Hello fellow cat people!
I haven’t posted much here but I’ve been following the forum religiously since I got my 2 ragdoll kitties a couple of years ago. Recently I posted about Apollo’s urinary issues, namely FIC. This time, I am posting because I really need to vent about the care Apollo received during a recent visit to the out-of-hours vet surgery. I know people here will understand why I am frustrated and if I’m wrong, I know it’ll be pointed out to me -which is part of why I love this community!
So, Apollo has had recurrent bouts of cystitis since August. He’s had investigations in February (bladder and kidney ultrasound and x-Ray, cystocentisis, blood panel, etc) that revealed no issues, so by exclusion he was diagnosed with idiopathic cystitis.
Fast forward to last Friday, Apollo had blood in his urine again. He was otherwise his usual self, eating and drinking normally, playful and cuddly as always. So I upped his Cystease from 1 capsule daily to 2 and monitored his litter box habits. He wasn’t visiting the litter box any more often than usual and he didn’t have any “accidents” outside the box. All good. Still have him Tramadol and Hypovase, as per his vet’s instruction, in case he is in pain and hiding it. On Tuesday evening, he went in the litter box and had a small pee, then came out and back in again but this time he didn’t produce anything. That had me a bit concerned. About an hour later, he stuck his head in the litter box (it’s covered) but didn’t go in. He loafed on the mat in front of it. All these behaviours are unusual for him so I got really stressed out thinking his urethra has blocked. I phone the emergency vet immediately, as his normal practice had closed for the day and they told me to bring him in and he’d be seen immediately. Indeed we went and they took Apollo literally from the entrance to the exam room in seconds. So far so good.
The vet examined Apollo thoroughly and told us that his bladder was soft and empty but when she palpated his colon it appeared to have some poo in there, so she concluded that the odd behaviour was constipation. I sighed with relief and I also thought that his poo just cost us £200! But then the vet said she wants to give Apollo some pain relief. I told her that we already give him Tramadol but she insisted that she should give him an opioid injection to ease the discomfort from the constipation. I did ask if this was necessary, as it seemed a bit of an overreaction to me, to give opioids to a constipated animal -given that he had pooed normally the day before. She insisted that it was in his best interest so of course I agreed. He was given buprenorphine.
Oh my God, he went absolutely crazy when we took him home. It was as though he was seeing things, he was going from chasing invisible things in the air, to standing in the middle of the room with a blank stare. He didn’t sleep at all during the night, he was growling every time us or his sister went anywhere near him, he didn’t eat or drink anything and didn’t visit the litter box either. It wasn’t until the afternoon of the next day that he calmed down, ate and went to his litter box -everything normal. And now I’m thinking that I added to his problems by taking him to the vet with a mild discomfort from constipation and causing him such huge upset. I know cats hide pain well, but I’ve seen him in pain and I know that he wasn’t suffering on Tuesday; he might have been irritated because he tried to poop and couldn’t a couple of times but it seemed to be that the reaction to the injection was so much worse for him. I already had him on Tramadol and Hypovase for the cystitis anyway, I can’t shake the feeling that the vet was just looking for a way to charge us more. I know, I know, this was not the case most likely, I don’t want to believe that vets do not have their patients’ best interest in mind first and foremost.
I guess part of why I am upset is because my beloved cat has a potentially life-long condition and the thought that every few months he will be subjected to situations like these breaks my heart. I may not be thinking rationally after all.
Thank you for reading this and sorry for the long post. Obligatory cat photo:
I haven’t posted much here but I’ve been following the forum religiously since I got my 2 ragdoll kitties a couple of years ago. Recently I posted about Apollo’s urinary issues, namely FIC. This time, I am posting because I really need to vent about the care Apollo received during a recent visit to the out-of-hours vet surgery. I know people here will understand why I am frustrated and if I’m wrong, I know it’ll be pointed out to me -which is part of why I love this community!
So, Apollo has had recurrent bouts of cystitis since August. He’s had investigations in February (bladder and kidney ultrasound and x-Ray, cystocentisis, blood panel, etc) that revealed no issues, so by exclusion he was diagnosed with idiopathic cystitis.
Fast forward to last Friday, Apollo had blood in his urine again. He was otherwise his usual self, eating and drinking normally, playful and cuddly as always. So I upped his Cystease from 1 capsule daily to 2 and monitored his litter box habits. He wasn’t visiting the litter box any more often than usual and he didn’t have any “accidents” outside the box. All good. Still have him Tramadol and Hypovase, as per his vet’s instruction, in case he is in pain and hiding it. On Tuesday evening, he went in the litter box and had a small pee, then came out and back in again but this time he didn’t produce anything. That had me a bit concerned. About an hour later, he stuck his head in the litter box (it’s covered) but didn’t go in. He loafed on the mat in front of it. All these behaviours are unusual for him so I got really stressed out thinking his urethra has blocked. I phone the emergency vet immediately, as his normal practice had closed for the day and they told me to bring him in and he’d be seen immediately. Indeed we went and they took Apollo literally from the entrance to the exam room in seconds. So far so good.
The vet examined Apollo thoroughly and told us that his bladder was soft and empty but when she palpated his colon it appeared to have some poo in there, so she concluded that the odd behaviour was constipation. I sighed with relief and I also thought that his poo just cost us £200! But then the vet said she wants to give Apollo some pain relief. I told her that we already give him Tramadol but she insisted that she should give him an opioid injection to ease the discomfort from the constipation. I did ask if this was necessary, as it seemed a bit of an overreaction to me, to give opioids to a constipated animal -given that he had pooed normally the day before. She insisted that it was in his best interest so of course I agreed. He was given buprenorphine.
Oh my God, he went absolutely crazy when we took him home. It was as though he was seeing things, he was going from chasing invisible things in the air, to standing in the middle of the room with a blank stare. He didn’t sleep at all during the night, he was growling every time us or his sister went anywhere near him, he didn’t eat or drink anything and didn’t visit the litter box either. It wasn’t until the afternoon of the next day that he calmed down, ate and went to his litter box -everything normal. And now I’m thinking that I added to his problems by taking him to the vet with a mild discomfort from constipation and causing him such huge upset. I know cats hide pain well, but I’ve seen him in pain and I know that he wasn’t suffering on Tuesday; he might have been irritated because he tried to poop and couldn’t a couple of times but it seemed to be that the reaction to the injection was so much worse for him. I already had him on Tramadol and Hypovase for the cystitis anyway, I can’t shake the feeling that the vet was just looking for a way to charge us more. I know, I know, this was not the case most likely, I don’t want to believe that vets do not have their patients’ best interest in mind first and foremost.
I guess part of why I am upset is because my beloved cat has a potentially life-long condition and the thought that every few months he will be subjected to situations like these breaks my heart. I may not be thinking rationally after all.
Thank you for reading this and sorry for the long post. Obligatory cat photo:
although I would appreciate a year with no medical emergency.
Also, don't beat yourself up over this. No long term damage was done, which puts this in the category of "Cheap lessons." Apollo has probably already recovered from the trauma; knowing cats he won't even remember it. But you will, and will learn the appropriate lesson, because that's your job. Apollo's job is to be loving and adorable, and to keep you on your toes, and I'd say that he's doing it admirably.
I give an eyedropper of olive oil if one of my cats is having trouble. It also helps pass any ingested hair.
