Kitty forgot how to pee again

[alkemyst]

Struvite crystals FTMFL in my one cat. Took him in a couple days ago because he didn't seem to be going as much as he normally does...sure enough he had crystals forming in his urine...sent us home with some pills and he flushed the bladder with an acidic solution to help restore pH...things were great until last night.

Cat was freaking out, ears down, tail down going corner to corner, box to box trying to pee. Only a drop came out. He is going to be in for 2 days at least.

Running total looks like $354 (which we paid for Tuesdays visit) and about $700 more than likely for the next few days. *ouch*...just got back a $550 check for my flexible spending last year too and hoping to pay off a credit card with it.

I was feeding him Wellness Chicken dry and a variety of Wellness pouches. The other two cats are fine, he just must be genetically predisposed to this.

I don't like the Hill's foods as far as what some nutrition experts have stated. Debating feeding them ground rabbit meat as a diet.

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[xSauronx]

Originally posted by: alkemyst

Running total looks like $354 (which we paid for Tuesdays visit) and about $700 more than likely for the next few days. *ouch*...just got back a $550 check for my flexible spending last year too and hoping to pay off a credit card with it.


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holy shit :-/

 

[alkemyst]

Originally posted by: xSauronx

holy shit :-/

Last year it was $680 for two days hospital...I am figuring this year it's gone up at least some plus we have a $125 ER fee now.

We should have just hospitalized him for a couple days. I am sure the vet will work something out as I have been going to him a long time and even worked for him back in the 90s

 

[Chryso]

Paying over $1000 for a cat is not cost efficient. Get a new cat.

 

[SunnyD]

Time to ask for a low cost long term solution, be it medication or euthanasia.

 

[meltdown75]

punt it.

 

[halik]

Your cat is defective, time to RMA.

 

[lizardth]

My parents had a cat with this problem, but they switched him to distilled water and the Hill's diet -- cat lived to the 16. He passed away in in his sleep this past December.

I had been warned that indoor neutered male cats are very prone to bladder problems and I have 2. I have preemptivly been feeding Purina One Urinary Tract Health and using distilled water. The one time I took my cats off the food and distilled water one of them cropped up with the crystals within 4 months. $200 lesson learned. I switched back and havn't had a bother in over 3 years!

 

[So]

Originally posted by: lizardth
My parents had a cat with this problem, but they switched him to distilled water and the Hill's diet -- cat lived to the 16. He passed away in in his sleep this past December.

I had been warned that indoor neutered male cats are very prone to bladder problems and I have 2. I have preemptivly been feeding Purina One Urinary Tract Health and using distilled water. The one time I took my cats off the food and distilled water one of them cropped up with the crystals within 4 months. $200 lesson learned. I switched back and havn't had a bother in over 3 years!

DISTILLED water? Isn't that really dangerous? I thought distilled water sucked all the minerals out of your body.

 

[halik]

Outdoor cats eat grass and stuff, which I'd imagine helps regulate acidity of their stomachs. Still outdoors cats ftw.

 

[Electric Amish]

Originally posted by: lizardth
My parents had a cat with this problem, but they switched him to distilled water and the Hill's diet -- cat lived to the 16. He passed away in in his sleep this past December.

I had been warned that indoor neutered male cats are very prone to bladder problems and I have 2. I have preemptivly been feeding Purina One Urinary Tract Health and using distilled water. The one time I took my cats off the food and distilled water one of them cropped up with the crystals within 4 months. $200 lesson learned. I switched back and havn't had a bother in over 3 years!

Interesting. I have never heard about the distilled water. We had one cat die from a blockage and had 2 others go to the vet. Ever since we have used a Urinary Tract health food (currently 9-lives).

On a side-note. We just paid $600 for a vet visit for a cat with no real diagnosis (cat was lethargic and not eating) as to what was wrong with him. Turns out the dumbass had swallowed a wad of thread and was stopped up. Eventually it all worked its way out. :roll:

 

[Capt Caveman]

Originally posted by: Chryso
Paying over $1000 for a cat is not cost efficient. Get a new cat.

Yeah, thanks for trolling.

 

[Gooberlx2]

Ouch, that sucks dude. Glad to see that kitty obviously has an owner that cares about him. However, I gotta agree that you're going to need to look at long term solutions if this is becoming a more frequent problem.

edit: makes me glad I installed a water softener. My one neutered male had a UTI once, but I think it was more caused by the stress of a move (he wasn't drinking enough water in the first place). Hasn't had a problem since. He's a total water fiend though, so maybe that's why.

We just got a new male kitten (bengal), and fully intend to neuter, so we'll have to keep an eye out for it.

 

[spidey07]

Glad you caught him. When they get blocked like that kidney failure/death is only a short time away, short as in 12 hours. I had one with lots of problems and finally had surgery to remove the crystals. Have been feeding science diet his whole life and he's been fine since.

 

[Flipped Gazelle]

for teh kitty.

for your wallet.

How does he do with drinking water?

 

[spidey07]

It's normally diet that does it. It's a pH thing. There are specialty foods specifically for cats with this problem however it's pretty pricey.

 

[Paperdoc]

Our two neutered male indoor cats had a similar problem and we followed vet's advice to switch to Hills C/D mix. They have been trouble-free since. Have not used distilled water, but I know our water system supplies very "soft" (I.e., low dissolved mineral content) water.

 

[alkemyst]

Originally posted by: halik
Outdoor cats eat grass and stuff, which I'd imagine helps regulate acidity of their stomachs. Still outdoors cats ftw.

let us know how they fare against dogs, kids with pellet rifles and the occasional car that aims for them.

 

[SunnyD]

Originally posted by: halik
Outdoor cats eat grass and stuff, which I'd imagine helps regulate acidity of their stomachs. Still outdoors cats ftw.

Only good outdoor cat is a dead outdoor cat, unless the cat was feral in the first place.

 

[Leros]

Originally posted by: halik
Outdoor cats eat grass and stuff, which I'd imagine helps regulate acidity of their stomachs. Still outdoors cats ftw.

We had a cat with the urine crystal problem. He was too scared to go outside, so maybe that does explain stuff.

 

[alkemyst]

Originally posted by: spidey07
It's normally diet that does it. It's a pH thing. There are specialty foods specifically for cats with this problem however it's pretty pricey.

I have the science down behind it. It's around pH 8 where these crystals get out of control. in a meat diet the urine is naturally acidic. The wellness food should have promoted that, but I am not sure how much junk my wife feeds him.

We do use purified water ...never thought about distilled.

I have heard a lot of good stories on Hill's but from an ingredient and nutrition standpoint it looks like a bad choice. I may just have to accept it.

He does drink his water pretty well. He will eat then camp out at the bowl for a bit.

 

[meltdown75]

Originally posted by: Capt Caveman

Originally posted by: Chryso
Paying over $1000 for a cat is not cost efficient. Get a new cat.

Yeah, thanks for trolling.

people pay for cats?! i honestly thought they were all free. one shows up on your doorstep, you slap some milk and bread in a bowl, bam. pet kitty. no?

 

[LordUnum]

I had a similar issue with a brown mackerel tabby of mine. Vet insisted (right after performing a couple of expensive blood panels "just to be sure") that I put him on Hill's C/D, then S/D for life in addition to doing a blood panel every 2-3 months. I did a little research, changed vets (for this and various other reasons) and came upon these natural, cranberry-infused pills Petco carries that worked wonders on him while still allowing me to maintain his normal diet of Natural Balance dry food mixed w/a tiny bit of any brand of moist food. A one-month supply, a bottle of 60 chewable tablets the cat needs no convincing to eat, runs about $8.99.

Natural Care Feline Urinary Support is what the stuff is called. You may want to give it shot as its a low/no risk, huge reward kind of thing. I noticed a difference almost immediately in my cat's litter box (I use clumping litter) after giving it to my tabby, so within a day or two, you should be able to judge whether the product is worth giving to your cat on a daily basis, if at all. Here's wishing your kitty all the best regardless!

 

[buck]

Fuck man, that sucks, hope your little buddy gets better. I am not a big cat fan, but when my previous dog got sick, it really put my heart in the shitter. GL to you and the furball.

 

[ivan2]

maybe you can get one of those chai pets so your cat can eat some grass.