Kidney Stones?

My 5 year old neutered male is on the mend from a scary few days.... Timeline:

Day 1, Mr. Buddy Cage, greets me looking pretty rough, then starts crying like I've never heard(loud yowling) as he walks away and out the door.  

Day 2, Mr. has not been seen in a day, I fear he was having a stroke/heart attack and did what outdoor cats sometimes do: curl up and die.

Day 3, Mr. returns home but looks like holy hell and is leaking bloody urine.  No sign of any pain or trauma, just leaking red urine.  I figure it must be a bad UT infection and start him on amoxicillin.  Urine is now more pink than red but he isn't able to control himself still, very sleepy.  

Day 4, Mr. is improved in every sense, but still leaking now normal urine.  Eating and drinking water, pretty sleepy still and enjoying the special treatment being wrapped in a towel and private meals.

Day 5, Mr. keeps improving, came outside to play with kids in the snow.

Day 6, I find Mr. curled up and his backside wet.  Red urine now leaking out worse than before.  Mr. is still eating/drinking but regressing a bit.

Day 7, Mr. has no leaking whatsoever, feeling better than ever.  

Day 8(today): Mr. is back to his old self, has lost more weight than I'd like to see.  

I'm inclined to think this was stones.  Infection appeared to go away with amoxicillin but symptoms returned after 3 days of that treatment.  

    Any thoughts or theories or concerns are appreciated!!!!  

Has this cat been to the vet yet? I'd really really suggest bringing him in very soon. It could be kidney stones, bladder stones, bladder crystals or a bad UTI. If its bladder crystals or stones, he could get blocked and that is potentially life threatening. I don't mean to sound like an alarmist, but I've been down this road & it is not pleasant. 

Yes the Vet figures he was 'blocked' but obviously not now.  Seems like he passed two stones as far as I can tell.  Could you fill me in on the treatment for a 'blocked' cat?  Is this a food issue? Weather?  

I'm even more confused! The vet stated that he was blocked? Did the vet perform a procedure to unblock him, or was it in past tense? I've never heard of a cat that was unblocked naturally. My cat was completely blocked by an accumulation of crystals. He had to be sedated for a catheter to be inserted & then flush the bladder. He was hospitalized for several days. He has had other instances where he peed red blood & was in pain, but not blocked. The vet diagnosed those instances as cystitis. There were no crystals then, but inflammation. So bloody pee does not automatically mean blocked, but may. 

Did the vet give any other meds other than amoxicillin? Antibiotics only help for bacterial infections. If the cat is blocked or has stones or crystals, it's very painful. They are usually prescribed an anti spasm medicine and a pain medicine to cope. They will also get an antibiotic if they had a catheter, just as a precaution. 

You say that you believe 2 stones have passed. Like, you actually see the stones? Holy moly! That is very painful, so I really hope he has a pain medicine for that. I've never heard of stones passing, only crystals. I do not know much about kidney stone development. If it's bladder stones, then there is varying information. 

This website has a wealth of information regarding urinary issues. http://www.catinfo.org/?link=urinarytracthealth She's really the expert. My vet has also echoed most of the suggestions. Regarding food, the most important thing is all wet food diet. If it is bladder stones or crystals, then the vet will likely suggest Rx food. Royal Canin SO or Hills. Hills S/D is often used to break down crystals and stones. Then Hills C/D is used for maintenance. They are not full proof. I had another cat with bladder stones who hate Hills S/D for 1 month and the stones did not get broken down, so we had to operate to remove them. She is not on Hills C/D for maintenance. But my cat with bladder crystals had S/D and it did break them down. He is also on C/D now also.

Many vets will agree that the most important thing is wet food, regardless of brand. Of course, better quality ones are great. There is a wealth of info in other threads on here. catinfo.org has several pages dedicated to food. I've never heard anything about weather being a factor. But stress definitely is. So if the weather is unseasonable or extreme, that could cause stress. If the vet stated that they were kidney stones, then the causes may differ.

Thanks!!  The vet didn't touch him, just initially advised amoxy....i didn't find any stones, no indication of any pain except the first day.  By the time the vet was available(only traveling here) all symptoms were gone.  So would you consider this a case of passing crystals?  

Wow, well I'd personally be considering finding another vet in the area that examines the cat better! You're fortunate that it seems to have cleared up on its own, for now. It doesn't always go that way. The only real way to know if crystals are present in the bladder is a urinalysis. Stones are usually observed by x ray. Crystals & stones don't usually just go away like that. Definitely not stones. Blockages can also occur due to a build up of crystals & mucus that form a plug of sorts. It is possible for that to clear up & pass again, but it's not common. That's the explanation I received from my vet. From your description, it seems like either cystitis (bladder inflammation) or crystals, but I'm not a vet. 

If its' not possible to get a urinalysis done, wet food will definitely be helpful. The way the vet explained it to me, the more liquid in the urine, the better. Dry food has 10% or less moisture content. Wet food is usually around 70%. Adding a teaspoon or more of water into the wet food is also suggested. Most cats will not drink enough from their bowls to make up for what they're lacking in their food. She explained that if there are crystals present in the urine & only a small amount of fluids, the crystals are more likely to gather and cause issues. If the same amount of crystals are present, but with more liquid, the crystals are more likely to pass through without getting caught. She suggested an Rx wet food, but also stated that any wet food is better than even Rx dry food. I use Hills c/d and try to find other non Rx wet foods with similar mineral compositions, grain free & high protein. This is one of those things that easily flare up and recur. So really keep an eye out. 

Andrew Harris said:

 
Thanks!!  The vet didn't touch him, just initially advised amoxy....i didn't find any stones, no indication of any pain except the first day.  By the time the vet was available(only traveling here) all symptoms were gone.  So would you consider this a case of passing crystals?  

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are you saying the vet is only available certain days of the week in your area? is there an emergency vet available in your area? if your male cat gets blocked and is unable to urinate, it will be a medical emergency. you also need to get a complete urinalysis to find what type, if any, the crystals are. 

Microscopic crystals, made up of minerals, can sometimes be found in the urine. The most common types of crystals include struvite (ammonium magnesium phosphate), calcium oxalate, and ammonium urate. Under certain conditions crystals can clump together (precipitate) to form uroliths (bladder stones). Not all pets with crystals in their urine will necessarily form bladder stones. The type of crystal present, the pH of the urine, and other factors also play a part. Some animals appear to be more predisposed to crystal and/or bladder stone formation than others.