Male cats suffering from crystals in the urinary tract?

Question

This is more a warning than a question. If you have a male cat especially a neutered one and has always used the litterbox and he starts peeing everywhere take him to the vet asap. I have been through this before with one of my cats, I dont know how I missed the warning signs this time but I had to put my Beloved Cat Buddy Boy to sleep today because he had this problem so bad he couldn't walk or even pick his head up. he weighed 20 lbs originally but when we finally got him to the vet he was about 25 lbs and his bladder was very swollen. He was bleeding so bad and the only thing to do was to have him put to sleep. I could not watch him suffer anymore. I wish I could have saved him, but I couldn't, I didnt catch on to the warnings he was exhibiting until it was too late. Please don't let this happen to your cat, I dont won't anyone to go through the pain I have been through.

I just wanted to add ....First Thanks to everyone for their support to me It has really helped me and my daughter feel so much better though I still cry now & then about buddy boy. I was told by the vet it doesn't just effect male cats that are neutered, it's just a male cat thing. I went searching for a cat food to prevent this and I found one... it's Purina Friskies Special diet... it is made to help maintain urinary tract health by reducing the urinary pH and has low magnesium. it costs a little more than i can afford but if I dont have to go through this again it is so worth it. I have 2 more male cats Bubba who is 9 yrs. and Mr. Charlie who is about 8 yrs and survived this same problem about 11 months ago. and one female who is 18 yrs old. i feed them only can food now unless I know I'm not going to be home for a while during the day then I put dry food down for them. Thanks again Everyone. big Huuuuuuuugs for all of you.

you can check out pictures of bubba sissy, Mr.Charlie, and Buddy boy here http://www.myspace.com/calikocahlia

Answer 1

I had to say goodbye to my Sherman the other day as well... for almost the same reason. May I just offer you a huge huggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggg, and my moral support? My heart truly breaks for you, and I thank you with all my heart, for reaching out to help complete strangers, even through your grief. God Bless you and yours.

Answer 2

I am truly sorry for your loss. They are a part of the family and so dealy loved. I have also lost a male neutered cat to crystals. He was only 3 years old. When I came home from work my cat came over to me and literally just layed across my feet as I was standing there. He looked up at me and just let out a painful meow. I realized something was wrong and then noticed how bloated and hard his stomach was. I checked the litter box and it was dry. The poor little guy couldn't pee. I took him to the after hours emergency services. He had crystals. Even after the procedure to empty his bladder, his bladder would not contract back to normal. It was like jello and he was a very unhappy cat and in a lot of pain. The vet said he could not live like this. I had to put him down.
The diet is so very important is what I was told by the vet. Male cats are prone to urinary problems and should be put on special food to promote a healthy urinary tract.

I currently have 2 male cats now that are brothers from the same litter. One of them started to pee all over. He one day just stood there and squatted right in front of me and went about the size of a dime. He ran to his litter box about 15 times in a hours time. I thought it was crystals right away. I called the vet and got him in immediatly and here he had a bladder infection. Some medication cured that right up and he was happy again.

Good luck to you. I have also been there and know what you are going through.

Answer 3

I don't understand why ALL cat foods arn't made to prevent this problem when it is soo common. Our kitty had this problem, but I thought is was something else. I knew he was really sick when he curled up with the dog! He was acting kind of strange. A trip to the vet probably saved his life! Kitty's are so different and they just don't always tell us what is wrong. I know that some foods are better for cats than others. I spend soo much time at the pet store trying to decipher all the stuff on the labels.
I am sorry about your kitty. It is so hard to send our pets over the rainbow bridge. (I lost a beloved dog recently - miss her every day.) Maybe your warning will help someone. It will help remind me to watch my kitties. Thank you.

Answer 4

i can appreciate this warning. i had a cat put to sleep for the same reason. he was peeing (or trying i should say ) and could not. bleeding some, very miserable for my kitty, tiger was his name and i miss him dearly, we had to take him to the vet 3 different times for that problem and they would catherize him , but he seemed to get worse and it was financially killing us, he was a male cat, he was neutered tho and i always thought it had something to do with that, and still do to this day. we ended up having him put down on thanksgiving day 5 years ago, what was tough is when our kids seen us take him to the vet, then coming home without him, it was heartbreaking.from my own exp.i will never neuter another one. we have 3 male cats now and they are all fine n healthy.
but one is 5 yrs.old and has a problem spraying but thats just a teritorial thing. im very sorry bout ur loss. i sure feel for you.

Answer 5

Thank you for bringing this all too common issue to the forefront. I have all female cats, but I have unfortunately had to euthanize too many cats for this problem. In some animals, it can be successfully treated, but some do not make it.

The best advice I can offer is to say that diet plays a huge role in this syndrome. By that I mean that the quality of the diet is important, but more important is the water content. Cats tend to concentrate their urine extremely well. Probably because in nature, they are not big water drinkers. But with the formulated diets that we feed pet cats, the concentrated urine causes more material to crystallize out, thus causing blockages.

The current thinking is that if you can, feeding your cat a good quality canned food, adding water to it if possible, and encouraging water intake by getting a circulating water fountain, turning faucets on, or leaving cups of water, is most important. If you can get more water into your cat, you stand a better chance of diluting the urine to a point that crystallization is less likely to happen.

Good luck to all of you who have dealt with this, and know that there are tons of research projects in the works to find effective ways to treat and more importantly to prevent this from harming other kitties!

Answer 6

Some dry catfoods have an excess of taurine, or other additives that affect mostly male cats. And I used to just buy whatever was on sale; then someone told me to stop switching brands..it sounded stupid to me, but I gave it a try. We actually have a Siamese Lynx Point Manx that has some mal-absorption problems, and sticking with the same food has fixed all that.

Answer 7

My cat, Razz, has this same exact problem. I found out because he started peeing in the bathroom sink and it looked like someone had poured cherry kool-aid in there. =( I took him to the vet and found out it was too much Magnesium in his diet...and most cat foods have a ton of it in their recipes. So, I know it's too late for you...but for others...male cats are more susceptible to this problem and if you buy a low magnesium cat food, can fix/avoid this problem easily. I actually buy the Kirkland brand cat food from Costco...he's never had another issue with crystals in his urine since.

I'm very sorry for your loss...I still mourn my baby, Schmoozer, and he died almost 3 years ago now.

Answer 8

A little off the topic, but we at my house are grieving our twenty year old female who passed on in the wee hours of July 4.. Who'd have thought it was an inner ear infection that took her out. We love and miss her.

Answer 9

Your story was soooo sad. As a cat lover myself, I was truly touched by your story. My male cat was diagonsed with Crystals and the vet doc gave him meds and special food to help him get better.

Thank you for sharing your story and I hope other cat owners heed your warning :,-(

Answer 10

I went through this same thing about 3 years ago. My Booty was only 3 years old. He had a surgery that just didn't work. He still had blood in his urine and his bladder didn't empty when he went.
My thoughts are with you.