Coping with an incontinent cat

[Ellie1]

Hi all,

I have just signed up to this forum today and just wanted to say how great it is to know that there are other cat owners who are dealing with similar problems to me! I live in a rented flat and my cat Lucy has quite severe incontinence (I am keeping this secret from my landlord). I was unaware of it when I adopted her but I would never give her up- she's absolutely gorgeous, and her problem just makes her even more special to me. She was hit by a car when she was a kitten, and her tail was amputated, causing the incontinence. My vet has been great; we've tried Lu on several bladder-contracting medicines but nothing has worked to be honest. She's not in any pain, but has very little/no control over her bladder. Other than the incontinence she is a very happy little cat and loves life! It looks like I'll to replace at least the sofa cushions when I leave my flat- thank god I've got wood flooring!
I'd like to try diapers for her, but I know she'll try and rip them off, and I don't want to cause her any anguish. My vet taught me how to express her, but she HATES this and I've not managed to do it even once!

Does anybody have any suggestions as to what I might do? or at least, how to calm her down when expressing?

Many thanks!
Ellie

[critters]

Did you read the red sticky message on this bb? It has links to TONS of info.

Diapers are problematic in that they can lead to skin damage and sores that are extremely difficult to heal. My feeling is that you'd probably be better off expressing; be sure to read the details of how I had to scruff my ornery Buddy, hold him on his back on a well-padded surface, and express him whether he liked it or not!! At that point, he couldn't pee at all, so we made do.

[SushisMom]

At petco you can buy shampoo wipes for cats and they are the best! I use the quick wipes that come in the orange package b/c they are more for cleaning. We use them daily on our kitty b/c he has a paralyzed tail that gets in his way when he uses the litter box. He smells fresh and clean and does not seem to mind them at all since they do not get him wet. They are I think 7.99 for a pack of ten.

[Ellie1]

Ah that's great- thanks for the recommendation SushisMom...I'm not sure if I'll be able to buy them here in the UK but I'll have a look on the net.

Critters, yes I did read the red sticky, it was very helpful! I've bookmarked the pages and will keep reading them to remind myself.

I've bought some sofa/duvet covers that are made for incontinent people (I figure if they can cope with human pee they can cope with a few cat puddles!), can't believe I didn't think of getting them before. Hopefully they will help protect my landlord's furniture a bit more...gulp

I also took Lucy to the vet again yesterday and she showed me again how to express, and reassured me that I was doing the right thing. Lucy is still struggling and mewing everytime I try, and as yet there's been no pee but Vet said it might take as much as a few weeks.

Happy New Year!

Thanks,
Ellie1