First time blocked cat

Hello! Happy Easter to everyone. I've had a long weekend with my kitty and I know this site is all things cats so I'm hoping someone can help me out.

My kitty will be 2 years this May. I've never had an type of emergent issue with him. He's had his share of constipation and diarrhea which was all fixed when I'd mix in some pumpkin in his food. The only real issue with him is he is the most finicky cat I've ever had. He's very particular about his food. I have him on wet food, Purina Pro because it's the only one he will eat. But I also give him some Wellness dry food which he eats occasionally, especially if he feels like the wet food given to him is not up to his delicious standards.

This Friday my dad noticed he was not himself the whole day. He barely ate breakfast and hadn't eat anything all day including the dry food. When I came home, I attempted to give him some food but he walked away. I noticed he was very lethargic and he just looked sad. Compared to the cat the day before, I knew he was sick. He usually greets me at the door, he likes to run and play with his toys but he didn't do that at all. It wasn't until I noticed him going to the litterbox that I knew something was very wrong. For one, he went in 3 times. I checked those 3 times and saw dribbles. I remember reading that when a cat is straining that is a red flag. So I immediately got him to the hospital. The vet was concerned, obviously for blockage. But when she tried to feel his bladder he was way too tense for her to feel anything. So they did an ultrasound but unfortunately his bladder was too tiny and they weren't able to get urine for a urinalysis. I was sent home with pain meds and meds to decrease bladder spasms.

The next day, he was attempting to play with his favorite mouse toy. However, when he was due for the bladder spasm med he became lethargic again after. I held the pain meds because he's very sensitive to it. It says it might cause mild sedation but pain meds usually get him restless. (When I neutered him, post neuter he was a restless mess, he didn't sleep at all that night and would go from one spot to another super fascinated with everything he saw) He didn't sleep that night and in the morning I found him inside his carrier, which he hates. I did feed him in the morning and he did eat well. For lunch time, he ate very little and by dinner time he stopped eating completely. He had been sleeping all day by then. Urine wise he was peeing okay up until the night time when I noticed him going in twice and produced no urine. So I called the vet and explained the situation and she told me to take him back as soon as possible. So I went back to the vet and she decided to keep him overnight and treat him as a blocked cat. Especially since he had been lethargic and feisty at the vet (he is usually chill at the vet.) So they sedated him and put in a catheter. She told me she did feel some resistance as she was inserting the catheter so he might have had some plug that was blocking his urine flow. Gave him IV fluids and checked his blood which came out normal. She was worried about his heart rate which was low but his potassium levels came out okay so she's not sure why his heart rate is low maybe it's the meds? I called to check on him today and unfortunately the unhappy kitty somehow managed to take the catheter out so they had to sedate him again and re insert the catheter but there was no resistance this time. All in all, I miss my boy and it's been very tough seeing him go through all this.

SO, after that very long story (I apologize) I just want to know - what do I do diet wise? I know his diet is going to change but he is such a picky eater I'm not sure if he's going to like the prescription diet. I also want to know what I am suppose to post-catheterization. I have to monitor him once I get him but I work these next few days and they are 12 hour shifts. My dad also works in the morning he usually comes back in the evening but I am worried for my kitty because I don't want to him to be alone.... 

Any advice is greatly appreciated. Thank you!

Hi there. Sorry for the hard time the past few days have been.

I don't have experience with a blocked cat but I can say that wet food is the best thing you can do. I've heard that fancy feast classics are well liked.
When you make up a dish of food you can add water and mash it with a fork. It makes it like a slurry.

I currently have an elder girl who loves her slurry. And she hates the same flavor every day. She used to only like fishy ones but now she has been eating turkey chicken and beef ones. She hates the food with chunks/shreds so we always buy pate or classic which looks like a meatloaf.

Hoping things calm down. Sometimes they will want to put him on a prescription diet. I personally don't feed those foods unless we have exhaust other options.

I don't know if raw diet is something you would consider but some of the fancier pet supply stores sell prebagged raw and you can try it a few times a week. I've heard that this is one way to get more moisture into them.

But sometimes they won't eat what we want them to eat so we have to be creative with adding more moisture to their diet.

I'm sorry your boy is not feeling well.  There is another thread about a urinary blockage going that you might find helpful.  It gives some idea of what to expect when your cat comes home and discusses alternatives to the expensive prescription food the vet will recommend.  http://www.thecatsite.com/t/316417/worried-lower-urinary-tract-blockage/30   Post #15 by @Red Top Rescue  contains a lot of good information about diet.

Thank you so much! Your responses are appreciated. I will look into the thread. As for the raw diet, I have thought about it but I don't know how he would take it considering he's so picky. I called the vet for an update and they said his urine output has been good and he's being hydrated with fluids. He's just angry. Lol. The last time he ate was 10 am this morning and hasn't eaten since but I expect that from him since he's so picky. I just hope he snaps out of it soon because the last thing I want to worry about is fatty liver disease...

Update:

My baby boy is home. He produced enough urine for the vet to be comfortable. I have to go buy his new diet canned food but I work these next two days and they are 12 hour shifts so I don't think I can get it till thursday. I fed him his original canned food when we got home and he ate okay. He's very grouchy from everything that happened. I did notice that he has been going to the litter box a lot. And he squats for a 1 min just waiting for pee to come out. I've checked and the urine amount in the beginning was okay. Not so huge. The many times he kept going back in the amounts were very tiny. I was concerned so I called the vet to make sure it was somewhat normal considering he had a catheter in and I know that can irritate the urethra and bladder. They told me as long as he's producing urine I shouldn't worry. Unfortunately, I am very worried. I'm scared for my kitty. This has been emotionally draining, I just want to make sure I'm doing right by him. Do cats usually go in and out of the litter box after having been unblocked?

Also, they didn't find any crystals or stones. And his urine came out fine except for some blood in it which they think was probably from the catheter and inflammation. His blood work also came out clean. No high potassium levels or anything.

I'm such a mess but I'm trying to stay calm for him because I know he can feed off my energy but it's been tough.

smichelle88 said:

 
Update:

My baby boy is home. He produced enough urine for the vet to be comfortable. I have to go buy his new diet canned food but I work these next two days and they are 12 hour shifts so I don't think I can get it till thursday. I fed him his original canned food when we got home and he ate okay. He's very grouchy from everything that happened. I did notice that he has been going to the litter box a lot. And he squats for a 1 min just waiting for pee to come out. I've checked and the urine amount in the beginning was okay. Not so huge. The many times he kept going back in the amounts were very tiny. I was concerned so I called the vet to make sure it was somewhat normal considering he had a catheter in and I know that can irritate the urethra and bladder. They told me as long as he's producing urine I shouldn't worry. Unfortunately, I am very worried. I'm scared for my kitty. This has been emotionally draining, I just want to make sure I'm doing right by him. Do cats usually go in and out of the litter box after having been unblocked?

Also, they didn't find any crystals or stones. And his urine came out fine except for some blood in it which they think was probably from the catheter and inflammation. His blood work also came out clean. No high potassium levels or anything.

I'm such a mess but I'm trying to stay calm for him because I know he can feed off my energy but it's been tough.

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How is your boy today?  It's normal for them to produce only small amounts of urine and to go in and out of the litter box after being unblocked.  The catheter irritates the urethra so they feel they have to go, even when they don't.

How are you?  Are you any less worried?  It is very hard to stay calm when your heart is in your throat for worry about them.

Hello! So my kitty is slowly getting better. I actually got my dad and boyfriend to take him to his regular vet on Tuesday because I needed for him to get checked out and make sure his bladder wasn't full since he was taking so many trips to the litter box. The vet felt his bladder was small and that it was normal for him to take frequent trips. He wasn't pleased with some of the stuff the ER doctors did. For one he said that he should've remained in the catheter a min of 48 hours not 24 and he wasn't sure why they didn't give him any antibiotics. So he gave him an injection and gave us his prescribtion diet. These past two days he's been trying to act like his normal self. He finally woke me up in the morning like he always did. He's still taking frequent trips to the litter box but not as much. His urine is still small in amount but at least he's producing urine! He's not howling in pain or anything. I've been giving him the muscle relaxant they gave me. I've held off the pain meds because he stays wide awake with it and doesn't sleep. He finally started drinking water yesterday and has been slowly eating his food. I'm just hoping he starts getting back to his old self soon. It's been a tough week for me and especially him. I can only imagine how he's feeling. But he has definitely been getting spoiled. If he decides to use us as a bed he is more than welcome to. I stayed still for an hour and a half as he napped on my chest when I was laying in bed lol.

I'm so glad to hear he's doing so much better.  Poor little guy.  I can completely understand you not wanting to move while he napped on you for an hour and a half - I've been there!  Give him kisses from me.