My cat is constipated and can't urinate!!!

[beckiandthetrio]

Hello--

Im gonna make this short and sweet at this moment because Im at work right now and dont have alot of time.

I used to visit this website frequently but havent in awhile but Ive always appreciated people's advice!!

Anyhow, the issue is my 6year old male cat Panda. I was gone for 4days over the weekend with my sister checking in on them. when i got home last night noticed panda was using the litter box constantly and even urinated out of the litter box (very unusual for him). I took him to the vet this morning and he was diagnosed with constipation and has recieved an enema and will get another later. He still hasnt peed yet as of a couple of hrs ago so they will cath him if needed. He is staying the night and I will be picking him up in the AM. by the way my cats are on Solid Gold Indigo Moon and wet food almost daily.

My question is has anyone else gone through this before?? Common causes?? Any options on how to pay for large vet bills (any programs)?? Any other feedback you can give me will be great!!!


Thanks in advance,
Becki and Panda

[beckiandthetrio]

I have since gotten a call back from the vet, he had his 2nd enema and cleared out some more and has peed. They dont think its a urine issue anyhow. The vet wants to put him on lactolose too. Is that a long term solution or is there something else to add to that?? He will get hopefully his final enema in the am and then i get to bring him home I miss him already!!

Becki

[Winston]

pumpkin works wonders for both diareah and constipation. just put say 1/2 tsp on the food and see if they will eat it. I know it works in dogs and pretty sure cats as well...also a dab of yogurt will help with the tummy!

what do you feel your cat? perhaps its the food? do you feed wet or dry?

[sugarcatmom]

Glad that Panda finally peed! As for the constipation, I think eliminating the kibble and sticking to wet food might help. Was he eating only dry while you were away? If he's used to getting at least some wet and then only had dry food available for those 4 days, that lack of moisture could be a factor in Panda becoming constipated. Rather than trying lactulose long-term, I would concentrate on feeding only canned and perhaps using more natural supplements like slippery elm bark or pumpkin or Vet's Best Hairball Gel.

For financial aid for large vet bills, maybe these links will have some info:
http://www.hsus.org/pets/pet_care/tr..._your_pet.html
http://www.uan.org/index.cfm?navid=163

[beckiandthetrio]

Thanks much for the responses. I picked him up this morning and he is now a new man I have the lactulose script which im gonna fill after work. He does get canned and dry but im gonna switch him to all canned as the vet and your all recommened. I do make my own cat food occasionally too so I was wondering if there are any recpies out there for low-residue diets.

thanks again,

Becki

[quincymycat]

I am bit late for a reply, but have been going through the same thing with one of my kitties,.. He got to the point he had to be manually evacuated as enemas did not help. Again, it was during a time I was not here and relied on a sitter.
My vet put him on lactulose, benefibre and prepulsid after the evacuation. He did start going, but it was a nightmare trying to maintain the correct dosage of lactulose so as not to cause runny poops. Too little - constipation, too much - you get the picture.
A couple of weeks ago I started giving him Natural Factors Ultimate Multi Probiotic. He is a big guy, about 25 pounds so I give him about 1/8 tsp every morning with his benefibre. I have been able to eliminate the lactulose completely, decrease his benefibre and only use the propulsid every second day. His stools are great, and I am sure as time progresses I can get rid of the benefibre and prepusid as well. I have even started putting a pinch into the other guys' food as well in the morning.
Good luck!

[Tutty*]

I went away for a few days last month (with my mother coming over every now and then to feed my cat) He had dry food out the whole time. But when I came home he was constipated. She told me didn't touch his food the whole time I was gone. I guess because he was upset and missed us. I just fed him nothing but wet food for a while until he was back on track. About the vet bills, ask them if they offer any kind of payment plans for regular customers. Or maybe see about getting pet insurance? Good luck

[beckiandthetrio]

Thanks for the input everyone!!! i was able to figure something out with the vet bills and my vet was awsome about it too!!! Ive decided to go to raw soon so hopefully I wont have to wrangle my cat to get the lactulose in him twice a day!!!

Becki