My cat is acting strangely, please help
My cat is acting strangely, please help
My Maine Coon which is about 14 years old has suddenly been acting moody and hiding lately. He usually is up and about in the morning in our kitchen, then at night or when he wants to be alone he will go down to the basement, but he is in the basement all day lately. This is highly unusual for him and I'm wondering what the cause could be. I took him to the vet yesterday and he said the only thing out of ordinary was his bladder being quite large and mentioned that it could be something to do with that and to monitor his litter to see if he is urinating properly. Last night I checked and he pooped and urinated in the litter so I think that can be ruled out? Anyways, right when we got home from the vet he went down stairs and back up quickly to the kitchen like everything was normal. I had petted him a bit on his head and he was purring like usual, but then my brother petted him (he has a good relationship with him as well) near the stomach he growled and hissed very angrily then ran to the top of our chair and laid down. When he was at the vet and the vet was grabbing the same area he didn't respond violently. He proceeded to lay on the chair for the remainder of the day without moving once. We tried feeding him Fancy Feast, but he only took a few bites. At one point when he was eating again my sister walked down the stairs right next to the chair and he growled very loudly and angrily again. Later he went down to the basement and that's when I checked his litter and left him alone for the night. Today he hasn't been up and about as well and I went down to the basement to look for him and he was hiding in a place I had seen him before maybe once. He gave me a faint meow with hardly any power behind it. This all happened very suddenly, he has been active and friendly up until two days ago when he started growling and hiding. I was wondering what my concerns should be based on the circumstances. Thank you for your help.
Re: My cat is acting strangely, please help
Your vet should be taking this seriously. Did he do any testing? (urinalysis, bloodwork, xrays)
When he mentioned large bladder, did he bother to express the bladder to see if kitty is urinating a normal amount? Did he suggest a urinalysis to rule out infection or crystals?
If none of these things were approached or if the vet never mentioned any of this to you, then please see a new vet ASAP (today please). It could be nearly anything because the symptoms are vague - although, painful abdomen is a sign of pain somewhere, and still could be a UTI or bladder problem. Please know that in male cats especially, if crystals, stones, blockages are present in the bladder, the male cat's urethra is so tiny that many crystals/stones cannot pass, which can cause blockages and toxins released in the bladder and urine.
It may not even be a urinary problem but something else. I'd suggest an xray if kitty isn't eating (to rule out potential partial blockage in stomach or intestine. It's good that kitty is producing urine and stool, but.....if he's only producing drops of urine at a time, this could be a medical emergency (as in urinary tract blockage and/or infection)...if he's producing very little stool, or is straining in the litterbox, he could be partially impacted - both can cause a very painful abdomen. An xray can be helpful in determining some blockages by identifying inflammation or enlarged organs.
Did kitty get into something he shouldn't have? Human foods, medications, toxic cleaning products, etc, as well as any potential christmas decorations, tree sap, etc??? If so, ask the vet to rule out any possible ingestion of something.
Hiding, not eating, growling, painful, etc are all signs that the vet missed something, so please, get kitty to a new vet RIGHT NOW, opt for expressing the bladder (or cystocentisis where urine is drawn from the bladder via needle), heed the vet's advice if he suggests and xray and/or bloodwork. Since it's the holiday, best to get this nipped in the bud NOW before you are stuck with emergency fees, a holiday weekend of hospitalization etc. You still might be faced with some of that depending on the health issue, but kitty needs a more experienced, committed vet RIGHT NOW.
Please let us know what the new vet determines.
When he mentioned large bladder, did he bother to express the bladder to see if kitty is urinating a normal amount? Did he suggest a urinalysis to rule out infection or crystals?
If none of these things were approached or if the vet never mentioned any of this to you, then please see a new vet ASAP (today please). It could be nearly anything because the symptoms are vague - although, painful abdomen is a sign of pain somewhere, and still could be a UTI or bladder problem. Please know that in male cats especially, if crystals, stones, blockages are present in the bladder, the male cat's urethra is so tiny that many crystals/stones cannot pass, which can cause blockages and toxins released in the bladder and urine.
It may not even be a urinary problem but something else. I'd suggest an xray if kitty isn't eating (to rule out potential partial blockage in stomach or intestine. It's good that kitty is producing urine and stool, but.....if he's only producing drops of urine at a time, this could be a medical emergency (as in urinary tract blockage and/or infection)...if he's producing very little stool, or is straining in the litterbox, he could be partially impacted - both can cause a very painful abdomen. An xray can be helpful in determining some blockages by identifying inflammation or enlarged organs.
Did kitty get into something he shouldn't have? Human foods, medications, toxic cleaning products, etc, as well as any potential christmas decorations, tree sap, etc??? If so, ask the vet to rule out any possible ingestion of something.
Hiding, not eating, growling, painful, etc are all signs that the vet missed something, so please, get kitty to a new vet RIGHT NOW, opt for expressing the bladder (or cystocentisis where urine is drawn from the bladder via needle), heed the vet's advice if he suggests and xray and/or bloodwork. Since it's the holiday, best to get this nipped in the bud NOW before you are stuck with emergency fees, a holiday weekend of hospitalization etc. You still might be faced with some of that depending on the health issue, but kitty needs a more experienced, committed vet RIGHT NOW.
Please let us know what the new vet determines.
..........Traci