Arthritic cat with toilet tray woes

acerpandoren

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I have a 20 year old cat who is likely to be off to the Bridge in the not too distant future and he has a multitude of issues from hyperthyroidism to kidney failure. The issue we are having at the moment is that the poor lad has arthritis that has progressed to the point where when he goes in his litter tray to defecate, his back legs give way under the strain and he sits in it. Naturally this isn't too pleasant for him or for us (especially when he kindly wipes his bottom across the carpet!)

He is on medicines and supplements for it but I wondered if anyone had any bright ideas on any other ways we might be able to help him!

Thanks :)
 

miss mew

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Poor guy


I'm not sure if this would help the fact that he is sitting in it after doing the deed but when our cats age we usually modify the litter box (by cutting a large section of the entrance away) to make getting in easier.  It makes for more litter mess but seems to help overall.  The only thing I can think of off hand. 
 
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acerpandoren

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Thanks. 

Yeah, it's a tough one, I can't think of anything that would help and I'm not sure that there is anything. He can get in and out of the litter tray ok. Yesterday he ended up toileting in instalments, collapsing in it every time and then hid under the car to sulk. Otherwise he seems to be not so bad, although he can't tell us how he's feeling. Most of the day you find him happily curled up on the sofa but between this and his end stage kidneys "quality of life" is being mentioned now. He's got a review this month so who knows what's going to happen at that one. :(
 

micknsnicks2mom

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@AcerPandoren -- my snick will be 15 years this august, and has chronic kidney disease as well as IBD and some arthritis. snick is able to squat when using her litter box now, but i can see that there may very well come a time when her legs may give out under the strain too.

would it be possible to assist your boy while he's using the litter box? like by placing a hand under his tummy to help support him while he's using the litter box? you could use a disposable glove or such, if you wanted to -- though my feeling is that the touch/feel of an actual human hand may be accepted more than the feel of a gloved hand. i understand that some cats would not be comfortable with having someone do this while they're using the litter box, but i'm sure that my snick would be comfortable with me doing that. and cats do learn to associate things, like many/most cats with CKD learn to associate getting sub-q fluids with feeling better.

i've collected quite a few urine samples from my snick by waiting until she just starts to urinate (in the litter box), and then popping a little cup under her bottom to collect some urine. i think that after the first or a few times, the cat feels more comfortable with a person doing something like that -- at least that's been the case in my experience. so if you were to try assisting your boy, you might wait until he's in the litter box and squatting/ready to defecate and then gently slip a hand under his tummy to provide some support for him.
 
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acerpandoren

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Most of the time he goes it is during the night but I could always try. I'm not sure what he'll make of it though, I suspect it will disturb him. For one thing from the waist down is a no-go zone, he never liked his hind being touched since he was hit by a car as a youngster now he gets aggressive when touched on his entire back half. Seeing if I can aid him is probably the only option there is.
 

lcat4

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I recently lost my 17 year old who had CRF, Hyperthyroidism, and cancer.  In his last few months he experienced similar problems to your cat, where he would collapse in the litter box when having a bowel movement.  A topic that hasn't been mentioned yet is whether your cat is in any way constipated.  Mine was, it's very common with CRF kitties, and that seemed to make his straining and steadiness in the box even worse.  I added Miralax to his meals to loosen the stools and it helped in both areas.  He wasn't having to work so hard, so was a little more steady in the box. 
 

pharber-murphy

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Adding a stool softener could help your kitty a lot. There are many different kinds out there - kibbles, creams they lick off their paws, or food additives. Perhaps your vet could recommend something.

My Mr. Grimsby (RIP 3/20/2015) would walk out of the litter box while pooping. He had severe arthritis in his lower spine and found squatting quite difficult. Have you got any pain meds for your boy? I found that Mr. Grimsby had less trouble eliminating when he had some pain relief.

Best regards.
 
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acerpandoren

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He has periods of constipation (and has a laxative paste available) but at the moment his faeces are pretty soft. I suppose we could consider using the laxative anyway but I understood it was only to be used when his faeces were hard.

As I said, he is on medicines for it. He has meloxicom and arthri-aid. The vet is reluctant to add any more medicines to his list.
 
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