Urine Crystals, Blockages And Everything Else

[crazyanimalperson]

Gus made it through surgery today A different vet did the surgery he is very experienced. Gus only had scar tissue at the end of his urethra and the rest looked healthy so they only had to remove about 1/4 of an inch. When he had his pu surgery his urethra immediately started shrinking during the surgery, this time it did not. They are going to keep him a few days with the catheter in and I'll get to take him home early next week for 2 weeks of seclusion.So far, so good.

 

[crazyanimalperson]

Gus made it through surgery today A different vet did the surgery he is very experienced. Gus only had scar tissue at the end of his urethra and the rest looked healthy so they only had to remove about 1/4 of an inch. When he had his pu surgery his urethra immediately started shrinking during the surgery, this time it did not. They are going to keep him a few days with the catheter in and I'll get to take him home early next week for 2 weeks of seclusion.So far, so good.

 

[Mamanyt1953]

Not quite a done deal yet, but we seem to be headed in that direction!

 

[crazyanimalperson]

Gus came home today! The Vet thinks things look good this time but he is by no means out of the woods. The surgical site is less messy compared to last time. After we fed him he used the litter box and we could hear him pee, now that may be an odd thing to be excited about but he hasn't had a steady flow since Christmas. Gus is in good spirits and keeps trying to escape his room.

 

[1 bruce 1]

Gus came home today! The Vet thinks things look good this time but he is by no means out of the woods. The surgical site is less messy compared to last time. After we fed him he used the litter box and we could hear him pee, now that may be an odd thing to be excited about but he hasn't had a steady flow since Christmas. Gus is in good spirits and keeps trying to escape his room.

I'm late to this thread but I wanted to say I read it all and am so glad Gus is home and doing well!!! He looks very bright eyed, a good sign! =D

Lots of good vibes to you!

 

[Mamanyt1953]

YAY! And no, celebrating the sound of pee does NOT sound strange! There is an entire cheering section for pooping for some of our cats with IBD. We love hearing about stuff like that!

OH! I like that modified cone. Keeps him off the site, but isn't as encompassing as some.

 

[1 bruce 1]

YAY! And no, celebrating the sound of pee does NOT sound strange! There is an entire cheering section for pooping for some of our cats with IBD. We love hearing about stuff like that!

OH! I like that modified cone. Keeps him off the site, but isn't as encompassing as some.

Only the owner of a pet with a history of urinary blockage understands how beautiful the sound of a strong, steady stream of pee is.

 

[crazyanimalperson]

Gus has had a great week. he got his stitches out yesterday but has a week left in his room with the cone before he can be free. Gus has an appetite this time and is full of energy. His favorite hobby is getting all of the litter out of his litterbox. We had to switch to a larger litterbox so the mess would be easier to clean up. He's still peeing like a champ, as soon as he's done eating I ask him to go and he will pee on command. Hopefully, everything will keep going well.

 

[LittleQuill]

Yesterday Gus started struggling to urinate again. He was still going a little but he was also going around the house trying. We took him to the vet again and at least this time he wasn't blocked and didn't have a UTI however, it appears that he has strictured. They could not even get a catheter in him today. The vet was able to manually empty his bladder. Tomorrow the vet and I are going to talk and make a decision. We can have another surgery that is pretty much the corrective pu surgery with a 50/50 chance of success or we can let him go. The vet is offering to do the surgery at cost so at least we can afford it. We are split in our decision because we don't want him to suffer but we want to give him every chance possible.

My cat Oscar and I have extensive experience with urinary tract blockages. Oscar has been blocked 3 times in the last 3 years. Each time, it was as you describe, and we whisked him off to the the vet. We were told when it happened for the third time in Jan of this year, that it would likely keep happening because the blockages have scarred his urinary tract, and that sometimes, not even the urinary tract food can stop re-occurrences. (which was what happened. He was on his special diet, and it still happened) So the vet said our only options are to euthanize him, which is a cheaper option, keep forking out the 700+ bucks it costs to have him cathetered and have him stay for a few days (which is what we have been doing. Not fun.) Or, we can fork out the 2,000 bucks for him to have a corrective surgery to widen the opening for him. We were told that, after the surgery and the healing is done, he won't get any more blockages, but he'll have a higher risk of infections. Obviously, we aren't going to euthanize Oscar. We love him too much for that. We've opted for him to have the surgery when we have enough money there to pay for it. Until then, we've put him, and our other two cats, on a wet food only diet, and it's been 3 months, and so far, not re-occurrences. I fully understand this stress you're under with this disorder. It really is an awful, awful thing for a cat to go through.

 

[sweetblackpaws]

Like Gus, my boy had PU surgery after several trips to the ER for blockages due to struvite crystals. The PU didn't take and they thought it was stricture. They wanted to do it again, but unlike Gus, they were going to charge me the original price (at this point I had spend thousands). I said I had to put him down (this was in the ER). Long story short, one of the vets did another kind of surgery and did not charge me. He did a "transpelvic urethrostomy", not sure if it was experimental. That was a year ago and he has had no issues. So there is another option, but not all vets can do the T.U. surgery and I was informed it "costs thousands". The vet was going to adopt my cat which is why I didn't have to pay, but later wanted to know if I wanted to keep him.

Like Gus, my boy will be on Rx food the rest of his life. He likes the Royal Canin SO kibble. I know wet is better for boys like ours, but he didn't like the wet.

I am glad your baby is better and surgery was successful. UTI's can be common after PU, but those are pretty easy to treat.

Get the biggest litter box you can find.

 

[1 bruce 1]

Gus has had a great week. he got his stitches out yesterday but has a week left in his room with the cone before he can be free. Gus has an appetite this time and is full of energy. His favorite hobby is getting all of the litter out of his litterbox. We had to switch to a larger litterbox so the mess would be easier to clean up. He's still peeing like a champ, as soon as he's done eating I ask him to go and he will pee on command. Hopefully, everything will keep going well.

Those pictures are hysterical!!!
So glad he's doing so well!!!!

 

[Mamanyt1953]

I'd almost suggest a litterbox with very high sides, but God knows I don't want to discourage him! OH THE LOVELY SOUND OF CAT PEEP IN THE MORNING!

 

[sweetblackpaws]

Yes, Gus is a big boy! He might like something like this?

Petmate Giant Litter Pan

 

[crazyanimalperson]

Yes, Gus is a big boy! He might like something like this?

Petmate Giant Litter Pan[/QUOTi was trying to use a low sided box while he was recovering (that didn't last a day). Thank you for the suggestion we actually have 4 of those litterboxes our cats prefer them to anything else. I saw a someone at Petsmart in the checkout line with one and we abandoned our spot to get one.

 

[crazyanimalperson]

Gus had a decent week he's been recovering well. He did have a minor uti but that was easily taken care of and I've added some vitamins to his diet to help. He has been enjoying his freedom and being a pest, but we wouldn't have it any other way.

 

[sweetblackpaws]

That is wonderful news!! By the way, that is one of THE most awesome cathouses I have ever seen! It looks very cozy, lol! I want to crawl in there....

 

[Mamanyt1953]

Hekitty is wildly jealous!

 

[crazyanimalperson]

Sorry that it has been so long since the last post. Gus has been doing pretty good. He's had a few flareups but nothing crazy. I have been trying different holistic approaches to try to help him with FLUTD/FIC. But have kept him on his prescription diet. He's lost a lot of weight since all of this started and it is a challenge to get him to eat all of his food. I am hoping to cut back on the prescription food, I'm spending about $70 a month on him and I have multiple pets. Do any of you guy's have any suggestion any supplements you have used that helps?

 

[leechi]

I would recommend trying tinkle tonic.
Animal Essentials Tinkle Tonic Herbal Dog & Cat Supplement

It's an herbal supplement. My mom has several male cats, and treats them with it if they start having urinary problems. She feeds mostly wet food, but some dry. It seems to work great, with no side effects that we've observed, and can be used daily as a preventative. It's what I would use if my girl ever gets crystals again, but an all wet diet has been enough for her. You can mix it in wet food, or give a dropper by mouth if they won't eat it.

 

[seasofbees]

Please keep us updated on Gus! My cat had the PU in Jan., the corrective PU in March, and is now back at the vet today -- he was just catheterized and they removed a second mucous plug (first was before the corrective surgery). It's been a waking nightmare, and nowhere has the vet mentioned FLUTD but it seems pretty obvious to me at this point that this is what we're dealing with...

Most days he's lovey and playful and acting like he hasn't eaten in decades (per usual), so these episodes really bum me out. We're not willing to give up on him while he's acting totally normal in between these issues.

So, like you, I'm researching additional (more holistic) ways to help Keats. I think the Tinkle Tonic that was just mentioned upthread might be worth a shot, and I have a friend who's going to loan me the fountain her cats don't care for. Otherwise, I'm considering Feliway and also sprinkling cranberry supplements on his food.

I'll post any updates here if I find something that seems to work wonders for Keats -- maybe it'll help Gus, too! I don't wish any of this on our boys but it is nice to commiserate with someone.