My cat had surgery for string. No poop 3 days later. Should I worry?

I’m glad to hear that Kit is doing ok and I hope she continues to have a speedy recovery. I expect most pets to have a bowel movement within 1-3 days of the surgery. If she is eating well, things will eventually come through. If she does not have a bowel movement by tonight, I recommend to have her seen tomorrow by her doctor to make sure everything looks ok and normal in the healing process. The doctor may recommend another radiograph if they are concerned with ileus (that’s when the gut stops moving the ingested food). This condition can sometimes spontaneously occur or could be related to the initial cause of the GI upset. Another medication may also be prescribed. Best of luck and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Hi there. It's very possible that he ingested multiple pieces of string. It sounds like the one that was causing the blockage was removed during surgery, but this doesn't necessarily mean that there couldn't be other pieces still present that are in the process of passing through. As long as Gib is eating and drinking normally, not vomiting, and having regular bowel movements, this should not be cause for concern.

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Lucy. Anesthesia will slow down the gastrointestinal tract and make bowel movements less frequent. Plus she was probably not eating well before surgery due to being ill and most patients are fasted for a bit after surgery. This means there is likely less food in her system to come out. Unless she is straining to defecate, it is typically not worrisome that she is not defecating regularly yet. As far as the drinking, she most likely received IV fluids under anesthesia and while hospitalized. This would have provided her with a large amount of fluids. Now eating the canned food, this is supplying her with moisture as well. As long as she is eating and is acting normally, then I suspect her recovery is going well. If you have any concerns though, I would seek emergency care this weekend just to be sure. I hope this information helps!

Yes and no. If Saber was anesthetized and had a manual clean out where lots of poop was removed, it can be normal not to see them poop for 1-2 days afterwards. If the cat had an enema and only a normal amount of poop was passed, I would expect the cat should have regular bowel movements each day. It's certainly not normal if it's been longer that 48 hours, and Saber still haven't pooped. Unfortunately, constipation can be a chronic problem in cats, and I recommend having Saber seen by a vet again for his constipation if he hasn't passed feces in more than 48 hours.

If she does not seem to be troubled by it I would not be overly concerned. It is best to feed canned food (pate), human baby foods (meat flavors and organic) or canned pumpkin (if she will eat it) - any of those can help with constipation.

Poor Smores. Cats cannot tolerate anorexia for long, and I'm concerned that she is barely eating. If she isn't eating, then she has nothing to poop. I would be worried and have her seen by an ER vet now. Best of luck.

This is very common for a cat to go without using the litterbox after a stressful vet visit like this. No worries. Unless you see him actively straining, then there is nothing to worry about. If you haven’t seen him go or strain the next few days then it’s best to get him seen for possible constiparon. I hope that Cheeto goes soon. Chances are though he will go soon! Best of luck and take care.