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Holly Hood | 6 years ago
I Have 3 Cats And Have Some Litter Box Issues. I Used To Have The…

I have 3 cats and have some litter box issues. I used to have the covered boxes, but noticed that one of the cats was peeing outside the box. So I removed all of the lids. The problem seemed to stop, but then started again on occasion. I bought larger boxes, (I have three of them) and the issue still occurs. I finally discovered it was my cat with colitis. She does pee in the box, but gets so close to the edge or stands instead of squats that it goes outside the box. Is she doing this because of the colitis or a behavior issue? perhaps higher sided boxes would help? I keep the areas lined with pee pads, but they are no match for cat urine. Suggestions?

2 Responses

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  1. Sarah

    Hi?
    I would try a box with higher sides. I would also discuss this with my vet to make use it isn’t related to the medical issue.

  2. Laura

    I agree with Sarah – get a box with higher sides. You should have 4 for that number of cats, anyway, so it’s a good time to pick that up.

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Sarah | 6 years ago
Hi Pawbly Friends…. One Of Our GSD, Butch, Is In His Twilight Years, Approaching 14. It…

Hi pawbly friends….
One of our GSD, Butch, is in his twilight years, approaching 14. It has been very eventful here with the addition of two new GSD rescues since July, and there have been some scuffles, but everyone is managing great now. All the “teething troubles” seem to have been worked out. When we lost Butch’s best bud, he stopped eating and lost about half of his body weight. The rescues kind of helped put some pep back in his step and he is doing great. He’s still underweight, but not like before. My question is, I’m worried about preventatives. With so much of him gone, I’m afraid to give him his dose of parastar, but I also fear Lyme disease, especially given his age. Being that it isn’t winter, I hate to admit, I haven’t been giving him his dose. Now that spring is around the corner, I am more concerned about ticks because of the warmer weather. Thoughts on preventatives? Should I give a lower dose? Regular dose? Every other month? I’m just worried because he is compromised enough and underweight, but Lyme is also very serious and would be awful for him as well. Any advice is very appreciated. Thanks!

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  1. Krista Magnifico

    Hello,
    Preventatives are always tailored to the patient, their environment and risk of exposure. They are also dosed based on ideal body weight or current body weight in cases of current physical body status. In some cases I also use a drug that I am more comfortable with or have used for a longer time and have more experience with. I also always recommend that clients keep notes on when they were given and note any adverse reactions and then further tailor from there. I understand your concerns. For the last year of my pup Jekyll’s life I was very sparing on these. I only used them sporadically. But I did check a lot of fecal samples. I hope this helps. Xox to you all.

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Nicholas P. Woodward | 6 years ago
First Round Lyme Vaccine
Treatment Cost (USD): $43.00
Our vet had told us that we should have Stella come in for the Lyme vaccine especially with the prevalence of it in our area, and her previous owners had not done it. So, one week after her first round Lepto shot, we brought her back in for the Lyme one. No real symptoms or conditions so much as just the need to get the vaccine.
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Stacey Harris | 6 years ago
In Tears Over A Feral Cat That I Recently Trapped For Tnrv; At The Vet…

In tears over a feral cat that I recently trapped for tnrv; At the vet, a rectal/anal prolapse was repaired. After release , I noticed it has the prolapse is back. He appears gaunt and dying; Hes untrappable at this point because he’s afraid of the trap. Will he slowly die in front of me day by day? Is he sufferring? in pain? Or will he die rapidly from this condition? Without a dart gun, hes untrappable. I thought the vet would have euthanized him to stop his suffering, but I’m at a loss at what I can do. The vet said to bring him in as soon as possible; but he’s Feral for God’s sake! You don’t get a second chance to trap a feral cat. Once bitten twice shy. Help! any ideas? Kristen Magnifico directed me here. Shes so compassionate. Thank u all!!!

5 Responses

Comments

  1. Sarah

    Hi –
    I’m so sorry you have to watch this going on. Is there any way you think you could get a larger trap and sort of attempt to camoflauge it? My thinking is, if the trap is bigger, there is more room and the cat may not expect the same thing. And I wouldn’t skip on the bait fir sure… ham, tuna…something super smelly and tasty so that the cat can’t resist. I hope this helps.

  2. Stacey Harris Post author

    Sarah, ty for the quick response. That’s a great idea; Im trying to track down a “drop trap” but theres very few in this area. Our local organization only has two and you literally have to monitor them 24/7 to catch the specific animal. Your idea is a good one. TY!

  3. Krista Magnifico

    Hello. I’m sorry about your kitty. I hope you can figure out some way to get him back to the vet. These cases are so frustrating. And often heart breaking. But I applaud you and your vet for trying. They all deserve a chance and a compassionate friend to look after them. Best of luck

  4. Stacey Harris Post author

    You’re so right! They have so few voices out there, especially feral animals. Reducing the massive increase in population through tnr is helpful but when they r ill, it’s doubly challenging. Thanks for giving us hope out here and Please know you are making a difference. I so very much appreciate your unfiltered rants re: your frustration at times with affordability. I think the law in this country stating that People cannot be turned away in emergency rooms in this nation when presented with an illness, regardless of ability to pay, should extend to our furry friends. You’re doing heroic work.

  5. Krista Magnifico

    You’re so welcome!! Stand strong and know that you are doing amazing really important work. And that you aren’t alone.

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Krista Magnifico | 6 years ago
This Is Busters Story. He Is An Older Lab Who Had A Large Mass On…
Treatment Cost (USD): $1080.00
For about 4 months Buster had a swollen toe. As the swelling progressed to a mass that became so large the skin ulcerated and the mass would not stop bleeding. They went to their vet multiple times.
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Krista Magnifico | 6 years ago
Routine Cat Neuter. This Is A Routine Surgical Practice In Almost Every Veterinary Clinic Across…
Treatment Cost (USD): $100.00
routine feline castration. Age of most cat neuters is about 6 months old. This was a recently rescued and adopted cat. He was neutered late because of this.
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suzanne martucci | 6 years ago
I Am Helping Someone Who Rescued A Young Female Stray Cat A Few Weeks Ago…

I am helping someone who rescued a young female stray cat a few weeks ago. No microchip. The plan is to get her vetted and adopted. She tested positive for ear mites , & tapeworms. She has had 2 applications of Revolution , 2 weeks apart, per vet instructions. She had an ear hematoma that the vet drained and sutured. The vet gave her virbantel dewormer tablet , and she is now due for her second dose, the info with this product states it is for dogs and puppies only. She didn’t get that 2nd dose, will consult with vet about it – recheck visit tomorrow. My question is about the virbantel tablet, is it safe for use on cats? What are the risks ? She has had other symptoms that we thought were unrelated , now I am wondering if the 1st dose she received at the vet had some side effects. Also she was shaved to check for a spay scar, I attached photo. Looks like there were two incisions. Any thoughts and or advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

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  1. Krista Magnifico

    Hello,
    If you are under the care of a veterinarian then please forward these questions to them. It is not possible for us to answer what is it is not safe for your pet as we don’t know anything about their current health status or history. These are obtained during a physical examination with your veterinarian.

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Sarah | 6 years ago
Good Morning Pawbly Friends…. A Couple Of Our Dogs Are On Meds Right Now. Rontu…

Good morning pawbly friends…. a couple of our dogs are on meds right now. Rontu is on antibiotics for a wound and a Riva is on pain killers for an unknown issue that our vets are working on with us trying to figure out. Both dogs are between 70 and 80 lbs. Riva spit out her pain pills… 75mg of carprofen and Rontu I guess, thought it was food and ate it. I tried to grab it out of his mouth, but couldn’t get my hand far enough. I managed to grab the other pill (gabapentin) but he swallowed the carprofen. What should I do?

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Krista Magnifico | 6 years ago
Lip Fold Pyoderma In A Dog With Chronic Allergies. What Treatment Options Were Given When…
Treatment Cost (USD): $244.64
Bella had red, painful bottom lips. There was a foul smell and it hurt when her owner looked at it. It hadn't gone away for a few days so Bella's mom brought her to me, her vet, for an examination.
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Lauren Hall | 6 years ago
My Male Approx. 8 Yr Old Cat’s Blood And Urinalysis Came Back With Some Abnormal…

My male approx. 8 yr old cat’s blood and urinalysis came back with some abnormal results. He has a little blood (+1 according to vet’s scale) and protein (+2) in his urine. However, we ruled out kidney failure/issues. He has passed a stone in the past and had noticeable blood then, but the vet is saying he doesn’t know if that’s the cause now and wants to treat it as idiopathic cystitis, thus no known cause = no set treatment.
For various reasons, I have had suspicions that my vet is not acting honestly in all regards (from severe misdiagnosis, offering unnecessary treatments as only options, and charging me for services that I wasn’t asked/ told about) but will be moving in a month so will see a new vet anyway.
For now though, I want to address any possible issue before the move seeing as stress may worsen it. So this vet is saying since they don’t know what the cause of the test results is but want to give me various antibiotics and meds to treat all possible causes. But he himself said that the medicine he’d put me on (Orbax, 10 day supply) has less expensive alternative options but “they don’t have flavoring so it’s harder to get cats to take them” and I’d have to potentially give it 2x a day instead of 1x. But I don’t care how often and I honestly don’t care how much it costs, but I really care that my vet is acting in the best interest of my cat NOT prescribing just because he can. What’s more, Feline idiopathic cystitis seems to be diagnosed by things he didn’t do as he didn’t culture the urine (and said he doesn’t want to because it’s only 50% accurate), didn’t x-ray, and didn’t ultrasound (source:
https://icatcare.org/advice/cat-health/feline-idiopathic-cystitis-fic).
Based on the urinalysis results and clean blood work, has anyone had any similar experiences that could be a cause? I’d rather not put my cat on antibiotics he doesn’t need and potentially mess him up more… especially if proper steps of diagnosis haven’t occurred. Any advice would be very, very appreciated!

1 Response

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  1. carrie Urquhart

    If he’s passed a stone before it’s likely he may have another. Male cats have a really hard time passing stones or crystals since their opening it very small. Was the cat showing signs of a uti, or was this routine labs? Do you know if they looked at the urine to check for crystals? Sometimes it could be an infection and a round of antibiotics clear it up, but id be weary of that diagnosis if they didn’t look at it under a microscope.