Vet's Can't Tell When A Cat Is Backed Up With BM?

Hello fellow cat lovers!

I'll condense my very long story ~ About two months ago my cat started
defecating outside of the box. Initially I thought it was from stress
caused from one of my other cat's. But then I could see he was forcing
and trying desperately to relieve himself of his waste, but only very
small hard pieces would come out. I brought him to the vet and
explained the behavior they gave him a thorough exam (according to
them) and found nothing physically wrong with him. Since then he's been
to the vet 3 more times and each time, I would ask "are you sure he
isn't constipated?" Over and over again the vet would tell me she
couldn't feel anything in his stomach, so it couldn't be that. Two
nights ago I took Q Tips and Aquaphor (it's like vaseline) and I
inserted it in his rectum, and I could see there was a huge piece of bm
he couldn't get out. And, oh my poor cat's rectum was so sore I wanted
to cry for him. I called them immediately they took him right in he
stayed over night, they gave him 3 enemas and she said a lot of bm came
out, I asked her to take an x-ray and it showed he still had a lot of
poop in him. He's home now and he's still pooping, it's very soft and
he has very little control over it. The poor thing attempts to go in
the litter box too.

The doctor told me she just couldn't feel any waste in him when she
examined his stomach. Two different doctors examined him at this vet
office. How is it possible they couldn't find out if he was
constipated? I figured it out immediately.

The total bill for all this came to $977.00! And my poor fur baby
suffered needlessly.

I think you need to find another vet. They should have taken x-rays to
begin with! $977, for enemas? That is terrible! Please find another vet.

Our cat just went through something similar, she had megacolon.
Sometimes their colon gets so full of stuff that it stretches out and
loses it's elasticity. Once that happens, the cat can continually get
constipated because the colon is not able to push the stuff through, and
the colon gets bigger than the rectum and the stuff cannot fit through
to come out.

Do some google searches on cat and megacolon -- you might want to read
up on that. We ended up with a surgery to remove her colon and are still
working with her recuperation.

Good luck,

Rhonda

Paige wrote:
Hello fellow cat lovers!

I'll condense my very long story ~ About two months ago my cat started
defecating outside of the box. Initially I thought it was from stress
caused from one of my other cat's. But then I could see he was forcing
and trying desperately to relieve himself of his waste, but only very
small hard pieces would come out. I brought him to the vet and
explained the behavior they gave him a thorough exam (according to
them) and found nothing physically wrong with him. Since then he's been
to the vet 3 more times and each time, I would ask "are you sure he
isn't constipated?" Over and over again the vet would tell me she
couldn't feel anything in his stomach, so it couldn't be that. Two
nights ago I took Q Tips and Aquaphor (it's like vaseline) and I
inserted it in his rectum, and I could see there was a huge piece of bm
he couldn't get out. And, oh my poor cat's rectum was so sore I wanted
to cry for him. I called them immediately they took him right in he
stayed over night, they gave him 3 enemas and she said a lot of bm came
out, I asked her to take an x-ray and it showed he still had a lot of
poop in him. He's home now and he's still pooping, it's very soft and
he has very little control over it. The poor thing attempts to go in
the litter box too.

The doctor told me she just couldn't feel any waste in him when she
examined his stomach. Two different doctors examined him at this vet
office. How is it possible they couldn't find out if he was
constipated? I figured it out immediately.

The total bill for all this came to $977.00! And my poor fur baby
suffered needlessly.

That is exactly what the vet told me he had today when I picked him up
"megacolon." I will read up on it.

The $977.00 included blood work, a urine specimen, a bath, an over
night's stay, being examined by a vet who wrote for a national woman's
magazine and a few different prescriptions. And, this vets office was
just voted one of the "best" vets in the Washingtonian Magazine.

How is your cat doing now?

Paige


Rhonda wrote:
I think you need to find another vet. They should have taken x-rays to
begin with! $977, for enemas? That is terrible! Please find another vet.

Our cat just went through something similar, she had megacolon.
Sometimes their colon gets so full of stuff that it stretches out and
loses it's elasticity. Once that happens, the cat can continually get
constipated because the colon is not able to push the stuff through, and
the colon gets bigger than the rectum and the stuff cannot fit through
to come out.

Do some google searches on cat and megacolon -- you might want to read
up on that. We ended up with a surgery to remove her colon and are still
working with her recuperation.

Good luck,

Rhonda

Paige wrote:
Hello fellow cat lovers!

I'll condense my very long story ~ About two months ago my cat started
defecating outside of the box. Initially I thought it was from stress
caused from one of my other cat's. But then I could see he was forcing
and trying desperately to relieve himself of his waste, but only very
small hard pieces would come out. I brought him to the vet and
explained the behavior they gave him a thorough exam (according to
them) and found nothing physically wrong with him. Since then he's been
to the vet 3 more times and each time, I would ask "are you sure he
isn't constipated?" Over and over again the vet would tell me she
couldn't feel anything in his stomach, so it couldn't be that. Two
nights ago I took Q Tips and Aquaphor (it's like vaseline) and I
inserted it in his rectum, and I could see there was a huge piece of bm
he couldn't get out. And, oh my poor cat's rectum was so sore I wanted
to cry for him. I called them immediately they took him right in he
stayed over night, they gave him 3 enemas and she said a lot of bm came
out, I asked her to take an x-ray and it showed he still had a lot of
poop in him. He's home now and he's still pooping, it's very soft and
he has very little control over it. The poor thing attempts to go in
the litter box too.

The doctor told me she just couldn't feel any waste in him when she
examined his stomach. Two different doctors examined him at this vet
office. How is it possible they couldn't find out if he was
constipated? I figured it out immediately.

The total bill for all this came to $977.00! And my poor fur baby
suffered needlessly.

Hi Paige,

Sweeter is still recovering. She had a second surgery because of a leak
in the stitched area of the colon. She came down with a nasty abdominal
infection. That was scary -- it was the first time it had happened for
this surgeon and he's done a lot of these surgeries.

She now has some swollen glands around her face and we're trying to
track down the cause. We had more tests done today. It is probably
something completely different, but may be occurring because her system
was compromised with 2 surgeries. It is never boring...

Your bill still sounds like a lot for what was done. You're in the best
position though to judge whether you trust their treatment.

My fingers are crossed for your cat, and for Sweeter.

Rhonda

Paige wrote:
That is exactly what the vet told me he had today when I picked him up
"megacolon." I will read up on it.

The $977.00 included blood work, a urine specimen, a bath, an over
night's stay, being examined by a vet who wrote for a national woman's
magazine and a few different prescriptions. And, this vets office was
just voted one of the "best" vets in the Washingtonian Magazine.

How is your cat doing now?

Paige


Rhonda wrote:

I think you need to find another vet. They should have taken x-rays to
begin with! $977, for enemas? That is terrible! Please find another vet.

Our cat just went through something similar, she had megacolon.
Sometimes their colon gets so full of stuff that it stretches out and
loses it's elasticity. Once that happens, the cat can continually get
constipated because the colon is not able to push the stuff through, and
the colon gets bigger than the rectum and the stuff cannot fit through
to come out.

Do some google searches on cat and megacolon -- you might want to read
up on that. We ended up with a surgery to remove her colon and are still
working with her recuperation.

Good luck,

Rhonda

Paige wrote:

Hello fellow cat lovers!

I'll condense my very long story ~ About two months ago my cat started
defecating outside of the box. Initially I thought it was from stress
caused from one of my other cat's. But then I could see he was forcing
and trying desperately to relieve himself of his waste, but only very
small hard pieces would come out. I brought him to the vet and
explained the behavior they gave him a thorough exam (according to
them) and found nothing physically wrong with him. Since then he's been
to the vet 3 more times and each time, I would ask "are you sure he
isn't constipated?" Over and over again the vet would tell me she
couldn't feel anything in his stomach, so it couldn't be that. Two
nights ago I took Q Tips and Aquaphor (it's like vaseline) and I
inserted it in his rectum, and I could see there was a huge piece of bm
he couldn't get out. And, oh my poor cat's rectum was so sore I wanted
to cry for him. I called them immediately they took him right in he
stayed over night, they gave him 3 enemas and she said a lot of bm came
out, I asked her to take an x-ray and it showed he still had a lot of
poop in him. He's home now and he's still pooping, it's very soft and
he has very little control over it. The poor thing attempts to go in
the litter box too.

The doctor told me she just couldn't feel any waste in him when she
examined his stomach. Two different doctors examined him at this vet
office. How is it possible they couldn't find out if he was
constipated? I figured it out immediately.

The total bill for all this came to $977.00! And my poor fur baby
suffered needlessly.

On Fri 18 Aug 2006 11:44:17p, Rhonda wrote in
rec.pets.cats.health+behav ):

Our cat just went through something similar, she had megacolon.
Sometimes their colon gets so full of stuff that it stretches
out and loses it's elasticity. Once that happens, the cat can
continually get constipated because the colon is not able to
push the stuff through, and the colon gets bigger than the
rectum and the stuff cannot fit through to come out.


And google "stricture" because this can cause scar tissue.

--
Cheryl

"Paige" wrote in message
oups.com...
Hello fellow cat lovers!

I'll condense my very long story ~ About two months ago my cat started
defecating outside of the box. Initially I thought it was from stress
caused from one of my other cat's. But then I could see he was forcing
and trying desperately to relieve himself of his waste, but only very
small hard pieces would come out. I brought him to the vet and
explained the behavior they gave him a thorough exam (according to
them) and found nothing physically wrong with him. Since then he's been
to the vet 3 more times and each time, I would ask "are you sure he
isn't constipated?" Over and over again the vet would tell me she
couldn't feel anything in his stomach, so it couldn't be that. Two
nights ago I took Q Tips and Aquaphor (it's like vaseline) and I
inserted it in his rectum, and I could see there was a huge piece of bm
he couldn't get out. And, oh my poor cat's rectum was so sore I wanted
to cry for him. I called them immediately they took him right in he
stayed over night, they gave him 3 enemas and she said a lot of bm came
out, I asked her to take an x-ray and it showed he still had a lot of
poop in him. He's home now and he's still pooping, it's very soft and
he has very little control over it. The poor thing attempts to go in
the litter box too.

The doctor told me she just couldn't feel any waste in him when she
examined his stomach. Two different doctors examined him at this vet
office. How is it possible they couldn't find out if he was
constipated? I figured it out immediately.

The total bill for all this came to $977.00! And my poor fur baby
suffered needlessly.

Last summer our cat at work, Harriet, got very blocked up. Every vet she
saw (3 vets at two different groups) had no problems feeling the blockage.
The first practice just gave her enemas, not sure what kind, and she would
get blocked again immediately. They reluctantly prescribed medication and I
finally took her to another practice who gave her a better enema and upped
her medication. She has been good since then, almost a year now. She still
goes outside the box often and her poop is sometimes a little large/hard but
she is going. If I notice she's having trouble I just up her Lactulose
dose a bit for one or two doses and it loosens everything up.

We spent a lot more than $977 between the two vets on her, especially with
the first useless practice.

--
Liz

Hi Rhonda,

I agree with you, "they should have taken x-rays to begin with. Why did
I have to tell her to take an x-ray before I brought him home
yesterday?

This paragraph from my former post is said with utter sarcasm........

The $977.00 included blood work, a urine specimen, a bath, an over
night's stay, being examined by a vet who wrote for a national woman's
magazine and a few different prescriptions. And, this vets office was
just voted one of the "best" vets in the Washingtonian Magazine.

I can hear the love you have for Sweeter. Please keep us posted on her
test results.
I'm saying a prayer for her and you.

Paige


Rhonda wrote:
Hi Paige,

Sweeter is still recovering. She had a second surgery because of a leak
in the stitched area of the colon. She came down with a nasty abdominal
infection. That was scary -- it was the first time it had happened for
this surgeon and he's done a lot of these surgeries.

She now has some swollen glands around her face and we're trying to
track down the cause. We had more tests done today. It is probably
something completely different, but may be occurring because her system
was compromised with 2 surgeries. It is never boring...

Your bill still sounds like a lot for what was done. You're in the best
position though to judge whether you trust their treatment.

My fingers are crossed for your cat, and for Sweeter.

Rhonda

Paige wrote:
That is exactly what the vet told me he had today when I picked him up
"megacolon." I will read up on it.

The $977.00 included blood work, a urine specimen, a bath, an over
night's stay, being examined by a vet who wrote for a national woman's
magazine and a few different prescriptions. And, this vets office was
just voted one of the "best" vets in the Washingtonian Magazine.

How is your cat doing now?

Paige


Rhonda wrote:

I think you need to find another vet. They should have taken x-rays to
begin with! $977, for enemas? That is terrible! Please find another vet.

Our cat just went through something similar, she had megacolon.
Sometimes their colon gets so full of stuff that it stretches out and
loses it's elasticity. Once that happens, the cat can continually get
constipated because the colon is not able to push the stuff through, and
the colon gets bigger than the rectum and the stuff cannot fit through
to come out.

Do some google searches on cat and megacolon -- you might want to read
up on that. We ended up with a surgery to remove her colon and are still
working with her recuperation.

Good luck,

Rhonda

Paige wrote:

Hello fellow cat lovers!

I'll condense my very long story ~ About two months ago my cat started
defecating outside of the box. Initially I thought it was from stress
caused from one of my other cat's. But then I could see he was forcing
and trying desperately to relieve himself of his waste, but only very
small hard pieces would come out. I brought him to the vet and
explained the behavior they gave him a thorough exam (according to
them) and found nothing physically wrong with him. Since then he's been
to the vet 3 more times and each time, I would ask "are you sure he
isn't constipated?" Over and over again the vet would tell me she
couldn't feel anything in his stomach, so it couldn't be that. Two
nights ago I took Q Tips and Aquaphor (it's like vaseline) and I
inserted it in his rectum, and I could see there was a huge piece of bm
he couldn't get out. And, oh my poor cat's rectum was so sore I wanted
to cry for him. I called them immediately they took him right in he
stayed over night, they gave him 3 enemas and she said a lot of bm came
out, I asked her to take an x-ray and it showed he still had a lot of
poop in him. He's home now and he's still pooping, it's very soft and
he has very little control over it. The poor thing attempts to go in
the litter box too.

The doctor told me she just couldn't feel any waste in him when she
examined his stomach. Two different doctors examined him at this vet
office. How is it possible they couldn't find out if he was
constipated? I figured it out immediately.

The total bill for all this came to $977.00! And my poor fur baby
suffered needlessly.

Original message snipped

Hi Liz,

The vet claims my cat was so large she couldn't feel the blockage. He
is long, but he only weighs 12lbs. If she couldn't feel anything, she
should have taken an x-ray to rule out a blockage. She prescribed
Lactulose too. My mother had a cat with the same problem, and her vet
told her to put a 1/2 tsp. of Metamucil on his wet food. It worked for
him, but how many cats will eat wet food with Metamucil on it?

Glad to hear Harriet is doing good.

Paige


Last summer our cat at work, Harriet, got very blocked up. Every vet she
saw (3 vets at two different groups) had no problems feeling the blockage.
The first practice just gave her enemas, not sure what kind, and she would
get blocked again immediately. They reluctantly prescribed medication and I
finally took her to another practice who gave her a better enema and upped
her medication. She has been good since then, almost a year now. She still
goes outside the box often and her poop is sometimes a little large/hard but
she is going. If I notice she's having trouble I just up her Lactulose
dose a bit for one or two doses and it loosens everything up.

We spent a lot more than $977 between the two vets on her, especially with
the first useless practice.

--
Liz

Paige wrote:

The vet claims my cat was so large she couldn't feel the blockage. He
is long, but he only weighs 12lbs. If she couldn't feel anything, she
should have taken an x-ray to rule out a blockage. She prescribed
Lactulose too. My mother had a cat with the same problem, and her vet
told her to put a 1/2 tsp. of Metamucil on his wet food. It worked for
him, but how many cats will eat wet food with Metamucil on it?


Sorry to hear the problems you have had with your vet. Perhaps if you
give your location, somebody here can recommend a better vet for you.

Several years ago, Kira had a problem, probably constipation. I had to
take her to an emergency vet since it was Sunday, and my vet is closed.
She was sitting there growling, so I knew she was in pain.

The vet couldn't find anything, but he did a thorough "massage" during
his exam, and that seemed to do the trick. He figured there was
probably a minor blockage in her system somewhere. She was also
dehydrated, so he gave her a shot for that and some meds. Within an
hour of being home, she did go to the bathroom, so whatever it was
worked its way through.

So, last year, when she was acting in a similar way late at night. I
took her to me bed and gently massaged her tummy. Half an hour later,
she had a good BM and went back to eating.

A couple weeks later, it happened again, and this time I felt
something. I thought she might have some cancerous mass, but it was
gone by the next morning. I took Kira to the vet anyway since it was
now a recurring event. He gave me a tube of laxative to do a couple
times a week. And he told me what I felt was probably just a larger BM.

So, even I could feel a BM waiting to happen.

Also, years ago, when my dog had an x-ray for other reasons, it was
quite clear that she needed to go to the bathroom. I know it is harder
to do an x-ray with a cat, but if there is a recurring problem, and
this is questionable, an x-ray would seem like an obvious choice to see
what is going on, or at least rule it out.

"Paige" wrote in message
ps.com...
Original message snipped

Hi Liz,

The vet claims my cat was so large she couldn't feel the blockage. He
is long, but he only weighs 12lbs. If she couldn't feel anything, she
should have taken an x-ray to rule out a blockage. She prescribed
Lactulose too. My mother had a cat with the same problem, and her vet
told her to put a 1/2 tsp. of Metamucil on his wet food. It worked for
him, but how many cats will eat wet food with Metamucil on it?

Glad to hear Harriet is doing good.

Paige

Paige,

Both verts did not recommend giving Harriet any type of fiber supplement
because they said it would just make her stools larger. Since she has
trouble passing them and they're large enough as it is, she gets a low
residue prescription dry food (supposed to produce less stool) and high
quality canned food like Wellness, made without grains. The vets said that
regular food has too much filler, which then produces more waste. The
combination of the food, the Lactulose stool softener and Propulsid to help
move everything along has been working. Her stools are still bigger than
normal but she's able to pass them, even if she does pass a lot of them onto
the floor!

I can't believe that your vet couldn't feel a blockage in a 12 pound cat.
Harriet isn't large and she had lost weight before her problem got so bad,
and has lost more since. That's not all due to her health - someone at work
who used to feed her junk food non-stop left last September, right after
this all started up again. But, both vets that she went to took x-rays just
to rule out other causes of her constipation.

--
Liz