My Experience With Blockages and PU Surgery

[lalagimp]

Thank you! He made it through surgery. I'm supposed to call in a few hours to get an update. The Dr who performed the surgery seemed very kind and even went in on his day off to operate on Izzy.

Lastly, the vet said they recommend crating the cats as they heal to prevent injury. I'm not sure what size crate. I plan to ask.

When we first spoke to the hospital they said the surgeon only had a slot open in almost 2 weeks out and we were worried about what if he blocks again, so they asked the surgeon and he opened up a spot to get Tom in within 2 days. We just left him cath'd at the ER for the two days and then transport him and the cath was supposed to stay in place the entire time until the surgeon were to remove it to rebuild him.

I can't find a picture of our crate. We haven't used it since we moved here. It's big enough for a litter box, a blanket and food and water. It was on clearance for like $40 when I needed it that time my dog twisted her knee and she was about 10 lbs so it was pretty big. It folds down flat and I know it exists in this house right now I just don't know where. Last time I used it I had a new guinea pig and my old hospital cage was broken. Before that we used it on a feral cat we'd just gotten neutered to watch him for a day. They're really handy to have as long as they're not cumbersome.

 

[kittahluva1011]

Thanks! Our neighbor has one she is letting us borrow, it is large enough where he will fit comfortably with a litter box and food/water. I'm so appreciative to her. We have it set up already.

On our way to pick Izzy up now. Vet says he's doing great and ready to come home. Husband is skipping the wedding cause he refuses to leave him alone for hours when we just get him home. Which I understand.

 

[maggiedemi]

Aww, how sweet your husband is staying home with kitty. I love that.

 

[kittahluva1011]

Yeah he Adores our Izzy. We both do, but Izzy and he are bonded. It's super sweet cause Izzy is also my husband's first pet cat. Scarlet, our female, bonded more with me. They're family.

 

[kittahluva1011]

Izzy is doing well today. I haven't even noticed him bleeding anymore today. He's eating some, but not as much as usual. I suppose his appetite may take time to come back after all he's been through. My 7yo helped me give him the prescribed medicine to help prevent stricture.

I know he's used the litter a handful of times, actually heard him pee three or four times yesterday. He's going to the box, I just wish the sound of peeing was louder so u could for sure hear it each time lol. I have a hard time telling if he's gone or not with the Yesterday's news litter. I can't sit with him 24/7. I'm worried about issues and missing it. But keeping a close eye.

I wish he could have more freedom but he tried to jump onto a stool this morning while out of the crate briefly. Gonna be a long few weeks for him, but hoping him being stir crazy is the only issue we have.

 

[kittahluva1011]

Izzy is doing well. Got his stitches out and out of the crate. He's still in the cone though. It was still pretty inflamed. It was looking better and we are supposed to remove the cone. I did and of course all he wants to do is lick the area. It looks irritated again. I put the cone back on, but he's been wearing it for 20 days now. I'm not sure whether it's okay for him to excessively lick or not.

 

[lalagimp]

We kept the cone on him an additional 2 weeks after the first 14 day period because of his licking. After a month we took it off and he licked himself raw and was very upset, but he learned after that to be more gentle. Was so nerve wrecking because you don't want to ruin the surgical site, but you can't leave them coned forever.

 

[kittahluva1011]

We kept the cone on him an additional 2 weeks after the first 14 day period because of his licking. After a month we took it off and he licked himself raw and was very upset, but he learned after that to be more gentle. Was so nerve wrecking because you don't want to ruin the surgical site, but you can't leave them coned forever.

Right exactly. Another week might not be a bad idea. Thank you.

 

[wera]

Is it normal for a Pu surgery cat to urinate 5 times a day? It's been 2 months after the surgery but the healing slowed down a bit since the catheter and tube inserted for a month caused the wound to bleed multiple times. But now he doesn't have any catheter. He doesn't have any symptoms other than urinating 5 times a day. He is not always thirsty, has big appetite, his stool is ok, no straining when urinating. no vomiting and he is active

 

[wera]

What kind of sand is ok for PU cats? Is sand made from bentonite cannot be use?

 

[sport01]

I'd like to comment on to all who have had dealt with the stress of blocked male cat, that ended with PU surgery. My male Coon Ferris 2 months prior to surgery was acting different at the litter box, I took him to the vets his bladder was empty and was put on Clavamox for 3 wks... He improved so I thought......... A month later, late on a Sunday night he could not urinate again and would meow when being picked up... I rushed him to the emergency vets.. he was blocked, he was cathed 3x but blocked hrs after removal, was cathed again pulled it out, was cathed again blocked several hrs later...I didn't want to have the PU surgery but realizing if the urethra was to tear there was no fix.. we did the PU surgery... the surgeon said a collar for 4wks and limited activity after for several more weeks.... and Clavamox, 8 wks later the incision closed and he could not urinate again, just dribble.... the surgeon thought I was wrong... I spoke to another member of the staff who recommended I bring him up, ( 40 miles one way ) I did the surgeon could not believe he had closed up.... ( here is the issue that still makes me angry ) he had several urine cultures during his first stay... NO ONE picked up on the fact the specific bacteria in his urine was resistant to Clavamox !!! Had this been noticed I feel he could have avoided surgery as his UTI caused Cystitis, the bladder was releasing mucus plugs causing him to block... he did have crystals but no grit !!!! Ferris had to have a second PU surgery this time I insisted on an anti inflammatory post op as well as a different surgeon... He's been doing very well since.... I would take urine samples to his normal vet every 2wks.... his PH was up and down, with some bacteria and white blood cells... when arriving at the Emergency Vet Hospital his PH was 8....he was on antibiotics for several weeks to clear that up.. but it never seemed to go away.... I give him 50 mls of water a day.. only wet Cowboy Cookout canned food.. but still his PH was 7-7.5.. I started him on Vitamin C with rose hips.. his PH is now 6.5 with no bacteria.. it took me a while to figure out the dosage... he's a 25lb cat he gets 250mg a day after eating with another 20 mls of water to follow.. I am writing this to anyone who may have a cat with a UTI to suggest getting a urine sample.. if bacteria is present, and Clavamox given.... MAKE sure the bacteria is not Clavamox resistant... Ferris was finally given a different antibiotic.. which cleared him up.. had Ferris's regular Vet not been on the ball and picked this up Ferris may not be here now.. I hope this helps anyone who may be going through this.. I was so stressed.. also I kept the collar on Ferris for 8 wks after the PU revision, inspite the surgeons recommendation of 4... he's doing fine so far.. but I watch over him like a hawk.. making sure everyday he gets plenty of water and what he eats. I've relaxed a bit on food.. I give him a tablespoon of dry blue buffalo dry a day.. he always liked that food and lost 5 lbs after surgery... I still check his urine every 4-6 wks.... I was beside myself, and thought I would loose him..... as in health care with people,you need to be your cats advocate and insist on what you want... I did.. and Ferris benefited from it.....Jim

 

[Sjsacchet]

Hi. I have a question and i came across this thread.
My cat, simon, had the PU surgery. It’s been 24 hours and he hasn’t peed on his own. Is this normal? They said he had a little in his box this morning, but they want to see if he will pee more over night. What will happen next? Ugh I’m so nervous. Really hoping someone can get back to me... I’m losing sleep over this. I’m so scared.

 

[maximusmom]

Thanks! I will admit that I was terrified at the thought of the surgery for him - first that he would not make it through, we were doing the exploratory bladder surgery at the same time, so it was much longer than normal, then what his quality of life would be like after - would he leak urine constantly? Would he be in pain?

One thing that I will mention, because I don't think a lot of people realize this before the surgery, is that most of the time they will dribble urine for a bit while they're getting used to everything. My boy only dribbled for a few days, then was back to using the box. He would sometimes go over the side, not sure if it was the pain meds making him a bit loopy or if he just wasn't sure where it was coming out. He is back to normal now, although he has become more particular about the cleanliness of his box, lol, and will go beside it if someone has already used it a couple of times.

IMO keeping them isolated while they recover is critical whether it's the only cat or there are multiples. You need to know where the cat is at all times and be able to monitor incisions, give medications, as well as monitor input and output. It's really not much different than monitoring after any surgery, perhaps a bit longer with the recovery. We kept him isolated in the bathroom for a week and a half until everything was completely closed, healing over well and sutures were starting to dissolve. I would bring him out and cuddle with him on the bed towards the end, during his isolation I would spend hours in the bathroom with him so he wasn't too lonely.

I also don't really know how to describe the area after surgery, when you bring them home and actually see the incision site with sutures and everything. It's very graphic and it's hard to prepare for. I had warned my SO because he has a sensitive stomach, he thought he would be fine with it. When we would visit at the clinic, our boy would be flip flopping all over for pets but never turned around for my SO to see, so it was quite a shock when I brought him home. I let him out of the carrier and the first thing he did was stick his backend up in the air - my SO ran out of the room and nearly vomited. He was fine with him otherwise, but if our boy turned around, he felt very sick.

If anyone has any questions about the surgery, recovery, or anything else, feel free to ask and I'll answer the best I can. It's definitely something that I think owners should be prepared for and I recommend starting to save for it as soon as you can - especially if they have blocked already. If you never have to use that money for it, that's great, but it is very expensive.

I don't have any pictures of the site right after surgery but I took some last night, if anyone is interested I can post them. They aren't bad at all now that everything has pretty much healed.

When you took off the E collar did your cat groom himself a lot near the incision? My cat had his collar taken off yesterday and wouldn’t stop grooming. I looked at his incision today and it’s wet around it. I don’t know what it is.

 

[lalagimp]

Tom made his bloody, and that's after we kept the cone on him for a month. He was so upset at what he'd done, and I told him honey you have to get used to your new parts, and be gentle.
I kept the cone on for a month because I knew he was going to do something dumb, and I wanted the least chance of stricture. Vet said he was cleared to get the cone off after two weeks. Getting sutures out makes you itchy though. I had my whole thigh laced up after I got my implant down my femur. I remember getting those things out.

 

[piglet]

Hi. I have a question and i came across this thread.
My cat, simon, had the PU surgery. It’s been 24 hours and he hasn’t peed on his own. Is this normal? They said he had a little in his box this morning, but they want to see if he will pee more over night. What will happen next? Ugh I’m so nervous. Really hoping someone can get back to me... I’m losing sleep over this. I’m so scared.

 

[piglet]

Hello Sjsacchet,
I hope u received some answers about your kitty seeing as u posted on Tuesday. How is your kitty today, 4 days later? My boy had the PU Aug 2017 and I never heard anything about his peeing as he stayed two nights at the hospital. I could have picked him up the next day if I wanted to, tho, so that probably means he was doing well enough. He did go to a specialist so I had a bit more confidence. When he came home 48 hrs later, he peed sorta towards the back on the bathroom tile as I imagine he wasn’t quite sure of what was where just yet. Only the first 2-3 pees were somewhat bloody. After that I was shocked at how normally he peed in his box. He had some scary issues a couple weeks later (small pees from inflammation) but thankfully it was inflammation and I can’t remember what happened (possibly a bacteria which required an antibiotic). He had a couple more small bouts of that (definitely a bacteria later from so much licking I think) for the next 5 mos or so. Finally hit him completely off the crappy “prescription”
food (wet and dry...do not feed any dry!) and learned that “moist, animal protein rich w no grains or fish and as few starches/carbs as possible is the best diet. Raw being ideal. I feed RadCat, Primal Pet Food and Hound and Gatos. He has been without one issue since Feb 2017. It’s a very scary and confusing time. I strongly recommend a FB group called Feline Lower Urinary Tract where you’ll learn SO much. Plz let us know how kitty is doing. Hugs to u both!

 

[maximusmom]

Hello.
My kitty had the PU Surgery and they monitored him for 2 days and told me he was peeing fine. When I took him home however, he wasn’t peeing. 24 hours passed and I took him to the vet so they could express his bladder and he peed there. If your kitty isn’t peeing, your best bet is to take him to the vet and make them express his bladder. My Maximus started peeing on his own about a day and a half later. It took time but he finally urinated and defecated on his own & im sure your kitty will too. Best of luck!

 

[seasofbees]

Hi all!

My 5 year old boy joined the PU club last month and I've skimmed every post here and agree with the person who suggested that every person who's gone through PU recovery has come close to a breakdown. We're now a week and a half post-suture removal and somehow this last week has been worse than the initial recovery time.

Prior to suture removal, Keats started peeing in his "infirmary" cat bed. I was fine with that; after all, he was peeing - quite a lot - and I figured he didn't like the Yesterday's News litter/smaller infirmary litter box. He peed in that bed nearly every day and also on the sheets we had laying around the room for him - whatever was soft, he was cool with it. I was hoping he'd adjust after the stitches were out and he could roam freely again.

But it seems he hasn't adjusted. He does use his normal litter box but he seems to strain a little, and it's not a robust pee like he was capable of pre-PU. When he pees outside the box, it's not quite like it was in his cat bed - it's more of an excitement drip, almost. He stops what he's doing, freezes, and his tail rattlesnake shakes while dribble comes out. It seems to happen when he's excited - when I or my boyfriend come home, or when he's about to be fed. I finally got paranoid after reading about stricture formation, so I took him back to the vet this past Saturday to rule out that or an infection. They expressed his bladder and he leaked everywhere, then they took a urine sample for analysis and sent me home with 2 medications (pain relief and something for bladder spasms). She implied Keats is highly anxious and this is causing his current urinary issues.

She called yesterday with the urinalysis results and there isn't an infection, but she recommended a prescription wet food as the pH was higher than she'd like (he's just started eating the purina pro urinary health stuff). She also suggested getting another litter box and possibly getting him on Prozac (nah). I should mention that he's eating normally (ie ravenous as always) and isn't yowling like he did pre-PU...he just seems to be having problems with his new urethra.

Sorry for the novel but I'm hoping someone recognizes this and can offer some 'it gets better!' sentiments. I don't want to ferry him to the vet again just because I'm being unduly paranoid, and I know going to the vet just stresses him out more which probably causes a catch-22. However, I'll absolutely take him in for a second opinion if people validate said paranoia. But guys, the debt this surgery puts people in! Uuugggghhhhh.

Also maybe I'm venting to an audience I know can sympathize. Thanks in advance if you've made it this far!

 

[maximusmom]

Hello!

It’s been about two months since my cat had the PU surgery and I can totally sympathize with your situation! When my cat came home 2 days after his surgery he wasn’t peeing at all and didn’t seem to like the Yesterday’s News litter so I switched it to the ones guinea pigs use and he seemed to like that one! It took him about 48 hours to finally urinate without taking him to the vet to express his bladder! He was on antibiotics and prozasin which seemed to help! Be mindful that your cat has gone through an extremely stressful situation and try to keep them as comfy & stress free as possible! I can totally understand you not wanting to bring them back to the vet again because my cat got extremely stressed out whenever we went back. I recommend Feliway to keep them with as low stress as possible! I’d make sure that your kitty is also staying as hydrated as possible! If they don’t seem to drink water on their own, I highly recommend you buying a syringe and doing it yourself! As for his diet, keep doing what your doing with the prescription food! My cat likes the Hills c/d chicken stew! Also keep the cone on as long as possible and make sure he doesn’t find a way to get out of it (my cat did)! As long as they have their cone on they will not develop a structure! The recovery period for your kitty will be very stressful not only for them but for you as well! With patience everything will get better! I wish you two the best!

 

[piglet]

Hi all!

My 5 year old boy joined the PU club last month and I've skimmed every post here and agree with the person who suggested that every person who's gone through PU recovery has come close to a breakdown. We're now a week and a half post-suture removal and somehow this last week has been worse than the initial recovery time.

Prior to suture removal, Keats started peeing in his "infirmary" cat bed. I was fine with that; after all, he was peeing - quite a lot - and I figured he didn't like the Yesterday's News litter/smaller infirmary litter box. He peed in that bed nearly every day and also on the sheets we had laying around the room for him - whatever was soft, he was cool with it. I was hoping he'd adjust after the stitches were out and he could roam freely again.

But it seems he hasn't adjusted. He does use his normal litter box but he seems to strain a little, and it's not a robust pee like he was capable of pre-PU. When he pees outside the box, it's not quite like it was in his cat bed - it's more of an excitement drip, almost. He stops what he's doing, freezes, and his tail rattlesnake shakes while dribble comes out. It seems to happen when he's excited - when I or my boyfriend come home, or when he's about to be fed. I finally got paranoid after reading about stricture formation, so I took him back to the vet this past Saturday to rule out that or an infection. They expressed his bladder and he leaked everywhere, then they took a urine sample for analysis and sent me home with 2 medications (pain relief and something for bladder spasms). She implied Keats is highly anxious and this is causing his current urinary issues.

She called yesterday with the urinalysis results and there isn't an infection, but she recommended a prescription wet food as the pH was higher than she'd like (he's just started eating the purina pro urinary health stuff). She also suggested getting another litter box and possibly getting him on Prozac (nah). I should mention that he's eating normally (ie ravenous as always) and isn't yowling like he did pre-PU...he just seems to be having problems with his new urethra.

Sorry for the novel but I'm hoping someone recognizes this and can offer some 'it gets better!' sentiments. I don't want to ferry him to the vet again just because I'm being unduly paranoid, and I know going to the vet just stresses him out more which probably causes a catch-22. However, I'll absolutely take him in for a second opinion if people validate said paranoia. But guys, the debt this surgery puts people in! Uuugggghhhhh.

Also maybe I'm venting to an audience I know can sympathize. Thanks in advance if you've made it this far!

Hi all!

My 5 year old boy joined the PU club last month and I've skimmed every post here and agree with the person who suggested that every person who's gone through PU recovery has come close to a breakdown. We're now a week and a half post-suture removal and somehow this last week has been worse than the initial recovery time.

Prior to suture removal, Keats started peeing in his "infirmary" cat bed. I was fine with that; after all, he was peeing - quite a lot - and I figured he didn't like the Yesterday's News litter/smaller infirmary litter box. He peed in that bed nearly every day and also on the sheets we had laying around the room for him - whatever was soft, he was cool with it. I was hoping he'd adjust after the stitches were out and he could roam freely again.

But it seems he hasn't adjusted. He does use his normal litter box but he seems to strain a little, and it's not a robust pee like he was capable of pre-PU. When he pees outside the box, it's not quite like it was in his cat bed - it's more of an excitement drip, almost. He stops what he's doing, freezes, and his tail rattlesnake shakes while dribble comes out. It seems to happen when he's excited - when I or my boyfriend come home, or when he's about to be fed. I finally got paranoid after reading about stricture formation, so I took him back to the vet this past Saturday to rule out that or an infection. They expressed his bladder and he leaked everywhere, then they took a urine sample for analysis and sent me home with 2 medications (pain relief and something for bladder spasms). She implied Keats is highly anxious and this is causing his current urinary issues.

She called yesterday with the urinalysis results and there isn't an infection, but she recommended a prescription wet food as the pH was higher than she'd like (he's just started eating the purina pro urinary health stuff). She also suggested getting another litter box and possibly getting him on Prozac (nah). I should mention that he's eating normally (ie ravenous as always) and isn't yowling like he did pre-PU...he just seems to be having problems with his new urethra.

Sorry for the novel but I'm hoping someone recognizes this and can offer some 'it gets better!' sentiments. I don't want to ferry him to the vet again just because I'm being unduly paranoid, and I know going to the vet just stresses him out more which probably causes a catch-22. However, I'll absolutely take him in for a second opinion if people validate said paranoia. But guys, the debt this surgery puts people in! Uuugggghhhhh.

Also maybe I'm venting to an audience I know can sympathize. Thanks in advance if you've made it

Hi all!

My 5 year old boy joined the PU club last month and I've skimmed every post here and agree with the person who suggested that every person who's gone through PU recovery has come close to a breakdown. We're now a week and a half post-suture removal and somehow this last week has been worse than the initial recovery time.

Prior to suture removal, Keats started peeing in his "infirmary" cat bed. I was fine with that; after all, he was peeing - quite a lot - and I figured he didn't like the Yesterday's News litter/smaller infirmary litter box. He peed in that bed nearly every day and also on the sheets we had laying around the room for him - whatever was soft, he was cool with it. I was hoping he'd adjust after the stitches were out and he could roam freely again.

But it seems he hasn't adjusted. He does use his normal litter box but he seems to strain a little, and it's not a robust pee like he was capable of pre-PU. When he pees outside the box, it's not quite like it was in his cat bed - it's more of an excitement drip, almost. He stops what he's doing, freezes, and his tail rattlesnake shakes while dribble comes out. It seems to happen when he's excited - when I or my boyfriend come home, or when he's about to be fed. I finally got paranoid after reading about stricture formation, so I took him back to the vet this past Saturday to rule out that or an infection. They expressed his bladder and he leaked everywhere, then they took a urine sample for analysis and sent me home with 2 medications (pain relief and something for bladder spasms). She implied Keats is highly anxious and this is causing his current urinary issues.

She called yesterday with the urinalysis results and there isn't an infection, but she recommended a prescription wet food as the pH was higher than she'd like (he's just started eating the purina pro urinary health stuff). She also suggested getting another litter box and possibly getting him on Prozac (nah). I should mention that he's eating normally (ie ravenous as always) and isn't yowling like he did pre-PU...he just seems to be having problems with his new urethra.

Sorry for the novel but I'm hoping someone recognizes this and can offer some 'it gets better!' sentiments. I don't want to ferry him to the vet again just because I'm being unduly paranoid, and I know going to the vet just stresses him out more which probably causes a catch-22. However, I'll absolutely take him in for a second opinion if people validate said paranoia. But guys, the debt this surgery puts people in! Uuugggghhhhh.

Also maybe I'm venting to an audience I know can sympathize. Thanks in advance if you've made it this far!