Stellar!

So my big fat male kitty, Chicken Biscuit, started acting strange today. Stalking around the house, mewing loudly, and acting restless. He went in and out of the cat door, laid down in various places, only to move moments later. Suspicious, I followed him to the litterbox. He got in. Then he got out. Then he got in again. Then he got out. Sighing, I had my husband restrain all 20 pounds of him and palpated his bladder. Sure enough, it was very large and firm. Stellar!

Male cats -- especially fat ones - like to develop urethral mucus plugs. These are little faux stones, made up of grit and debris. I figured I was dealing with that, as it is the more common cause of urinary obstruction.

We packed him up and took him to work. He got a urinary catheter, and we xrayed him to make sure it was in place. Imagine my surprise (and great displeasure) to see that he actually had stones! Not just bladder stones, but also kidney and ureteral stones. His kidney values were also slightly elevated - indicating either dehydration or imminent renal failure.

So, he's at work, getting IV fluids and pain medications. He has an indwelling urinary catheter. If his kidney values come down, then he will have a cystotomy to remove the bladder stones on Friday. There's nothing to be done about the ureteral and kidney stones right now. He only has one good kidney, as one of them has shrunken down - likely from a previous obstruction. It's not great news, but hopefully the good kidney is still functioning and un-obstructed. I'll let you guys know what happens.