7yo male munchkin urine issues

mgruden

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Hi everyone,

I have a 7yo fixed male munchkin hat that is on amitriptyline for separation anxiety issues when I travel for work (weeks on end). Lately we've been noticing urine marks on our furniture (usually with dried litter). He seems to squat really low when urinating and often gets out and has urine on his back legs and under side near his penis, there is often litter on him as well in the same area. We use blue Buffalo crushed walnut litter. Our vet isn't convinced he has a UTI (although he was treated for one recently) and gave him a sanitary clipping but it happened not 24 hours later.
 

margd

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If I understand this correctly, your boy isn't avoiding his litter box  but dripping after the fact.  Do you know if these drips are just urine that sticks to him because of the way he pees  or is he actually leaking after he urinates?  You can probably figure out if it's the latter by cleaning  him off right after he uses the box and then continuing to check for additional wetness.

It also might help you figure out if he's actively leaking to check your place with a black light.  Urine spots will glow under a black light, which will give you an idea of how widespread the problem is.

If you find he's leaking, he needs to go back to the vet.  This could be associated with the UTI he was treated for recently and he might require additional tests, such as an ultrasound.  Since UTIs are often stress related and not actually associated with infectious organisms, I'd also reevaluate how well the amitriptyline is working.  You mention that you travel for weeks on end - is there someone home with him?  And have you ever considered adopting another cat to keep him company? Some cats really do better with a companion.
 
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mgruden

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If I understand this correctly, your boy isn't avoiding his litter box  but dripping after the fact.  Do you know if these drips are just urine that sticks to him because of the way he pees  or is he actually leaking after he urinates?  You can probably figure out if it's the latter by cleaning  him off right after he uses the box and then continuing to check for additional wetness.

It also might help you figure out if he's actively leaking to check your place with a black light.  Urine spots will glow under a black light, which will give you an idea of how widespread the problem is.
I don't believe that he is leaking after the fact; when I clean him off there is nothing still releasing or dripping. The litter/urine is/was often on his inner rear thigh and on his penis area. It's pretty distinct as his litter is a brownish redish colour and it can be seen. Once I wipe him down he was fine. He was into the vet to a few days ago and I had explained to the vet that I was in the same room when he urinated. He peed in his litter box and got out and he had urine on himself. Now maybe it's not an issue with the urine but with the wet litter getting stuck to him (it turns into almost a mush). The amiltriptyline was prescribed because of his separation anxiety issues. He would hold his urine and bowel movements as long as possible and required someone to be with him when he went to the washroom. He was also eliminating at the front door often. This has subsided since putting him back on the amiltriptyline about a month ago.
 
If you find he's leaking, he needs to go back to the vet.  This could be associated with the UTI he was treated for recently and he might require additional tests, such as an ultrasound.  Since UTIs are often stress related and not actually associated with infectious organisms, I'd also reevaluate how well the amitriptyline is working.  You mention that you travel for weeks on end - is there someone home with him?  And have you ever considered adopting another cat to keep him company? Some cats really do better with a companion.
My wife is home in the evenings. When I travel I am typically gone for 4-5 days but I also work from home so that sudden change of "where's my human - he's gone" is what was causing him issues. We did also have another cat but had to re-home him when my now wife moved in due to her allergies. This is what really sparked the anxiety issues (he was also kicked out of the bedroom at night which he used to sleep with us).

He is not a cat that does well with change to say the least. 

This urination issue has only come up over the past few months (we've been managing) but having the couches cleaned and then a wet spot returns is the annoyance.

Thanks,

Matt
 

margd

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Thanks for explaining - now I understand things a little better.  Yes, the little guy has certainly had a lot of changes in his life recently.  Have you tried switching litter to something that doesn't turn to mush and stick to him?   There are crystal litters that might not dissolve so readily.  If you search "crystal cat litter" on amazon, it will give  you an idea of what's on the market.   I use World's Best Cat Litter, which is a corn based litter -   I've never noticed any sticking to either of my cats.   

If you do switch litters, you might want to do it gradually since he's not comfortable with change. 

I totally get the frustration of having wet spots reappear on just-cleaned couches!  
 
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mgruden

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I have been researching different litters and did come across Worlds Best. I am not sure how comparable the two are. The one we use is an all natural crushed walnut shell litter by blue buffalo. I feel that the consistency would be the same for him so he may not notice it as much. I've mentioned to my wife that it could be the type of litter but her rebuttal is we've been using this litter for a couple of years and it's never happened before.
 

margd

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I understand your wife's point - it does seem strange that the litter should suddenly become a problem.  Maybe the litter formulation changed slightly?  Or maybe he's sitting down lower than he used to for some reason so that the litter is more of a problem than was before?  It wouldn't hurt to try another one.   
  I like World's Best. It's a bit pricey but odor control is good and there is little dust. 
 
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