How much water should my cat drink after hospital for a blockage?

HI, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Poor Do-Do! When cats are blocked for a long time they can have elevated kidney and potassium values that with IV fluids and relieving the obstruction the elevations usually return to normal MOST of the time. Was blood work done when he was hospitalized? I would have him rechecked and blood work ran since it has been 2 days with out eating. Cats shouldn't go longer than that as they can get a secondary liver problem from not eating. If you changed his diet to a prescription urinary diet consider going back to his old food until he is eating and urinating well then trying the prescription food again. There are also other brands to try. I wish you the best!

Hi, thanks fir using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Poor Jose! The most common causes for urinary obstruction are: crystals in the urine (struvite or Calcium oxalate), bladder stones, stress causing inflammation or a urinary tract infection (not common). The goals of therapy are to relieve the obstruction, test the urine for crystals and infection, do blood work to make sure he isn't sick (high potassium, increased kidney values) take an X-ray to look fro bladder stones. We treat with antibiotics for 2-3 weeks, a urethral relaxant (Prazocin) for a week, and pain medications for a few days. If he has bladder stones surgery is require to remove them. Long-term management is a life long diet change to a prescription urinary diet (royal canin s/o, Hill's c/d, Purina UR) and increase water intake. You can buy a water fountain and change him to an all canned food diet (more water in canned food) from one of the above company's. Jose will also be at risk to reblock and should always be monitored and on a prescription diet. Other wise there are no life long medications. I hope this helps and I wish Jose a speedy recovery!

Hello! I would recommend keeping his litter completely clean so you can monitor his urine output. A blocked cat will continue to return to the litter box, strain unproductively or only pass small amounts of urine that may be bloody, and often be vocalizing. If you notice any of these signs, he needs to be taken to a vet immediately to be assessed for possible blockage. Feeding wet food, fountains, and dripping sinks and good ways to encourage cats to drink more water. Urinary tract infections in cats are fairly uncommon. Usually the urinary disease is a result of a production of crystals or stones or a sterile inflammatory bladder disease. Keeping Jack on a urinary diet forever may be necessary for him to maintain good urinary health. I hope this is helpful! Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

He likely hasn't eaten enough to produce enough stool yet. If he isn't straining to defecate and he seems to be acting normally I would not be too concerned about that just yet. That being said, constipation can be caused by dehydration. If you are seriously worried about him being dehydrated you cannot force him to drink so my suggestion would be to take him to your vet so they can give him some fluids under the skin of neck so his body can absorb them (this is called subcutaneous fluids). I think you are doing fine by feeding the canned food and adding the water. You can try adding a bit more and maybe just a very tiny pinch of salt to see if that will cause him to drink a bit more. I also suggest you feed him a probiotic. That will help with digestion and overall health. My favorite is Fortiflora. You can buy it over the counter or online. If you can't find it or get it then you can use any probiotic but make sure it is made for cats (not humans and no dairy). Hope this answers your questions. If you have more please feel free to post again.

If it has been more than a day without drinking or urination, or your cat seems in severe distress (vocalizing, painful abdomen, attempting to urinate but can't, etc), then this should be seen by your vet immediately as it may indicate another blockage that requires treatment.

Oh my goodness! Poor guy! He does need nutrition. What was your vet's recommendation for feeding him? Its hard to assess the risk of infection without knowing what the area looks like more specifically. Definitely offer him water. Is he on antibiotics? If he is on antibiotics, offer him a liquid diet; you can soak cat food in water, mash it up with a fork and let him lap it up. Sometimes a temporary feeding tube is needed to help patient's recover from significant oral injury. Regarding the IV, My understanding from the information you gave is that he was on IV fluids during the surgery, but he went home after surgery. The IV fluids will help him maintain hydration for the time that he's getting them, but not much beyond that, so he does need to be offered water and if he's unable to drink it you need to take him to a vet and either discuss subcutaneous fluids (fluids you can give under the skin at home) https://icatcare.org/advice/cat-care/how-give-subcutaneous-fluids-your-cat or possibly a feeding tube, as subcutaneous fluids don't provide nutrition (calories, fat, carbohydrates), only hydration and electrolytes. IV fluids also do not provide nutrition. Thank you for asking PetCoach!

You just took him back from the vet and he has been urinating so far. clavamox is an antibiotic that often affects the appetite, the pain killers can do that as well. unless you have reasons to believe he is blocked again i would recommend to wait until tomorrow, if he is not eating by then you should take him back to the vet. don't forget that this condition is often caused due to stress and your main aim is to reduce his stress at the moment, taking him home and back to the vet may add more stress on him and can worsen his condition. stay in touch with your vet on the phone if you are in any doubts.