Blood in urine still!

[macs]

We have a about 18 mo old male, he was a stray last July we took in. He has been a very healthy and happy cat, very friendly, loving. He has seen a vet, we had him fixed and chipped a year ago. He is 15 lb but not over weight, he is very long and just a big cat, vet confirmed. 6 days ago he started peeing outside the litter box and we noticed blood in the urine. We took him to the vet and got him started on meds for a bladder infection. We also had a urine test done which showed nothing. He has recieved his meds and still taking and and he has continued to pee outside of the litter but no blood and normal amount of urine for the bast 4 days. He has started to pee more often, small amounts and mostly blood today. Before we get talked into a million expensive test could anyone suggest directions or ideas we can direct the vet to go in. Our vet is very test happy because they are money happy. We will do what is best for Mac's but this vet and another we went to very evasive, don't have any idea and only suggest tests...help before we call the vet again???

[laurief]

Any male cat with any sort of urinary difficulty needs to have his urine checked immediately under the microscope for crystals. Crystals are much more common than UTI's and are potentially deadly if they cause a complete urinary blockage. So get your boy back to the vet and have his urine checked for crystals. If crystals are found, make sure the vet determines which type of crystals they are - struvite or oxalate. A complete urinary blockage can kill a cat in a matter of hours, so this is something that needs to be checked tomorrow (Friday) before the weekend.

Urethral spasms and idiopathic cystitis (urinary tract inflammation of unknown cause) are also more common problems than UTI's. They are often stress-related and can be very painful for the cat. I recommend you do a Google search on feline idiopathic cystitis and read up on it.

UTI's are possible, but they are the least likely explanation for your cat's symptoms, esp. if no bacteria showed up in the UA. That doesn't necessarily mean that there is no infection present, however. UTI's can be notoriously difficult to identify if they hide deep in the urinary tract.

If I were you, I'd get that boy checked for crystals immediately. You sure don't want him blocking over the weekend when you may not be able to access emergency care.

Laurie