Constipation Chronicles...just Need Help Calming Down I Guess...

[amyoliver85]

Sunday I thought my cat had peed blood in the litter box. He was cleared of having a UTI by bloodwork and urinalysis. He’s peeing fine as of Monday.

However, the symptoms persisted. He pooped Monday night and it was normal. However, he then vomited undigested food on Tuesday around 3am. I thought it was probably just stress and treated it. He then vomited in the litter box while I was at work on Tuesday, and I realized what I thought was blood in the litter box Sunday was actually well-digested vomit of a salmon dinner.

He went to the vet on Wednesday who prescribed lactulose to go along with his laxatone. They also did an x-Ray and confirmed his little pooper was stuffed full. He pooped a near straight wad of fur that evening late, and vomited undigested food Thursday morning. I called the vet and they asked me to give it overnight. He did poop Thursday evening but only what would amount to a normal poo and definitely not enough to stop the constipation problem.

Back to the vet this morning. Tech told me that an enema should help clear things up within a couple of hours. They called 2.5 hours later to tell me he hadn’t pooped and they’d do another enema right before 2pm pickup. Hour long ride in the car and he didn’t poop when we got home. About 40 minutes later he had a very small amount of diarrhea...pudding consistency.

It’s been about 2 hours since we got home. He ate a little bit but not a lot.

The enema was a Glycerin/doss/mineral oil mix. I called an emergency vet and asked their opinion. They told me to wait 24 hours. The vet had told me it could take up to 48 hours AFTER all was said and done! My cat has been in trouble since Sunday and it’s upsetting that no one but me seems to be taking this seriously.

I’m also stressed because I’m supposed to get on a plane tomorrow morning. I had an unexpected death in my family and need to go. I’m worried that he’s not going to be okay. I have a pet sitter but I literally moved to a small town 3 weeks ago and don’t really know this person that well though I feel I can trust her. But I’d be asking her to be prepared to drive over an hour to the nearest emergency vet because the actual closest one is across the border in Mexico and she can’t legally travel my cat there.

If I don’t go to this funeral my mother will never forgive me and I will never forgive myself. If I go and my cat has an emergency I won’t be able to get home. I will only be gone Saturday morning through Sunday night but am just sick to my stomach. I am freaking out for probably no reason. If it really can take 24-48 hours for an enema to produce a result then I should not be so worried because whether or not I am home won’t make a difference. I just don’t know.

I guess what I want to know is:
- normal timeframe for enema
- if he had a small bowel movement yesterday is he probably on the mend?
- what can I do to help him best?

 

[Furballsmom]

Hi!
Gosh, you're in the ringer right now!
One thing I can think of would be what if you can find a vet tech who would be willing to take care of your kitty this time, or to board him at the vet's?

 

[amyoliver85]

I’ve been trying that but they’re either all closed for the day or their require a meet and greet ahead of time. I have to be to the airport at 6am in a City 2.5 hours away. It’s so stressful.

 

[Furballsmom]

Can your petsitter be in touch with you all the time?
Hopefully things with your kitty stay calm...I'll be thinking of you!!

 

[amyoliver85]

She promised to send pics and stuff but she’s not staying at my house. She will see them in the morning and the afternoon tomorrow and Sunday. I am looking for ways to get home tomorrow evening. I might have to fly into a different airport and take an Uber to the airport where I left my car. Or just give up the flight altogether and book to a closer airport. I just hate to spend $1000 on a plane ticket...that is why I went 2.5 hours away.

 

[Furballsmom]

Things like this are so hard, I'm so sorry this all happened to you!

 

[Furballsmom]

The thing of it is, if he's not eating, he won't have much to get rid of.

I'd say try and feed him only wet food, add some water to the food if he'll eat it, maybe even try some homemade kitten glop or kitten milk replacer or homemade Pedialyte.
There are recipes on the internet.
Lots of moisture in his system should help.

 

[amyoliver85]

Thanks. I just don’t know what to do. My sister’s children will be there and I haven’t seen them in several years...doubling the need to go to the funeral. I’m just so stuck. It’s like...why can’t he just go poop? I will end up not going because I’ll stress myself sick. And then he will poop roughly a half hour after the last moment I could possibly have left to get to the airport.

 

[Furballsmom]

I know, Murphy's law...check out my post just above, we were typing at the same time

 

[Furballsmom]

You truly do need to go, try some chamomile tea so you don't stress so bad

 

[amyoliver85]

He got sub-q fluids at the vet today. I forgot to mention that. Should I give him pedialyte anyway? Or is that too much? I live really far away from the nearest grocery store that’s open this late (because apparently 8pm) is late. It’s about 40 minutes away and I’m unsure if they carry kitten formula as I live in an area where pets aren’t young for the most part.

I know I need to go, but I would literally die if something happened to him and I wasn’t here. I’ve had a pet die when I went out of town before and I have never gotten over it. It’s like the world’s worst paradox. Do I not go be with my family during our time of grief or do I leave my cat without me for two days and hope nothing bad happens while he’s still sick???

 

[Furballsmom]

Take a look at the ingredients for one of the recipes for kitten glop, you might have them in your house.
This kitty isn't the other one, ...you'll be ok with your family

 

[amyoliver85]

I cancelled my flight. I talked to someone in a vet advice group and they told me it sounds like a big impaction and that he sounds mostly obstipated and needs to go to emergency vet. They also said not to take him back to my regular vet because they sound like idiots who have put my cat in danger. So if there’s no BM tonight we are going to Tucson tomorrow morning for help from an emergency hospital.

 

[Furballsmom]

I'm keeping you and your baby in my thoughts and prayers!

 

[1 bruce 1]

He got sub-q fluids at the vet today. I forgot to mention that. Should I give him pedialyte anyway? Or is that too much? I live really far away from the nearest grocery store that’s open this late (because apparently 8pm) is late. It’s about 40 minutes away and I’m unsure if they carry kitten formula as I live in an area where pets aren’t young for the most part.

I know I need to go, but I would literally die if something happened to him and I wasn’t here. I’ve had a pet die when I went out of town before and I have never gotten over it. It’s like the world’s worst paradox. Do I not go be with my family during our time of grief or do I leave my cat without me for two days and hope nothing bad happens while he’s still sick???

If I were in your shoes, I would go.
You had a traumatic experience before with your pet when you were away before. But you can't neglect your family.
It's that feeling of "I wish I could be in two places at once!", but if you're confident your pet sitter is a smart and capable person, I would go and call them often for updates.
I would also tell the pet sitter, that under no circumstances will you be upset/angry/annoyed with them if they notice ANY vomit, ANY lack of poop or any general feeling of not being well that they'd call the vet and get him treatment if they get even a slight suspicion that something isn't right. Make sure they know what has happened in these last few days and that he's not 100%.
I think pet sitters sometimes feel that if a pet goes to the vet while the owner is away, the owner will be angry and spread all kinds of hate mail all over the place about how the horrible sitter "made" their animal get sick. If you clear this with them and let them know the situation, and keep in contact with them, all should be well.
This is a rough time for you, and your family and cat as well. I'm sorry for all your stress.

 

[epona]

Is there a cattery you can board him in overnight, or could your vet provide such a service (my vet will provide short term boarding for cats that need medications), or can they recommend someone.

And yes, if you have a cat sitter, you are asking them to potentially drive your cat to a vet in an emergency - that is the very definition of being a cat sitter. Provide food and water, and take the animal to a vet if required. This should be understood when entering into "look after my pet" type arrangements.

 

[Furballsmom]

Hi! What happened with your baby? How are things today?

 

[amyoliver85]

He still has not pooped. I was so stressed out that I forgot to take food away last night so I have to call the vet and schedule a manual clean out for tomorrow. Pretty peeved that I forgot.

 

[amyoliver85]

Thanks for replying. By the time of your reply I had already cancelled my plane ticket. I was supposed to leave for the airport at 3:30 this morning. There are no Boarding facilities in my area that will take a cat on less than a full day’s notice. My vet does not offer this service; I called an emergency vet clinic that does offer boarding but they have the same day notice requirement unless the cat is being boarded as part of an emergency care situation. I live in a very small area and the emergency vet is also past the boarder patrol checkpoint which can cause a lot of additional problems if the owner isn’t the one driving the cat, whether the driver has approval or not. We do the best we can out here but we just don’t have the same resources as big cities. It Would be less problematic if I wasn’t so new to town. I’m sure I would know of a specialized vet in the town who could help me out in a situation like this, but since I’ve only lived here three weeks and there isn’t exactly advertising I’m just in a bad situation.

I watched him all night and am calling a different vet this morning.

I’m distraught that I’m not with my family and properly grieving through this death, but I had to make a decision based on the information I had and didn’t have. So I stayed.

Is there a cattery you can board him in overnight, or could your vet provide such a service (my vet will provide short term boarding for cats that need medications), or can they recommend someone.

And yes, if you have a cat sitter, you are asking them to potentially drive your cat to a vet in an emergency - that is the very definition of being a cat sitter. Provide food and water, and take the animal to a vet if required. This should be understood when entering into "look after my pet" type arrangements.

 

[amyoliver85]

Thanks Bruce, I had already canceled my plane ticket. I was supposed to leave at 3:30 this morning. While I do trust the pet sitter I wasn’t comfortable leaving my cat when the outcome is becoming more and more attuned towards needing to go under anesthesia for a manual clean out. I wouldn’t get home until late tomorrow evening and it’s too stressful to try to deal with getting home at 10pm to find my cat worse off and then having to drive back 1.5 in the other direction to the nearest emergency clinic, and have to leave my cat there. I’m new to my town...moved about 1000 miles) and to my work and I don’t have any PTO and I just took unearned bereavement and have messed with my schedule already 4 times this past week for cat problems. They’re trying to be understanding but it can only go so far.

If I were in your shoes, I would go.
You had a traumatic experience before with your pet when you were away before. But you can't neglect your family.
It's that feeling of "I wish I could be in two places at once!", but if you're confident your pet sitter is a smart and capable person, I would go and call them often for updates.
I would also tell the pet sitter, that under no circumstances will you be upset/angry/annoyed with them if they notice ANY vomit, ANY lack of poop or any general feeling of not being well that they'd call the vet and get him treatment if they get even a slight suspicion that something isn't right. Make sure they know what has happened in these last few days and that he's not 100%.
I think pet sitters sometimes feel that if a pet goes to the vet while the owner is away, the owner will be angry and spread all kinds of hate mail all over the place about how the horrible sitter "made" their animal get sick. If you clear this with them and let them know the situation, and keep in contact with them, all should be well.
This is a rough time for you, and your family and cat as well. I'm sorry for all your stress.