Obstruction problem

[ameliashuman]

Monday I noticed my cat was vomiting and eventually by the evening she was lethargic and vomiting after eating so we took her in to the vetnon Tuesday. Nothing on blood work and x-ray and ultrasound were so filled with gas they couldn't see anything. So we took her home, restricted her food to digestive care stuff to see if things improved. No improvement and we brought her in this afternoon and they could see an obstruction in her colon this time. They gave us a laxative with the hope it will pass. We gave it 9 hrs ago and still nothing. She gags a bit when eating but so far no vomit. Still lethargic but sleeping on our bed. How long do laxatives take, are there other things we could do to help her feel better? I'm so sick with worry. We have an appointment on Friday with the vet again, but she's so uncomfortable.

 

[cat nap]

Hi ameliashuman ...I would email, or phone your Vet, to ask how long the laxatives take to work.

Also ask the Vet about giving your cat an Enema.

(This may sound unpleasant, but if you look it up online, a video by 'vetgirl'... it actually is not.
Treatment of the constipated cat | VETgirl Veterinary CE Blog
It's done over a few hours, and it really helped my cat to poop. She also had a partial obstruction, but it did not show up on X-rays.
The Vet found what looked like a piece of scouring pad, which is highly strange, since my female cat will not eat anything except 'wet pate cat food', and some dry,...and the poop was not sent out for any analysis, ...so I don't really know how big a piece, or what it was from, or what colour, etc.)

I really hope your cat feels better soon. I totally know how that 'sick with worry' feeling is.
I couldn't even think straight, and kept trying to syringe feed my cat, but after the Enema, my cat was able to eat on her own.
Sending healing vibes and poop vibes your way.

 

[Mamanyt1953]

Thanks, cat nap , I just bookmarked that video for future reference!

I can't think of a thing to add!

 

[cat nap]

Thanks, cat nap , I just bookmarked that video for future reference!

I can't think of a thing to add!

Sure, Mamanyt1953 , anytime.

The only thing I would add is that my Vet said that Hydration/drinking water is very important.
But in ameliashuman 's cat, she mentioned that her cat was still eating, so hopefully she is also drinking, too,..and Urinating is a must, as well as bowel movements.

I'm thinking that a Vet giving a cat an Enema, depends upon the cat's Age, Health, and Type of obstruction, ...but that would be something a Vet would have to address.
(Initially I was hoping for laxatives too, but when my Vet suggested the enema, after 2 days of no poop, then it sounded a much faster result. It is a bit messy afterwards, with liquid poop droppings, and needing to clean the back end of my cat with Dawn soak/wipes, but just putting down extra towels on her bedding, and wherever she chose to sleep took care of that. Very easy to do.
Plus, now I'm in love with my Vet, since she suggested it, and it helped my cat get well again.)

Hopefully, too, ameliashuman 's cat is doing better.
Fingers and paws crossed that the laxatives did their job, and that her cat passed the obstruction.

I really hope that ameliashuman could provide an update, when they can.
I tend to worry when there are no updates.

 

[Mamanyt1953]

AH! To improve drinking, IF your cat's water bowl is next to her food dish, MOVE IT SEVERAL FEET AWAY! Cats' instincts tell them that food near water source leads to contaminated water. Their instinct does NOT tell them that bowls prevent this. I doubled Hek's water intake (and kept her out of the toilet) by moving her water dish 6 feet away from her food dish! She now has a water dish in every room we spend time in, as well

 

[ameliashuman]

Hey guys, sorry for the delay in updates. My life got hectic with work and going to the vet everyday for Amelia and vaccines for our new kitten.
Amelia's eating and behavior seem back to normal and we haven't had vomiting since. We never got much poop (which I thought was weird with the laxatives we were giving) nor anything that looked like an obstruction. The vet want us to monitor the poop to see if remains normal or if it changes.. If it does or if we see any vomiting or eating changes they'll start looking at IBS or fatty spots on the liver.

They thought my Neil had IBS before we realized it was likely lymphoma. So our vet has been getting lots of pictures of poop asking "is this normal". They seem to understand our anxiety and have been very kind to us so far.

 

[Mamanyt1953]

Having a caring vet is PRICELESS! Glad things seem somewhat better. Keep us posted if anything changes!