Is my female cat showing signs of a bladder or urethra blockage?

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. There are definitely radiopaque dense gravel-like objects near the bladder and cranial to it as well. It would help to provide the x-ray where she is laying on her back as well. Multiple views on x-rays help pinpoint locations of objects if there is doubt as to where they are located. I would say that this looks to be near the bladder but not within the actual bladder itself because the same dense material can be found forward to the bladder on this x-ray, so it is likely GI tract. If you can provide a second view that would be great. It also appears that she has quite a bit of fecal material in her intestines. Is she constipated right now? If so, she may need an enema and stool softener. Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further.

The back legs are tucked up over the bladder, so it is hard to say for certain, but I do not see any large stones in the urinary bladder. I would need to spin down a sample of urine and look at it under a microscope to see if there are urinary crystals since those do not show up on x-rays.

It is difficult to tell anything from the picture of the x-ray however, the urinalysis shows that there is a urinary tract infection which could account for the difficulty urinating. I am also concerned about the high levels of protein in the urine and a urine protein:creatinine ratio should be requested to assess kidney function. It is a good thing that the CRT is decreasing, however in order to properly evaluate kidney function the BUN levels are needed as well. Speak to your veterinarian about their suspected diagnosis/diagnoses and recommended treatments to get Tittie feeling better soon.

I think the treatment plan is sound and you are all on the right track. As long as she is producing some urine I would not be overly worried. A blockage is not impossible in a female cat but it is uncommon. Very common to have a blockage in male cats as their urethra is very narrow (a females is wider). Only be worried if she is producing no urine at all. If you have multiple cats it is best to separate her and put her in her own room with her own food/water/litter box, etc so you can keep track. She can have stones and cystitis concurrently so I suggest you also try to reduce stress by using Feliway diffusers in the house (calming pheromones) and try to increase water consumption by giving her a water fountain to drink from. Many studies have shown that cats will drink twice as much water if they have running water to drink from. Hope this helps. If you have more questions you are welcome to post again or if you would like more 1 on 1 help you can opt for a private consultation with me or one of our other experts where you can ask as many questions as you want in a back and forth dialogue. Best wishes.

I'm so sorry but the x-rays are too grainy and blurry when we try to enlarge them. We cannot tell anything from these. Can you please post again with clearer photos? Also, the positioning of your cat in the x-rays is not good. The back legs need to pulled completely backwards so we can see the entire urethra. I agree with your vet and just based on the clinical signs I would say a urethra partial obstruction is likely (crystals or a stone). I would suggest the following: 1. Blood testing to check kidney function 2. Urine test to look for crystals, infection, etc. 3. Sandy should be sedated and a urethral catheter passed. Often times if there are crystals and/or a small stone blocking the urethra they can be flushed backwards into the bladder. Then a special diet can be prescribed to help dissolve the crystals/stones.

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!

An ultrasound of the whole urinary tract can be helpful for patients with unexplained blood in the urine. This would be of the kidneys and bladder as blood can come from anywhere along the urinary system. X-rays of the abdomen, after a pet has been fasted for at least 12 hours, can also be helpful. This can be important in some cases as not all problems can be identified with an ultrasound, such as stones in the tubes that lead from the kidney to the urinary bladder (ureter). Additionally a urine culture may be helpful to make sure that there is no underlying infection that is causing the blood. And, it is important to know how the sample was obtained. If it was freely collected from the patient or in the litter box then it is more concerning. If the sample is obtained as a sterile sample directly from the urinary bladder with a needle, then sometimes the blood in the urine is from the sampling (best sample for culture though). I hope this helps and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!