Spend the extra money on a good grain-free Foods! In the long run food is cheaper than vet bills! I know from experience.

All the best for poor Hobbes. He's in my and my boy Wesley's thoughts. Wesley has had similar problems now and then, so he knows what it feels like. He seems to be doing fine recently. His diet is restricted to Hill's c/d, which is luckily fine by him.

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Our cat is on C/D also. 69$ a bag but keeps her alive and healthy.

Chewy.com carry it?

My understanding is that male cats have problems because of low intake of fluids, a small urethra and minerals in seafood that build up and block the urethra.

I recommend avoiding seafood for male cats and give them canned food with some extra water added to the food. I give canned food to my female cats and add water to help make sure their organs stay healthy.

https://www.acvs.org/small-animal/urinary-obstruction-cats

I had the same thing happen to my cat. The obstruction is really bad in cats because the bladder will leach into their bodies when it is too full unlike us humans which it will not.

Man I am sorry to hear that ... cats are not good at telling you somethings going on.

Damn I did not know this. Thx for the link

I have not read up as to what happens on the human side -- and perhaps I am misreading your statement but urine will not leach across the bladder wall in cats. Can a bladder, ureter, urethra, etc. rupture and then allow urine into the peritoneal cavity (abdomen)? Sure, but that is an extreme event. When urine outflow is obstructed pressure builds/backs up thru the urinary tract; simply put all the bad stuff your (cat's) body would normally flush out in the urine is retained and ultimately creates a state of uremia/essentially acute renal failure. Toxins build up, electrolytes are out of balance, heart and respiration rates can become altered. Getting the urinary tract free and flowing again is key for an acute obstruction and makes it worthwhile to get your cat to the hospital as soon as possible. If he/she (but mostly he) is continually trying to use the litter box and cannot seem to pass any urine or get comfortable it is best to take action vs. wait -- best case scenario it is a non life threatening event like a urinary tract infection.

That is what I remember from Veterinary School -- and perhaps some of that is what was meant in your statement. Normally the I am learning from the experts on this site, thought I might be able to contribute to something I'm an expert on for once.

Keyboard shelves are not for keyboards...

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Gotta love those gray kitties.

Yes you do !

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Thanks everyone for the well wishes. We went to visit Hobbes tonight. He was much more himself (as much as he could be), standing up and purring. Still has the catheter in, and is eating well.

Thank you again for your replies!

Chris

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Kitty wants you to show him (or her) how to watch Spectrum on Demand.

That's got to be a male, he has the remote.

Haha. You are correct. His name is phoniex!

I note his claws are not out- until you try to move his paw rest/your hand. Then out they come and it's a cat toy.

How’s Hobbes today?

Wondering the same.

He is doing well. Just got back from visiting him. He was very alert, had lots of energy, and is eating quite a bit. Catheter is still in, and we're hoping that will be removed at some point tomorrow. They gave him a shot of anti inflammatory medicine to assist with his bladder healing. The vet tech that things are as expected. We'll know more tomorrow morning after the Dr updates us.

We appreciate you thinking of him

Chris

I am just repeating what the vet told me when my cat had crystals in the urinary track if it did not get taken care of. It was a long time ago and maybe I misunderstood.

I hear ya. Everyone explains things different -- that could be exactly what he/she said for all I know. Just wanted to pass on what information I could as I understand it.

Hoping everyone's cats (and Hobbes) have free flowing and crystal free urine into the future.

Never thought I'd be typing that on a pinball forum.

A few years ago, I built a Visual Pinball setup. My one cat went absolutely bonkers when I would play it.. About a year ago, I got a Cleopatra EM pinball working and the first pinball in the gameroom. I tried putting the cat on the game and he wanted absolutely nothing to do with it.. He has never sat on the game and doesn't like the noise or something when its on.. I was telling my wife about this thread a few nights ago and my cat must have heard us talking. Yesterday, I had Cleo opened up for some service and cleaning. I walked away to grab some tools and when I came back my cat's inside the machine.. In the year plus I've had the machine he has been afraid of it.

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Lumi must smell something fishy in this cab!

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Hobbes came home today. His Catheter was removed Saturday morning, but we opted to keep him at the vet one more day until they were confident his urine was flowing freely. We brought him home this afternoon, and will be keeping a close eye on him to insure things are working properly.

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Glad you got him home......….let him sleep on the bed tonight !! Good looking cat...………..I have a affinity for short haired male cats,our first house cat was a short haired male named Arnold of all things.

That’s great news on Hobbes! When we brought Smokey home he was very cuddly for a few days, kept rubbing on us to get the scent of the vet off him!

Hobbes is a good looking cat. Glad he’s home.

YAY!

You know I've never been a "cat" guy but I follow this thread and beginning to think maybe I haven't given them a fair chance especially seeing from comments here about how much they appear to contribute to the lives they touch. Seriously going to have an earnest conversation with the wife tonight about getting a kitten or perhaps a grown cat from the shelter in town. I say kitten due to having two small dogs and I thought maybe they could or would bond better that way. Trying to avoid any pre-prejudice an older cat may have towards dogs, don't want fighting going on between them.

Have any of you had a good experience with this and was it young kitten, or older cat?

We've had two rescue cats and two rescue dogs. Only one cat and one dog at a time. They mostly ignore each other. We'd start by keeping them separated for a few days. Then we'd crate the dog for an hour and give the cat the run of the house. Then we'd crate the cat for an hour and give the dog the run of the house. After they seemed to loose interest in bugging each other we'd let them both out with supervision. Within a week or two all was well. Below is the one picture I ever got of an actual interaction. I think they were both already asleep and just rolled into each other.

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We used a baby gate to block off one room so the cats had somewhere the dogs couldn't go. We also put up cat shelves around the living room so they could be up high, bask in the sunshine, survey their domain.

It does take some training. If your dog has a chase instinct that you can't control you'll want to work on that.

That's the type of interaction I hope to have between my pets, thanks for sharing. I know my dogs are loving animals that show very little to no animosity towards other dogs but, they've never seen cats except outside our backyard fence and I just don't want either hurt. Our dogs are rescues as well and man there are just so many that need a good home, shame people just don't seem to realize animals have so much to offer towards the betterment of our lives, far beyond "the pet for the kids to play" with scenario I here so often.

Sometimes it takes the right combination of dog and cat. Some dogs are programmed to chase, and some cats are programmed to run. I have had several cats that were less inclined to run and once the dog realized there would be no chase he left the cat alone.

My cats tend to find me -- here is the newest. Sprout showed up around the first of the year and walked right in like she owned the place.

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Good luck with your search RWH !

That is a fabulous name love it!! lol Makes you laugh to think about.

We've done it both ways. Calvin was found at the side of the road abandoned in a thunderstorm. A friend of my wife's dog found him. He was barely old enough to hold his own head up when he was found. The vet estimated that he was about 2 weeks old. He is now 16. He's a shy cat and is attached at the hip to my wife.

Violet was a rescue from a woman that got her at a shelter and wanted to give her away due to unforeseen allergy issues. We aren't 100% sure how old she was at the time, but they estimated she was 6. She's now 10 and is my little princess. She is the most loving and social cat I've ever been around. She greets people at the door, comes when I call her and sleeps beside me almost every night. Most of the time I get woken up in the morning to her head butting me.

Some cats can be ornery though. Our last cat Moses loved my wife, but not so much other people (including me). He was abused though and pulled out of a disgusting environment that I don't care to remember (Some people should just be shot). Anyway, I don't blame him for the way he acted. If you abused me when I was younger I'd probably be a much different person.

Anyway, we've had 4 cats over the last 20+ years and I wouldn't trade any of them for the world.

Not a cat but little Toby was in a brutal environment when we rescued him and it took him over a year to warm up to us but he's now a faithful and loving little buddy. Hard to fathom how people can be so cruel to these animals. We need new laws that have Real Consequences for their actions rather than a slap on the wrist and 100 dollar fine. Penalties starting at a year of incarceration would be a good start and non-negotiable sentencing would have to be a must!!!!We first saw Toby on Tv after the SPCA rescued him from his old owners because of people calling about his treatment. He is with us now and will never need a new home or want for love or a safe place to live. If we get a cat or kitten it will be one that needs a good home and people who love them.

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See that line on his neck that looks like a collar, it's not that is where they had chain around his neck that became to small as he grew and actually left scares when the vet remove it that will never go away. His owners were fined $75.00 dollars for cruelty towards him. Should have been locked up and chained to post for their duration the bastards!

This times 1000

Looks like that sweet baby has a great home now!!

My wife had a feral house cat when I moved in. Daisy wouldn't let you come near without running off. Had to be cornered and crated for vet visits. Well it turns out Daisy was REALLY fond of wet food! I started leaving dry treats a couple feet away from her. Once she figured out those were ok I put wet food in a bowl and she would let me pet her while she ate. The last couple years of her life she would jump on the bed at night and sleep at the foot. Once she jumped into my lap while I was watching TV. Such a rewarding experience.

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LOL!!

I would recommend putting a waterproof mattress cover on the bed just in case
Hobbes has a involuntary mistake.

... yeah, "Involuntary" ...

J/K.

A shelter should be able to recommend a cat or kitten that has been exposed to and socialized with dogs before. Cats are like people, some just like dogs and some don’t. But a shelter should kno who’s who. Ask the volunteers, they know more than staff in many cases as they give them snuggle time and may notice if the kitty is anxious around Fido.

And remember the most important thing......the cat is picking you, not the other way around

Waiting to see what she ordered here this time.

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The last time we left our laptops unattended this happened.

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Thanks for the well wishes! Hobbes is NOT getting along with his brother AT ALL. They really got into it tonight. It's like they never knew each other. More stresses. Keeping them separated and trying to do scent swaps to get them acclimated again.

Chris

That's typical after an extended vet visit. One cat doesnt recognize the others scent. It will get better shortly once that nasty vet smell wears off