[lilitiger2]

So, I get all these great suggestions, and.....my vet is not in till wednesday, either one! And, no poop since "the big event" Saturday am. Eating pretty well, all canned. No meds, no nothing because "the plan" is to see what he produces on his own. Answer: nothing.

Called the emergency vet and got a vet tech(same from sat). He told me to:

a) administer another enema (not opposed to enemas but he JUST HAD ONE and I would love to not flood him again),

b) bring him in so vet #3 can look at him and decide if he needs an enema, or

c) wait and see what happens (now been 3 full days). Would not let me speak or leave message with vet (offered to pay for a vet consult as emergency vet is a 45 mi (one way) trip).

Sigh.

Asked the tech about lactulose/miralax/laxatone and the tech says, "no, not part of the plan" (but it WAS part of vet 1's plan on wednesday, when he was just a little plugged, although it did not work well).

I will likely run him up and maybe get subq stuff. I like vet #3 but...it is vet #3 and I was trying to just keep it simple.

Will ask about all the great food suggestions, and miralax and regular subq.....times with rural life (miles from stuff like a vet) is not so glamorous!

THANK YOU SOMUCH FOR THE SUGGESTIONS!

[mvp]

Personally, I'd Miralax kitteh each meal until I had "satisfaction."

Life is short, it's your cat and your wallet so screw the plan if "the plan" means you create an expensive emergency-type roto-rooter visit for your cat. SubQ fluids on an emergency basis at their office doesn't sound a whole lot better.

PS. I have seen the roto-rooter thing done to an unconscious cat in person. Fugly. Also costs some coin in part because kitteh must have general anesthesia (as would you if this were being done), and that costs, plus recovery time plus yadayada.

Hang in there, OP. The first phases of learning to manage the stopped-up cat is a total PITA. You start to learn what works, what's a sign that things are going down hill so that you can intervene and when to freak out and call it an emergency.

[anna's girl]

I give mine miralax twice a day, i understand it takes a few days or so to start working.
I had a plugged kitty that had an enema at the vets office but he pooped the next day so I'm no help in that department. I do have to say that was over 8 months ago and he has been fine ever since.

[oliverreed]

I feel your pain. My beloved Simon cat who was already in kidney trouble, which we were treating (am very familiar with this as lost another kitteh to this) became so plugged up that we were having to do repeat enemas - like once a week. Then he lost interest in eating, and you know the rest.

JINGLES!!!

[lilitiger2]

THANK YOU SO MUCH!!

and MVP - you are so right! I have NO desire to have him under go any kind of
"big dig"!

After a fun-filled roughly 90 mi round trip, the result is......we wait. Vet #3 is very nice, and totally agreed with miralax, one of the Hills foods (can't remember which), subq, and adding some pumpkin. But, he noted that he is vet #3 and didn't want to interfere with another vet's "plan". So, he felt the kitty, said he did have a bunch of poop in there but not enough to excavate. He agreed that just doing a bunch of enemas without either a better understanding of what's up (bloodwork, not an old kitty but good to rule out kidney issues) or trying other "natural methods" (miralax, diet change, etc) would be helpful. He did say for some cats you have to "enemize" them regularly just like you said, Oliver!! I'm okay with that (not necessariliy looking FORWARD to it, but okay) but not without trying other stuff first.

I think I am done with this "plan". I like all the vets (Vets #2 and #3 are emergency vets, #1 is "day vet") but I would like to be reassured that we are making "progress".

At least vet #3 didn't charge me for the emergency visit!

Really, thank you so much for the suggestions.

[Zu Zu]

First Jingles & AO ~

Please be patient ~~~ takes awhile to 'right' this situation `

Yes, this comes on slowly and then seems to become a huge problem.

Katharine was NQR in October so blood checked ~ phew everything great with blood workup.

Then she ( an every other day pooper) became a every three day pooper

and then the Holiday clogs ...

on our second trip to vet ``` after four days of no poop ~ the xray showed pending poop and since she hald had success with Miralax .... we were told to be patient and she poooped that night ...


while this scenario is alarming and one does not want it to worsen.... I would wait til your vet can see your cat tomorrow first thing .....

things we were told

only vets give enemas due to delicate structure of cats' a$$ ???
Miralax and the new food take a few days to work and then like horse stuff

you're looking at 30 days to completely transition ....to 'working mode.'.

** currently Kathrine is under "poop watch" has not gone since Friday Miralax in fish food juice last three mornings ... but we too have a vet who

only works Wed through Sat SO we wait for her..... we have learned the hard way on that...

Please be patient ```` I would rec blood even if it is normal it will serve as a comparison for later blood work..

I can't type fast enough or accurately... I am worried for you but wish to impart some support .....you're ok especially til tomorrow a.m.....

((hugs)) and Jingles `` don't mean to make light of the situation but I am AO that this will turn out fine with some monitoring and extra Miralax and food help ~

again keep an eye ``` fingers crossed your cat craps today as well our Katharine Ann

May the shuttles land today !!!

it's the little things in life `` like being delighted when your old dear friend craps ... even if it's on the carpet!

[lilitiger2]

Thank you so much Zu Zu! Very very helpful! Prayers to the poop fairy for Katherine! And good to know it can take 30 days!!

And yes, it is the little things that really make a day..a poop! a poop! He seemed so relieved on Saturday when he "cleared".

Blood and xrays do seem like a really good idea, if no poop by this afternoon.

The poop fairy is certainly delivering for my other kitty - I need a pitchfork for HIM!

[mvp]

I keep a bunch of cat enemas on hand. More than $20 a pop at the vet and less than $2 on Amazon.

Those cat enemas are for buying time when Catness decides to look like crap because of not crapping on, say, Friday night and any DVM fix would involve an emergency vi$it.

I don't know the rules about the frequency with which you can give cat enemas. And I didn't know that what appeared to be just one episode of Official Plugging actually takes a month to resolve way up inside. Maybe those of us with Often Plugged cats aren't following through enough.

Great ideas and knowledge from this thread. They will help me know better what to ask my vet.

And, yeah, be careful, but IME, you have a pretty straight shot up the bum of a cat when you slide it in. Oh, and do lubricate the tip. You can use a bit of the enema stuff itself to do this before you dive in.

[candyappy]

I just finished reading " NO DOGS IN HEAVEN?" By Robert T. Sharp D.V.M. about various cases during his years in practice. He talked about a cat that had a "megacolon" which means she was not going. They treated her with enemas only to have it come back again and again. They finally resolved it by accident. Giving her a TBS+ of hair ball medicine once a day on top of her food. He describes it as malt flavored petroleum jelly.

[Zu Zu]

soft hijack ~ thanks mvp ~

I did not realize cat enemas were readily available and easy to use !

I will find some for dear Katharine Ann ~

many thanks ~

Jingles & AO that ALL" the space shuttles" land today SO everyone can sleep better tonight !

[mvp]

They finally resolved it by accident. Giving her a TBS+ of hair ball medicine once a day on top of her food. He describes it as malt flavored petroleum jelly.

And cats dig it! They lap it right up-- an inch long worm or so on your finger is a dose.

[mvp]

[I]
soft hijack ~ thanks mvp ~

I did not realize cat enemas were readily available and easy to use !
\

Glad I could help! Knowing about cat butts isn't a skill you need.... until you need it, and then you shouldn't be selfish with it.

There are different kinds of enemas, but the cat stuff looks gelatinous blue-- think gel toothpaste color but a little lighter. Apparently human enemas are chemically different and not OK for cats.

If you need a brand name and link, let me know and I'll find one of my tubes.

[lilitiger2]

So, of course main player vet is unavailable till wed night so off to vet #2 this afternoon. Kitty had plenty 'o poop in the pipe but not going anywhere. He had bloodwork done to ruleout kidney issues. No xray (which I wanted) but did get an enema as she felt he had enough in there that it should be evacuated. Unfortunately when he did evacuate, there was a good bit of blood.Vet thought colon might be irritated, but not pleased to see it.

She likes both Royal Canin Medical Fibre stuff AND I/D, will likely start with RC but could switch (will get in by end of week). Send home with subq rigging to give thursday if no poop. Also will get miralax AND lactulose ("until his poops are like pudding"). Asked about the hair remedy stuff (laxatone, I think) and she said lactulose is like that, but amped up.

So, drove home, chatted with a friend, who was saying how glad she was he wasn't blocked (urinary). I couldn't remember that being assessed this time (just figured if the bladder was full it owuld have been hard to palpate the colon). So called her. She agreed but could not specifically remember checking, and mused that a urinary infection of some kind could also cause some plugging. And that would necessitate different food.

So, now waiting and hoping he pees (he has been, just not today of course) so she can rule THAT out.

She did say, given that he is not producing anything with just his wet food, that he can have his few kibble treats again. I think he is quite pleased with that.

What an ordeal! She also noted,as have you guys, that it can indeed take a while to "stabilize", get poops regular, and so forth.

And yes, Zu zu, I have little "pet enemas", with a lubed tip, smear a big of that lube on their butts, insert and depress the plunger...good to have someone holding them! not as much fun as it looks......

THANKS AGAIN FOR ALL THE GREAT SUGGESTIONS! I FELT VERY INFORMED!!

[mvp]

Just a minor note-- Lactulose, Laxatone, Miralax, and pumpkin work different ways on the gut as I understand it.

These go into two categories: stool softeners (things that draw water into the gut) and laxatives (things that increase peristalsis). Whatever works for your cat is awesome. But I don't know if Lactulose and Laxatone go in the same category.

I mention this because after you have "maxed out" one physiological strategy or found it not to do the job, you might want to try a different one.

[mvp]

Now you know I'm cheap and all....

But OP don't go whacko on buying X-rays of poop in a cat. If your vet can see how much is there and where it is with his/her bare hands, take it.... and the savings.

With a MaybeMegacolon cat, you'll get more than your share of opportunities to spend money.

[lilitiger2]

Ha! Well you are so right on chances to spend money! By yesterday though, I would have authorized a brain scan, EKG, WHATEVER to at least get information!! Initially she just wanted to do the enema and call it good. I was very frustrated with wanting to know what was up rather than just evacuating (she was really nice about it, not like we were arguing), and she did convince me that regardless of what the xray found, she still would want to do ht enema, and that if there were structural problems, his poops would not be so nice and round!

I'm sure you are totally correct about the differences in how various elements promote stools!! I had just asked about the laxatone (hair stuff) and she told me that it works well, but that I would not need it if using lactulose, which she felt was "stronger" (I do NOT know how each works, and for sure will keep that on the "menu" of interventions).

I will say I very much like going in with a list of items to discuss.I feel much more informed and not so vulnerable. Unfortunately, my beloved old kitty who died a few years ago from chronic renal failure had a much rougher last few days than he needed to , if I had only been more assertive with the vets and had known more about various options. I sure knew for when his buddy was ill later, and she had a much, much easier time of things.

COTH is just awesome!!

[rubygirl1968]

Just wanted to tell you that I feel your pain! My cat has had issues with constipation for years now and we've tried most everything out there. He is managed with Lactulose - tried Miralax and it did nothing for him. High fiber rx diets, low residue rx diets - nada.

Lactulose to effect (when needed) takes care of the problem though, so I'm very grateful for that.

The vet and I have discovered that he starts having more problems with constipation when his anal glands need to be expressed, so now I have the vet come out for that every 3-4 months.

I hope you find what works for your kitty soon and don't give up. There are alot of different options out there and what works for one may not work for another. Just keep trying.

Hope the poop fairy visits soon! lol

Isn't it funny what we wish for when we have constipated cats?

[mvp]

OP, did you ever think you'd lose so much sleep, argue so hard with vets or do such deep soul searching over..... cat sh!t?

I certainly didn't. But the issue has made my head spin around backwards. Perhaps I needed to be humbled and discovering my powerlessness over a cat's patoot did it.

[betsyk]

We have a cat with a lifelong history of poop problems, which have led to pee problems, which have led to all sorts of other problems. Prune juice, am & pm, has made ALL the difference. Really. About a teaspoon, maybe a little more, with a couple spoonfuls of wet food, every single day of her life. We started her on kitty cosequin this year because the vet suggested it might help the pee problems (some anti-inflammatory effect on bladder/urinary tract problems?) and we've seen a big change in her attitude, for the better. She has figured out how to unclog herself when she needs help - she runs in front of our little terrierista, who barks and pretends to chase, and the kitty leaps and runs and shortly after, poops. We didn't realize it was intentional until we started paying attention to the pattern... Can you borrow a terrier? :-)

[candyappy]

And cats dig it! They lap it right up-- an inch long worm or so on your finger is a dose.

That is what the vet in the book said. Getting her to eat it was no problem. This cat was 17 and they had to sedate her for the enemas and was afraid she couldn't take much more.