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Setayesh | 2 years ago
My Female DSH Cat Started Having Urinary Issues About 5 Days Ago. I Noticed She’s Not …

My female DSH cat started having urinary issues about 5 days ago. I noticed she’s not used the litter box for a day and I took her to the vet. They did an ultrasound and a blood test. The blood test was normal and the ultrasound detected a cystitis. We started giving her antibiotics. The night after she still wasn’t using the litter box so I took her to the ER. They said there was nothing with her though.
She still doesn’t use the litter box on her own, I have to put her in it a couple of times a day to make her pee(and still she does that only once a day)
What should I do?

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  1. Krista Magnifico

    Hello
    These are often complicated issues involving multiple underlying things. To include diet, litter and litter box dislikes and environmental stress. I would look for a vet who specializes in feline medicine and place different kinds of litter boxes and litter types for your cat. Also make the area your cat lives in is as free of stress as possible. Calm quiet and easy to access all of the things she needs. Like fresh high quality canned food. Fresh water. And immaculately clean litter boxes. Also I add an anti inflammatory like dasaquin and a pain medication. I like gabapentin but your vet might use something else. Also ask about learning how to give sq fluids at home. Follow up with a urinalysis too.

    Good luck

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Sky | 4 years ago
Hello. My 16 Year Old Female Burmese “crashed” Feb 29, And March 2nd Was Diagnosed With Feline Lower …

Hello. My 16 year old female burmese “crashed” Feb 29, and March 2nd was diagnosed with Feline Lower Urinary Disease and Chronic Kidney Disease.
Her Kidney values are now stable and her only elevated numbers are Creatanine at 2.6 and Bun at 46
but her bladder keeps flaring up

When diagnosed she was shooting projectile urine. Her bladder wall was thickened. Covenia did nothing but Amoxycillin resolved the infection.
2 months later she had a couple of accidents and it appeared that she had another infection. Once again Amoxycillin worked! She had a culture done and it showed no bacteria..

She has been taking supplements Kidney Gold, and Moxxor Fish Oil since April, and started CBD oil around June
Late July I started her on D-Mannose and COrn Silk Extract as suggested in the FLUTD facebook group
last month she started peeing blood clots, Vet instructed me to give her Sub Q 100ml to flush her and start amoxycilin immediately.. 7 day course and she was fine, but 2 days after the course finished was a repeat episode.
This time the vet suggested a higher dose at 1ml morning and night for 10 days.. Well it seemed to work amazing but last night was exactly FIVE DAYS after stopping the amoxycillin and she had another episode

We are doing a third round of antibiotics, this time amoxy mixed with something stronger..
He asked me to stop the corn silk and D-Mannose completely since they were the newest added to the regeme and he is wondering if they could have changed her bladder PH for the negative.

How can I minimize the recurrence?

Oh I have read all about stress being the cause and my new born baby was 4 months old at the end of Feb when Tashee had her first crash.

My vet and I talked about future possibilites in regard to Amitriptaline, Gaberpenton, Adequan injections

Cat’s diet = she refuses any wet food besides kitten fancy feast.. she will not eat anything else and will starve herself.
She is offered 2 fancy feast cans per day
she does steal dry kibble so my vet told me to get the Royal Canin Kidney kibble so that when she eats kibble its good for her

Sub q is 150ml twice a week as to minimize the pressure or force on urethra.

Cat is 100% indoors, burmese female steralized

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  1. Krista Magnifico

    Hello,
    Wowza. That’s quite a story. I think I would recommend the following options to discuss.
    1. Seek a feline exclusive practitioner. If available they are really helpful for the tough cases.
    2. Consider an ultrasound.
    3. Add cosequin daily
    4. Consider an iv fluid hospitalization to really flush out the bladder
    5. Xray of the body. May or may not need to do if doing ultrasound
    6. Add a fountain, feliway and lots of litter options. Even a very low litter box like a baking sheet.
    7. Environmental enrichment. Toys. Catnip. Window seat with bird feeder view. Etc.

    Let me know what happens.

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Sophia | 5 years ago
Hi Dr. Mag, I Came Across Some Of Your Videos On YouTube And That Brought Me …

Hi Dr. Mag, Gatsby and I need your help.
I came across some of your videos on YouTube and that brought me to your blogs and finally here to Pawbly.com I feel so fortunate to have found your videos you seem so knowledgeable and more importantly empathetic. The care you have for animals truly shines through. I feel so helpless When it comes to my little guy Gatsby. He is 8 years old and has been very healthy all his life, But within the last six weeks we have been experiencing some urinary issues. I did think he had a blockage because he was unable to urinate for close to 24 hours, he seemed lethargic and did not want to eat. I took him to the vet first thing in the morning and he was given an x-ray which did not show any signs of kidney stones. He was given fluids under the skin, an antibiotic shot and sent home with 5 days dosage of Prozasin. The vet diagnosed him with feline lower urinary tract disease, yet he did not take any urine samples because he said that Gatsby’s bladder was very small and he was unable to collect a sample. He did not take any blood either. Within a couple days Gatsby was again exhibiting the same symptoms so I asked around for personal referrals and took him to a different vet. This vet said the same thing, Gatsby’s bladder was very small, but he kept him for a few hours to collect urine and did perform blood analysis and lab work. This was a Saturday and the vet suggested I switched him to a prescription urinary diet and informed me I would receive lab results that Monday. When the vet called all of his lab work came back clear, no infection, no signs of crystals, no signs of cystitis, kidneys functioning properly and he does not have diabetes. The vet suggested I keep him on a prescription diet and suggested that he lose weight because he is a big boy at 15 pounds. This was about a month ago and Gatsby has had two more episodes since. He is licking himself a lot. He travels to his box many times and is only producing small dots of urine, he has on a handful of occasions exhibited inappropriate urination, but only during these flareups which tend to last 2 to 3 days. I’ve called the vet to discuss Gatsby’s condition and his solution is to have the surgery performed. I have read a lot of literature, watched a lot of videos and have taken him to two different vets to try and find answers and help for him. It hurts me to see him struggling. He is on a wet food only diet, I do not feed him any dry food or dry treats. I have tried a urinary health chew which he receives once a day. I have noticed that he has not been drinking water as he used to prior to these episodes. I have a water fountain for him I’ve tried fresh water in different types of bowls, I’ve tried water with ice, he’s just very resistant to drinking water now. Any advice or guidance you can provide would be greatly appreciated.

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  1. Krista Magnifico

    Hello,
    I think part of the problem is that no one is really sure of his diagnosis. Straining can look like a lot of other things too. I always check the gi system and the urinary system for a cat displaying litter box issues. What that means is that I do a rectal exam. I check the colon the feces (send to the lab) and anal sacs. I also check a urine sample. I even do a urine culture and sensitivity of I can’t find the source of the problem. I think your diet plan is good but I would also encourage play and exercise. It helps the gi system and the weight loss which always helps the urinary system. Think of it like a “whole cat” approach to finding out what is wrong. The other piece of advice I have is to find a feline only practice. I just think they do a better job with cat issues when people feel they haven’t gotten the answers they need at a general vets office. Don’t give up! Your cat is trying to tell you there is a problem. Keep digging! Good luck. Let me know what happens.

    1. Sophia Post author

      Thank you Dr. Mag for your response! I forgot to mention that the first vet did do a rectal exam and he said that he cleaned out the buildup from his anal sac. I know there is a better term for it but I don’t have his paperwork in front of me. But he did show me What was cleaned out and he said the color and look of it was fine. I really like that suggestion of an all feline facility. Yes you’re right I have to do better with play and exercise he does have a harness and leash but will just plop on the floor lol, We did live in a different home and for the six years of his life he was able to go outside and play. He is now strictly an indoor cat. I am always so fearful of a blockage because I know how fatal it can be. Can you give me some peace of mind and let me know what signs I should look for to signal that it is a true emergency because like you said the symptoms tend to overlap and I don’t want to overexaggerate yet miss critical signs because there is a thin line.

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Sharon Kim | 6 years ago
My Male Cat Has Trouble Passing Urine Today, Went To The Vet And Was Diagnosed…

My male cat has trouble passing urine today, went to the vet and was diagnosed with idiopathic cystitis. He’s not completely blocked only passing tiny dribbles of urine. Was prescribed an anti inflammatory, pain meds and new wet food. He’s been drinking lots of water and not eating since we got back from the vet. I’m worried about him. Was told to wait and see and then come back if no change or symptoms worsen. He’s been hiding under the bed no improvement. Won’t eat. We have some calming spray and topical drops coming in the mail soon just to see if that helps with any stress. Would love to hear anything you can contribute.

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  1. Krista Magnifico

    Hello,
    For cases like this when I have a very worried and devoted parent I ask them if they would like to learn how to palpate their pets bladder to be better able to monitor at home and also to give sq fluids to keep the bladder as flushed as possible. If you can afford it hospitalize your cat for iv fluids and have them monitor. Then I recommend you switch to a urinary formula canned food and maybe even add water. Also products like cranmate or dasaquin might help. Ask about what you can do at home. Ask about pain management and follow up urinalysis. Ask your vet to be as personally invested in your cats health as you are. If they aren’t find a different vet. Try a cat specialist. Good luck.

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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!

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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.

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Pawbly | 7 years ago
Hi, I Brought My Cat To The Vet On Thursday. She Has Been Straining To…

Hi, I brought my cat to the vet on Thursday. She has been straining to urinate since Wednesday night. She had also been throwing up her food and had had diarrhoea on the Thursday morning. The vet prescribed antibiotics for cystitis and I am brining her back after a week for a recheck. She had quite a lot of blood in her urine before she started the antibiotics but this has stopped since. She is still frequently going to the litter tray and is still straining and doesn’t seem to be able to get much out. She has stopped getting sick and is eating and drinking as normal. Apart from a little bit of diarrhoea on the Thursday morning she has not defecated at all and prior to that it had been at least 4 days. Could you give me some advice on when I should begin to see improvements?

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  1. E

    Thank you for your responses. I rang the emergency vet today and she told me that it would take a few days until she is urinating normal again and as long as she is eating and drinking she should be ok. She no longer has blood in her urine, however I am still quite worried as there doesn’t seem to be much improvement in the volume of her urine output and she seems to be straining a lot with only a a little dribble of urine each time. She is also licking the area after every time she tries to urinate. Other than this her temperment seems normal and she is lively.

  2. Julie Brader

    Hi …if you are in any way concerned please take your cat back to the Vet before her check up is due. If she is still straining to urinate and has not defacated for 4 days it could be something other than cystitis.
    Take a urine sample to the Vet with you and perhaps ask for blood tests to check kidney function etc. I hope she recovers soon.

  3. Shiria

    If she still has blood in her urine and is straining to get somethign out I would visit the vet again. Maybe she has bladderstones or something else partly blocks the way.
    Same if she can’t defecate. Sometimes it takes a while after diarrhoea until the colon starts working again normally, but if shes eating normal since 4 days and wasn’t able to use the toilet since then I would get that checked, too.

  4. Krista Magnifico

    I am very very worried that the cat is unable to urinate which is an emergency. Please go immediately to the vet now!