Hi Janet ,
When Kim first had a bad bout her urine test for crystals was
negative but a couple of weeks later the scan showed small crystals .
I found that keeping her on an entirely wet diet like Sheba and
whiskas has helped the crystals pass out of the bladder . Even if
there is no infection the crystals could still irritate the bladder
which might be why your cat is weeing on soft things like cushions .
This is a physical thing rather than a mental thing so maybe its not
worth putting Skipjack on Elavil .
BTW I have new dog. It was hard finding a JR type that liked small
pets and didn't stress them out but Diddy
is half the size of Kim so no problem there! (BG)
Alison

"J1Boss" wrote in message
...
Hi folks - a few weeks ago, I wrote for some help with Skipjack, who
uses his
box but uses other places as well. His first visit to the vet
showed no UTI.
Neither did a visit to a different vet. We tried to go to my
preferred vet,
but she's an hour away. On the day we had the appointment, Skip
made it clear
that he was not at all happy with this car thing and one or both of
us would
not have made it alive during rush hour with that drive! So we made
an
appointment with another vet, very close by. Skip had more
bloodwork and
urinalysis and culture done, as well as an ultrasound (a little
overkill, but
what the heck).

Anyway, although there are some crystals in his urine, there is not
infection.
I left him at the vet last Wednesday, so his bladder could fill and
they could
do the tests. Well, since we've been home, he hasn't had a problem.
I started
using some citrus room spray on the sofa cushions he commonly
(recently at
least) has urinated on, and he hasn't eliminated on them again (no
problem
being on my lap on same cushions). Knock on wood, does he seem to
get it?

The vet recommended putting him on Elavil, but I'm not sure I want
to drug a
cat if I can treat it otherwise. He also recommended CDS or IVD
Control food.
I've never been a Hill's fan, although years ago, I did have my male
cat on CD.


Any other food recommendations? He's eating Solid Gold, which seems
to give
him less gas and stink than any other food. He eats small amounts
of Sheba or
Fancy Feast (which I give in larger amounts to my sick kitty to get
her to
eat), but prefers his dry food.


Janet Boss
Best Friends Dog Obedience
"Nice Manners for the Family Pet"
Voted "Best of Baltimore 2001" - Baltimore Magazine
www.bestfriendsdogobedience.com