My cat had a "s*x Change"?

Question

Yesterday My 4 year old male cat Ice, was having a hard time urinating. he was acting strange, not moving a whole lot. When he got in his litter box he would yelp and he would sit there for ever and nothing would come out. I called the vet and they said it was serious and I had to bring him in now. They said is was a urinary blockage, from crystals in his urine. and they did emergency surgery on him. this morning when the vet took the catheter out, ice was again backed up with in 2 hours. The vet said my best option would be to have a "s*x change" surgery. Where they remove his p***s, which makes a bigger hole. so when he gets those crystals he can easily pass them. The vet said this can make him prone to UTI's but it is better than then having surgery every time. I feel really bad about what they did, I just want to cry for my kitty, but it was really my only option.

I guess my question is has anyone else had this done to their pet or heard of it? , and if so did it help? did they get a lot of UTI's?

Answer 1

What your cat has had done is called a Perineal urethrostomy....it is often used when the cats life is being threatened by a UTI.

It will stop him from becoming blocked, which can be fatel within a few hours

You will need to look at what you feed Ice, has your vet spoken to you about a urinary diet ?

Answer 2

I'm so sorry your cat developed Urolithiasis. My cat Jamie started with it a few years ago. There's two main types of crystal - struvites or oxalates. Jamie has struvites which is the more common form. I didn't know about the operation described & I'm not surprised you're feeling shocked & upset.

Jamie did get blocked at one point & had to be catheterised. His system became so unbalanced he managed to develop struvites & oxalates simultaneously.

His urine samples were so full of crystals the nurse said he was 'hooching' with them & to stop sending samples in because they were already doing all they could for him.

Basically, he's on a special prescription diet for struvites & taking Methionine tablets daily as well. The tablets were the old fashioned method of dealing with struvites but he needs all the help he can get. On top of that, we also give him one 'VetVits' 'Flexi- Joints' tablet daily, on the vets approval. It's not a prescription drug but a supplement containing Glucosamine & Chondroitin. It's intended to help the joints but we give it him to keep his bladder elastic. Whichever type of Urolithiasis it is, it's like having fine sand in the bladder all the time. Eventually, the constant irritation makes the bladder go like perished rubber, hence the need for a supplement.

I know you really want info on the op, but maybe some of this may still  be helpful. Having a bigger urethra won't make the crystals stop forming, just make them easier to pass. Ask the vet if your cat could be helped by putting him on the relevant prescription diet and/or the tablets that supply the relevant missing amino acid. Also, check to see if a supplement for bladder health is indicated. Our vets were doing one but we preferred the Healthspan ones because they have Vitamin E & Ester-C (a form of Vitamin C that's gentle on the stomach) in them as well as the ingredients mentioned above.

I'm afraid all this stuff is expensive but I feel in Jamie's case, it's totally worth it. I had to go digging & do research to make sure he was on everything available that could help him.

I hope you & your cat find it of some use & that you're both feeling better soon.

To contact Healthspan:- Freephone Orderline 0808 100 40 80 open daily 9 a.m. - 6 p.m.

Fax anytime on - 01481 713 790

http://www.vetvits.co.uk

    

Answer 3

Never heard of it, and as the previous poster said, your vet should be giving you advice on how to PREVENT UTIs, instead.

My foster cat (female) is currently being treated for a UTI, so she's on Clavamox 2x daily for 15 days, and I'm feeding her canned food.

Answer 4

as a guy, of course i dont want to hear this. but, if he was fixed, he doesnt need his p***s.

i have never heard of it, but something had to be done, you cant operate every two hours.

and it is not a s*x change. they didnt give him a v****a.

Answer 5

See a Holistic Vet, they can cure the crystal problem with naturopathic remedies

Answer 6

I have never heard of that being recommended.  You might want to get a second opinion.  The best option would be to treat what is causing the crystals, not just cut off his p***s so they don't get stuck anymore.

Answer 7

(((((Hugs to you and kitty)))))

You made the right choice to save your cat. Blockages are often deadly. Your cat could still get a blockage, but it's less likely.

I wish vets would stop referring to this as a “sex change” surgery and refer to it as what it is called. Us common folk do have the ability to comprehend medical terminology when given the proper definition. The “sex change” is properly called a Perineal Urethrostomy (PU). They removed the p***s of your cat, which took away the thinnest part of the urethra, therefore making it less likely for a crystal to block your cat.

It does make them more susceptible to bacterial infection. The opening is now large and bad things from the outside can now more easily enter the urethra. But on the other hand… band things from the inside, like crystals, can now more easily exit. So… you have to choose which is worse. Ya know.

There are many other proactive things you can do to help prevent your cat from suffering from urinary tract problems. Been there, done this. :o( I have 2 males who I almost lost to FLUTD, struvite crystals, bladder and kidney stones. I managed to cure both of them naturally (with the help of my vet) by feeding a species appropriate Raw food diet and adding in a regimen of natural supplements.

My biggest piece of advice is if your vet advises you to use a “prescription diet” food… choose to skip that route and go for a strictly wet food diet, canned or raw, instead. Vets that prescribe dry prescription foods (GASP!) and even canned prescription diets as the cure to Urinary Tract problems obviously know nothing about feline nutrition and are only bandaiding the problem instead of preventing it in the first place. Sadly, most vets never learn anything about feline nutrition except what the cat food companies teach them when they get them to sell their product. Any vet that would tell you to put your already sick cat on a garbage food made with cheap fillers like Hills Science Diet, Royal Canin, or Purina Prescription clearly knows NOTHING about cats nutritional needs

Cats were never designed to eat dry food. NEVER. They eat their prey whole and wet and they do not have a thirst mechanism. Because of that… cats are designed to eat only wet food. We idiot humans feed dry only for our convenience. They do not take in enough water on a dry diet and so their systems do not fully flush out so they get UTI issues. So, we, by feeding dry, are often the direct cause of all UTI issues in cats. Shows how much we used to know, huh?

What you need to do is unconcentrate the cats urine so that crystals do not have time to form and the system flushed properly as it was designed to do. To do that you need to stop feeding all dry foods and switch to a STRICKTLY wet food diet. Either high quality canned, or a raw diet. It’s not cheap but it will cost you less in the long run than the vet. You can learn about raw food at www.catinfo.org or choose a high quality grain free canned food. No more dry food for your cat ever. Wet food only!

I’ve also personally had success using Glucosomine and Chrondriton for preventing inflammation in the urethra. Discuss this with your vet. There are some major feline studies being done on this that are VERY promising!

If your kitty’s urine needs more acidity because of struvite Crystals you can also add dry cranberry extract, just a pinch 2X a day on wet food. And you can try a pinch of Vitamin C sprinkled on as well.

Give your kitty distilled water to drink only. Both my vet and I are convinced after speaking with vets all over the county that the hardness and mineral content in water in different areas contributes to the # of cases of UTI’s in those areas. From here on out… distilled water only. Another suggestion… is to get kitty a water fountain. I bought the Bigdog Drinkwell for my cats and keep it filled with distilled water and they love it. It’s a great way to encourage their water consumption.  

Lastly, get yourself a bag of scientific litter so you can keep track of kitty’s PH levels at home. You won’t be able to detect the crystals at home that cause blockages, but if the ph was off… you could get kitty in for a urine analysis right away and possibly head off a blockage.

Answer 8

Find a vet and get a different vet and see what they say! I would recomend having uti treated! with out a s*x change!

Answer 9

You made my day with your Lorena Bobbitt reference.

Listen to Kat.  I second everything she said and I'd like to leave you with these links as well.

More info on urinary problems: http://www.holisticat.com/FusFaq.htm

http://vetsites.vin.com/Kidney/FLUTD.doc...