My cat just had a blockage. What now?

Hi everyone, I am new to this site and will deeply appreciate any advice I
get. On Friday night (it is now Sunday) I ended up in the Veterinary
Emergency Room with my 1 year old male cat. He was found to have a partial
blockage (with a lot of crystals in his urine and a small amount of blood).
He had a catheter placed in over night (about 9 hours) and remained at the
vet for a good portion of the following day. He was not eating, drinking,
urinating or even grooming himself while he was there due to the stress so I
opted to pick him up and see if he would be more relaxed and home and lo and
behold he urinated in the crate on the car ride home and 4 more times when we
got home. I am hoping that he is now fine, but of course I am panic stricken
by the whole experience! What does the future look like? How high is the
reoccurance rate? Is it possible that he will never block again? Also, I
was not sent home with any medication for him or diet recommendations.
Should I have been? I am speaking with my normal vet tomorrow, but if you
guys could ease my mind for the night would be so great. Also, he has been
completed exhausted since he has been home. Is this normal? I am hoping it
was just all the stress he went through? Thanks in advance everyone! Also,
he just pee'ed again as I was writing this, and although he is peeing, only
small amounts come out each time. Is this ok?

MoMo wrote:
Hi everyone, I am new to this site and will deeply appreciate any advice I
get. On Friday night (it is now Sunday) I ended up in the Veterinary
Emergency Room with my 1 year old male cat. He was found to have a partial
blockage (with a lot of crystals in his urine and a small amount of blood).
He had a catheter placed in over night (about 9 hours) and remained at the
vet for a good portion of the following day. He was not eating, drinking,
urinating or even grooming himself while he was there due to the stress so I
opted to pick him up and see if he would be more relaxed and home and lo and
behold he urinated in the crate on the car ride home and 4 more times when we
got home. I am hoping that he is now fine, but of course I am panic stricken
by the whole experience! What does the future look like? How high is the
reoccurance rate? Is it possible that he will never block again? Also, I
was not sent home with any medication for him or diet recommendations.
Should I have been? I am speaking with my normal vet tomorrow, but if you
guys could ease my mind for the night would be so great. Also, he has been
completed exhausted since he has been home. Is this normal? I am hoping it
was just all the stress he went through? Thanks in advance everyone! Also,
he just pee'ed again as I was writing this, and although he is peeing, only
small amounts come out each time. Is this ok?

I don't have any answers for you, but I do know that you should be able
to call the emergency vet hospital where he stayed and speak to his
doctor about your questions. I hope they can make recommendations and
ease your mind.

Thank you for responding Lynne. I did just call the vet hospital he went to
and was told that he was given an injection of antibiodics that are long
lasting. She also told me that there is a very good chance that the blockage
will occur one day in the future, but that it may never. So basically, my
poor cat will never have privacy again while going to the bathroom because I
am sure I will be hovering over him each time to make sure everything is
"coming out okay" I would still love to hear from others that have had
this experience to see what has happened to them. Thanks again!

Lynne wrote:
Hi everyone, I am new to this site and will deeply appreciate any advice I
get. On Friday night (it is now Sunday) I ended up in the Veterinary
[quoted text clipped - 15 lines]
he just pee'ed again as I was writing this, and although he is peeing, only
small amounts come out each time. Is this ok?

I don't have any answers for you, but I do know that you should be able
to call the emergency vet hospital where he stayed and speak to his
doctor about your questions. I hope they can make recommendations and
ease your mind.

Suddenly, without warning, MoMo exclaimed (09-Oct-06 6:21 AM):
Hi everyone, I am new to this site and will deeply appreciate any advice I
get. On Friday night (it is now Sunday) I ended up in the Veterinary
Emergency Room with my 1 year old male cat. He was found to have a partial
blockage (with a lot of crystals in his urine and a small amount of blood).
He had a catheter placed in over night (about 9 hours) and remained at the
vet for a good portion of the following day. He was not eating, drinking,
urinating or even grooming himself while he was there due to the stress so I
opted to pick him up and see if he would be more relaxed and home and lo and
behold he urinated in the crate on the car ride home and 4 more times when we
got home. I am hoping that he is now fine, but of course I am panic stricken
by the whole experience! What does the future look like? How high is the
reoccurance rate? Is it possible that he will never block again? Also, I
was not sent home with any medication for him or diet recommendations.
Should I have been? I am speaking with my normal vet tomorrow, but if you
guys could ease my mind for the night would be so great. Also, he has been
completed exhausted since he has been home. Is this normal? I am hoping it
was just all the stress he went through? Thanks in advance everyone! Also,
he just pee'ed again as I was writing this, and although he is peeing, only
small amounts come out each time. Is this ok?


Small amounts are better than no amounts, but still not good. My
experience is with a female cat, not a male. I'd call your vet and get
recommendations - it just may be that it'll take a little bit for any
meds he was given to take effect; the crystals cause damage so he's
likely to be sore.

In a nutshell, here's what I've done to keep Meep from having another
cystitis attack:

1. Water!
2. Canned food & urinary control dry food
3. Glucosamine
4. Closely watch litterbox habits
5. Urinary control supplement as necessary

First, water. Is he drinking enough? Probably not. Not enough water =
concentrated urine = crystal formation. Try to get him to drink more.
I've purchased a Drinkwell fountain, plus placed water bowls all over
the house - she has a total of three places she can get a drink. Her
favorite is the one by our bed. Try them in different places until you
find optimum placement. If you live in an area that has water with a
high mineral content, you might try filtered water (which Meep gets,
mostly), or bottled water. Don't know if this is true, but I was told
highly mineralized water can, over the long term, cause urinary problems.

Food. Cats that eat only dry food aren't getting as much water as those
eating wet. Meep gets a can of wet food each night (with a bit of water
and her supplements added), and controlled but free-choice high quality
dry food at other times. After an attack, or during high-stress periods
(like when she was in quarantine during an overseas move), she gets
Royal Canin's vet-only urinary control dry food. Seems to work, she
didn't have an attack the whole time she was in quarantine, and I'd have
though she would - she was very stressed.

Glucosamine - vet tells me that it coats the bladder, helping protect it
from any crystals that form. The vet gave me Cosequin, but that's
rather expensive. Glucosamine is also good for arthritis, so Meep gets
a Joint Care formula from Drs Fosters and Smith, rather than Cosequin:
http://tinyurl.com/pauyt

I also closely watch her litterbox habits. If she pees in my presence,
I note whether or not she lifts her butt during the process (can be and
indicator of discomfort). I check the litterbox and see how much she's
left behind. I also note how much she digs - when she's uncomfortable,
she digs more than normal, and will often return to the box two or three
times over a small period of time.

When this happens, I pull out the last item in my arsenal, a urinary
control paste (has dl-methionine, which I think helps dissolve crystals)
that I get from Drs Foster and Smith: http://tinyurl.com/mvvbw

Not sure if what I'm doing is overkill, but it *is* working. Meep was
in catteries or in quarantine for over two months, plus spent most of a
day flying, and never once had an attack. She also didn't have any
problems after I got her back, in a new country. Her only problem was
constipation (probably from overgrooming) which I've corrected by adding
a bit of Benefiber to her food at night. She doesn't hack up hairballs
much, so all that hair goes out the other end - she's always had hard,
mostly hairy, stools.

Well, I hope this helps. I'd discuss my suggestions with your regular
vet, see how much s/he think is necessary at this time. I'd at least
call and discuss your cat's current situation, and see if the little
pees are normal as he's recovering, or signal a need for further treatment.

This might sound like a lot, but in practice is just observation, and
stuff added to her canned food at night.

jmc

Hi JMC and thank you so much for responding. I did speak with the vet at the
emergency clinic and was told that the small amounts of urine were okay in
this recovery time (about the size of a golf ball each time). They faxed his
records over to my regular vet and I am speaking with them tomorrow, and I
cannot wait. My nerves are shot right now over this. He has been sleeping a
lot since bringing him home from the vet but I am hopeful that is just due to
the stress he was under while there overnight and most of the following day.
They told me that he did not sleep at all while there. I am definitely going
to talk with my vet about what kind of a special diet he needs to be on now.
Again, thank you so much for responding and I am so happy that your cat is
going so well!

jmc wrote:
Suddenly, without warning, MoMo exclaimed (09-Oct-06 6:21 AM):
Hi everyone, I am new to this site and will deeply appreciate any advice I
get. On Friday night (it is now Sunday) I ended up in the Veterinary
[quoted text clipped - 15 lines]
he just pee'ed again as I was writing this, and although he is peeing, only
small amounts come out each time. Is this ok?

Small amounts are better than no amounts, but still not good. My
experience is with a female cat, not a male. I'd call your vet and get
recommendations - it just may be that it'll take a little bit for any
meds he was given to take effect; the crystals cause damage so he's
likely to be sore.

In a nutshell, here's what I've done to keep Meep from having another
cystitis attack:

1. Water!
2. Canned food & urinary control dry food
3. Glucosamine
4. Closely watch litterbox habits
5. Urinary control supplement as necessary

First, water. Is he drinking enough? Probably not. Not enough water =
concentrated urine = crystal formation. Try to get him to drink more.
I've purchased a Drinkwell fountain, plus placed water bowls all over
the house - she has a total of three places she can get a drink. Her
favorite is the one by our bed. Try them in different places until you
find optimum placement. If you live in an area that has water with a
high mineral content, you might try filtered water (which Meep gets,
mostly), or bottled water. Don't know if this is true, but I was told
highly mineralized water can, over the long term, cause urinary problems.

Food. Cats that eat only dry food aren't getting as much water as those
eating wet. Meep gets a can of wet food each night (with a bit of water
and her supplements added), and controlled but free-choice high quality
dry food at other times. After an attack, or during high-stress periods
(like when she was in quarantine during an overseas move), she gets
Royal Canin's vet-only urinary control dry food. Seems to work, she
didn't have an attack the whole time she was in quarantine, and I'd have
though she would - she was very stressed.

Glucosamine - vet tells me that it coats the bladder, helping protect it
from any crystals that form. The vet gave me Cosequin, but that's
rather expensive. Glucosamine is also good for arthritis, so Meep gets
a Joint Care formula from Drs Fosters and Smith, rather than Cosequin:
http://tinyurl.com/pauyt

I also closely watch her litterbox habits. If she pees in my presence,
I note whether or not she lifts her butt during the process (can be and
indicator of discomfort). I check the litterbox and see how much she's
left behind. I also note how much she digs - when she's uncomfortable,
she digs more than normal, and will often return to the box two or three
times over a small period of time.

When this happens, I pull out the last item in my arsenal, a urinary
control paste (has dl-methionine, which I think helps dissolve crystals)
that I get from Drs Foster and Smith: http://tinyurl.com/mvvbw

Not sure if what I'm doing is overkill, but it *is* working. Meep was
in catteries or in quarantine for over two months, plus spent most of a
day flying, and never once had an attack. She also didn't have any
problems after I got her back, in a new country. Her only problem was
constipation (probably from overgrooming) which I've corrected by adding
a bit of Benefiber to her food at night. She doesn't hack up hairballs
much, so all that hair goes out the other end - she's always had hard,
mostly hairy, stools.

Well, I hope this helps. I'd discuss my suggestions with your regular
vet, see how much s/he think is necessary at this time. I'd at least
call and discuss your cat's current situation, and see if the little
pees are normal as he's recovering, or signal a need for further treatment.

This might sound like a lot, but in practice is just observation, and
stuff added to her canned food at night.

jmc

"MoMo" u27647@uwe wrote in message news:67795c452efe8@uwe...
Hi everyone, I am new to this site and will deeply appreciate any advice
I
get. On Friday night (it is now Sunday) I ended up in the Veterinary
Emergency Room with my 1 year old male cat. He was found to have a
partial
blockage (with a lot of crystals in his urine and a small amount of
blood).
He had a catheter placed in over night (about 9 hours) and remained at the
vet for a good portion of the following day. He was not eating, drinking,
urinating or even grooming himself while he was there due to the stress so
I
opted to pick him up and see if he would be more relaxed and home and lo
and
behold he urinated in the crate on the car ride home and 4 more times when
we
got home. I am hoping that he is now fine, but of course I am panic
stricken
by the whole experience! What does the future look like? How high is the
reoccurance rate? Is it possible that he will never block again? Also, I
was not sent home with any medication for him or diet recommendations.
Should I have been? I am speaking with my normal vet tomorrow, but if you
guys could ease my mind for the night would be so great. Also, he has
been
completed exhausted since he has been home. Is this normal? I am hoping
it
was just all the stress he went through? Thanks in advance everyone!
Also,
he just pee'ed again as I was writing this, and although he is peeing,
only
small amounts come out each time. Is this ok?

It might take a few days or longer before he's urinating normally again-
providing he doesn't reblock and his urethra wasn't permanently damaged. If
his bladder was overdistended for any length of time the tight junctions
between the muscle fibers in the bladder might have separated a bit. This
can interrupt the flow of motor nerve impulses across the bladder that
control contraction. How long it takes for the tight junctions to reform
depends on how long and how much the bladder was overdistended.

Another possibility for problems urinating after the obstruction has been
relieved is urethral spasms or urethral trauma- which could have been caused
by crystals or by catheterization. Catheterization itself can cause
inflammation that can result in dysuria. The drugs used to control urethral
spasms carry some significant risks, so, I would try to avoid using them if
possible.

Did the ER vet tell you which type of obstruction your cat had? Uretheral
plugs are more common in male cats than solid crystals. Whether he had a
crystal or plug- your should feed your cat only canned food if possible.
The type of diet depends on the type of crystals: Hill's s/d for struvite
dissolution and c/d for management; Hill's x/d for calcium oxalate.

Canned diets increase water consumption which results in a more dilute
urine. The increased water consumption also results in more frequent
urination which helps eliminate small crystal particles before they become
large enough to interfere with urination.
You can help increase his water consumption by adding a few more water bowls
and getting a a Drinkwell water fountain.

You might also want to move his litterboxes to a low traffic, quiet area but
also where you can monitor his litterbox behavior without disturbing him--
especially for the next few days.

Best of luck,

Phil

Hi Phil. Thank you for all the info. I just spoke with my regular vet and
was told that the cause of my cat's blockage was struvite (sp) crystals and
they are the type of crystals which can be dissolved when using a certain
diet and medication. I am leaving work early today so that I can go grab
both and start my little guy on the ASAP. I am to bring him back to the vet
in a month for another urinanalysis so that they can check to see if there
are still crystals forming. I do feel better though knowing there is
something that I can do to help him through diet to help prevent another
attack, although I know that that is not certain either.

Again, thank you everyone for all your help and advice!

Phil P. wrote:
Hi everyone, I am new to this site and will deeply appreciate any advice I
get. On Friday night (it is now Sunday) I ended up in the Veterinary
[quoted text clipped - 15 lines]
he just pee'ed again as I was writing this, and although he is peeing, only
small amounts come out each time. Is this ok?

It might take a few days or longer before he's urinating normally again-
providing he doesn't reblock and his urethra wasn't permanently damaged. If
his bladder was overdistended for any length of time the tight junctions
between the muscle fibers in the bladder might have separated a bit. This
can interrupt the flow of motor nerve impulses across the bladder that
control contraction. How long it takes for the tight junctions to reform
depends on how long and how much the bladder was overdistended.

Another possibility for problems urinating after the obstruction has been
relieved is urethral spasms or urethral trauma- which could have been caused
by crystals or by catheterization. Catheterization itself can cause
inflammation that can result in dysuria. The drugs used to control urethral
spasms carry some significant risks, so, I would try to avoid using them if
possible.

Did the ER vet tell you which type of obstruction your cat had? Uretheral
plugs are more common in male cats than solid crystals. Whether he had a
crystal or plug- your should feed your cat only canned food if possible.
The type of diet depends on the type of crystals: Hill's s/d for struvite
dissolution and c/d for management; Hill's x/d for calcium oxalate.

Canned diets increase water consumption which results in a more dilute
urine. The increased water consumption also results in more frequent
urination which helps eliminate small crystal particles before they become
large enough to interfere with urination.
You can help increase his water consumption by adding a few more water bowls
and getting a a Drinkwell water fountain.

You might also want to move his litterboxes to a low traffic, quiet area but
also where you can monitor his litterbox behavior without disturbing him--
especially for the next few days.

Best of luck,

Phil

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