Poor sick kitty

Mundane Pointless Stuff I Must Share (MPSIMS)
#1

:frowning:

Roomie’s cat still has UTI. He’s been on two coursed of amoxicillin, which works until you finish it. Roomie took him to the vet again today, and they did more x-rays. They put in a catheter and blew up his bladder. Apparently he does have some crystals. The poor thing is still doped up. They couldn’t get a urine sample for a culture.

Harvey likes the amoxicillin. It’s sweet, and roomie mixed it in his food. The new medicine he got today is very bitter. He doesn’t like it at all. Roomie tried to squirt it down his throat, but she only got a tiny amount in. I finally pinned him to the floor and she got the full dose in. He needs the medicine once a day for a month.

I feel so bad for the poor cat!

#2

Sorry.

#3

Oh lord, that bitter liquid antibiotic is NARSTY. My cat was on it some years ago. Or, rather, we tried. He was so lethargic he could barely move, but lemme tell you, he fought that tooth and nail. It was just me, so it never took less than 45 minutes to dose him.

He developed such a severe aversion to it after only a couple days, that he would start dry heaving as soon as he saw the syringe, before I got it anywhere near him. If I got any in him, he’d puke it back up. I hope you guys have better luck.

If this is the same antibiotic, I was able to go to a compounding pharmacy and get the same thing, mixed with tuna, and pre-dosed into little soft tablets, which went over way better than the liquid did. Both cats were convinced they were treats (my other cat was very confused that he didn’t get any). So if you have issues, that might be something to look into.

#4

Harvey was hiding under my bed since I posted the OP. I pulled the covers back and he let me pet him. I laid on the floor and he kept circling me. Then he went to try to use the litter box. I picked him up, and he let out a complaint. He remembers what happened when he got picked up earlier. But he was OK until I brought him to the couch. He saw ‘mom’ and got skittish. He’s probably back under my bed now. Roomie says he’ll be back to normal in the morning, and she’s glad we were able to give him the nasty anti-biotic tonight.

When we got back from the vet when this whole thing started, he was pretty high. He did sleep with me that night though. We’ll se if he comes up when I go to bed.

#5

Is he on a special diet? You might also want to give him bottled water to drink.

#6

He got special food today (wet and dry). The water here is very good.

#7

If you give him the pressed out water from a tuna can right after the meds he may tolerate it better and at the very least it will get more water in him. It’s the only way I’m able to get extra hydration in my cats as they just won’t drink if they’re not thirsty.

#8

He’s drinking water, but I don’t know if he is urinating. He makes trips to the litter box, but I haven’t heard him scratching. Roomie put some smooth muscle relaxer in his new we food, but I don’t think he’s eaten it. The SMR works. If he’s not eating his wet food, he might be avoiding it because she tried to put the anti-biotic in it and he took one like and backed away with a look on his puss. Or he may not like the new food. (She washed his bowl after the anti-biotics were in it, so there shouldn’t be any residue.) FWIW, she researched foods several years ago when he had an infection, and found that Purina was a good brand for avoiding them. The vet also recommends Purina, and the ‘special diet’ food he gave her is that brand.

I woke up this morning with a cat at my shoulder. I think he’s back under the bed now. My room is cooler than the rest of the house (not that it’s very warm in here this time of year), and he seems to seek out cool places.

#9

I tried the tuna water (without meds). He sniffed at it, and may have tasted it, but didn’t drink it. He’s a weird cat. Not fond of people-food. On a rare occasion he might have a flake of smoked salmon, but he prefers his normal cat food.

#10

The Cat’s been sleeping all day. Unusual. Roomie says he was up all night going back and forth to his box. He’s sleeping on my bed. I felt his belly, and thought it felt distended; but roomie just got up and she says it feels find. He kind of rolled over, and she played with his flabby belly and it doesn’t look distended. It could be that I wasn’t feeling in the right place, or else his position when I palpated his belly made it seem a little hard.

#11

I give my UTI cat distilled water and only canned food and he’s been good for over a year now. He had a couple of infections and then he blocked up completely. Something about the minerals in water can have an effect on crystals that form. I don’t know if it is true or not, but since it is cheap to buy distilled and vet bills are not, I keep doing it. I hope Harvey feel better soon.

#12

He seems to be doing better. I did give him a taste of wet food this morning, so it looks like the boycott is over. Roomie gave him two doses of soft muscle relaxer today. We still have to give him the nasty-tasting stuff.

Roomie reports that he’s urinating. She buys this pine litter that disintegrates when it gets peed on. A fill usually lasts a week. This time it lasted a couple of days. So he’s not blocked.

#13

Hooray for peeing and not being blocked and in pain! Sleeping even more than usual is the only sure way I’ve seen a cat show they’re in pain.

#14

He’s on the SMR twice a day, so that will help. Roomie says he’s urinating more than he should. It doesn’t seem he’s sleeping more than usual. Right now he wants attention and keeps trying to crawl up on my computer.

#15

I’m sorry for not posting sooner. Your cat is making progress & this is good! Give him a week to heal & I think you’ll notice a lot more happy behavior in him.

#16

Skritches to Harvey. Being sick is no fun for anyone. Our kitties send their best wishes for his speedy recovery.

#17

He’s exhibiting happy behaviour. He was feeling rotten after finishing the amoxicillin and before the new stuff kicked in. We gave him the new medication last night, and he didn’t seem as insulted as before. Three doses down, only 27 to go…

Harvey’s a swell cat. He does get a little needy when I’m working and roomie’s asleep, but at night time he knows not to wake the humans. If I stir, he’ll check to see if I’m awake and he’ll be quiet until feet hit the floor. He’s a sweetie.