Calling all cat owners...

[euphrosyne_rose]

I love my cat. I do. He's my baby. But pretty soon, he's going to drive me over the edge. Here's what's going on. He's 12, neutered and declawed front and back. He's a very loving, affectionate cat and I don't know what I'd do without him. If he's not laying on the bed with me while I'm on Specktra or cruising the web, he's trying to sit in my lap or lay next to me on the sofa. He's sweet, good natured and a little bit of a mama's boy.

BUT, this past 6 months things have been going crazy with him. He started walking a little funny so I assumed he had arthritis and he was constantly pulling out the hair on his back down to his tail. He's on flea medicine so I couldn't figure out what the problem was so when I took him to the vet, they did xrays and it turns out he "has no hips left" according to the vet. They said the hip bones that join into the sockets are so worn that they are surprised he is even able to walk but he also said cats mask pain very well. They gave me a pain medicine to put him on called Metacam and said that every few months I'd have to get him checked b/c the meds can damage the kidneys and liver. Figures. They said the hair pulling could be a combo of adjusting to the pain in his hips or him getting mad at me.

Sometimes I won't let him in my room because I have to sleep with the door closed and he wants in/out all night.

He's also started peeing on stuff which the first few times it happened, he did have a bladder infection and it stopped for awhile. It started again awhile back but when I took him for his bloodwork checkup, they said everything was fine. Again, I think possibly it could be when he gets mad at me but he's peed on the bath mats, the front of my dresser, the front of the clothes dryer and even tried peeing on the fireplace in the living room. I've also sworn that almost all of my bath towels smell like cat pee even after they've been washed in hot water but my sister who shares a bathroom with me says she doesn't smell it. Maybe I'm just smelling things.

Anyone have any advice or been in a similar situation? I'm at my wit's end with the peeing. He has stopped the past couple of weeks but I don't want him to continue doing it.

 

[Willa]

My sister's cat has a big temper, he is jealous of the other cat and dog. He pees when he's angry, but my mother brought him to the vet to discover he had some kind of urinary problem. They changed the food, it's now a special food with less salt and made for these problems. He stop peeing everywhere.

Maybe you should look for that first?

 

[hello_kitty]

Aww, sorry to hear of your problems

It either could be medical like Willa mentioned, or maybe he's stressed out. Just like humans get stressed about aging, I'm sure cats can feel that way too, especially if they're in pain. There's pheromone sprays and diffusers (like a glade plug in type of deal) that are meant to calm cats and help prevent urinary making. I've used Comfort Zone with Feliway (my problems weren't with peeing, tho, but with introducing a new cat... I just wanted to make them both feel calmer).

I'd consider the medical aspect seriously, though. Cats do hide their problems very well and there could be something going on.

Good luck!

 

[sierrao]

i kinda have a cat like this. she is one of the older cats and she has just been peeing every where. when we first got her she had no hair on her belly cuz she would pull it out because she was stressed. idk if its because shes getting older or stress from the other cats but im getting tired of her peeing every where. we have to put a litter box in the formal dining room because if we dont she would pee on the carpet, trust me i cant stand it in there. she did have a urinary infection so we gave her some medicine for it. she is doing better though. i hope your cat gets better

 

[Manda-la]

One of my cats was peeing everywhere for a while. We couldn't figure out why he was doing it. He's getting fairly old but still in good shape, so we knew it PROBABLY wasn't a health issue. The vet suggested we buy him a new litter box, because it could be he doesn't think the other litter box was clean enough. Since we got a new one he doesn't pee anywhere but the litterbox now. I don't know if this would help you at all, but I figured anything is worth a try

I hope your cat gets better

 

[Mabelle]

it sounds as though your cat is very stressed from its hip problems.

i dont have any suggestions other than being more patient. You're cats hip problems are incredibly painful, and your cat is geriatric. It happens to older people too, and you just have to be patient and deal. hopefully when your cats pain subsiseds a bit she will stop.

as for washing things, im sure the smell is out, but fabreeze it just to assuge your fears. fabreeze kills any funky smells. ive had all sorts to deal with too!

 

[MissAlly]

One of my cats will stare right at you,and then start spraying something.Ah,it makes me so angry.

I wish I had some advice.

 

[euphrosyne_rose]

Quote:

Originally Posted by MissAlly One of my cats will stare right at you,and then start spraying something.Ah,it makes me so angry. I wish I had some advice.

I was in my bathroom getting ready for work a few weeks ago when I heard this weird noise and thought it was raining outside. I peeked out of the bathroom door and saw Zeus backed up to the washing machine, peeing away. He always looks sorry when he does it but thankfully he's stopped for the time being. The metacam seemed to be working but now he's back to pulling the hair out on his back so I'm wondering if the medicine isn't quite as effective anymore.


Someone told me about this spray they sell at Petsmart that completely removes any odor left behind. Anyone ever use this before???

 

[hello_kitty]

Petsmart sells a variety of odor removers. I've never had to use them personally as my cats have behaved themselves thus far, but I have used the Simple Green pet kind they have for cleaning up puke, but cat puke doesn't really have an odor like urine so I can't really give you insight on that.

 

[sweetbabyblue]

Metacam should be helping him cope with the pain, I'm not quite sure it can decrease in efficacy, best to check with the vet although they might put it down to stress.
If you hadn't already mentioned that the hip joint was worn out I could've thought that the peeing + funny walk could've been from being hit by car, damaging the nerves towards the back causing a lower motor neuron bladder.
Do you notice anything else unusual about your cat? Does he drink more than previously? I guess since the have done a blood workup I would assume that they also did a urinalysis and found it to be normal, otherwise I would also wonder about kidney disease.
I'm also wondering whether he simply has trouble getting into the litter tray? if the edges are too high for him to climb into?
But again, at his age it may be possible that it's just a loss of house training in association with age and not necessarily medical.

Sorry, I haven't been very helpful, I'm not a cat owner myself.

 

[euphrosyne_rose]

Quote:

Originally Posted by sweetbabyblue Metacam should be helping him cope with the pain, I'm not quite sure it can decrease in efficacy, best to check with the vet although they might put it down to stress. If you hadn't already mentioned that the hip joint was worn out I could've thought that the peeing + funny walk could've been from being hit by car, damaging the nerves towards the back causing a lower motor neuron bladder. Do you notice anything else unusual about your cat? Does he drink more than previously? I guess since the have done a blood workup I would assume that they also did a urinalysis and found it to be normal, otherwise I would also wonder about kidney disease. I'm also wondering whether he simply has trouble getting into the litter tray? if the edges are too high for him to climb into? But again, at his age it may be possible that it's just a loss of house training in association with age and not necessarily medical. Sorry, I haven't been very helpful, I'm not a cat owner myself.

No, I haven't really noticed anything else out of the ordinary. The last time he had blood work was about 2 months ago and they said everything was fine but since then he could have gotten another bladder infection. One thing I did forget to mention is that he's got this "thing" on his face, near where his whiskers are. It started off small and I'm concerned b/c it's gotten bigger the past month. It's almost like a mole b/c it's fleshy and it's pinkish like his skin. I noticed the other day that he's got hair growing out of it which one of my friends told me he thinks that's a bad sign. I'm going out of town this week and won't be back for about 10 days but as soon as I get back, Zeus is going back to the vet. I'm really worried about the growth on his face but thankfully his personality hasn't changed and he doesn't seem any different. He's still the same sweet, laying right beside me, purring away kitty he's always been.
I appreciate all the advice, ladies. It really means alot!

 

[blazeno.8]

*_* That's amazing that he's able to walk. I'm sorry to hear about what's happening. I have a cat that seems to over groom and it turns out that she does it because of stressing out. I stopped giving her her medicine because it seemed to stress her out even more to the point she'd run away from me if she thought I was going to give it to her. Maybe the vets will talk to you about his growth when you get back in town?

 

[sweetbabyblue]

Quote:

Originally Posted by euphrosyne_rose No, I haven't really noticed anything else out of the ordinary. The last time he had blood work was about 2 months ago and they said everything was fine but since then he could have gotten another bladder infection. One thing I did forget to mention is that he's got this "thing" on his face, near where his whiskers are. It started off small and I'm concerned b/c it's gotten bigger the past month. It's almost like a mole b/c it's fleshy and it's pinkish like his skin. I noticed the other day that he's got hair growing out of it which one of my friends told me he thinks that's a bad sign. I'm going out of town this week and won't be back for about 10 days but as soon as I get back, Zeus is going back to the vet. I'm really worried about the growth on his face but thankfully his personality hasn't changed and he doesn't seem any different. He's still the same sweet, laying right beside me, purring away kitty he's always been. I appreciate all the advice, ladies. It really means alot!

It is possible that he has since got another bladder infection..I would like to do a urine analysis if I was the vet.
As for the growth, how long has it been there? i know you said that its gotten bigger in the past month, but how long had it been there previously? I would love to see a picture of it, is it itchy? Firm, soft? Are the margins well circumscribed from the rest of the skin?
A vet would be best to look at it in person and they may want to get an impression smear or fine needle aspirate of it. They would have a much better idea

Good luck!

 

[sweetbabyblue]

Sorry, another question, is your cat pulling the hair out by overgrooming the area? Or scratching at it? Or is the hair just coming out easily in that area?

 

[LMD84]

i have no advice because my kitties have not had an illness like this before. one of mine used to pee on things when she was nervous but that was about it - and after we'd had her for a little while she soon stopped it.

also i hope your kitty starts to feel better soon.

 

[euphrosyne_rose]

Quote:

Originally Posted by sweetbabyblue It is possible that he has since got another bladder infection..I would like to do a urine analysis if I was the vet. As for the growth, how long has it been there? i know you said that its gotten bigger in the past month, but how long had it been there previously? I would love to see a picture of it, is it itchy? Firm, soft? Are the margins well circumscribed from the rest of the skin? A vet would be best to look at it in person and they may want to get an impression smear or fine needle aspirate of it. They would have a much better idea Good luck!

I think it's possible he's got another one but again I'm not sure since he hasn't done it in awhile. It's probably been over 2 weeks now, I'd say. The growth when I first noticed it wasn't big at all. In fact, I happened to glance at him one night and thought he had a small patch of hair missing. When I ran my finger over it was when I felt the bump. It was only there for maybe 2 weeks when I noticed it had gotten bigger. It's almost perfectly round and very pink, sort of fleshy feeling and it's not really soft but neither is it hard as a rock. It looks and feels almost like a mole and is only slightly smaller than the eraser on a pencil.

The hair thing is something he PULLS out. I've caught him on my bed, in a chair, on the sofa, just sinking teeth in and pulling. No scratching, just yanking it out and he gets a mouthful each time. I've come home to find him laying on my bed, content as could be, in a pile of his own fur, tufts of it everywhere. He has a spot that seems to be the one spot he concentrates on the most b/c he's almost bald there. You can see his skin peeking through and if you scratch or pet him up and down his back, especially there, he starts getting wide eyed and licks his lips and starts almost drooling and eventually he nibbles on his paw. Every time. It's a little strange. So either it feels good or it hurts. I haven't quite figured out which yet. The vet did tell me he suspects he's allergic to fleas but I swear I have yet to see a flea on him or anywhere in the house and I've combed him over pretty well.

 

[sweetbabyblue]

Hmm..Is your cat white or has a white/light coloured nose? There are many possibilities for lesions, some more likely than others, but a vet would really have to see it to narrow the list down.

In regards to the hair, I think that there is a high possibility that it is an irritated area, possibly itchy.
It is not always possible to find the flea, unless there are high numbers of them. You would be more likely to find flea dirt. It's still worthwhile to vacum the house in case it is fleas and give him a flea bath. Even one flea can be problematic.
Another possibility is demodex, a simple skin scraping carried out by the vet may help to determine whether that is a possibility or not. I am not sure whether demodex is common where you live though compared to Australia.

Certainly another visit to the vet can help, have all the information you've given here written down, because the more information you can provide the vet, the more he/she is equipped to solve this problem. Some pieces of information, not matter how little they may seem to you can actually be very important.

Good luck!

 

[kimmy]

i have a thirteen year old boy who is my baby, he chews all his fur off when he's nervous. over the past couple of years he appears to have developed an anxiety disorder of sorts. has anything in your cat's routine changed? new people being over often? different furniture arrangement?

 

[euphrosyne_rose]

Quote:

Originally Posted by sweetbabyblue Hmm..Is your cat white or has a white/light coloured nose? There are many possibilities for lesions, some more likely than others, but a vet would really have to see it to narrow the list down. In regards to the hair, I think that there is a high possibility that it is an irritated area, possibly itchy. It is not always possible to find the flea, unless there are high numbers of them. You would be more likely to find flea dirt. It's still worthwhile to vacum the house in case it is fleas and give him a flea bath. Even one flea can be problematic. Another possibility is demodex, a simple skin scraping carried out by the vet may help to determine whether that is a possibility or not. I am not sure whether demodex is common where you live though compared to Australia. Certainly another visit to the vet can help, have all the information you've given here written down, because the more information you can provide the vet, the more he/she is equipped to solve this problem. Some pieces of information, not matter how little they may seem to you can actually be very important. Good luck!

Yep, he's white! Almost completely white except for gray on his ears and his tail. I had read that white cats were more likely to have skin problems b/c of that. As soon as I get back home from my trip, I'm taking him to the vet. I appreciate all the advice!

Quote:

Originally Posted by kimmy i have a thirteen year old boy who is my baby, he chews all his fur off when he's nervous. over the past couple of years he appears to have developed an anxiety disorder of sorts. has anything in your cat's routine changed? new people being over often? different furniture arrangement?

No, nothing has changed that I can think of. The vet told me awhile back it was possible he was also chewing b/c of the pain in his hips so hopefully they can tell me something when I take him. He's such a sweet baby and I hate to think he's hurting. I'm leaving Friday for a trip to Scotland but I'm only gone a week so I made an appointment to take him when I get back. Thanks!!

 

[sweetbabyblue]

Quote:

Originally Posted by euphrosyne_rose Yep, he's white! Almost completely white except for gray on his ears and his tail. I had read that white cats were more likely to have skin problems b/c of that.

That's why I asked, they are more prone to sun damage..

Good luck, let us know how it goes