Ask questions and share about your pet's health to help others.
Hi everyone,
It’s my first time to have a pet her name is Kumiko i got her when she was only 3month now she’s already 6months. When i got her her fur parents didn’t told me initially that her mother got her tail degloved. She was born inverted butt first so her mom accidentally degloved her tail. I have been treating her since then. Her tail will dry up and will last for 4-7days then the skin sheds and bleeds. She’s been wearing Elizabeth collar since then. I am getting desperate already. I consulted a Vet and now they are suggesting to have it amputated. There is no current infection but it doest heal properly. Hope someone can help me. I still don’t want her to get amputated.
I have A Himalayan male cat who had a urinary blockage.
He was at the emergency vet for three days and was cleared to go home and has been doing good since, but he is peeing everywhere except his litter box. They said this would be expected but it has been longer than they said and he has no desire to use his box.
Has anyone else had this issue and how did you help fix it?
Have you tried cat attract litter? Or moving the box? Or *changing* the box to a different style? He probably associates the litterbox with pain, so changing things up should be the next thing. Also make sure you use an enzymatic cleaner for the messes.
Are you using cat attract litter?
How about dirt? I know that freshly turned dirt attracts cats, so why not try that? (Make sure it’s plain old organic topsoil with no additives.)
Hello
I would add that in cases like this I place the cat in a large crate. They stay in the crate for whatever time it takes to retrain them. Like a dog crate. Place newspaper on the bottom. Then add a litter box and bed. If they aren’t using the litter box in the crate then remove the litter box and place litter over the newspaper. If they aren’t using it then I rem e the bed. Therefore the only thing their feet feel is litter. I should also add that I let the cat pick the litter they like by giving them Potok s. Like place clumping litter in one area. Non clumping in another. Try sand. And try potting soil. Some cats just have a preference and you never know what that is until you offer it. Also people need to be thinking about litter boxes. Some cats want open. Some want covered. Some want big and flat. Others hidden and quiet.
If the cat still isn’t using it I add a medication for stress and pain. Maybe gabapentin. Or fluoxetine. But there are others.
Ask your vet. Or find a feline vet who only sees cats. They are often great resources.
Hope this helps.
Hi krista , thank you for the suggestions. I will Try those ideas. He has started to slowly come around to using it and it’s 50/50 now if he’s in the box or on the floor. He does have gabapentin and zylkene to help lower his stress. Will update with results!
I just found out that one or both of my cats are peeing/spraying on my baseboards in the basement. This has never been a problem. I have no idea what has caused this or what to do to stop it. I have 2 female cats. They get along just fine with no issues. What could this mean? How can I stop it?
Hello,
I always tell my clients that if cats had opposable thumbs they would write on the walls “Hey! Pay attention there’s a problem!” But they don’t so instead they pee outside of the box. There is an issue. The challenge is figuring out what that issue is.
First head to the vet for an examination and bloodwork to include a urinalysis. Look for a medical issue like uti,cystitis, diabetes, Kinsey disease etc etc. Lots of things cause abnormal urine output. Start there. Otherwise a medical condition can continue and worsen your cats prognosis. After that address behavior. We add medications for stress, anxiety and discomfort. Also consider crate training in a large crate so they cannot wander back the the soiled places and give them their own safe place. In some cases long term medication is indicated.
My point is that your cat is asking for help. How far are you willing to go to help them?
I hope it is to the ends of the earth. Too many cats are abandoned or euthanized bc people can’t see past the annoyance of urinating outside of the box.
Good luck.
Keep us posted
What is the likelihood of this poor kitty regaining bladder/bowel function?
We recently trapped and rescued an injured stray. We’ll never fully know what happened to him but he has a multitude of injuries some old and healed and some not. Required a lot of teeth to be pulled and had to have his tail amputated due to sores and maggots inside. He has about 2 inches of tail left. Surgery was done 3 days ago. He wasnt moving his tail when we got him but is walking fine. Since getting him home I notice hes leaking urine with no control and seems to be constipated. I’m unfortunately no stranger to spinal injuries in cats but he appears to still have anal tone, unsure about sensation at tail base and is mobilising fine. But his abdomen seems quite distended and a little tense. I have managed to express urine from him and giving him laxatives (back to the vets tomorrow if no poops). Just wondering what his outlook is likely to be to better guide his rehab. I know it might be too soon to tell yet but any guidance is appreciated.
Hello,
The answer to this depends on a lot of things. Like age, degree of trauma , other neurological deficits and post op time.
In general cats are very resilient and even if they don’t fully recover they often manage their challenges quite well.
I guess my advice is to not give up but know what you are dealing with. Palpate the bladder multiple times a day and check a urine anytime it smells bad or looks murky. Keep encouraging walking and playing. Nothing rebuilds muscle better than that. Learn to palpate the colon. Add water or a laxative (not fiber as I feel it just adds bulk and makes defecating harder) to help the stool stay soft and easy to pass. I hope this helps.
I have an elderly cat who is about 15 years old. Vet says she is in good health. I just want to know what is normal behavior for elderly cats. She is relaxed and sleeping most of the time. Her favorite spot right now is on our mat in front of the oven. Her appetite has decreased. She often makes a sound like she has a hair ball but just a little clear liquid comes out. Are these normal things for a cat of this age?
Hello,
Did your vet offer any diagnostics? Blood, urine, blood pressure? I think every 15 yr old deserves them. And I also think vet vista every 6 months from here on out are a great way to find problems early.
As far as normal for an elderly cat goes,, well they are each their own. So that’s hard to quantify.
Our adult cat (probably about 10-12 years old) has a fracture on her front left paw/leg. It’s the holiday weekend, so we splinted it but we don’t want her to suffer until Tuesday. There’s an emergency vet but it’s over 2 hours away (we live in a rural area) and of course the expense will be outrageous so while we are willing to do whatever needed we’re wondering if there are any OTC pain meds we can give her until Tuesday when we can take her to our regular vet, or is she at risk of complications if we wait? Any info is appreciated. The break seems to be right above the paw joint.
Hello,
I’m sorry to hear about your cat.
Sadly there really aren’t any otc medications that I feel are safe for cats.
The best advice I can give is to place her in a cage that allows her room to sleep, eat and use a litter box. Nothing bigger than that. If you are worried about the cost of an orthopedic surgeon than resting in a small ache to allow it to heal is the next best option. For pain meds you would have to see your vet.
Good luck
My 9 yr. old Megacolon cat Eli wasn’t able to poop. It happens sometimes. He’s on Cisapride and Merilax daily, but he still get’s backed up. When he started vomiting after not being able to BM and jumping out of the litter box I took him to the vet. They did an enema on June 20th. He’s still backed up! I can’t afford 1k plus to have a vet manually extract the feces (this is Washington, DC area – everything is very expensive!). He hasn’t started throwing up again, but he’s not eating much and I need to find out if there is something I can do more at home to get him through this emergent time. I can’t just watch my cat suffer. I have Pedi lax, but don’t know if that would help or hinder at this point. I watch videos on palpitating the colon to try and break up the feces. I know there are specific enemas to give cats at home. Is it too late to try this? My vet is frankly bad and too busy to bother, so she said to just go to the emergency. It sure seems like there are other steps that can be taken ,,,at least I hope so becuase I just don’t have that kind of money left with the cost for caring for my hospice Husky, Loki. Help!
Hello,
For these cases I talk a lot with owners about trying to identify the underlying cause. Often it is poor diet and sedentary life but there are also diseases and illnesses that can contribute. If able start to learn how to palpate your cats colon and feed watery wet food and use the fiber supplements and laxatives. Exercise is also very important. For these cats we start training in a harness to go outside for walks. I feel that if you don’t increase environmental enrichment and stimulation they won’t start moving.
But before all of this you have to remove the obstructive feces. This often needs a vets help. Call rescues and shelters and keep asking for affordable help.
Household “accidents”, need advice, please!! I have 3 cats, 3 dogs, and a toddler human. In the past few months my two youngest “house trained” dogs (9 & 5 yrs) and my youngest cat (4 yrs) have been purposely relieving themselves in different parts of my house. The dogs poop/pee on the floor, in the past month they began peeing on my couch, it’s gotten so bad I have to keep them in crates most of the time they’re inside. The cat will pee on my toddlers belongings – first on clothes in his laundry basket (which is now inside a closet) and on his stuffed animals (which I had to hide in a bin), now has resorted to peeing on any accessible hard plastic toys. If I put the cat in a kennel she uses the litter box 100% of the time, once releasing her she’ll behave for 1-2 days then starts up again. The dogs will have “accidents” within 10 minutes inside after being outside for 30-60+ minutes. I have 3 litterboxes, each with a different kind of litter, all clean, no diagnosed medical issues (taken all 3 to the vet twice since this started $$$). My oldest dog has been going through dementia for the past year, it’s getting worse but not yet at the point of euthanasia. I started preparing to move the past 6 months, house is almost done being packed/cleared. I’m not sure which/both/none are triggers for them acting this way. All of them have moved with me before and they never did this on previous moves. Vet prescribed multiple anxiety meds which are not helping at all, they have no other solutions to offer. Ironically my 14yr old dog with dementia barely ever has accidents in the house. Personality wise they aren’t acting any different. Messes are thoroughly cleaned immediately and they don’t even bother to do this secretively, all 3 seem to purposely do it right in front of me. The situation is driving me to my wits end, I really need help 
Besides keeping them all in crates I have no other solution. Does anyone have insight to what I can do? Thanks so much!
Hello,
In cases of inappropriate urination we always start with looking for a medical reason and start addressing the behavior possibilities. That means every animal urinating outside the box or inside in unwanted areas gets an exam and a urine check. It might be that one has a urinary issue and is soiling and the rest are following the same behavior because the area now smells like a place to pee. You have to clean so thoroughly they can’t smell residual urine (and remember their noses are so much better than ours!)
Also rhe stress of moving might be contributing. Or even the stress of the other dogs dementia might be a contributor. I use a lot of calming agent like feliway and DAP and add more litter boxes. Different kinds of litter and even try different kinds of litter. Try not to get angry at them. They think they are doing something completely appropriate and never do anything to make you upset or for spite. (Only humans do those things). If all of that fails you can try an oral behavior modification medication. They have worked well in many cases I have had.
Looking for information regarding polyps. In January of this year (2022) my then 3 1/2 year old cat developed what seemed like nasal congestion. She would snore, wheeze and “slurp” through her mouth. After 2 rounds of antibiotics they discovered she had a polyp under her soft pallet. After removal of the polyp her symptoms subsided a little but never completely. We then tried steroids but these did not help either. Now they are recommending I go to a specialist/internal medicine veterinary hospital to get a rhinoscopy and ct scan to see if there are additional polyps or some other kind of blockage. The initial consult visit would be $250 and the scoping and ct scan would cost $2500 to $3200. Is it common for cats to have more than one polyp and is there other treatments you would try before the very costly next step my vet is suggesting? I’ve already spent $1000 with what we have done so far so I am looking for any suggestions you can offer! I hate seeing her uncomfortable!! I should mention that she is not sneezing or coughing, but shake her head sometimes. She is eating fine and acting mostly fine except when lying down as that is when the difficulty breathing seems to get the worst.
Hello,
Without knowing your pet I would say the options are to recheck for the polyp (they can recur), try a barrage of medications to see if any help, or wait and see what happens , or see the specialist. There I’m not sure this is helpful but it’s the best I’ve got. Good luck
How can you make a cats oversized bladder shrink?
I know it’s possible,
Do they need to be hospitalized?
I seen a video of a guy with a cat that has lower motor neuron bladder atony. He said his cat had a cath for 3 wks and it shrunk the bladder.
Also diapers… is it a guarantee that a cat will get a bladder infection from wearing a diaper or is it just a possibility? I see hertz has special diapers for cats n dogs, it doesn’t say if they will help block infections. We have an appointment the 23rd with the neurologist for a 2nd opinion. I was told mri is $4,500 to $8,400. We don’t know how to look at this situation or what to do. Our hearts are breaking at the thought of possibly saying goodbye to our 3yr old cuddle bug. He peed on me twice this morning while he was sleeping. I worry I am squeezing too hard, or that he is in pain.
Notifications
Unfortunately, amputation really needs to happen here. Please do this – your kitten is suffering otherwise.
Hello
The tail is already missing the tip. We call this amputated. So I would say your cat already has an amputated tail but a little bit more needs to be removed so the tail can heal properly. It’s not a difficult or expensive surgery (probably $ 300-400) at my clinic. Once it heals she shouldn’t need the ecollar anymore.