Started with crystals, now I am not sure.

Well Pumpkin came home today, we are all hoping for the best.  Extremely nervous for him although he is passing urine, smaller amounts but passing all the same.  He has tried to jump several times onto higher places (bed and window sill) and has evidently made himself very sore, he did this while my back was turned and I feel terrible for not catching it before he did it.  Tonight I am putting him in a large pet carrier w/ litter, water and soft blanket so  that he has to stay still and rest that incision site.  I know this will make him very unhappy but it is what is best for him for a couple of nights.   I thought about just putting him the bathroom, however that window is really high and I know he will try and get to it during the night so that option is out.  Pumpkin did not want to eat tonight, however I think it is because he is really sore.  Incision site looks really good, no redness or swelling.  He came home with no meds so he will probably be a bit uncomfortable for a couple of days.  Will keep everyone updated.....it is going to be a very long and stressful night for me, but trying so hard to not let it show on the outside for his sake.

Mine as well. I hope all is well with him.

Oh good, so glad he's home. I am really surprised that they didn't send him home with pain meds, unless they gave him a shot for that, but still think those only last a day or two. Is he wearing an Elizabethan collar to not rip the stitches out? I think putting him in a large carrier for rest & limited movement for now is a really good idea. 

I will continue to keep him in my prayers. 

No collar of shame, but he really has had no interest in his stitches.  I will be keeping a VERY close eye on him to make sure that he does not bother them.  Really not sure about a pain shot being given.  

That's good that he's not interested in his stitches or bothering them.  You might want to give the vet a call & ask about the pain meds question. Hopefully he will be fine, but you know how cats can hide pain well. It would be worth asking.  It just seems like you would expect that after a surgery, he would have some.

Angel has had them for a short while even after a tooth extraction. 

I'm glad he is home & doing well.

Really rough night with our boy.  Ended up taking him from pet carrier and putting him in the bathroom at 12:30am because he was 1/2 laying in the litter and I did not want his incision site to get dirty.  Got up, prepared a soft blanket, got fresh water and food , litter and covered window with sheet so he would not be tempted to jump up there.  He is not urinating like I feel he should, only a few drops here and there and cries each time he goes.  Not eating like my old Pumpkin, however I am sure he is sore and hurting.  Whenever we go into the bathroom he is all exciting, rubbing against our legs and purring loudly wanting petted. He tends to take a couple of bites of food when I am in there with him.  Not sure if vet is in this morning, if so I will be calling to find out about pain meds.  Also I noticed him straining to have a bowel movement, small, small amount came out...sort of loose.  I will have to make sure he had a bowel movement at the vet.  It is going to be a really long few days I think of sleepless nights but whatever it takes to try and get my boy back to himself.

Talked to vet, believes that he is crying because of discomfort from the catheter that he had in.  Can give a Prednisolone if he get worse, however it may slow down healing, so will use as last resort.  Will keep trying to get him to eat and drink but really has no interest right now, will try opening a different flavor of RX food.  I did let him out of the bathroom for awhile, he rubbed against everything, went potty in litter (cried), and then went to jump in the window (caught him before he made it) so I put him back in the bathroom where he seems fairly content.  Checking on him every 15-20 minutes, but can hear him if he should cry. Still wanting petted, talking to me and purring really loud along with kneading the air and his blanket.  Guess I just keep a really close eye on him.  

I did receive the Cosequin yesterday but have not received the Tinkle Tonic yet.

So they didn't give him any pain meds? If I were you, I would go back and make sure he gets some, this is  a very, very painful surgery, even when my cats are spayed/neutered I insist on pain meds. He needs them, as long as he is in pain, I doubt he will eat. My Vet prescribes Onsior an NSAID, or a liquid type pain drug. I do think you really should get him some, he is in pain. A regular spay/neuter, I'm given enough pain meds for 4 days, for a cat that had a hernia repair surgery, I was given a weeks worth of pain meds for him. I think Pumpkin will need a weeks worth at least, given the extent of this surgery.

I am glad he is home. I think he should also have been given anti-spasmodics to help with the bladder to keep it comfortable. Please post updates on Pumpkin.

Oh, poor boy I agree it seems strange they don't want to give him pain meds,  Sure he's probably experiencing some discomfort from having the catheter in him, but he also has an incision where they performed surgery, doesn't he?  (rhetorical )  That's gotta hurt a little too, one would think, not to mention the insult to his  bladder.   Well, at least he's not withdrawn when you visit him in the bathroom, so that's a great sign.

I wonder if you could set up some temporary steps (boxes, etc.) in front of a couple windows, so he could be out of the bathroom a little more, yet not have to jump so high to look out.  We used boxes with books in them ( to keep them in place) when one of our cats got too old to jump up onto our window seat years ago.  I even then covered the boxes with padding made out of the same fabric as our valance, since it was NOT a temporary thing for him

Hoping for a quick recovery for your boy

mrsgreenjeens said:

 
Oh, poor boy

I agree it seems strange they don't want to give him pain meds,  Sure he's probably experiencing some discomfort from having the catheter in him, but he also has an incision where they performed surgery, doesn't he?  (rhetorical

)  That's gotta hurt a little too, one would think, not to mention the insult to his  bladder.   Well, at least he's not withdrawn when you visit him in the bathroom, so that's a great sign.

I wonder if you could set up some temporary steps (boxes, etc.) in front of a couple windows, so he could be out of the bathroom a little more, yet not have to jump so high to look out.  We used boxes with books in them ( to keep them in place) when one of our cats got too old to jump up onto our window seat years ago.  I even then covered the boxes with padding made out of the same fabric as our valance, since it was NOT a temporary thing for him

Hoping for a quick recovery for your boy

Click to expand...

Its far more than an incision, the surgery reroutes the lower male cat urinary system so that it is wider and more like a female cat. That is best as I can put it. I think I can find the link which is what put me strongly against it.

nansiludie said:

 

mrsgreenjeens said:

 
Oh, poor boy

I agree it seems strange they don't want to give him pain meds,  Sure he's probably experiencing some discomfort from having the catheter in him, but he also has an incision where they performed surgery, doesn't he?  (rhetorical

)  That's gotta hurt a little too, one would think, not to mention the insult to his  bladder.   Well, at least he's not withdrawn when you visit him in the bathroom, so that's a great sign.

I wonder if you could set up some temporary steps (boxes, etc.) in front of a couple windows, so he could be out of the bathroom a little more, yet not have to jump so high to look out.  We used boxes with books in them ( to keep them in place) when one of our cats got too old to jump up onto our window seat years ago.  I even then covered the boxes with padding made out of the same fabric as our valance, since it was NOT a temporary thing for him

Hoping for a quick recovery for your boy

Click to expand...

Its far more than an incision, the surgery reroutes the lower male cat urinary system so that it is wider and more like a female cat. That is best as I can put it. I think I can find the link which is what put me strongly against it.

Click to expand...

I don't think he had the P/U surgery....think he had the other

I agree with the others. He should have pain meds for at least a week. Yes, an antispasmodic will help him pee as well. When Angel had cystitis, the vet had him on amatriptyline (2.5 mg.) Which is an antidepressant & antianxiety, but she said it was to help relax the bladder, so he could go. That might be something to ask about. The cosequin will at least help w/ any inflammation, so its good you got that. Use it every day for right now. When he is all better, you can go to every other day for maintenance.
Hugs for Pumpkin!!

Well Pumpkin has been out for several hours, he was able to get up into the living room window with the aide of the speaker (small jump).  He so enjoyed the sun and light breeze for quite awhile until he decided that I was going to sit with him on the couch, so that is where I have been for the past 2 hours.  He was on his back, purring, kneading and sleeping in and out.  The best part was that he actually went potty without crying twice (very small amount each time).  Put him back into the bathroom for awhile to get some quiet time and eat a little lunch, which was a little baby food.  

The vet office was closed by the time I read this as they are only open till noon.  I really do not understand why no pain meds but hopefully we will do ok without them.  I do think it is really helping him by staying in the bathroom and not moving around alot.  Prayers that our boy will continue to heal and the urine will start flowing freeing without pain.

Aww, sounds like he was happy & content being next to momma.
I'm sure that makes him feel much better.
It's good news that he's not crying when peeing now.
Yes, continued prayers for your little guy.

I am glad he is feeling better, maybe on Monday you can get them then. 

Had a good day yesterday with Pumpkin as far as urinating, still not eating good but getting some down him.  This morning however is a whole different story.  He has started doing his running from litter to litter, only a few drops at a time.  Called the vet immediately and they had me bring him in for a steroid shot and RX for Gabapentin (25 mg 3x qd), bladder has thickened again however was fairly empty.  If this does not work we will have to put him down as they are out of options and money on this end is about gone.   Many prayers everyone please for our little boy.

Of course no pharmacy around us has the Gabapentin 100 mg tablets so vet is ordering liquid and we should have it tomorrow.  In the meantime they had me bring him back for IV fluids and a pill to help with appetite which has helped already.  Pumpkin does seem more comfortable but I will feel better once we are able to get the new medication down him.  They feel that this will help with spasms of his bladder and pain...let us keep our fingers crossed that this works.

The steroid should help with the pain too, I should think.  Maybe the thickening of the bladder is from the insult to it from the surgery?

Well, I don't know how I ended up with pink font above. (no color choices when on my phone)  Changed back to desk top, & still won't let me change it. Oh well, Anyway,

Here are pictures of how I set up to give Angel fluids.

I used an over the door hook to hang the bag (once it was warmed up in a sink of warm water, you don't want the fluid to be cold)

From the shower rod. This made sure it was high enough for flow. Then, I used neck & eye rice

pack bags to make him feel heaviness, as if someone holding him in place, but still had to hold him, best I could.

Ater "tenting" the skin between his shoulder blades to insert the needle, I kept my hand on the back of his neck holding him still.  

This also gave me a chance to keep a gentle hold on the needle, so it wouldn't move around (probably would not feel good!) & slipping out.

With my free right hand. I squeezed the IV bag, to make it go faster like the tech showed me. It seems like a lot, but in reality, it only took about 2-3 minutes each

time, (I timed it once) for the inch & a half of the bag. (did this for two bags worth, about 2 weeks).

When getting help, my mom would kneeled in front of him, holding his shoulders, firm, yet gentle, so he didn't try to go anywhere.

One thing I would do differently is ask about a smaller needle size. They gave me 18 gage needles.They were big! I hated sticking him w/ them!

BUT, the tech also said that helped it to go faster, a smaller needle would take longer, but maybe one size smaller would have still been okay.

I NEVER thought I would be able to do it, but when it comes down to you have to, to help save your baby, & make them feel better,

I would do it again if I had to. 

It's not that bad once you do it a couple of times, & get a set up/ method down. Ask them if that would

help, you really HAVE to try everything before the very very worse case situation. Also give the cosequin time to work. The herbs recommended from the FLUDE group would be worth trying as well, there people has LOTS of experience w/ this.

This IS treatable. Again, I will be praying a lot for Pumpkin.