Yes, I have.

First off, Good job in catching a very dangerous situation and fixing it.

It was very difficult to control the crystals and prevent blockages in my cat Finney. I tried special food and suppplements. He had three blockages, the last one on Christmas day about 10 years ago. After that, he had a PU (which is a penisectomy, although that's not what it's really called).

The PU shortens the urethra, so there is less build-up and subsequent blockage.

I imagine your vet has suggested a diet designed to reduce crystals? Definitely use that. And watch his urine output, because blockage is fatal.

Good luck.

One of our cats (neutered male, 6 years old) had a urinary blockage this spring -- he nearly died but the pet hospital catheterized him and pulled him through. Now he eats only special food from the vet (Royal Canin, Control Formula) and has had no further problems.

He finally peed a little while ago, which was a relief.
Petaloid, he does have a special Hill's diet, but we have quite a few cats, so he is going to sneak everyone elses' food as well. The vet didn't think it would be a major problem. We are feeding Core dry and EVO canned.
Elly, how much time elapsed between blockages? How old was he when he had the surgery? The vet said the surgery is a last resort in cats who keep re-blocking. I really, really hope this will be a one-time occurrence. He is on antibios twice daily and she said the crystals might have been caused by a UTI because he had bloody urine and his bladder was really thickened. So we have to make sure he drinks enough water and eats mostly canned food.

Finney's blockages happened within a year. He was about 7 or 8.

I was relieved that the surgery helped, because of the stress of monitoring his urine and worrying about the next blockage and his potential death.

I'm sorry that you and your cat are going through this. Several of my boys have suffered complete blockages over the years, but each of them has only had one with no recurrences, and none of them were permanently switched to a special diet (though they did get prescription food initially to help dissolve any residual crystals).

I have found that the most effective strategy for achieving and maintaining urinary tract health is to keep as much water running through the digestive tract as possible to keep crystals flushed out before they can form blockages. To that end, I have water bowls all over my house. Pet water fountains can also inspire more frequent drinking. A large fish bowl with a couple of goldfish on a cat-accessible table is the absolute favorite drinking hole.

I also mix canned cat food into a soup with lots of hot water to increase water intake on a daily basis. Dry food is horrible for cats with a tendency to block, because kibble draws water out of the digestive tract and leaves the cat mildly dehydrated. That's the LAST thing you want happening to a cat prone to blockages.

It's also important to keep litterboxes very, very clean. If a cat dislikes a soiled litterbox, he may hold his urine in an attempt to avoid using the box, and that can give urinary crystals a chance to bind together and cause blockages.

Just keep as vigilant an eye on your boy as you obviously already are. Your quick action saved his life this time and will continue to do so if he should block again.

Laurie

Evo canned/raw diet fed throughout the life of the cat would have prevented something like this from ever happening in the first place. How old is the cat in question?

Go to www.Felinefuture.com- to learn about proper feline diets

Cats were made to eat and break down a meat only diet and when people try to curb or cut natures intentions things like this happen- its not your fault though.

I would stay away from Science diet/as you'll look on the bag to discover the food is quite grainy and of low quality/byproducts, animal digest, strange chemicals/ vets in gen are in the dark about feline diets not because they are themselves bad but because they are trained in vet school by bad companies.

However because your cat has a special problem EVO may be too rich, I would email Feline future about what to do.

Well, he is peeing a lot (thankfully), but very grumpy. Also, he peed on my pants, in a box with computer parts, and on a roadmap. He usually has impeccable litter box habits, so we are hoping this will stop once the discomfort has disappeared. It will be hard to switch him to canned exclusively, he loves the Core dry.
Elly, that's what scares me, that he might re-block again. It is impossible to keep constant watch, I work at home but I often get too busy to keep an eye on him all the time. Laurie, I hope it's a one-time-only problem for him too! He does drink a lot of water and we have 3 large bowls down, plus 2 extra in the bedroom.

I will vouch for the pet fountain - my vet recommeded one after our cat had a blockage. I was skeptical, but our cat does actually drink from it / play in it. He was pretty unhappy about switching to prescription canned food, so we either mix canned and dry, or just mix water in his dry food.

Our cat made a mess in the basement when he had his blockage, but is back to his perfect litter box habits, so hopefully your guy will soon be as well.

Freezetag, I am going to look for a pet fountain when I buy pet food today. Many thanks to Laurie and you for mentioning it! If I can't find it locally, I will order one. I checked with the vet regarding his litter box lapses, and she thinks he will be back to normal once his bladder is healed. Amazing how fast a blockage can happen, this was a scary experience!

Laurie, great advice.

Runswalken, do you own stock in Evo? It is good to suggest good diets; however, it is questionable to attribute every single problem someone encounters with their pet's health to not-eating-Evo. That just is not sound advice, or judgement.

I fed my Finney high quality food. His body formed crystals. Period. I fed my Sofie high quality food. She died at 5 years of age, and the vet could find nothing wrong with her in a necropsy. It wasn't food, and for you to suggest it is every time someone has a problem just is not so.

I recommend you start citing research and online links by independent researchers (as opposed to Evo) that support your suggestion about diet.