How to help my cat after enema?

[moa]

Hey everyone!
So a bit of backstory. My cat is 5 years old and has problems with constipation. We are trying to adjust her diet, but for now it hasn't exactly been effective. She usually goes at least every two days.
So yesterday I have noticed that she hasn't pooped for over 80 hours. She was clearly uncomfortable, meowing, pacing around her litterbox and not eating. I took her to the vet, they did an xray to rule out any obstructions (all good) and gave her an enema. This was clearly pretty traumatic for her, she hates the vet and was clearly distressed. After about 5 minutes, she pooped and we went home. That was yesterday around 8pm.
The problem is, she started having diarrhea and scooting on her butt. The whole night she was licking herself, wouldn't let me touch her. She is longhaired and very fluffy, so she had some of her poop stuck to her fur and she started to rip it out in places, where she couldn't lick it clean (she also eats the fur that she rips out and runs away before I can remove it from her mouth). I tried to wash her, but she is already kind of crazy on her good days, so this time around she just clawed her way out, I am alone and physically can not constrict her enough to wash her. Washing at the vet is not an option, if I bring her there again, she will be even more stressed.
It is now 11am the next day. She seemed to calm down a bit. She hasn't eaten anything substantial since yesterday though. I gave her some churu with added lactulose that the vet prescribed, she ate a bit of that (like 15g yesterday and 8g today) and that's it. She hasn't peed either.
I guess my question is, is this normal? Should she feel better by now or am I doing something wrong? What should I do about the poop that is stuck on her fur, if she is not letting me wash her? Should I just cut it, so she won't continue to rip out and eat her fur?

By the way, she also did occasionally rip out fur on her butt before. I guess she does it if she can't unravel a knot with her grooming (i do brush her, but she hates it and often runs away before I can properly brush her). It was never this much though

 

[iPappy]

You could call your vet and ask if it's normal that she hasn't peed yet. If she's tense, she might be inadvertently holding it.
If she were mine, I would cut the fur. Constipation I'm sure is worsened by eating the hair, and that's the last thing she or you needs right now. Just make absolutely sure you know where her skin vs. fur is so you don't accidentally cut her.
Also, if she hates brushing, what type of brush are you using, and is her fur tangled or overly thick? You might be able to find a brush that she actually likes. My cats all have their preferences, and it can be a bit of trial and error to find a brush that they enjoy.

 

[silent meowlook]

Hi. I would contact the vet. They may be able to prescribe something for pain. I would also strongly suggest you find a feline only vet to take her to. She should not be so stressed from vet visits. And, they should have shaved the hair while she was sedated for the enema.
The behavior you describe is not normal after an enema.
If I was you, I would buy a cheap pair of animal clippers and shave the fur that way. I do not ever recommend you use scissors on a cat. It is far too easy to cut them that way.

 

[moa]

Hi. I would contact the vet. They may be able to prescribe something for pain. I would also strongly suggest you find a feline only vet to take her to. She should not be so stressed from vet visits. And, they should have shaved the hair while she was sedated for the enema.
The behavior you describe is not normal after an enema.
If I was you, I would buy a cheap pair of animal clippers and shave the fur that way. I do not ever recommend you use scissors on a cat. It is far too easy to cut them that way.

we don't have feline only vets in my country. The vets are always gentle with her. She is a shelter cat, I got her in january. With shelter cats there is no way to tell what she has been through before she ended up at the shelter. She hates being held in general, that's why the vets, who have to hold her down to administer medicine, stress her out so much.
Also, they did a microenema. Do you have to sedate cats for that? It took them less than a minute to do it, but I might just be ignorant about this topic.
I did end up cutting the fur and she stopped ripping it, just licking it. She is sleeping now, since she was up all night after the vet. Hopefully she feels better afterwards. I will contact the vet after work anyway, just to see what they have to say.

 

[moa]

You could call your vet and ask if it's normal that she hasn't peed yet. If she's tense, she might be inadvertently holding it.
If she were mine, I would cut the fur. Constipation I'm sure is worsened by eating the hair, and that's the last thing she or you needs right now. Just make absolutely sure you know where her skin vs. fur is so you don't accidentally cut her.
Also, if she hates brushing, what type of brush are you using, and is her fur tangled or overly thick? You might be able to find a brush that she actually likes. My cats all have their preferences, and it can be a bit of trial and error to find a brush that they enjoy.

Our brush looks kind of like this one. Her fur is very soft, not tangled at all. She is just fluffy and sheds a lot.
I will probably end up buying some other ones, especially since constipation is a concern for us and her fur could contibute to that.

 

[moa]

Sooo, a little update. She didn't drink any water yesterday, so I gave it to her through a syringe. She did pee yesterday.
I was still worried though, so I took her to the vet again. Her anal glands looked a bit inflamed and her stomach seemed to be hurting a little from all the diarrhea, so the vet gave her some painkillers. She said that if the cat doesnt eat until tomorrow, I should bring her in again, so that they could do some blood work done. But as soon as we came home i guess the painkillers kicked in and she ate!
Now I just need to keep her away from licking her butt, keep up with a soothing cream and painkillers and she should heal just fine.

 

[iPappy]

Sooo, a little update. She didn't drink any water yesterday, so I gave it to her through a syringe. She did pee yesterday.
I was still worried though, so I took her to the vet again. Her anal glands looked a bit inflamed and her stomach seemed to be hurting a little from all the diarrhea, so the vet gave her some painkillers. She said that if the cat doesnt eat until tomorrow, I should bring her in again, so that they could do some blood work done. But as soon as we came home i guess the painkillers kicked in and she ate!
Now I just need to keep her away from licking her butt, keep up with a soothing cream and painkillers and she should heal just fine.

Thank you for the update I hope she continues to improve!

 

[IndyJones]

Our brush looks kind of like this one. Her fur is very soft, not tangled at all. She is just fluffy and sheds a lot.
I will probably end up buying some other ones, especially since constipation is a concern for us and her fur could contibute to that.
View attachment 475483

Those brushes are quite pokey in my experience most cats don't like them. I would try an ordinary human boar hair brush to start and work your way up.

 

[iPappy]

If she's not tangled, a wide toothed comb might be more accepted. I'm a groomer, and I work on a few cats. Most of them hate brushes, but tolerate (or like) combs. My own cats get overstimulated with brushing but combing seems more relaxing to them.
M moa I hope you both had a great day, and things continue to improve

 

[silent meowlook]

If the area you are talking about is the tail and under the tail and rear legs, I would just shave it, or have it shaved next time at the vet. Because even if it is beautifully combed or brushed out, it is going to get messy again.