroom just to make sure he is going. He is just in so much pain right now it's very uncomfortable for him to go.

We had the same exact thing happen!  Our cat Louie is also a year and a half and was straining two weeks ago.  Took him to the Vet and she gave him an antibiotic shot and checked to see if he was blocked....he had peed in the carrier there.  A week later 12/30/14, blocked again...catheter for 4.5 days....we picked him up Sat afternoon...back to an emergency vet on Sunday!  We opted for the surgery and he just had it this morning and the surgeon told us it was the right thing to do because of the way he is built.  There are a few things I am upset about with our regular vet, but I am glad we found this amazing Vet Hospital and will be switching all of our boys to go there instead!  I can completely relate to what you have been going through...it is awful to see them in so much pain.  I joined the site to let you know that you are not alone in this!