Several Questions for Cat Owners who had PU Surgery

LaLa12

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To make a long story short, my 6 yr old Maine Coon mix Brady had the PU surgery back in June 2019 due to multiple blockages. The last time he was cath'd his bladder was so weak it burst and he needed emergency bladder surgery which prompted a week long hospital stay until he had the PU and came home. His recovery was pretty uneventful, however, end of July I noticed after he peed he dribbled a little blood on the floor as he was covering his pee in his box. Dribbling seems to be normal after the surgery but I know dribbling blood is not. I brought him to the vet who swabbed him and the culture came back positive for e-coli. The vet believes its because he is a chunky cat and he's not able to properly groom his "new opening".. He was sent home with 14 days worth of Baytril along with this ointment called Posatex that I had to apply to the area once a day; also with medicated wipes I have to use daily to clean the area. He was fine for about two months (end of October) when it started all over again and back to the vet we went. This time around he got a Covenia shot because it was pretty impossible administering the Baytil pill.

Since end of October, I have seen a few blood dribbles here and there (usually light pink in color), I have also seen dried blood right inside the "new opening", I wipe him then he's fine for about two weeks then it happens all over again. Called the vet again and since beginning of December on top of the daily medicated wipes, I also syringe diluted chlorhex solution inside his "new opening" because the vet thought maybe we needed to keep the inside clean where the wipes are mainly cleaning the outside area.

Whatever is causing this seems to pop up every two weeks, I wiped him this morning and he looked completely fine down there. I went home to check on him on lunch, looked down there and there seems to be a little dried blood in the very front of the opening. I'm kind of at a loss at this point. He doesn't seem uncomfortable at all, he's not overgrooming, he pees about every 8-10 hours, no blood at all in urine, no straining, no crying. I'm just curious if anyone else has experienced this and I'm also curious about what the inside of your cat's PU site looks like. I know that sounds like a weird question but when I look its all black inside and I want to make sure that's normal.

My vet had the surgeon who performed the PU use black sutures instead of disposable because he trusted them more. When I took him back post-op to have them removed, they had a tough time removing them because he's chunky down there. The vet is 50/50 on whether or not a suture could still be up there and causing this infection. He mentioned putting him under and using a scope to see if there is a lingering suture that he wasn't able to see before. I really don't want to put my cat through that if I don't have to. That's like last resort. Any input would help immensely!!
 

motoko9

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With the usual caveats (I am not a vet, every cat is different, etc.): Did your vet also do an ultrasound to see what’s happening in the bladder? I’m wondering whether lingering inflammation or crystals could be the cause of the blood you're seeing.

It's good news at least that he is otherwise urinating normally and feeling good. You're a good owner to watch him so closely.
 

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Hi. I have no experience with this, but wanted to give you a link (see below) to several threads from other members who have dealt with post PU surgery issues for their little guys. I don't know if there is any valuable information in them in terms of what you are looking for - as you seem far ahead of many - but wanted to offer them anyway - just in case. I do think that motoko9 motoko9 has a very good suggestion about the ultrasound, despite the vet trip and most likely sedation.

Search Results for Query: PU surgery
 
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LaLa12

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Hi. I have no experience with this, but wanted to give you a link (see below) to several threads from other members who have dealt with post PU surgery issues for their little guys. I don't know if there is any valuable information in them in terms of what you are looking for - as you seem far ahead of many - but wanted to offer them anyway - just in case. I do think that motoko9 motoko9 has a very good suggestion about the ultrasound, despite the vet trip and most likely sedation.

Search Results for Query: PU surgery
Thanks! I'll definitely check it out. Just trying to get a handle on everything, been a stressful year!
 
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LaLa12

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Hi. I have no experience with this, but wanted to give you a link (see below) to several threads from other members who have dealt with post PU surgery issues for their little guys. I don't know if there is any valuable information in them in terms of what you are looking for - as you seem far ahead of many - but wanted to offer them anyway - just in case. I do think that motoko9 motoko9 has a very good suggestion about the ultrasound, despite the vet trip and most likely sedation.

Search Results for Query: PU surgery
[/QU
With the usual caveats (I am not a vet, every cat is different, etc.): Did your vet also do an ultrasound to see what’s happening in the bladder? I’m wondering whether lingering inflammation or crystals could be the cause of the blood you're seeing.

It's good news at least that he is otherwise urinating normally and feeling good. You're a good owner to watch him so closely.
I would think crystals or lingering inflammation also if he was straining or looked uncomfortable. He had an x-ray back in July when this first happened and the vet didn't see any crystals on the x-ray. I was thinking ultrasound route, that might be next step.
 

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My boy had PU surgery in 2017. He did well although recovery was rough. Unfortunately he blocked again in April 2019. They were able to catheter him and scope him to see if the PU surgery had failed. It had not. The blockage was due to medication he was on (prozac) to keep him calm.

I would definitely do the US to start. It is easiest. Then if needed go on to the scope.

Does the bleeding stop when he is on antibiotics? This is a tough one. I really feel for you. Dealing with urinary issues is so hard. I have to monitor my boy daily for his urine output. When he gets stressed he tends to hold his urine for long hours (over 24). It will be a life long watch.
 

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Wishing you the best of luck. One of mine had PU surgery just a few weeks back, and I've found the recovery process to be very stressful. I watch him almost obsessively!
 

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Wishing you the best of luck. One of mine had PU surgery just a few weeks back, and I've found the recovery process to be very stressful. I watch him almost obsessively!
That is me too. I now have wireless cameras on the litter boxes so I know that he has gone. I have 6 cats so it's hard to know for sure which pee belongs to which cat! I start to panic if it's been 18 hours without a pee.

I also add water to all his food. He only gets wet food, but I still add more water. He does not like to drink out of a water bowl or fountain. Yet if I add a bit of wet food and then add many tablespoons of water, he will drink it.
 
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LaLa12

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My boy had PU surgery in 2017. He did well although recovery was rough. Unfortunately he blocked again in April 2019. They were able to catheter him and scope him to see if the PU surgery had failed. It had not. The blockage was due to medication he was on (prozac) to keep him calm.

I would definitely do the US to start. It is easiest. Then if needed go on to the scope.

Does the bleeding stop when he is on antibiotics? This is a tough one. I really feel for you. Dealing with urinary issues is so hard. I have to monitor my boy daily for his urine output. When he gets stressed he tends to hold his urine for long hours (over 24). It will be a life long watch.
It is absolutely a life long watch and is super stressful; I watch him like a hawk and monitor his litter box like a hawk also. My boy takes amitriptyline 10mg daily in a pill pocket for his anxiety since surgery in June. When he was on the Baytril the first time around, the bleeding did stop but then came back about month and half later, the Covenia shot it came back within a week. I wipe him mostly two times a day now instead of once. It's the strangest thing, for example, I wiped him yesterday morning and nothing, 1pm I went to lunch and checked him. He's not a fan of me poking around back there so I do my best, I kinda check him obsessively sometimes. From what I saw or thought I saw, was a little dark red dried blood right in the opening. Last night right after he peed, I wiped him again and there was nothing same with this morning.

I don't know if maybe he washes himself too aggressively sometimes which causes a little irritation? He did test positive for e-coli back there in August though. It's one of those things I guess I'll have to constantly watch because my vets at the point where he does wanna do the scope due to thinking there's a suture still but I'm very hesitant on doing that at the moment.
 
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LaLa12

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That is me too. I now have wireless cameras on the litter boxes so I know that he has gone. I have 6 cats so it's hard to know for sure which pee belongs to which cat! I start to panic if it's been 18 hours without a pee.

I also add water to all his food. He only gets wet food, but I still add more water. He does not like to drink out of a water bowl or fountain. Yet if I add a bit of wet food and then add many tablespoons of water, he will drink it.
My cat doesn't drink water either and never has. Since surgery, I feed wet only. I don't give him the prescription food because he wouldn't eat. The only prescription he gets is a can of Purina UR Salmon daily then I'll give him something else for dinner. I figure that's better than feeding any dry.
 
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LaLa12

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Wishing you the best of luck. One of mine had PU surgery just a few weeks back, and I've found the recovery process to be very stressful. I watch him almost obsessively!
Thanks! He had a pretty uneventful recovery until this issue cropped up about a month and half ago after surgery. He seems comfortable and happy so I try my best not to worry too much. I watch my cat obsessively also and find myself having anxiety when I'm at work about him. I hope your kitty has a great recovery from the PU!
 

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He did test positive for e-coli back there in August though.
I was told by my vet that e coli bacteria in the bladder is hard to eradicate; it attaches to the bladder lining. See if your vet thinks he needs to be on another round of antibiotics - perhaps a different one that might be more effective. Feeby has had repeated e-coli based UTIs and the only antibiotic that has worked for her is Orbax. Not to say that is the only one that will work for your guy, but it is worth asking the vet about. I also talked to my vet about giving Feeby pure D-mannose, it helps to eliminate e-coli that consistently lines the bladder and therefore reduces the odds of future UTIs.
 

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I don't feed prescription either, just good quality wet food. I add 2 T. warm water to each meal. Fortunately he is used to "soup" now! I just know I never want to go through what happened last year. It was a month long mess. We were to the ER vet 3x and he ended up staying there for 5 days. He was a mess once home.

Do watch the amitriptyline. It too can cause urine retention. Once off the Prozac my boy has stabilized. I did use D mannose daily for awhile and now use daily doses of alcohol corn silk. I joined a great group on Facebook for cats with urinary issues. They are no knowledgeable. I don't do facebook, but joined just to learn the info out there. I also transitioned him to CBD oil for his stress. It has worked well the last few months.
 
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LaLa12

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I was told by my vet that e coli bacteria in the bladder is hard to eradicate; it attaches to the bladder lining. See if your vet thinks he needs to be on another round of antibiotics - perhaps a different one that might be more effective. Feeby has had repeated e-coli based UTIs and the only antibiotic that has worked for her is Orbax. Not to say that is the only one that will work for your guy, but it is worth asking the vet about. I also talked to my vet about giving Feeby pure D-mannose, it helps to eliminate e-coli that consistently lines the bladder and therefore reduces the odds of future UTIs.
It actually wasn't e-coli in the bladder but in the opening where the PU site is, the e-coli was on the outside of the urethra because the vet believes because he's chunky bacteria is sitting in that area which is why I wipe him with medicated wipes every day. I bought d-mannose, do you use it everyday? I haven't used it in awhile because I wasn't sure if he should have that everyday or how it works.
 

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I used D mannose every day for about a month. I would break the dosage up into 2x daily. I start it right up again if i notice any change in his urinary habits.
 
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LaLa12

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I don't feed prescription either, just good quality wet food. I add 2 T. warm water to each meal. Fortunately he is used to "soup" now! I just know I never want to go through what happened last year. It was a month long mess. We were to the ER vet 3x and he ended up staying there for 5 days. He was a mess once home.

Do watch the amitriptyline. It too can cause urine retention. Once off the Prozac my boy has stabilized. I did use D mannose daily for awhile and now use daily doses of alcohol corn silk. I joined a great group on Facebook for cats with urinary issues. They are no knowledgeable. I don't do facebook, but joined just to learn the info out there. I also transitioned him to CBD oil for his stress. It has worked well the last few months.
I'm in those Facebook groups too haha I bought both the d-mannose and the corn silk. Do you use those everyday? I haven't given it to him because I thought I read on Facebook that they're supposed to be used when you see signs of problems coming on. I've been looking for a supplement that I can use daily. Can cornsilk be used daily? I also bought Cosequin but never used that either.
 
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LaLa12

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I used D mannose every day for about a month. I would break the dosage up into 2x daily. I start it right up again if i notice any change in his urinary habits.
Do you only used the d-mannose if you see signs of a problem coming on? I've been looking for a daily supplement that's safe to give everyday.
 

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In the beginning when he was just recovering from his second blockage, I used the D mannose every day, twice a day. I did this for a month. If I were you, I would definitely give him the D mannose. It can't hurt. I then give the corn silk every single day. For 90 days, I gave 7 drops, 3x a day. I am now down to maintenance of 7 drops 2 x a day. I will do this for life. I also ordered the Charlotte's Web CBD they recommended. It has worked well too.
 

shadowsrescue

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I give Cosequin chewables as well. I only use this as I have 2 older cats that take it so I give it to the under urinary boy too. They like the taste of the chewy and it's easier than breaking open the capsule and adding to food.

I give the cornsilk in his wet food in the morning and in a small amount of baby food at night before bed.
 
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