Mew-Mew's Urinary Issue: Vet Visit in the Morning

[~christina~]

Mew-mew, has an issue. It started today afternoon. I came home from school, I saw him use the litterbox in the bathroom, then I thought that he was getting an attitude with me when I told him to stop over burying his waste in cat litter. (he actually listened but had a meow fit)

I then picked him up and asked him why he was in such a bad mood, and he started growling and meowing loudly at me, whilst I was carrying him.
I put him down since he had never done that and then he hissed at me.
Then he proceeded to cry some more..

Now I find that when he, uses the litter box, no urine is actually being voided.
He then proceeds to cry/meow loudly and then leave litterbox and cry some more in the hallway.

I looked up why this could be happening and found that male cats have a chance of getting blockage in the urinary tract from, stones, cysts, crystal buildup from concentrated urine, infection.

I'm bringing him to the vet in the morning.

He doesn't want to be disturbed much but cries some more when I talk to him.

He has now passed a few drops of urine from what I've observed.
Cries a lot after that...seems that the urine drops are quite yellow= concentrated.

I tried to lure him to play with a toy fish that is connected to a stick. He chased it around and then flopped down on his tummy and started to lick his private area...he does this alot.

currently he's in the hallway, crying his lungs out...
I feel bad that I can't give him anything for the pain..his leg shakes sometimes too.

 

[Math Is Hard]

It could be crystallization or it could be a simple UTI. Try not to worry, but get him to the vet as soon as you can.
Do you have an emergency vet you could go to now?

 

[lisab]

Oh how heartbreaking...I'm so sorry, christina! My thoughts are with you and your sweet Mew-mew ...

 

[~christina~]

It could be crystallization or it could be a simple UTI. Try not to worry, but get him to the vet as soon as you can.
Do you have an emergency vet you could go to now?

There are some in the city but It's quite costly to even treat his condition in the daytime during normal hours (500+) If I do it now, I don't think I would be able to pay for his whole treatment. Then the only option would be to put him down.

He looks alright. He's going tommorow at 10 in the morning.
I just spent the last 1/2 hour petting him on my lap.

Thanks lisab I hope he'll be fine.

 

[Math Is Hard]

There are some in the city but It's quite costly to even treat his condition in the daytime during normal hours (500+) If I do it now, I don't think I would be able to pay for his whole treatment. Then the only option would be to put him down.

oh, no. I don't think any vet would recommend that. But yes, the emergency care is expensive.

He looks alright. He's going tommorow at 10 in the morning.
I just spent the last 1/2 hour petting him on my lap.

Oh, good. I am glad he is settling down. Give him lots of sweet talk if he starts having pain again and doesn't want to be petted.

For the future, here is a cat litter that is helpful for UTI detection:
http://www.petabbey.com/store-produ...at-Litter----4-Pound-Bonus-Pack_40346129.html

I also give my kitty special treats for urinary tract health. Maybe your vet can recommend some.

 

[hypatia]

My cat has crystals, and must be kept on a special diet. The Vet suggested all kinds of tests, and of course the really costly food, that he sells. I however refused and now make my cats food, made of boiled fish or chicken with rice.

 

[Moonbear]

Oh! Poor Mew mew! You'd be grouchy too if you really had to pee and couldn't or it was painful when you did. You might want to restrict his access to hiding places...if he starts to hurt too much, he might want to hide and make it hard for you to get him out in the morning when you're ready to head to the vet. Brace yourself for him to be extra grouchy in the morning. He might even try to bite if you pick him up and it hurts, so have a towel ready and remember it's because he's hurting and scared, not because he's being a bad cat.

 

[Astronuc]

Mew-mew, has an issue. It started today afternoon. I came home from school, I saw him use the litterbox in the bathroom, then I thought that he was getting an attitude with me when I told him to stop over burying his waste in cat litter. (he actually listened but had a meow fit)

I then picked him up and asked him why he was in such a bad mood, and he started growling and meowing loudly at me, whilst I was carrying him.
I put him down since he had never done that and then he hissed at me.
Then he proceeded to cry some more..

Now I find that when he, uses the litter box, no urine is actually being voided.
He then proceeds to cry/meow loudly and then leave litterbox and cry some more in the hallway.

I looked up why this could be happening and found that male cats have a chance of getting blockage in the urinary tract from, stones, cysts, crystal buildup from concentrated urine, infection.

I'm bringing him to the vet in the morning.

He doesn't want to be disturbed much but cries some more when I talk to him.

He has now passed a few drops of urine from what I've observed.
Cries a lot after that...seems that the urine drops are quite yellow= concentrated.

I tried to lure him to play with a toy fish that is connected to a stick. He chased it around and then flopped down on his tummy and started to lick his private area...he does this alot.

currently he's in the hallway, crying his lungs out...
I feel bad that I can't give him anything for the pain..his leg shakes sometimes too.

Sounds like cystitis or UTI as MIH suggested. Give the cat acidifier (ask the vet) and food with reduced ash/magnesium. If the cat has UTI, then he may need anti-biotic. Clean the litter box more frequently, and use vinegar when cleaning it.

Meanwhile - http://www.homevet.com/petcare/cystitis.html

http://www.catsofaustralia.com/cat-urinarytract-problems.htm

 

[Borek]

Poor Mew mew Fingers crossed.

 

[Kurdt]

Put him down because you can't pay? What kind of mad place do you live? Are there no vet practices that will do it for free like the PDSA? I'm sure you'd be eligible since you're in school.

 

[physics girl phd]

While it won't take care of the immediate issue (hopefully the trip to the vet will), the book "The natural cat" by anitra frazier has good advice about preparing a homemade diet for your cat if you choose to go hypatia's route (I had a friend who added pumpkin to help limit her cat's emergency trips to the vet for constipation). It has good advice about other things too, like how to trim your indoor cat's nails safely, how to best introduce a new cat to ones already in the house, etc. A good read even if you aren't as hippy as anitra, and therefore a bit more pragmatic about your cat. (Of course, I'm not as pragmatic about my Cha-Cha as I'd like to think I am!) You and Mew-mew are in our thoughts.

 

[Evo]

Christina do take him to the vet even if he shows improvement. I almost lost a cat, he seemed to improve and then fell over and stopped moving, I rushed him to the emergency vet and he had serious bladder damage. He was completely blocked. They weren't sure he was going to live. They unblocked him and drained him and started him on antibiotics, but since they were emergency and only open at night, they told me to take him to a regular vet for observation...then the nightmare began.

This can be fatal and I did have another cat that died after being blocked twice.

It sounds like you have caught this soon enough and Mew Mew will be ok. Please let us know he is.

 

[Astronuc]

While it won't take care of the immediate issue (hopefully the trip to the vet will), the book "The natural cat" by anitra frazier has good advice about preparing a homemade diet for your cat if you choose to go hypatia's route (I had a friend who added pumpkin to help limit her cat's emergency trips to the vet for constipation). It has good advice about other things too, like how to trim your indoor cat's nails safely, how to best introduce a new cat to ones already in the house, etc. A good read even if you aren't as hippy as anitra, and therefore a bit more pragmatic about your cat. (Of course, I'm not as pragmatic about my Cha-Cha as I'd like to think I am!) You and Mew-mew are in our thoughts.

We (my mom) had a seal-point Siamese cat named Cha-Cha. That was 45 years ago. Unfortunately my mom backed the car over her.

Our second seal-point Siamese was Ling-Ling. She was an outdoor cat. She survived a collision with a car, although she was badly injured.

We had a Calico (Pumpkin) who had a chronic cystitis problem, and we had to use an acidifier to lower the pH of the urine as well has put her on a special low ash diet.

 

[JasonRox]

My family dog actually went blind over night on Friday/Satuday. He was diabetic.

Not sure how much longer he has.

 

[Evo]

My family dog actually went blind over night on Friday/Satuday. He was diabetic.

Not sure how much longer he has.

Oh no! Oh, Jason I am so sorry. Pets are so loving and trusting and it's so hard when they get sick. I hope you can spend time with him. I am so sad for you.

 

[JasonRox]

Oh no! Oh, Jason I am so sorry. Pets are so loving and trusting and it's so hard when they get sick. I hope you can spend time with him. I am so sad for you.

Thanks.

I think it will affect my mom more than anyone.

I'm sure he me misses right now though (out of the house). He's so thin. He used to be more muscular. I used to hit him all the time on his upper back thighs. People thought I was crazy, but for some reason he liked it.

 

[BobG]

Christina do take him to the vet even if he shows improvement. I almost lost a cat, he seemed to improve and then fell over and stopped moving, I rushed him to the emergency vet and he had serious bladder damage. He was completely blocked. They weren't sure he was going to live. They unblocked him and drained him and started him on antibiotics, but since they were emergency and only open at night, they told me to take him to a regular vet for observation...then the nightmare began.

This can be fatal and I did have another cat that died after being blocked twice.

It sounds like you have caught this soon enough and Mew Mew will be ok. Please let us know he is.

Yeah, this can be bad if holding his urine results in an infection. Plus, it can give him a distended bladder for a while even with the blockage cleared up. It's not much fun holding the cat in the litter box and pumping water into its mouth until it finally pees. I had to force feed him, as well, since he was sick enough he didn't even feel like eating.

In our case, the first infection weakened him enough that he was susceptible to more illnesses. He'd improve, then catch some other infection or illness, improve, catch something else. We finally gave up when he was down to about a third of his normal weight.

If you get him in and cured before he gets some kind of infection, his chances are pretty good. Just don't wait.

 

[JasonRox]

Christina,

I hope your cat is doing much better and you caught this pretty early on. I can imagine the pain the cat must have had when you caught him/her not being able to pee. Just like humans, it's hard for cats too.

 

[Greg Bernhardt]

My cat had a UTI a few months ago. Not a big deal, but get to a vet asap for the comfort of the cat.

 

[Evo]

My cat's bladder was also damaged by the stones inside. To make a horrific story short, his penis had to be removed, he had two surgeries and three transfusions.

If a cat is completely blocked for a couple of days the amount of toxins reach extremely high levels. My cat was completely blocked.

 

[turbo]

Good luck, Christina. Best wishes for a speedy recovery for your friend.

 

[hypatia]

I am keeping Mew Mew in good positive thoughts, for a quick recovery. I know how hard it is when our animal friends become ill.

 

[Andre]

Sorry to hear all that Christina, I hope that don't have difficult decision to make. All the best for Mew mew

 

[Moonbear]

Any word yet on Mew-mew? I hope he got to the vet and is more comfortable now.

Sorry to hear about your dog, too, Jason. Dogs can do well even if blind, so if you treat the diabetes, he might still recover in other ways. It just makes it more tedious to care for them when they need regular insulin shots, but it can be done.

 

[Evo]

Christina, I hope Mew Mew is ok. If he needs medical care $, let us know. I'm not exactly rolling in cash right now, but maybe some of us could kick in some. This condition can be expensive, I know. My cat's emergency room bill was almost $500 and the surgery and transfusions ended up totaling $2,500 more. This was all in a few days.

 

[Evo]

Now I am starting to really worry about Mew Mew. Hopefully all went well, and christina is doing something else.

 

[binzing]

You should be in good shape since you're getting him in so early.

When i was in 6th grade (so four years back) we came home one December night from my orchestra concert to find our tiny cat Mitzy with a leg torn to hell (we think it was a fox). We cleaned her up and got her into the vet, turned out the opposite front leg was broken, and the damage to the ripped up one was so bad that after a few weeks of trying to save it it had to be removed. Anyways, she's now as lively as ever, and even more loving as well. We think she realized what she went through and appreciates us for it.

 

[Danger]

Christina, I've refrained from responding until now because I didn't (and still don't) know what to say to comfort you. Both of my neutered orange male cats (the most susceptible type) had uric acid crystal buildups in their bladders. This made it critical to not let them get wet or cold, both of which aggravate the condition.
The oldest one was given pills (probably the acidifiers that Astro mentioned), and was fine. The younger one had to be re-plumbed. His penis wasn't removed, but his urinary tract was rerouted to his intestine, so he evacuated all waste through the same orifice.
Both of them required only one emergency vet visit (first indication of discomfort). The immediate treatment for both was a catheter to drain the bladder (merely thinking of which makes my balls try to climb up and hide behind my tonsils ).
Anyhow, the basic situation is that your friend's health should be manageable, enabling him to lead a healthy, happy life with you.

 

[~christina~]

Christina do take him to the vet even if he shows improvement. I almost lost a cat, he seemed to improve and then fell over and stopped moving, I rushed him to the emergency vet and he had serious bladder damage. He was completely blocked. They weren't sure he was going to live. They unblocked him and drained him and started him on antibiotics, but since they were emergency and only open at night, they told me to take him to a regular vet for observation...then the nightmare began.

This can be fatal and I did have another cat that died after being blocked twice.

It sounds like you have caught this soon enough and Mew Mew will be ok. Please let us know he is.

Ah, I'm not crazy! I did say I was taking him to the vet at 10AM the next morning and I did. They told us we caught it in time. Too bad, I let him out in the office and then he spotted another cat...then flew up a food rack and hid there. When I pulled him out, he sort of had an accident and it had blood in it.

He's back home, and resting. They weren't happy that I had to pull him out after 2 days. They were in a pricy neighborhood and I guess, decided that that was insane.(apparently everyone can afford it in their mind) I did pull him out and I was outraged when I brought him home.

He smelled of urine..the box smelled of urine. Then the WORST part was that BOTH his arms were injured. They covered his arms with bandages and I thought that it was just because they had an IV in him before, but then I saw bruises and razor burns from where they shaved him! He also had a cut in his private area where they shaved down there too!
I have volunteered at a animal hospital and they are supposed to put them to sleep before they shave anything. They must have thought that he was a nice calm kitty since they stuck the thermometer up his behind and he didn't budge at all. Well I have to say when it comes to anything that makes noise, he starts acting wild. OR they were just cheap and didn't want to waste their solution.

I gave him a thorough bath and thorough drying with the blowdryer. I was NOT going to let him in my house otherwise.

I would sue them but they state in the contract, that if anything happens to your animal during their care, they are NOT responsible, and thus not liable.

They ABUSED my kitty.

They didn't even give me a cone for his head so he wouldn't lick his bottom. I had to make one of my own. Then on top of that, they gave me half filled bottles of medicine and I don't even know if it was only my cat that was using that bottle. I had to pay full price for them.

I'm so angry right now but at least Mew Mew can use the bathroom fine.

Oh and he had no crystals/stones/etc. He actually had a urinary tract infection.

I've paid the bill in full but I couldn't let him stay another day like they wanted. Hell, they would have kept him for 2 weeks if they could, just to milk the situation for all it's worth.
It came out to $878. (faints)

 

[~christina~]

Christina, I've refrained from responding until now because I didn't (and still don't) know what to say to comfort you. Both of my neutered orange male cats (the most susceptible type) had uric acid crystal buildups in their bladders. This made it critical to not let them get wet or cold, both of which aggravate the condition.
The oldest one was given pills (probably the acidifiers that Astro mentioned), and was fine. The younger one had to be re-plumbed. His penis wasn't removed, but his urinary tract was rerouted to his intestine, so he evacuated all waste through the same orifice.
Both of them required only one emergency vet visit (first indication of discomfort). The immediate treatment for both was a catheter to drain the bladder (merely thinking of which makes my balls try to climb up and hide behind my tonsils ).
Anyhow, the basic situation is that your friend's health should be manageable, enabling him to lead a healthy, happy life with you.

Why are orange male cats more suseptable?
lol..they do have human ones

They tried to sell me the, "Science diet," food. But currently they forced me to pay for "urinary So in gel" cat food for him.

I gave him all his medications and I shall see.

 

[turbo]

Oh, man, that SUCKS! I'm glad your buddy is OK, and so sorry that he had to be traumatized that way. You can eventually rationalize it, talk to us, and get over it. He needs YOU right now so he can stabilize and settle down.

best for you both

 

[~christina~]

I also wanted to thank everyone for their concern. I might send a picture of Mew-mew with his alternative cone and bandages on his bed.

 

[~christina~]

Put him down because you can't pay? What kind of mad place do you live? Are there no vet practices that will do it for free like the PDSA? I'm sure you'd be eligible since you're in school.

Being in school doesn't mean anything around here.

My family dog actually went blind over night on Friday/Satuday. He was diabetic.

Not sure how much longer he has.

Aw..that's unfortunate.

I hope for the best with your doggy. It will take some time for him to get used to not seeing anything.

Oh, man, that SUCKS! I'm glad your buddy is OK, and so sorry that he had to be traumatized that way. You can eventually rationalize it, talk to us, and get over it. He needs YOU right now so he can stabilize and settle down.

best for you both

Yes it does... I won't be taking him back there anymore.
How would I rationalize it? Ah, so it was part of his treatment...
(really hard to rationalize anything when you have volunteered at a animal hospital, and you KNOW it's not part of standard procedure to razor burn an animal in your care)

I have left him in the bathroom so if he does have an accident, it won't be on the carpet.
He started to sleep after he found a comfortable spot with his alternative cone on his head.

 

[Danger]

Why are orange male cats more suseptable?

I don't know. It must be a susceptibility to the condition in orange toms, which is then triggered by the neutering (maybe hormone imbalance) plus exposure to cold and damp conditions. That's just my best guess, though; Moonbear is a specialist in this sort of stuff, so I'll leave an answer up to her.

 

[Evo]

I am so glad it was an infection, but $878 for an infection? And no cone?

Poor Mew Mew, give him hugs and kisses from me. I can't believe they handled him so badly.

 

[~christina~]

I don't know. It must be a susceptibility to the condition in orange toms, which is then triggered by the neutering (maybe hormone imbalance) plus exposure to cold and damp conditions. That's just my best guess, though; Moonbear is a specialist in this sort of stuff, so I'll leave an answer up to her.

hm..when i looked up this online, (tract infection) it says that neutered males are more suseptable to this condition.
Mine wasn't neutered but if he didn't get a tract infection, he would have definitely gotten something else. He doesn't drink water that much. His breath smells bad, but is now okay after eating the wet food which has water in it already.

I am so glad it was an infection, but $878 for an infection? And no cone?

That price was WITH a 10% discount. No cone.
I bet they want me to come back when he gives himself an infection from licking himself.

Poor Mew Mew, give him hugs and kisses from me. I can't believe they handled him so badly.

He's a bit grumpy today. Doesn't like the medicine.
I don't know if it's alright though, whenever I give him the medicine, he starts to foam at his mouth, until it drips down his fur.
Have to check that out.

 

[Borek]

Let's hope for the best.

$878

Didn't know vets are that expensive in US.

 

[~christina~]

Let's hope for the best.

There is no other way to put this.
He has diarrhea now.

I spent all night cleaning up his fur. Then his fur was trimmed up.
And now there's wheezing in me chest. lovely.

$878

Didn't know vets are that expensive in US.

They take advantage of people who they feel, will do anything and spend anything for their pets.

 

[Tsu]

Wheezing in WHOSE chest? YOURS??

 

[~christina~]

Wheezing in WHOSE chest? YOURS??

Mine

 

[Math Is Hard]

That's an obscene amount of money! Do you have an itemized bill? This just doesn't make sense. I've never been charged over $100 for taking a cat in with a UTI. That included the medicine.

 

[Tsu]

Mine

OH NO!

Zicam and orange juice! QUICK!

 

[binzing]

I'm happy to hear that the cat was OK.

(I wonder if cranberry juice helps prevent and treat UTIs in animals as it does in humans...I wonder if you could get a cat to drink cranberry juice...Ah NVM, I'm rambling...)

 

[Math Is Hard]

I'm happy to hear that the cat was OK.

(I wonder if cranberry juice helps prevent and treat UTIs in animals as it does in humans...I wonder if you could get a cat to drink cranberry juice...Ah NVM, I'm rambling...)

Actually, I think the special treats I give my cat have cranberry extract in them. It's supposed to have a prophylactic effect of keeping harmful stuff from sticking to the urethra.

 

[Borek]

That's an obscene amount of money! Do you have an itemized bill? This just doesn't make sense. I've never been charged over $100 for taking a cat in with a UTI. That included the medicine.

Now we are talking money I understand, that's about the amount I would expect to pay here.

 

[Andre]

Hope that Mew mew and you are recovering a bit, Christine, from all that hardship, Could it be a reaction to the medicine?

But that bill is nothing short of robbery, I'd say, I think whenever possible you should make a case of it. Perhaps that publicity could deter and they may settle. I don't know. Something like that would be quite impossible here.

 

[Moonbear]

He smelled of urine..the box smelled of urine. Then the WORST part was that BOTH his arms were injured. They covered his arms with bandages and I thought that it was just because they had an IV in him before, but then I saw bruises and razor burns from where they shaved him! He also had a cut in his private area where they shaved down there too!
I have volunteered at a animal hospital and they are supposed to put them to sleep before they shave anything. They must have thought that he was a nice calm kitty since they stuck the thermometer up his behind and he didn't budge at all. Well I have to say when it comes to anything that makes noise, he starts acting wild. OR they were just cheap and didn't want to waste their solution.

...

I would sue them but they state in the contract, that if anything happens to your animal during their care, they are NOT responsible, and thus not liable.

That contract ONLY protects them from liability if they provide a standard level of care, NOT if they screw up. Don't be mistaken. No contract can take away your rights if they don't provide proper treatment in the first place...that's part of the agreement, that they'll do the best they can and in return, you won't sue them if your pet dies anyway because it's not something that can be treated...but they have to do the best they can, not some half-assed job that leaves him all bruised.

Oh and he had no crystals/stones/etc. He actually had a urinary tract infection.

I've paid the bill in full but I couldn't let him stay another day like they wanted. Hell, they would have kept him for 2 weeks if they could, just to milk the situation for all it's worth.
It came out to $878. (faints)

That's an obscene amount of money! Do you have an itemized bill? This just doesn't make sense. I've never been charged over $100 for taking a cat in with a UTI. That included the medicine.

But that bill is nothing short of robbery, I'd say, I think whenever possible you should make a case of it. Perhaps that publicity could deter and they may settle. I don't know. Something like that would be quite impossible here.

I agree with MIH and Andre and others...that bill is ridiculous for treating a UTI, especially when it seems they were letting some brand new vet tech in training learn to clip fur on your cat (it would be appalling if that much razor burn and cuts from the clipping came from someone supposedly experienced). It didn't cost that much for my cat to be anesthetized, spayed and microchipped all in one visit (I had them microchip her while she was anesthetized...why stick her while she's awake if they had her under anyway), and that WAS an expensive vet.

Diarrhea could be a side effect of the antibiotic, but not a good one. If it was just softer than usual stools, I wouldn't be concerned, but if it's diarrhea, he should get a different antibiotic. I'd suggest calling a different vet that's not so expensive, have his records transferred and let the new vet prescribe the new antibiotic. Did they do a fecal test on him when you brought him in? If not, the new vet can do that too before changing antibiotics, because the other than a side effect of antibiotics, it's also possible that struggling with an infection and the mild disruption of gut bacteria from the antibiotic has given parasites a chance to flourish...he should be checked for worms and amoebae unless that was already done before his treatment started and they know he was cleared of parasites.

 

[~christina~]

Hope that Mew mew and you are recovering a bit, Christine, from all that hardship, Could it be a reaction to the medicine?

I think it's a combination of the wet food that he's eating (extra moist from what I can see), the antibiotic, and the phenoxybenzamine. (I think the phenoxybenzamine is mixed with fish oil)

But that bill is nothing short of robbery, I'd say, I think whenever possible you should make a case of it. Perhaps that publicity could deter and they may settle. I don't know. Something like that would be quite impossible here.

They made a big deal about giving us a 10% discount. That was with the discount.
They could sue me for defamation. I'd rather not sue, because I'm sort of broke at the moment. Broke= I still need money to pay for my tuition and basic expenses and thus not enough to throw around suing people, when they can sue me back for double that.

Actually, I think the special treats I give my cat have cranberry extract in them. It's supposed to have a prophylactic effect of keeping harmful stuff from sticking to the urethra.

I'll have to check that out. Interesting.

That's an obscene amount of money! Do you have an itemized bill? This just doesn't make sense. I've never been charged over $100 for taking a cat in with a UTI. That included the medicine.

Itemized bill below:

Office examination: 45
X-ray-First view: 95
Urinalysis: 40
Pre-Anesthetic Profile: 65
IV Catheterization: 45
Fluid Therapy(IV): 35
Sedation-Feline: 50
Urethral Catheter: 175
Injections(Hosp.): (2) 50-150
Hospitalization (per day): (2) 130-195
Write-in Medications: 40-60

Actual total may vary between 770-955
Total after 10% discount: 693-859.50

And I've just noticed that they charged me the maximum for everything, not to mention, also adding cost of medication when they were supposed to be included in the cost.
I was robbed.

That contract ONLY protects them from liability if they provide a standard level of care, NOT if they screw up. Don't be mistaken. No contract can take away your rights if they don't provide proper treatment in the first place...that's part of the agreement, that they'll do the best they can and in return, you won't sue them if your pet dies anyway because it's not something that can be treated...but they have to do the best they can, not some half-assed job that leaves him all bruised.

Great, now if I actually had anything left after that vet bill, I'd probably bring them to court.

I agree with MIH and Andre and others...that bill is ridiculous for treating a UTI, especially when it seems they were letting some brand new vet tech in training learn to clip fur on your cat (it would be appalling if that much razor burn and cuts from the clipping came from someone supposedly experienced). It didn't cost that much for my cat to be anesthetized, spayed and microchipped all in one visit (I had them microchip her while she was anesthetized...why stick her while she's awake if they had her under anyway), and that WAS an expensive vet.

They even told me that they would give me a discount on neutering if we did that the same day! The doctor cut him with the scissors when removing his bandages.... I said something and then, the just did it later when I wasn't there.

Diarrhea could be a side effect of the antibiotic, but not a good one. If it was just softer than usual stools, I wouldn't be concerned, but if it's diarrhea, he should get a different antibiotic. I'd suggest calling a different vet that's not so expensive, have his records transferred and let the new vet prescribe the new antibiotic. Did they do a fecal test on him when you brought him in? If not, the new vet can do that too before changing antibiotics, because the other than a side effect of antibiotics, it's also possible that struggling with an infection and the mild disruption of gut bacteria from the antibiotic has given parasites a chance to flourish...he should be checked for worms and amoebae unless that was already done before his treatment started and they know he was cleared of parasites.

It was just softer than normal. Enough to smear and get on his fur.
He's not used to the wet food either, but according to the vet he can't eat anything else for a week. There was no fecal test done.

 

[Evo]

At the emergency vet, which is always more expensive, they had to remove a stone form my cat's urether, flush him out, catheterize him and put him on antibiotics and it was $475.

My other cat I took to the vet since I noticed his symptoms during the day and the same procedure plus a 2 day stay was around $300.

My first cat that cost over $2,500 was due to gross negligence on the part of the vet I took him to after the emergency clinic. He failed to remove the catheter until it was too late then actually ripped his penis apart which required emergency surgery, and the unbelievable following chain of events.

Sorry, it just still gets me worked up when I think about what that butcher did to my cat.

 

[Moonbear]

My first cat that cost over $2,500 was due to gross negligence on the part of the vet I took him to after the emergency clinic. He failed to remove the catheter until it was too late then actually ripped his penis apart which required emergency surgery, and the unbelievable following chain of events.

I can't quite figure out how a catheter left in place too long would cause that much damage, but if it really was an error the vet made, and not some weird complication of an Evo Cat, why on Earth would you pay $2500 to fix the vet's mistake? I'd be insisting they fix it free of charge if they didn't want me to sue them and report them to their licensing board.

What bugs me most about vet bills is that I know how much the supplies cost, and I know how much they are overcharging. It's a good thing that some stuff I can do myself. For example, I didn't need to waste money on another office visit just to remove stitches from a spay. I can't remember what they wanted to charge for the office visit, but I just looked at them and told them they were nuts if they thought I was going to pay that much for 1 minute's worth of work and that I'd do it myself.