Need Some Advice...

[nerdrock]

I'm sure a few of you know that I work in a vet clinic. We always have cats up for adoption and have a pretty good success rate with adoptions, even for older cats and cats with medical issues.

We currently have a large black smoke cat that is here for hospitalization (he was blocked) and will be up for adoption when his catheter comes out and he's urinating well on his own. I love this cat, he's such a good and gentle boy, doesn't complain and goes nuts purring and rolling around when I take a damp cloth and wash him (he drips constantly because of his catheter, so he gets a lot of urine on his back end). He's still not out of the woods but when he's available I'm strongly considering taking him home. My boss is on board, she loves it when the cats go to staff members because she can keep better track of how they're doing and make sure the recommendations are being followed (in this case, urinary s/o food).

That being said, as much as I already love him and want to give him a good home, I have some reservations.

1) He doesn't seem to like dogs much - not a big deal, he doesn't freak out in his cage or anything, just gets a bit grumbly if they come too close. This could also be because he hasn't been around dogs (that I know of) and because he's confined/hospitalized. But, it needs to be considered because we have three dogs at home, two of whom are very "in your face" to our cats because they all play together.

2) We already have three dogs and two cats. We're still well within the legal limit (three dogs, 2 cats per adult per dwelling) and have a fairly large townhouse (2500 sq feet), so it's not the room. I'm wondering how he would adjust from being an only cat, to joining a house of chaos (it's not actually THAT bad, lol).

3) Meowzers (3-4 years) HATES other cats, I think the only reason she took to Lloyd was because he was a kitten. Even now, she mostly tolerates him. He just wants to play (he's a year) but she's a lazy grump and would be happier to sleep on the bed all day. This cat is 7ish, I haven't seen him when he's not sick so I don't know what his activity level is, but if I were to guess from his figure, I'd say he's not a very active cat.

4) Right now, we can afford to add another pet. The problem would come if I were to be let go, quit, etc and our vet bills were to return to what the norm is... I know at that point, things would be tight financially. I don't see that happening in the near future or anything, but you never know.

5) I don't know how good his chances of being adopted are - he's 7, black and has bladder problems. Odds are pretty good that he would block again if not monitored closely and I can't see many people agreeing to frequent urinalysis tests until we get a few clear ones in a row. Even then, the specialized diet is a big turn off for a lot of people too. He also had high potassium and will need a dental as soon as possible (if I do decide to take him I'll have that done before he came home). Again, how many people would take on a cat that potentially has kidney problems AND will need an expensive procedure done soon after adoption? (The dental may be done before his adoption, it's going to be at least a week before we even start to think about it).

6) The blocking/dental/possibly kidney disease will be a huge roadblock in getting Mike to agree. We adopted a large 7-8 year old cat a few years ago that passed away from FIP two months after we got him. Mike had a really hard time with it and refused to do anything with Stan after we got his diagnosis. I don't want to put Mike through that again.

I need input from people outside of our friends/family. Our friends all say yes, my parents say no... I'm very torn. So, what would you do if you were in my situation?

 

[catspaw66]

Could you foster him, at least for a while?  That way you could see how his health is doing and how your other furkids will tolerate him.  Keep a picture and description posted on the wall at the office, pointing out his special needs.  That would give you the best of both advice options. 

Being an older, black cat with bladder problems, he might have a tough time getting adopted by someone else.

The best advice I can give you is, go with your heart.

 

[vball91]

I think the fostering idea is a good one. I would also ask what would happen to him if he's not adopted by anyone? Would the vet clinic keep him indefinitely or send him to a shelter at some point?

 

[nerdrock]

If he's not adopted by anyone he will stay at the clinic, we don't euthanized or send them to a shelter if they can't be adopted out. We actually have three older non-adoptable cats (one will pee on everything, in a new home but he doesn't do it at the clinic, another is in renal failure and I forget what's wrong with the third), two share a large room above the clinic and one has run of the clinic. It's getting close to kitten season though, so chances of this older boy getting a home before then are very slim.

I'm at work now, I gave him his rub down with a damp cloth and then a warm, dry towel - he loves it and rolls around, purring constantly. After I changed his pads I put some of the dry food in front of him and he actually ate it! He wasn't really eating anything before unless I physically put it in his mouth, then it was a toss up as to whether he'd eat it or spit it out. He doesn't seem to mind the dry, as much as we would prefer him eating the wet, at least he's eating on his own now. He also does not like to eat out of the shallow cat dishes and prefers the small, deeper ones we have for small dogs. Go figure, lol.

I'll ask about potentially fostering him, I think it's going to be quite some time before he's able to leave.

 

[catspaw66]

That's good to know.  He probably likes the deeper bowls because that is the way his muzzle is shaped.

 

[nerdrock]

I thought I'd update - things aren't looking so good for this poor boy, I have a feeling I'll be posting in Crossing The Bridge soon.

He was brought in and unblocked last Tuesday, despite having an ecollar on and having not bothered with the catheter before, overnight Thursday he managed to remove it (which has to be incredibly painful!). I was working at our other clinic Friday and he was transferred over there to be unblocked again. Everything went alright and I sat with him while he recovered. Saturday he was draining well, although it was still very bloody. I'm back at the clinic he came into this week again, I tried to call for an update yesterday but they were having some major computer issues and basically were shut down. I had to call over to get some records today and the lady working let me know that he's not doing very well. His catheter is still in place but he's just dripping now and it's still extremely bloody. She mentioned that they were going to do something tomorrow, but it was kind of a blur - I think it may be removing the catheter, inserting a new one and flushing him again. I'm going to call over and see if perineal urethrostomy is an option, but I also worry about all the risks - he's 7, tomorrow he will have gone under anesthesia for at least the third time in just over a week. I don't know how booked up they are tomorrow, I will try to call over tomorrow morning when I start, or maybe stop in before I come in here (they open a few hours earlier). I'm not sure how he is mentally, he was always good with me and alright with the rest of the staff... I didn't ask how he has been since.

Now I have to wonder if it's worth it for him to have the PU surgery, it would be his fourth time under anesthesia in a short time, he's blocked so frequently even with the catheter. There are no stones in his bladder or urethra, but there are crystals. When is enough enough? I'll try to talk to the vet there tomorrow if I get a chance, see what the odds are of PU working, if it's even an option right now. She's a very good person and will be straightforward and honest with me, so I look forward to speaking with her and dread it at the same time. Poor boy.

PLEASE anyone reading this: If you cat is straining to urinate, not eating or drinking, yowling and/or peeing out of the box get him to the vet immediately! If this cat's owners would have done this, he most likely would not be in this life threatening situation now. It has become very obvious that this was going on for quite some time with no treatment. I feel so badly for him.

 

[vball91]

Oh no. Poor guy. I'm sorry to hear that. Although drastic, PU surgery has been successful for those who are very prone to blockages. It does seem to leave them still prone to actual UT infections, but those are easier to manage than blockages.

At 7, he's not very old, and while I can appreciate the concern about going under anesthesia yet again, if he's healthy otherwise, this might be a literal lifesaver for him. I would definitely talk to the vet about whether it's an option for him.

Many, many vibes for the poor guy to pull through.

 

[nerdrock]

So I went to visit him today, he's doing much better than he was yesterday!

He doesn't have an IV catheter in anymore (not sure if he did yesterday or not), so he's drinking on his own and recieving all medication orally now. He's got more strength, he's been fighting the assistant that has to give him his medication, the assistant feels bad about it but at least this means that he's starting to feel good enough to put up a fight! He still has his urinary catheter in, they are removing it tomorrow morning to see how he does until Saturday - if he's not flowing well, then they'll reinsert it. The vet was not in when I went to visit him, she was on lunch, so I didn't get a chance to talk to her. I'm working there on Friday though so I'll be able to then. I'm going to ask if the PU surgery would be something that either herself or our other surgeon would be comfortable doing or if it would be a specialist referral. She's a very good surgeon and I would trust her completely with any of my animals, so I have absolutely no concerns if she's comfortable doing it. Friday I will have to give the yes or no to whether I'll be taking him home, if we are going to consider PU surgery. I think we all know what the answer to that is at this point though, lol.

When I was visiting him, he was such a good boy. He's very doped up but he definitely recognized me and immediately flopped over on his back so I could rub his belly. I can't imagine how that would feel good right now, but apparently it does. He grabbed my arm, kneaded and purred like crazy. At one point I had to step away from the cage for a minute and he started mewing at me - no one has heard him make any noises (except for purrs) since he's been there. If I mewed back at him, he'd go again. I'm also going to speak with them and ask how long they think he'll be in there for - I would personally like to leave him there until his urine is no longer bloody and the risk of reblocking is lower. Since I'm back and forth between clinics for the rest of the month, I would like to keep all of his records in once place (where he is now, where the rest of my records are), so keeping him there would be much easier on me and most likely him as well. The did have a shaved area on his neck, that's usually where we take blood but there were no notes about bloodwork in his file and the tech said that he hadn't taken any. He has also started to eat the wet urinary s/o food, which is also a plus.

So, fingers crossed that he keeps flowing well once the catheter is out and his urine starts to clear up.

On the downside, Lloyd, one of my at home cats, has a URI right now. I came home yesterday and his right eye was half closed and extremely watery, the left was just slightly watery. So both were started on lysine. Oy!

 

[AbbysMom]

How is he doing now? :cross:

 

[nerdrock]

Not great, he had to be recatheterized, he just wasn't urinating fully on his own. They took him off the burprenex in case that was causing it. He's also back on IV fluids. Still losing weight, although not as bad as before.

Is attitude is improving though, he's started talking more now that he's not so doped up and loves the attention.

Another vet will be in tomorrow, that will make the decision of keeping him catheterized or doing pu surgery - not sure if it will be done at the clinic or sent to a specialist.

We'll see how he is tomorrow.

 

[AbbysMom]

Hopefully he is dong a bit better. :cross:

 

[nerdrock]

He's home! A month in the hospital, quite a few catheterizations and medications later, and he's home. The only medication he's on now is Cosequin twice a day for life. 

His teeth aren't as bad as we originally thought, so that's a relief. His bloodwork looks pretty good. He'll be staying on Urinary SO for life as well (makes it easy to give him the cosequin!). 

He's settled in a room but has access to an area of the house where the dogs can't go. So far he's doing well.

 

[Winchester]

 I'm so glad he's home with you now! 

 

[vball91]

That is great! So happy he's home now with you.

 

[AbbysMom]

That's wonderful news!

 

[blueyedgirl5946]

What a great story. Fingers crossed for a happy home for this guy and good health from here on. Keep us posted how he is doing.

 

[nerdrock]

We had a bit of a scare yesterday.... When we woke up there was a rather large puddle and a bunch of drops of bright red blood through our bathroom. We cannot figure out who or what it came from. My SO and I were the only humans home that night, the dachshunds were crated overnight which left Bruce, our King Shepherd, or the cats. Bruce has longhair, so I quick check of his orfaces was easy - not stained fur or blood anywhere on him. Checked the cats, couldn't find anything on Meowzers, Lloyd or Moww - but I couldn't find our friend's cat that we're watching for the month. Mike said he would look for him while I went to work and would call me if he didn't look normal. I came home from work, found everyone and went over them again (I was using a baby wipe, everyone except Meowzers is dark so blood would be hard to see) - still no evidence of blood. Also found the friend's cat, he goes in such strange places and we rarely see him, anyways, no blood on him either. Moww started using the litterbox, so I took a piece of toilet paper and dabbed his wet spot - normal, clear urine. I checked Mike's feet and legs for cuts as well, even though he insisted that he would know if he bled that much, lol, nothing. The blood is a mystery - happened sometime between 1am and 7am and was dried by the time we found it.

The only other thing we could think of was that they had found/killed a mouse (our house is over 100 years old, there have to be mice here, lol), but it seemed like a lot of blood for a mouse AND seemed too bright. I also couldn't find any "parts", but whatever the cats didn't eat, Bruce would have (he loves mice)... but I would have also expected him to lick up the blood as well.

Short of bringing everyone in for an exam, I don't know what else to do besides monitor! Anyone else had anything like this happen?

An update on Moww - he's getting more and more comfortable, last night he laid in bed with me (I took him out of his room and brought him to mine) for about an hour before he got up and went back to his room. He still hisses and growls at Bruce, he leaves our cats alone for the most part, but will growl if they get too close. We had an incident where I didn't close the door properly to his room and Lloyd and Bruce went in, lots of hissing and growling, but things seem to be better since that happened. He's roaming around more too. He's such a sweet boy and has the "grumpy cat" look to his face - it's just harder to see since he's black.

 

[little lucifer]

5) I don't know how good his chances of being adopted are - he's 7, black and has bladder problems. 

Why would him being black hurt his chances of getting adopted?

It's 2013. It's time we to put an end to racism.

 

[nerdrock]

I love black cats but there are quite a few people that don't and being black definitely effects the animals chances for adoption. There have been many studies on this. A lot of people that are adopting want a younger, healthy pet as well - how many posts do we see about people wanting to adopt a healthy kitten? There's actually one that pops up from time to time about someone that adopted a couple of kittens from the SPCA or another organizations and returned them because they weren't healthy and/or died. So these factors definitely work against any given animal and the fact that he had three factors against him (black, older, not healthy) really reduced his chances of being adopted.

I agree that it shouldn't be a factor and that it isn't right, but, for now, it's just how it is. Lots of groups, like Petfinder, hold specials to adopt out less adoptable pets (special needs, big black dogs, black cats, etc) and are wonderful about promoting the fact that they make great pets, it's starting to change things but it will take a long time. It could just be that it's more prevalent in my area, but it doesn't seem that way.

 

[kittymommy]

I agree it shouldn't matter, but you're right, it does.  Several shelters in my area hold special adoption festivals (special days/special fees) for black cats and dogs.  I have a black cat, I think he's so beautiful, though harder to photograph than my beige and tan boy.    LOL!

I hope Moww continues to get better.