Source
r/AskVet•
EsotericKnowledge

Cat with Urinary Incontinence - Just looking for Living/Life Advice

Further discussion requested

Species: Cat

Age: 13

Sex/Neuter status: Male, neutered

Breed: "domestic medium hair" - standard house kitty :)

Body weight: 9lbs

History: Had a urinary blockage a few years ago so bad that he could not be catheterized. Had a perineal urethrostomy to enable him to urinate on his own again. Eats RX purina UR food, if that is relevant.

However, there was apparently a little bit of nerve and muscular damage to his bladder from when he was blocked up and his bladder was swollen/stretched. As a result, he sometimes loses control of his bladder. It's not a behavioral thing: he uses his litter box just fine, he just wets himself unpredictably, even in his sleep. It doesn't happen TERRIBLY frequently, but it about destroyed my last apartment.

Right now, I have him spending most of his time in one of those enormous 3-story cat cages when I'm at work (it's taller than me) lined with doggy pads so that I can clean it up easily. I have another, smaller cat who sometimes spends time happily inside with him to keep him company, and sometimes is free around the house as she likes (but she usually whines for him). When I get home from work and change into my "cat hair clothes" I usually take him out and let him sit in my lap for a few hours, on top of a towel in case he has an accident (he has only had 2 such accidents in the last month ON me, but a few more inside his cage/house). I play with him, but mostly he wants to snuggle. I would let him wander (supervised) throughout the house if he seemed to want to, but he loves me and is a very clingy, velcro kind of cat. ANYWAY:

We are working on trying to build him a larger, connected enclosure so he can get up and move around more during the day if he should want, and because I feel like a bad "mom" for keeping him locked up for such a large portion of his life. However, I cannot let him roam freely to wet the apartment that he's currently in: this one is covered with my SO's belongings and has carpet, unlike the last one.

He's otherwise happy, healthy, and does not seem to be in pain, and so I just cannot abide the "advice" I keep getting to put him down because he pees himself sometimes. Vet agrees that it isn't a behavioral problem, that he's just incontinent, and that there isn't really anything that can be done on the medical side.

I guess I'm just asking for any advice - if anybody has any? - on how to live with him and how to give him the best, most comfortable life I can without sacrificing my entire living space to his incontinence again. Is it bad for him to be in a cage like this so much? Is it cruel? I don't like keeping him locked up, but it doesn't seem feasible (especially because I have physical health problems that put a damper on my ability to clean up after him) to let him have his run of the house. I have considered kitty diapers but I'm not sure how I could make that work: how I could keep them on him, how I could keep them from interfering with his voluntary litter box usage, etc.

Any experts or people with experience have any ideas, clues, tips? I love this furry little cuddle-bucket and I've had him since I was 15 years old. Except for FAD (seresto/foresto collars are the BOMB!), he hasn't had any notable health issues or problems, and doesn't act like a sick, old kitty like you'd expect.

Please feel free to message me privately if you have anecdotes to share that are not necessarily allowed in your answers within this subreddit.

Posted May 3, 2017, 6:54 PM UTC

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4
Natotamot•

I think what you've done so far is above and beyond what most owners would do! I wish I had more to offer. I guess I can't say if the confined area is cruel or not, since I don't know how large it is, but I think it seems like a viable solution to the problem. Especially if you're working to expand it so he has more room to roam!

3
EsotericKnowledgeOP•

He spends most of his time in here: https://www.amazon.com/IRIS-3-Tier-Wire-Cage-Gray/dp/B009LCU51M

but I am trying to figure out how to add this thing (which I already have in the house) https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00MU2FAYC/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 in a way that he can't climb out of it (we are building a roof, basically).

I'm thinking of stretching it out to be long and narrow instead of a big hexagon, possibly putting that section behind the couch so he can get at a window.

Thank you for your kindness, you have made me feel a lot better about all of this.

2
Natotamot•

I don't know how handy you are/what your budget is, but there are people out there that make custom enclosures for cats. Might be worth looking into. I just googled custom cat enclosure and got a bunch of results back.

1
EsotericKnowledgeOP•

I don't really have much in the way of budget outside of what I've already spent, but yeah, I'm aware of all the awesome "catios" out there. I'm also not handy. Like at all. I've seen lots of custom enclosures which is where I got the idea to get the larger playpen/thingy.

1
UrgulliblVet•

There are absorbent panties made for female dogs in season, and one of the smaller models might work for your cat if he tolerates them, so that's worth looking into.

2
EsotericKnowledgeOP•

It was a struggle to get him to keep on the collar that controls his fleas, and I've never been able to get him to put up with wearing anything else is the main problem. I can't even imagine trying to fight a diaper/panty/thing onto him, much less how I would keep him from wriggling out of it or ripping it right off.

1
UrgulliblVet•

There are also incontinence drugs, though they aren't commonly used in cats (more of a dog thing). Might still be worth asking your vet about.

1
EsotericKnowledgeOP•

I have asked, but thanks for the suggestion. Unfortunately it doesn't seem like there are a lot of options for him because it's nerve/muscle damage and weakness.

1
CynicKittenVet student•

Would it be possible to let him roam in the kitchen sometimes? I think what you're doing is great! But if your kitchen could be blocked off from the rest of the house, that might be a way to give him additional enrichment.

You could also set up a pop-up run that could go from your cage door to another part of the room. Basically, a small runway for him to walk along to reach a patch of sun, or pace, or whatever. As the temporary floor, you could put down a waterproof canvas, or some roll up fake linoleum, or those "under the computer chair" pads made for easy rolling. Then the path he can take could be varied some as far as where it led.

2
EsotericKnowledgeOP•

The kitchen is not an option. Even the counters and stove were not safe from him in my last place. But not a bad idea in general. Thank you.

1
CynicKittenVet student•

Then I would see if you could make a run. :)

1