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cat urinary issues (long)
Gidget is almost 10. In Oct. we brought home a kitten. Gidget was less than impressed at first and probably stressed. In Nov. I took Gidget to the vet for throwing up. They said she was dehydrated and had a slight fever. $1000 later they determined she had pancreatitis. She was switched to a Diabetic Mgt. food and had 10 days of antibiotics. After another urine sample they said she had struvites.We did another round of antibiotics.
Then they found struvites. Her food was switched to Urinary SO and 10 more days of antibiotics. Now with this last urine sample I dropped off they said the struvites are gone but there is a small amount of blood.
They want to do more antibiotics then if that doesn't clear it up, an ultrasound.
I don't feel comfortable with this vet. I feel like they're stringing me along trying to get as much money out of me as possible since I was shocked at the initial $1K bill. We've moving at the end of May and I'll have access to more vets to get a second opinion.
From what I've looked up online, it doesn't look good. If its cystitis we'd just need to reduce her stress. If its bladder cancer I don't even know what to think.
Has anyone been through this? Is there anything else I should know? Would you still get a second opinion?Edit: Everything I'm finding online says canned food will help to clear up urinary issues. The vet disagrees and most websites says the vet will so they can promote a "veterinary diet". Would you go against the vet and feed canned food too?
Re: cat urinary issues (long)
It never hurts to get a second opinion if you can afford it. Even though I really do trust my vet I've taken my pets for second opinions for serious conditions.
My cat Tinker has FLUTD. The prescription food was not a good option for us (contains gluten which we try to avoid in our house b/c of celiac kids). So my vet told me which levels were the important things to look for. Wellness canned food (not the fish flavors) had the same important levels and much higher quality ingredients. So that's what Tinker's been eating (plus I add a little extra water to it). He's doing really well on it but if he ever stops doing well we will try the prescription food.
For Tinker it has been very important for us to reduce stress and promote fluid intake. So to help with stress we created dog-free and kid-free zones for him, stopped fostering dogs, use feliway plug ins, and when there's going to be a especially stressful event (like the holidays or travel) he wears a calming collar. And to get him to drink more we added extra water dishes that are kept very fresh and a pet fountain.
Ironically I picked up a can of Wellness chicken flavor today. She's been picking a it, but she's never been a fan of wet food so we'll see what happens.
I'm going to order a pet fountain and a Feliway today.
Married / The Cookaholic Wife
First off - If you don't trust the vet, find another one. Period. Its beyond important to trust the person or persons providing veterinary care to your pet. I give my clients the same advice, even if it means they go somewhere else. I wouldn't see a Dr. I didn't trust.
Canned food and urinary kitties = win! It sounds like your vet has a bit of an old school approach. I would definitely feed the canned food and also consider a drinking foutain as cats LOVE running water.
The thing about struvites and hematuria (blood in urine) is this : both can be secondary to the other one. Yes, it is sometimes difficult to tell what is causing the other. Have the cultured the urine at all? That should absolutely be done if not. Maybe they are treating a resistant bacteria. If the urine concentration is low its difficult to see anything in the urine sample, let alone bacteria. Oh - and I wouldn't drop off a urine sample. I would ask them to collect it directly from the bladder. Its the best way to get the most accurate results.
I would make moves to reduce stress on my own at home, especially if you are dealing w/ cystitis. Even if you weren't I would still say its important. I kept Feliway diffusers plugged in all over my house even *in case* my cat stressed about the fact I moved the corner table a 1/4 inch turn to the left.
Also ask about pain medication. Any kind of persistant UTI, cystitis or heaven forbid, bladder cancer HAS to be painful. Has the vet taken x-rays to look for bladder stones? That may also need to be considered. That being said - while expensive, the ultrasound is a much more definitive diagnostic and will look for stones, masses, polyps etc. That is where I would personally put my money.
Good luck w/ everything! Hope this gives you the answer to some of the questions and gets your kitty headed in the right direction!
Back in November when I first took her in they did x-rays and found that she did have a few stones which started this whole antibiotic/urinalysis routine. After the stones were passed then it was struvites and now its blood.
They have cultured the urine each time and have mentioned bacteria but in this last case they said that if this round of antibiotics doesn't clear it up, they want to move forward with an ultrasound because "there's something seriously wrong" in their words.
Gidget gets visibly stressed when she needs to go in her carrier or is at the vet. I was hoping that by doing urine samples instead of taking her in, it would help her a little bit. She absolutely hated her last vet experience and refused to come near us for close to a week afterward.
Thank you for the info! I'll definitely ask them about pain medications too.
Married / The Cookaholic Wife