My Cat Is Constantly Having Problems

[Paigem54]

Hey guys,
I'm really hoping anyone of you can give me some insight. My cat, Stewie, has constantly been having issues for the past 3 months and I'm starting to just get really frustrated. It all started with a UTI in October last year, he got a catheter and everything was fine until this July. I took him to a DIFFERENT vet and they gave me all these meds for another UTI and it didn't work, yada yada. I took him to another vet and eventually we decided it was best to get the PU surgery. Which I have been told will eliminate anymore UTI issues for him. Guess I was lied too. The vet that did the surgery kept forgetting to remove stitches, so I had to take him back 3 different times to get them all out. And finally I thought it was over and Stewie and I could just live peacefully. About a week later he wouldn't stop licking himself at the sight of his surgery, and it was constant. He also started peeing outside of the litter box. I took him back to the vet and they say he got a bacterial infection and gave me some antibiotics and now it's today and Stewie hasn't gotten any better. I had to put a cone on him to stop him from licking and making it worse. I just don't know what to do at this point. I have poured so much money into this cat and nothing seems to be working, I'm getting really frustrated to the point that I want to just give up some days.
Does anyone have any ideas on what I can do? His diet has always been the same and I've never changed the brand of his litter either.

 

[mokapi]

What's his diet?

How long has he been on this round of antibiotics?

 

[Paigem54]

What's his diet?

How long has he been on this round of antibiotics?

Today makes it 4 days. He's supposed to be on them for 14 but the vet said I should notice a change within 72 hours.

 

[Paigem54]

Today makes it 4 days. He's supposed to be on them for 14 but the vet said I should notice a change within 72 hours.

He gets a can of wet food a day and he is get Authority dry food. I can't successfully put him on the prescription diet because there are 3 other cats in the house, so he would always have access to the Authority dry food as well.

 

[mokapi]

Call a vet and see what they say. Make sure the litter box is super clean, too. Sometimes cats can develop bad habits during times of illness that takes them a while to grow out of. Is he still licking himself excessively? Is there blood in the urine?

Dry food can have a very negative impact on cats urinary tract health, especially males. Think of the kibble pieces like little sponges, sucking the water out of his system as they move through him. Moving all of your cats to an all-wet diet would be ideal, if possible. Even a cheaper wet food would be better in the long run.

If I remember correctly, Authority is one of PetSmart's proprietary brands and isn't grain-free. If you have to keep dry food in the rotation, we can certainly recommend a healthier, better quality kibble within the same price range.

 

[Paigem54]

I

Call a vet and see what they say. Make sure the litter box is super clean, too. Sometimes cats can develop bad habits during times of illness that takes them a while to grow out of. Is he still licking himself excessively? Is there blood in the urine?

Dry food can have a very negative impact on cats urinary tract health, especially males. Think of the kibble pieces like little sponges, sucking the water out of his system as they move through him. Moving all of your cats to an all-wet diet would be ideal, if possible. Even a cheaper wet food would be better in the long run.

If I remember correctly, Authority is one of PetSmart's proprietary brands and isn't grain-free. If you have to keep dry food in the rotation, we can certainly recommend a healthier, better quality kibble within the same price range.

I currently have him in a cone so he would stop licking. He was licking the area so much that it would turn bright red. He is not currently peeing blood, he never has, thankfully. I would love to move him to an all wet food diet but there are 3 other cats in the house, so that is almost impossible /:
Is there a better brand you recommend? We have tried many different brands in the past, Purina, the brand from Tractor Supply and now we moved to Authority. I'm open to suggestions.

 

[mokapi]

Hopefully a few more days in the cone will help him.

How much are you willing to spend on a bag of cat food? Can you use chewy.com?

Purina Beyond White Meat Chicken & Egg Recipe Grain-Free Dry Cat Food

Pro Pac Ultimates Savanna Pride Chicken Grain-Free Indoor Dry Cat Food

Taste of the Wild Rocky Mountain Grain-Free Dry Cat Food

FirstMate Chicken Meal with Blueberries Formula Limited Ingredient Diet Grain-Free Dry Cat Food

Earthborn Holistic Primitive Feline Grain-Free Natural Dry Cat & Kitten Food

Stick to grain-free and fish-free, to start.

 

[Paigem54]

Hopefully a few more days in the cone will help him.

How much are you willing to spend on a bag of cat food? Can you use chewy.com?

Purina Beyond White Meat Chicken & Egg Recipe Grain-Free Dry Cat Food

Pro Pac Ultimates Savanna Pride Chicken Grain-Free Indoor Dry Cat Food

Taste of the Wild Rocky Mountain Grain-Free Dry Cat Food

FirstMate Chicken Meal with Blueberries Formula Limited Ingredient Diet Grain-Free Dry Cat Food

Earthborn Holistic Primitive Feline Grain-Free Natural Dry Cat & Kitten Food

Stick to grain-free and fish-free, to start.

I'm hoping so. I'm going to have some free time after work tomorrow and will be able to bring him back into the vet again.
Thank you for the food suggestions! I'm definitely going to try the Pro PAC, it's about the same price as the Authority.

 

[mokapi]

You're welcome! The Pro Pac is a good choice. It's made by the same company that makes Earthborn, in Indiana, and it's very popular here. Because the price point isn't awful, I know several ladies who are feeding entire colonies of cats that can afford it (the larger the bag, the better the deal, of course), which means their little ragtag gangs of kitties are at least getting a grain-free diet

 

[Paigem54]

Oh really! That's awesome I hope it makes a difference for my Stewie, I don't know how many more vets visits we can handle. He's real mad I have to keep putting his cone back on, not that I blame him.

 

[mokapi]

Definitely try to feed him more wet food than dry, though!

I wouldn't like a cone, either. I find not walking into things challenging enough already