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Old 01-01-2016, 12:40 PM
 
Location: Houston
811 posts, read 1,547,464 times
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I posted this on another thread but got no response so am trying on this one as it is a similar situation.

My cat recently had a urinary blockage and the vet put him on canned Royal Canin SO. I have been feeding him this mixed with a little Fancy Feast. It is the only way to get him to eat it. I am trying to find a better quality food that will not compromise his urinary tract health. After trying to read all of Dr Piersons Cat Info site, I am going to try him on commercial canned food and have decided on Natures Variety Instinct Grain Free (chicken to start). Does anyone have any opinions on this? Am I making a mistake? I would really love to hear pro and cons on what I want to do. Thanks.
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Old 01-01-2016, 12:52 PM
 
Location: Camberville
15,798 posts, read 21,308,506 times
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Wow Rescue Remedy! I balked at the price but it sure does work. He hasn't let me hold him more than a few seconds for the past 2 days but within 5 minutes of giving him some Rescue Remedy orally and a few dropped massaged behind his heads, he was purring up a storm in my lap with his head nestled in my elbow. He normally wouldn't sleep like this (Sir Puck prefers I lay down with him), so to get him to lay down for 20 minutes even as I typed with the other hand is nothing short of a miracle.

Hope a nap will give him some relief. When I went out to the store to get the Rescue Remedy, he peed a lot more than his previous drops in a bag I left out for him. It was a little bloody - the first bloody urine he's had - but I'm hoping that's a function of clearing his bladder. He's squatted a few times since then and it's all been clear. It seems like his squats are less frequent, now only about every half hour versus every few minutes before.

Thanks for letting me vent here. When I get worried, I obsess and one friend has already told me that she loves Puck but can't listen to me talk about his urine anymore. :P I rescued him 5 years ago and in that time we've gone through so much: a major breakup with the person I thought I'd marry, a cross country move, my first job, my stage IV cancer diagnosis and subsequent chemo, and a lot of related medical stuff. He's my best buddy. Because of all of the medical stuff I've gone through at such a young age with no support from family, staring down $1000+ in medical bills if he blocks is beyond terrifying. Puck responds to my stress so I'm trying to stay as calm as possible so it doesn't stress him out further, but it's really hard with everything going on.
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Old 01-01-2016, 01:04 PM
 
Location: Camberville
15,798 posts, read 21,308,506 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Cabot View Post
I posted this on another thread but got no response so am trying on this one as it is a similar situation.

My cat recently had a urinary blockage and the vet put him on canned Royal Canin SO. I have been feeding him this mixed with a little Fancy Feast. It is the only way to get him to eat it. I am trying to find a better quality food that will not compromise his urinary tract health. After trying to read all of Dr Piersons Cat Info site, I am going to try him on commercial canned food and have decided on Natures Variety Instinct Grain Free (chicken to start). Does anyone have any opinions on this? Am I making a mistake? I would really love to hear pro and cons on what I want to do. Thanks.
Are you out of the Royal Canin SO? I would finish up what you have, and don't think it will really hurt if you have to mix the food. Just slowly transition from less Fancy Feast to more of the "good stuff." The same would be true of the Nature's Variety (which seems like a good choice - 95% meat). You will still probably need to wean him onto it with a little Fancy Feast. I don't know what they put in that, but it's like junk food for cats. It's what I normally feed Puck knowing that it's not the best, but he will barely touch the better stuff most of the time.

After this is over and Puck is more willing to try new foods (which he absolutely is not when he's feeling sick), I want to try to get him on an alternate protein like rabbit. That seems to be a pretty common suggestion for cats who have lower urinary issues. Chicken is definitely better than fish, which can prompt issues, but it seems like many specialists recommend trying other proteins instead.
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Old 01-02-2016, 04:45 PM
 
Location: Philaburbia
41,744 posts, read 74,721,167 times
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Poor Puck! Hope he's feeling better soon.
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Old 01-02-2016, 05:47 PM
 
Location: Camberville
15,798 posts, read 21,308,506 times
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I kept him in the bathroom last night with the special litter, and he seemed to go almost everywhere but the box! Luckily there was juuust enough to collect. I took the urine to the vet only to find out they send everything out to a lab and I won't get the results until Monday. No way to even look for crystals at the office. >.< Definitely seeking out a different vet from here on out as I really wanted him on the Rx canned food today for my own peace of mind.

He's had a few larger pees today (including one that was about golf ball size!), though still nowhere near normal and still a lot of squatting, though less than the past two days. Poor baby. He seems to be able to pee a bit more if I spend time massaging his lower abdomen. I'm not trying to express the bladder, but maybe it's moving it around a bit more. I think the vet underprescribed the pain meds - .1CC of buprenex once a day - but everything I'm reading online says it's only good for 6-12 hours!?! I just put a tiny bit more in his cheek because he was whining a bit more.

In the meantime, I've been warming up portions of some low carb-high protein canned food and mixing it with water and Rescue Remedy. I've never warmed his food before and that definitely seems to be helping!

Still really nervous about the potential to block.
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Old 01-02-2016, 06:50 PM
 
11,198 posts, read 19,372,396 times
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Thanks for the update. I'm sorry I didn't answer sooner about the d-mannose, I saw where you said you suffer from UTIs too. I do too and that's how I initially discovered the d-mannose, but it is used in cats too. It's also how I know the relief can be within a half hour after taking a dose.

I get my d-mannose on line but you can find it in a health food store probably. Just look for pure powder, with nothing else in it. I use this product:

http://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

D-mannose is safe for humans and cats and acts as an adhesive in the bladder.

That's the simple explanation. Here are some links on it for both people and animals

https://www.vetinfo.com/d-mannose-for-cats.html

Feline Lower Urinary Tract Disease

This vet sells her own supplement so some will consider it suspect but it corroborates my experience (and my cat's)

Prevent Urinary Tract Infection in Cats

Here is info on humans but it can be applied to cats;
Treat and Prevent UTIs Without Drugs

Yhis is the short answer. Glad the Rescue Remedy is helping him too. I've had great results with it for one of my cats, too. She also was diagnosed with "FLUTD" many years ago, and takes d-mannose on the pulse method.
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Old 01-02-2016, 10:04 PM
 
3,956 posts, read 4,196,898 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by charolastra00 View Post
I think the vet underprescribed the pain meds - .1CC of buprenex once a day - but everything I'm reading online says it's only good for 6-12 hours!?! I just put a tiny bit more in his cheek because he was whining a bit more.
I just checked the bottle on my cat's buprenex (leftover from surgery). My vet prescribed 0.05 cc every 8 to 12 hours. The cat in question was tiny, which is probably why the dose was half of your cat's dose, but you might want to call your vet and ask if you can increase the frequency of dosing. Buprenex is pretty powerful stuff and can be very sedating, so caution is advised.
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Old 01-02-2016, 10:06 PM
 
Location: Houston
811 posts, read 1,547,464 times
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I have given my cat his first dose tonight. I have a disabled family member with recurring UTI's who takes D-Mannose and it has worked wonders for her. It was recommended by the Christopher Reeve Foundation. I never thought about it for my cat! I still have him on the SO until I hear back from my Vet on Monday. I too am really nervous about him getting blocked again.
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Old 01-03-2016, 06:49 AM
 
Location: Camberville
15,798 posts, read 21,308,506 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by LoriNJ View Post
I just checked the bottle on my cat's buprenex (leftover from surgery). My vet prescribed 0.05 cc every 8 to 12 hours. The cat in question was tiny, which is probably why the dose was half of your cat's dose, but you might want to call your vet and ask if you can increase the frequency of dosing. Buprenex is pretty powerful stuff and can be very sedating, so caution is advised.
My cat is about 12 pounds so .1cc once a day seems particularly insane.

In any case, we're off to the e-vet now. It doesn't seem like he's even trying to pee now, and there were only a few drops overnight in the litter box with no visible sign that he tried to go anywhere else. He doesn't seem to be in pain and lets me touch his abdomen (which feels fuller to me, though I might be paranoid) and ate all of his breakfast this morning eagerly, but I don't want to risk it. Ugh.

Just liquidated my emergency savings account.
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Old 01-03-2016, 08:13 AM
 
3,956 posts, read 4,196,898 times
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Good luck. Please keep us posted.
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