Cat/Feline: Intestinal Blockage (Twisted Intestine)

[siruh]

Quorra, my 6 yr old female bengal cat, recently had emergency surgery for a blockage. One day she suddenly lost her appetite, would barely drink water, very lethargic, and mostly hid. At that point she didn’t have a bowel movement for about 2-3 days. I knew something was wrong so we took a trip to the vet.

The vet ran some xrays/blood tests which seemed normal. Quorra was kept overnight on IV fluids. The next day he did a barium test which confirmed a blockage. He recommended an exploratory surgery as he suspected she ate something weird.

After surgery the vet didn’t find anything other than Quorra had “twisted intestine.” He said he had to remove a small piece of her intestine. She continued to be kept on IV fluids for the next 2 days. She seemed to be urinating normally.

Upon returning home, she has 2 antibiotic medications. She seems to be acting normal - eating, drinking water, peeing, but still no poop.

I’m curious if anyone in this community has had a similar experience. It’s 4 days after her initial surgery (over a week since her last poop). I’m worried about how she hasn’t pooped yet. The vet says to call him tomorrow evening if she hasn’t had bowel movement.

Any tales/experiences of intestinal surgery & recovery would help. Thanks so much!!

 

[fionasmom]

What a beautiful little girl....a previous neighbor bred Bengals and they were the most charming cats. I am sorry that I can't help much, but from experience with this in dogs I would say definitely let the vet know tomorrow what is going on and don't try to handle this yourself. In dogs, after this surgery, the diet is usually very soft with small frequent meals and easily passed through the intestinal tract but I would imagine you were sent home with those instructions.

 

[FeebysOwner]

Hi. Sorry no one with any similar experiences with their cat has responded to your post yet. I do know, based on my husband's intestinal surgery (a section was removed) that he was put on a very mild, soft food diet and had to pass stool before he could leave the hospital. I do think it took a while longer for him to do so, but I suspect it had to do with the little amount of food, and the type of foods, he was getting (compared to what one would normally eat) that created a 'delay'. I hope Quorra is on a similar type diet (for a cat, that is).

The big thing to watch out for is lethargy, vomiting, and what would appear as if she is not feeling well or has pain - those would signs to warrant immediate attention. But, it sounds like she is doing well so far! Maybe with any luck she will poop before you are due to call the vet. Please keep us posted!

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

I'm thinking she probably hasn't eaten that much in those 4 days since the surgery, at least the first two days while she was still in the hospital, so it may just be taking some time to build up some stool to pass. As stated above, if she is acting pretty normal in all other ways, probably nothing to worry about.

BTW, she's adorable

 

[siruh]

Thanks for the replies! Still no bowel movement. Yesterday her appetite seemed to decrease, and today she hasn’t eaten. She went to the vet today - normal temperature. She received a vitamin B12 shot and oxygen therapy. She also came home with pain medication as I expressed concern that she may be in pain.

So now her medications:
- Orbax (antibiotic)
- metronidazole (antibiotic)
- Torbugesic (optional pain med)

I’m concerned that all these meds will suppress her appetite or further stall her bowel movement. The vet also recommended I give her belly a clockwise massage to help.

She has not eaten yet today, but I guess I’ll administer antibiotics tonight. The vet technician was concerned I missed a few doses due to her appetite loss.

This is incredibly challenging but I’m trying mt best!

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

Could the Vet feel any stool in her bowel? Did they think she was constipated at this point? Was she ALREADY on both those antibiotics? Metro is VERY bitter, so if you're mixing it with her food, that may be why she doesn't want to eat. Did you know you can get that medication compounded into a transdermal gel? That's my plan if I ever have to give it, since I have very pickky eaters. I've already checked it out with a local compounding pharmacy as our Vet once told us that might be the next step when one of ours had a "bug". Food for thought.

the massage just might work. One of my guys is prone to constipation (he's sedentary), and every morning he gets a tummy massage while he's standing up and he really seems to like it!

Keep us posted on her progress

 

[siruh]

Could the Vet feel any stool in her bowel? Did they think she was constipated at this point? Was she ALREADY on both those antibiotics? Metro is VERY bitter, so if you're mixing it with her food, that may be why she doesn't want to eat. Did you know you can get that medication compounded into a transdermal gel? That's my plan if I ever have to give it, since I have very pickky eaters. I've already checked it out with a local compounding pharmacy as our Vet once told us that might be the next step when one of ours had a "bug". Food for thought.

the massage just might work. One of my guys is prone to constipation (he's sedentary), and every morning he gets a tummy massage while he's standing up and he really seems to like it!

Keep us posted on her progress

They said that it’s normal for a cat to not poop for up to 10 days after this type of surgery. She was already on both antibiotics, but I have a bad feeling about the metronidazole. Quorra foamed at the mouth when I gave it to her last night on an empty stomach. I called the vet’s office today expressing concerns of her having no appetite so they suggested force feeding. I also asked if I could limit the metronidazole dose to 1 pill instead of 2 (vet said OK). I asked them if it’d be OK to remove metronidazole from her treatment, but they didn’t call me back about that.

I force fed Quorra with a syringe. Gave her the Orbax antibiotic as well. No paid med today. I don’t think I’m going to give metro either - so many horror stories of lethargy and even death in dogs and cats.

It’s hard to tell if her suppressed appetite and low energy is due to pain, side effects of meds, or stress from everything she’s been thru! When she first came home she was very high energy and acting normal, but now I’m thinking it was because she was drugged up.

Please keep Quorra in your prayers! Thanks so much. It’s comforting to login to this community.

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

How is she doing today?

 

[siruh]

Still no bowel movement. The vet says that’s normal and some cats don’t poop until 10 days after surgery (we’re on day 8 now).

No appetite- the vet suggested force feeding which I’ve been doing the past 2 days w/ a syringe. Also, the vet allowed me to remove metronidazole from her treatment.

She’s likely in a lot of pain and seems restless so I’m going to give her Torbugesic. Side effects of this one may be constipation (which is why the vet didn’t give it to us earlier).

Luckily I work from home so I can monitor her closely. Will keep you posted!

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

 

[siruh]

no good progress today. Quorra was restless (no sleep) for the past 2 nights. No poo. No appetite. She’s been very thirsty all the time and keeping her head close to the water bowl. I’ve been syringe feeding her a little, but her belly has looked bloated & distended the past few days. Went back to the vet. He did an xray - stomach looks very full, barium still in her system (has travelled thru intestine), and her poop looked backed up.

The vet decided to give her an enema and keep her on fluids overnight. She is staying with them tonight, and I should be getting an update tomrrow. I’m worried sick. He says this may be due to cancer or surgical complications.

Hoping that the enema helps her and that she may have an easy recovery from here.

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

Any news? Of course, we're worried too . (I'm SO glad you took her back in, and was going to suggest that once I read she was hanging around the water bowl like that ) Thinking only good thoughts!!!!!!!

 

[siruh]

So the morning after I dropped her off @ the vet, he said he wanted to keep her on IV fluids all weekend on his watch. I was concerned about his tone the night before about how she might not make it (surgical complications, possibly cancer, etc.). I told him I would rather transfer her to an Emergency hospital. He then gave her 1 more enema as she didn’t poo yet. Upon picking her up, her stomach looked smaller, she seemed alert, high energy. (He probably drugged her again)

It was important for me to get a 2nd opinion on her state. So I took her to an ER, where they checked her vitals (all normal), and reviewed her medical records/xrays. The ER doctor said Quorra seemed stable and was stumped on her condition. They did recommend keeping her on IV, but she seemed stable so they allowed her to return home. She prescribed Mirataz (mirtazapine) - a topical ear med to increase appetite. The ER doctor said I should’ve NOT force fed her. She advised after 2 enemas I should wait to see if she poos the next day. She said Quorra didn’t seem to have any infection so discontinuing antibiotics was ok.

Quorra is now home. No poo yet. I’ve just applied some medication in her ear to see if that’ll help the appetite.

It’s interesting to me how 2 doctors have different recommendations.

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

Her tummy seems smaller, but no poo at all yet? That seems odd. And this is day 11? But the fact that she has high energy seems good. If she is really constipated at this point, so much so that even two enemas have done nothing for her, I don't expect that even the mirtazapine will have much effect, but you never know. How about stool softener? Did they give you one? I know the enema should have helped with that, but you can't really tell a cat to "clinch and hold the water in as long as you can", so not really sure how much good they really are except to stimulate the bowels. But could she be impacted? Did either Vet mention that? Of course, I'm just asking the question here, I really have no idea?

 

[siruh]

Her tummy seems smaller, but no poo at all yet? That seems odd. And this is day 11? But the fact that she has high energy seems good. If she is really constipated at this point, so much so that even two enemas have done nothing for her, I don't expect that even the mirtazapine will have much effect, but you never know. How about stool softener? Did they give you one? I know the enema should have helped with that, but you can't really tell a cat to "clinch and hold the water in as long as you can", so not really sure how much good they really are except to stimulate the bowels. But could she be impacted? Did either Vet mention that? Of course, I'm just asking the question here, I really have no idea?

we’re at about 2 weeks since her last bowel movement. I noticed her grooming a bit today, also licking her butthole lol. Maybe she feels something due to the enemas.

How does stool softener work? Does she need to eat/drink it?

Neither vet mentioned “impacted.” The ER doctor last night said that her xray did show Barium movement in the intestine so that’s confirmation there’s movement (although very slow).

I think the Mirataz did have an effect on her - she ate a bit on her own today! She’s also getting sleep, grooming, and has energy for light playing.

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

Anything happening yet in the poop department? Stool softeners work by helping increase the moisture in existing stools. With cats, depending on which one you are using, you can just syringe it into their mouths, or sometimes mix it into their food. I guess if they didn't recommends it's use, they don't think she has hard stools built up.

Glad to hear she is grooming, sleeping, eating a bit, etc All good signs Hoping for a nice big poop

 

[siruh]

No poo yet. I’m dropping her off at the original vet tomorrow morning. The plan is to give her another enema.

Didn’t have to give her any medication today - she’s eating on her own.

I guess it’s understandable that she hasn’t poo’d yet considering she’s had a major gastrointestinal surgery. I’ve been adding water to her wet food to hopefully ease digestion.

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

Well I'm glad to hear she's at least eating on her own again. And that should help fill u her colon, which should also help move things along. Extra water is good too!

Hoping the poop fairy has been there since your last post

 

[siruh]

The Poop Fairy came to visit today!! Dropped her off this morning at the vet. She got an additional 3 enemas throughout today. The doctor called me around 3:30PM asking permission for sedation and manual stool removal - I approved.

When I went to pick her up, I was told that she naturally poo’d after she woke up. I’m so glad she finally poo’d! Now it seems like her butt’s been leaking water. She’s now home and ate a bit of food on her own.

WOW - what a stressful 2 weeks this has been. We’ve been through so much. She’s due to get her sutures removed in 2 days.

Things are looking up!! Thank God. Cats really do have 9 lives.

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

Poor baby having to have some poops manually removed AFTER enduring three enemas! BUT, at least we now know everything is in working order . Whew. What a journey it's been.