cat - urinary tract infection?

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urinary tract infection?

I am wondering whether this sounds like a urinary tract
infection? Or could this be leading up to a blockage?

Mingy (male) has been spending a long time in the box/halfway in
the litterbox, and yesterday I caught him urinating a bit on the
floor right after he got out of the box. I also stepped in a
puddle on my bedroom rug, and Mingy NEVER pees outside the box.
This morning, there were little puddles in several places in the
kitchen. No real good pees in the box, although what seem to have
been little dribbles/drips. (I use clumping litter.) This is a
bit strange because just the previous night, his litter box was
quite full of seemingly normal deposits of both ilks (even though
his strange behavior had been going on for a few days). Now it
looks like he is not excreting normally, although he is
excreting. God only knows how I will get him to the vet's before
Monday (I think my vet's office is not open on the weekend, and we
are about to have a blizzard), but I will have to do that
somehow. At best, if I don't, I'll be finding more puddles. At
worst, he could deteriorate further, and I don't know how that
would manifest itself.... I do understand that cats can
deteriorate very quickly though, and I don't want to risk that.
--
Jean B.

This sounds like all the symptoms of a blockage. DON'T wait until
Monday. Take him to an emergency vet right away. If you wait, you
could lose him!

---MIKE---

---MIKE--- wrote:

This sounds like all the symptoms of a blockage. DON'T wait until
Monday. Take him to an emergency vet right away. If you wait, you
could lose him!

---MIKE---

Yup! I have an appointment for ca an hour from now at an
emergency vet hospital. To the degree I do things right and
quickly, it is because I have absorbed things from this group.
(Thank goodness!)

Poor baby. It is about zero here, and we have a blizzard warning
starting at noon.... Good timing, but I just have to take care of
Mingy, who hates the vet and is going to hate this whole
experience.
--
Jean B.

I'm glad you are going to take care of this. I had -21F this morning
but we are supposed to miss most of the storm here in northern New
Hampshire. Believe it or not, we need the snow. The snowmobile trails
don't have enough snow and the local businesses are really hurting.

---MIKE---

Poor guy, has to get sick during a blizzard.

Please let us know how he's doing. I'm glad you noticed this right away
and are getting him in so quickly! You're a good cat-mom.

Rhonda

Jean B. wrote:

Yup! I have an appointment for ca an hour from now at an
emergency vet hospital. To the degree I do things right and
quickly, it is because I have absorbed things from this group.
(Thank goodness!)

Poor baby. It is about zero here, and we have a blizzard warning
starting at noon.... Good timing, but I just have to take care of
Mingy, who hates the vet and is going to hate this whole
experience.

"Jean B." wrote in message ...
---MIKE--- wrote:

This sounds like all the symptoms of a blockage. DON'T wait until
Monday. Take him to an emergency vet right away. If you wait, you
could lose him!

---MIKE---

Yup! I have an appointment for ca an hour from now at an
emergency vet hospital.

Wonderful.

To the degree I do things right and
quickly, it is because I have absorbed things from this group.
(Thank goodness!)

Poor baby. It is about zero here, and we have a blizzard warning
starting at noon.... Good timing, but I just have to take care of
Mingy, who hates the vet and is going to hate this whole
experience.
--

You're a great cat mom.

"Jean B." wrote in message ...
I am wondering whether this sounds like a urinary tract
infection? Or could this be leading up to a blockage?

Mingy (male) has been spending a long time in the box/halfway in
the litterbox, and yesterday I caught him urinating a bit on the
floor right after he got out of the box. I also stepped in a
puddle on my bedroom rug, and Mingy NEVER pees outside the box.
This morning, there were little puddles in several places in the
kitchen. No real good pees in the box, although what seem to have
been little dribbles/drips. (I use clumping litter.) This is a
bit strange because just the previous night, his litter box was
quite full of seemingly normal deposits of both ilks (even though
his strange behavior had been going on for a few days). Now it
looks like he is not excreting normally, although he is
excreting. God only knows how I will get him to the vet's before
Monday (I think my vet's office is not open on the weekend, and we
are about to have a blizzard), but I will have to do that
somehow. At best, if I don't, I'll be finding more puddles.

At
worst, he could deteriorate further, and I don't know how that
would manifest itself.... I do understand that cats can
deteriorate very quickly though, and I don't want to risk that.

Hiya Jean!

Long time no see! How's Spot? Well, I hope.

I think you made a very, very wise decision having Mingy checked right away.
Without a lot of experience and expertise in palpitating a cat's bladder,
its very difficult to distinguish stranguria that's induced by interstitial
cystitis from a partial urinary tract obstruction - which can become a
complete obstruction very quickly. A complete obstruction produces a
situation equivalent to oliguric acute renal failure - which can be fatal if
not treated in time.

Male cats are prone to obstructions because their urethra narrows - kinda
like a funnel - where it passes over the pelvis and into the penis.
(see: http://maxshouse.com/anatomy__urogenital_system.htm). Once a crystal
or plug lodges there, smaller crystals that would normally pass become
trapped and accumulate and can easily and quickly produce a complete
obstruction. Females have a wider and almost straight urethra that
practically eliminates the possibility of obstruction.

Also, the longer a cat (females, too) experiences pain while trying to
urinate, the greater the chances become of developing an aversion to the
litter box (he begins to associate the pain with the litterbox - he thinks
the pain comes from the litterbox. On your way home from the vet, you
might want to make a quick stop at the pet store and pick up another
completely different litterbox.

Many people have called me "extreme" or "paranoid" (or worse, "pecker
checker") because I constantly advise people to make sure they actually
*see* their cats urinate (and poop) at least once or twice a day -
especially in multicat households where its difficult if not impossible to
tell who is and who isn't peeing without actually watching. Your
observations and quick response have probably saved Mingy's life!

Its nice hearing from you again - I just wish it was under better
circumstances.

Best of luck.

Phil.

"Like a graceful vase, a cat, even when motionless, seems to flow"
-George P. Will
Feline healthcare http://maxshouse.com
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Feline..._and_Behavior/

---MIKE--- wrote:

I'm glad you are going to take care of this. I had -21F this morning
but we are supposed to miss most of the storm here in northern New
Hampshire. Believe it or not, we need the snow. The snowmobile trails
don't have enough snow and the local businesses are really hurting.

---MIKE---

I am in the Boston area--one or two feet of snow, with up to
six-foot drifts predicted. The worst thing about this is I may
not be able to retrieve Mingy tomorrow, assuming he is ready to
come home in the afternoon. I am so upset about his having to
stay, because he is very shy and is scared of other cats. I think
when the doctor calls (soon--which is why I didn't go back out
while I could), I may suggest they cover his cage a bit so he can
feel safer....
--
Jean B.