Possible bowel incontinence after dislocated tail

[acatperson]

I'm 17, live in New Zealand, and its my pleasure to own a beautiful grey male cat who's four years old. I've had him since he was born (I owned his mother) and love him unconditionally.
Three days ago, he didn't come home at night like he usually does. The next day he came back, but his tail was limp and he was crying, so we took him to our vet.
She told us most of his tailbone has been pulled away from the spine, and that he may be incontinent because the nerves might have been damaged.
He is currently staying at the vets, awaiting his tail amputation (as the vet isn't sure how much of the tail she needs to remove), and has urinated normally since. But still no bowel movements.
The vet has hinted that if he doesnt poop he will need to be put down, but obviously I do NOT want that.
After an injury like this, is there any other options than euthanasia? My vet hasn't been very clear with me about this. I have plenty of time and patience for expressing and diapers, I just want to know if those are possible in this situation.
Of course, he might still be able to move his bowels, which would be excellent. I'm just very worried, as I don't want to have to put him down.
Many thanks in advance

[CarolC]

I'm 17, live in New Zealand, and its my pleasure to own a beautiful grey male cat who's four years old. I've had him since he was born (I owned his mother) and love him unconditionally.
Three days ago, he didn't come home at night like he usually does. The next day he came back, but his tail was limp and he was crying, so we took him to our vet.
She told us most of his tailbone has been pulled away from the spine, and that he may be incontinent because the nerves might have been damaged.
He is currently staying at the vets, awaiting his tail amputation (as the vet isn't sure how much of the tail she needs to remove), and has urinated normally since. But still no bowel movements.

Well, that is fantastic if he urinated normally. Three cheers for that! That is very good news!

The vet has hinted that if he doesnt poop he will need to be put down, but obviously I do NOT want that.

I would try to manage any bowel issues rather than do that.

After an injury like this, is there any other options than euthanasia? My vet hasn't been very clear with me about this. I have plenty of time and patience for expressing and diapers, I just want to know if those are possible in this situation.
Of course, he might still be able to move his bowels, which would be excellent. I'm just very worried, as I don't want to have to put him down.
Many thanks in advance

Well, if he does not have full control of his bowels it could turn out a couple of ways. He may just drop little "eggs" without realizing it, and not get constipated. He may sometimes have a stool that comes part way out and stays in the anus and you will help him by taking a tissue and popping it out for him. Or he may develop constipation issues. If he starts out without constipation, he could still become constipated later so I think you will need to watch him every day. Right now while he has a sore bottom and is going to have surgery and a sore tail, and he is stressed out at the vet, and he is probably on medication, I would fully expect him to NOT want to go Number Two, that is normal for cats at the vet. So if he is not moving his bowels right now, I would think it is too early to assume he has a long-term constipation issue. I would definitely NOT put him to sleep because the vet says he's been at the vet 'x' number of days and has not had a bowel movement.

Let us assume the worst case, that he has some residual nerve damage in his bottom and does develop constipation. There are a number of ways to treat it and you will probably want a combination of them. I can list some of them for you, but in the long run you are going to need a good working relationship with your vet, and if your vet has not talked about managing the possible complication of a chronically constipated cat, I really think you need a different vet. He may be fine for all the other things you have seen him about, but he is not being much help on this. If you are 17, I assume your parents choose the vet, but perhaps you can talk talk to your mom and explain there are ways to manage this and vets who can do it, and your vet does not seem to be offering you those options, which is not good for your cat. Before choosing another vet, I would call the other vet clinic and ask them if they have any cases like this they are managing. That way you will find one with experience. This is something you could do if you want, and then give the information to your mom, so she will not have to make a bunch of phone calls.

The ways of managing a cat with fecal incontinence include diet, medication, and sometimes enemas when needed. There are different theories on diet. You want stools that are not messy because he may drop some in the house. You want some fiber to help things move, and you don't want a lot of bulk. There is a diet called Eukanuba/Iams low residue that some people use. In general, canned food will be better than dry because it adds moisture to the stools. Some people have success giving canned pumpkin (plain, not spiced) to regulate the stools. If you pick up your kitty and can feel a firm stool in his bottom near the exit, it would help him to just pop it out so things can keep moving. This is what they do with a tail injury cat at a shelter here. You soon get used to it.

It is common to give the cat a daily dose of lactulose syrup. This is an inexpensive clear syrup you get from the vet, most cats do not mind the taste (mine have not minded it at all). Recently a new member on this message board pointed out that some people who are dealing with severe constipation issues in their cats (megacolon) have had even better success with Miralax.

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In addition, there is a medication called cisapride that can help the cat expel the stools better, though you may not want to use that long term, just at times if needed. Enemas can be done when needed. I have seen advice that many people prefer to have the vet give the enema, it is messy and the cat may not like it, however my aunt and uncle gave enemas to their cat once a week for years at home. Be sure to check with the vet on what to use for an enema, many human products will be UNsafe or toxic for cats. Finally, if the cat gets really constipated, in the very worst case, he can be put under anaesthesia and "cleaned out" manually. This is expensive and hopefully would never be needed, but i just wanted to mention it.

There are other people here with years of experience with this situation, hopefully some of them will post soon. I am glad you are working to help him instead of just not trying like the vet is advising.

[critters]

My Koi is spinal cord injured from being shot; he used to drop nuggets, but he hasn't for a couple of years now. Angelo is SCI from a tail injury such that the end of his tail is missing, and he has no poop or pee incontinence at all. He does, however, have "sloppy legs" and is clumsy. Frankly, I don't think there's any way of knowing how your baby will be in the end, and I'd just take things as they come.

[Philacatshia]

Some of his future might depend on whether his pelvis got broken. If the opening through which the solids must pass gets narrowed, then that would make it more difficult for stool to move out of him. Has the vet mentioned anything about that? My cat was lucky - no damage to the pelvis itself.

Some vets assume that the pet owners wouldn't want to deal with an incontinent cat. Make it clear to the vet (and your parents) that you ARE willing to learn how to express him. Mine was surprised that we wanted to persevere but he's been very supportive, even though he's had no other clients who have done this.

Also, if you want to try any therapies that might help, plan to start them SOON. Don't wait 4 weeks to ask about cortisone therapy or four months to inquire about acupuncture (like I did)!

[acatperson]

Thanks for your extremely helpful replies.
Since my post, Jay has had his operation and has been home almost a week. He has excreted twice without help, unfortunately he refuses to go #2 in the litterbox.
The only problem he seems to have is when he is sleeping, small amounts of runny faeces leak onto the bed covers (seemingly without his knowledge), I'll be mentioning it to my vet when I take him in to get his stitches removed.