Urethral obstruction recovery

pudgicat

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Hi, all... this is my first time to post. My four-year-old male kitty, Zoobie, spent five days in the hospital for a urethral obstruction... he was released a week ago last Friday. I can hardly get him to eat his special food (Hill's s/d). One day he seems to be getting better, and then the next he seems off. He's going to the litter box frequently and can urinate just a bit. Tonight he seems lethargic, yet restless at the same time. He follows me around constantly. I plan to call the vet tomorrow morning. I'm so worried about the diagnosis. I'm afraid that the vet will have to catheterize him again and go through the same process. I love Zoobie and can't stand to see him so altered... he used to be so active and vocal and a regular "Dennis the Menace." The week's worth of care cost $1700. I absolutely cannot afford to pay that kind of money again. I'm so conflicted. I can hardly stand the thought of losing him. Three years ago, I took in a stray who had feline leukemia... I only had him four months before he passed. The hole that his absence left was devastating. And tomorrow will be a nightmare of a day work-wise. My heart is breaking just watching him.
 

pat

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Poor guy. He sounds uncomfortable, and a call to the vets is a good idea. I take it they found struvite crystals, which they are working to dissolve via diet? Ask your vet if they would let you try a comparable prescription food - I believe there is one by Royal Canin, Eukanuba and Purina Veterinary that deals with addressing this as well.

They may prescribe a pain reliever - which is the case with my Denebola who has a working diagnosis at the moment of idiopathic cystitis - we did a couple of days of sub-q fluids and he's on pain meds until his next recheck (and has had a diet change).

Best wishes to your fellow to keep improving, and to have a better appetite for his new food.
 
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pudgicat

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Yes, they did find struvite crystals with a large amount of sediment. Do you have any idea how long the recovery might be? I just pray that I can get him on a prescription diet that he will eat.
 

pat

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Originally Posted by pudgicat

Yes, they did find struvite crystals with a large amount of sediment. Do you have any idea how long the recovery might be? I just pray that I can get him on a prescription diet that he will eat.
My one kitty that had crystals had calcium oxalate crystals, so he had to have surgery to remove several calcium oxalate stones from his bladder. He continued to have frequency of urination and going in small amounts for a couple of weeks - and a year later, he voids in normal to large amounts (he has other health issues that account for his volume), and isn't in the box all the time. It just took time.
I honestly am not sure when you'd expect to see him feeling himself again -your vet should be able to answer that for you
 

semiferal

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I would call the nearest 24 hour emergency clinic and describe his symptoms to a vet. They can tell you what to do. If he has blocked again, it is likely that the blockage happened recently enough that he could probably be catheterized and sent right home. This will cost some money, of course, but nowhere near what it would cost if you waited.

If your cat is urinating small amounts frequently, that may be more likely to indicate that his bladder is just irritated and painful. Call the vet as soon as they are open (call now if it is a 24 hour practice) and ask about painkillers. Keep an eye on him when he goes to the litterbox and make sure he is urinating at least a little. As long as he is passing a little bit of urine every time and has been urinating consistently, that indicates that he is not blocked. If that is the case then he is very uncomfortable but not in any danger medically.

The bladder takes a couple of weeks for the inflammation to die down. Given what his bladder has been through, this really makes a lot of sense. When a cat is catheterized after being blocked, they have to force even more fluid into his bladder at first to unblock the urethra (major ouch!), and then the urine that is taken from the bladder is usually bright red with blood because the lining of the bladder is so stretched that many of the capillaries have broken. It takes a while for all of this to heal.
 

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Emmet had crystal blockage too....he was in and out of the hospital for about 3 weeks.....but he's been fine for about a year now...(((crossing fingers))) (((knocking on wood)))

From what I know it can be common for it to be a long ordeal in the begining....just follow your instincts for the next couple of weeks....if he seems off, bring him to the vet.......

once he is really into his diet, he should be fine......

Emmet didnt really like the S/D.....but he loves the IVD Dissalution(sp) formula (wet).....and the vet said it was good anough for the other kits as well......

good luck with your kit.....i was a wreck when this happened to Emmet...and I am sure you are too....Just follow your instincts, and keep on showing you kit you love him.....

Good luck
 
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pudgicat

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I woke up this morning to a glob of Zoobie's vomit, which is sad because he's hardly eating anything at all. He wouldn't touch his s/d this morning but begged for his brother's regular food. I'm calling the vet when they open at 7:30. Thanks for everyone's comments. I'm a nervous wreck.
 

semiferal

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It is a good sign that he wants to eat.

You may want to hold off on the transition to the new food until he is feeling better and give him whatever good quality canned food (canned only!) he is willing to eat for now. It's something to talk to your vet about, at least. He is already very stressed from the experience in the hospital and the pain, so he might benefit from minimizing the other stress in his life by at least eating food he is used to for the next few days.
 

kathylou

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Tigrito had something like that when he was about 7 years old. The vet was able to "express" urine out, and after an overnight, he was back home. Tigrito never did get used to eating his prescription diet, and we ended up letting him eat regular food. He was healthy for 12 years after that.
 
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pudgicat

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Vet just called... they're keeping him overnight. His bladder is hard and obviously still has a lot of the struvite crystals, and his urine is bloody. They're giving him valium and prednisolone in hopes that the inflammation will go down so that he can urinate. The vet says that Zoobie absolutely HAS to eat the s/d for him to get rid of the crystals. Isn't there any medication in pill or liquid form that he could take since he won't eat the food? This is so frustrating.
 

pat

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I honestly think there is more than one appropriate prescription food for dissolution of struvite...ask your vet, even if they prefer the Hills, if you can not try one of the other. Here is an article that you might find informative - click here
Hope things begin improving for your kitty!
 

semiferal

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Um, I think your vet has been paying too much attention to the Hill's advertising campaigns.

This is what is in canned s/d:

Ingredients
Beef by-products, pork liver, water, chicken fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols and citric acid), corn meal, rice, powdered cellulose, DL-methionine, taurine, iron oxide, minerals (calcium carbonate, potassium chloride, salt, zinc oxide, ferrous sulfate, copper sulfate, manganous oxide, calcium iodate, sodium selenite),beta-carotene, vitamins (vitamin E supplement, vitamin D3 supplement, thiamine mononitrate, pyridoxine hydrochloride, niacin, calcium pantothenate, riboflavin, folic acid, biotin, vitamin B12 supplement).

Nothing magic in there. You can definitely achieve results with different foods. Proper hydration is the most important thing and that is almost impossible to achieve on a diet of dry cat food.

Here is a good article: http://www.felinefuture.com/nutrition/bpo_ch4.php

As for controlling magnesium, there are many canned foods that have magnesium contents that are comparable to s/d. They should not work just as well as s/d.
 

blueyedgirl5946

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Originally Posted by pudgicat

Vet just called... they're keeping him overnight. His bladder is hard and obviously still has a lot of the struvite crystals, and his urine is bloody. They're giving him valium and prednisolone in hopes that the inflammation will go down so that he can urinate. The vet says that Zoobie absolutely HAS to eat the s/d for him to get rid of the crystals. Isn't there any medication in pill or liquid form that he could take since he won't eat the food? This is so frustrating.
Sometimes it takes several days for them to begin to eat the food. My Muffin had the same problem. At first he absolutely wouldn't eat the S/D, but
I gave him some time and he did begin to eat it. He went through two small bags of it before the vet would put him back on the W/D formula.
 
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pudgicat

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Just picked up Zoobie from the vet. The vet has him on valium, uro-eze, baytril, and prednisolone. Zoobie has always been good about taking pills, so the vet thinks he'll be ok taking the uro-eze and eating the Purina u/r instead of the Hill's s/d. Zoobie seems very happy to be home. He's going to be on the uro-eze for something like 2 weeks. His little brother, Gonzo, doesn't seem to be too thrilled with Zoobie's return. He likes getting all the attention.
 

pat

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Glad he's home and that you get to try a different food option. Wishing him steady recovery
 
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