 |
 | Home | Contact Us | FAQ | Search & Site Map | Link to Us |
 | Sign In | Join | Other 45 Sites in Network |
| HomeDiscussion GroupsGeneral TopicsCat AnecdotesHealth and BehaviorRescue CatKB.com Contact UsLink To UsSearch & Site Map |
Cat Forum / Health and Behavior / July 2006incontinent senior citizen kitty :-(
My older cat, now 18 years old, started peeing on the kitchen floor earlier this spring. I've done all the obvious things; took her to the vet at the first sign of trouble, but that turned up no new medical problems; put another box down in the kitchen, which she used consistently for a month or so before starting to use the floor occasionally again; made sure I'm changing the litter in all the boxes extra-frequently; use an enzyme cleaner to try to clean up the urine smell on the floor; etc. I haven't changed the brand of litter, the placement of the other boxes, or anything else in the household routine. Slinky's in decent health otherwise. She does have hyperthyroidism which has been under control with medication for about 5 years. The vet says she's been showing signs of mild kidney disease for a while, but hasn't suggested medication or treatment for that yet. She does both drink and pee more than she used to, and I noted that I was having to clean the litter boxes more frequently well before she started peeing outside the box. She's not as agile or energetic as she used to be, but she generally seems like a happy cat and isn't in any obvious distress. I, on the other hand, am not at all happy about having my house stunk up with cat pee. :-( So, what to do? It would be easier to make a decision about euthanasia if she were obviously sick, but she's not. Keeping her in a cage doesn't seem like a particularly nice way for her to live out her old age, either, but I don't really have a good place in my house where I could confine her where her "accidents" would do a minimum of damage. (She's a 100% indoor cat, BTW.) I've been taking a wait-and-see attitude about it so far, but now she's about due for one of her regular check-ups at the vet, but I was wondering if other people had any thoughts or advice before I talk to the vet about the options.... -Sandra Has she been checked for diabetes? I somehow think your vet is being lax in this case (ie mild kidney disease). I would get another opinion. Gail > My older cat, now 18 years old, started peeing on the kitchen floor > earlier this spring. I've done all the obvious things; took her to [quoted text clipped - 30 lines] > > -Sandra > Has she been checked for diabetes? I somehow think your vet is being lax in > this case (ie mild kidney disease). I would get another opinion. Yup, she's had a complete set of blood work and urinalysis. In fact, she'd just had a routine set of tests around Christmas before I brought her back for another set in the spring when the trouble started. I'm not sure I want to keep pouring money into expensive tests that aren't showing any physical problem; or even if there *was* some serious problem revealed, I'm not sure I'd want to pour even more money into expensive treatments that are not going to make a great deal of difference in extending her life at this point. -Sandra My thoughts were just that a medical reason could be causing the incontinence........If you treat the medical problem, you resolve the problem....... Gail >> Has she been checked for diabetes? I somehow think your vet is being lax >> in [quoted text clipped - 10 lines] > > -Sandra > My thoughts were just that a medical reason could be causing the > incontinence........If you treat the medical problem, you resolve the > problem....... Well, yes; like I said in my original message, that was one of the first things I tried, but the vet didn't see any medical problem. -Sandra > > My thoughts were just that a medical reason could be causing the > > incontinence........If you treat the medical problem, you resolve the > > problem....... > > Well, yes; like I said in my original message, that was one of the first > things I tried, but the vet didn't see any medical problem. Your cat really is old. Many cats don't live to see 18. I think maybe the vet expects lots of things to start going wrong--which is not to say she should not be treated, of course. But you will have some very important judgments to make fairly soon. > Your cat really is old. Many cats don't live to see 18. I think maybe > the vet expects lots of things to start going wrong--which is not to > say she should not be treated, of course. But you will have some very > important judgments to make fairly soon. Yes. :-( Was basically hoping to hear from people who've "been there, done that". If you've had an older cat with incontinence problems, how did you cope? I understand that euthanasia would be the right solution if she were to develop a serious illness, but I don't really like the idea of going down that route when she doesn't really seem to be sick, just occasionally forgetful. -Sandra >> Your cat really is old. Many cats don't live to see 18. I think maybe >> the vet expects lots of things to start going wrong--which is not to [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] > >-Sandra De-lurking - consider perhaps your cat might be arthritic: I've also had a cat this age that sometimes peed outside the box when her arthritis wasn't so well-controlled - you mention she's not as agile or energetic - has she visibly lost muscle mass on her back or front legs? can she still jump &/or climb stairs? she may be having problems getting in & out of the box. My cat's back legs at times were so stiff that she couldn't bend them to squat & pee so it really wasn't incontinence because she always went as close as possible to her box. I did have fantastic results for her last 4 years using 2 caps Cosequin (glucosamine) daily & she weighed about 7 lbs, a chewable non- flavored baby aspirin twice a week, & in her last year another stronger liquid anti-inflammatory whose name I've forgotten. These drugs weren't that expensive & she took her meds willingly. The Cosequin caps are sprinkled over the food. She was euthanized at almost 21 years last year for another non- treatable problem. M. > De-lurking - consider perhaps your cat might be arthritic: I've also had a > cat this age that sometimes peed outside the box when her arthritis wasn't so > well-controlled - you mention she's not as agile or energetic - has she > visibly lost muscle mass on her back or front legs? can she still jump &/or > climb stairs? she may be having problems getting in & out of the box. I don't think that's it, either. I live in a 3-story townhouse and she has no problems with the stairs or with jumping on the bed or her favorite sleeping chair. The one thing she can't do any more is jump straight up from the floor to my desk or the kitchen counter; she needs to use a chair as an intermediate step now. She also seems to have no problems squatting to pee whether inside or outside the box (yes, I've caught her in the act). Best as I can figure, she's just gotten senile in her old age. :-P -Sandra > I don't think that's it, either. I live in a 3-story townhouse and > she has no problems with the stairs or with jumping on the bed or her [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > > -Sandra Hi Sandra, My older cat Molly (17 years plus) has similar issues. She tends to pee in the same two or three spots so I finally got disposable pads (the name escapes me now but "puppy pads" is close!). Those get picked up and tossed regularly--she's pretty good about urinating in the same areas but there are still accidents in other places. I'm fortunate that I have tile floors that are easy to clean up--not much carpeting in the areas of the house that she frequents. I use an enzymatic cleaner to clean up spills so the other cats don't join her in stinking up the place! I do confine her to the utility room at night--she seems to have more accidents at night. In there, the floor is covered with a couple of larger washable pads and those are washed very frequently. With Molly, I think she is senile. She'll stand in a corner and yowl loudly until she figures out how to get herself turned around. She still seems to enjoy life (and food!) but she is definitely declining in her abilities. It's tough to see them get older and more frail. I wasn't sure from your initial post--has she been checked recently for a urinary tract infection? Have you talked to your vet about medication for incontinence? I don't know much about it but there are medications that do help with certain types of incontinence. Currently, I feel I can deal with the hassle but the time may come when it's too much. It's a difficult decision to make! Good luck with Slinky, Bonnie Since people have been expressing concern about not getting updates after people post about their cat problems here: Slinky was due for her regular check-up and vaccinations at the vet earlier this week, and I ended up having the vet do another round of blood and urine tests. (I'm still waiting for the results.) The vet does say, though, that she appears to be in good health for her age, and that older cats often simply have cognitive problems with using the litterbox. Slinky's clearly been trying to use the box lately, but she's often been leaving her business end hanging outside the hole in the box cover, so that she ends up peeing on the floor in front of the box instead. I appreciate the suggestion about using "puppy pads"; that's been making the cleanup a lot quicker. The vet also suggested trying a larger box, so I just got that set up and will see if it helps any. -Sandra |
Reply to this Message |
 Sign In
 Join
 My Latest Posts My Monitored Threads My Blog My Photo Gallery My Profile My Homepage Start New Thread Enable EMail Alerts Rate this Thread
|
©2008 Advenet LLC Privacy Policy - Terms of Use
This website includes both content owned or controlled by Advenet as well as content owned or controlled by third parties.