PU Surgery Stinks! Part I

I’m going to share a story about my little boy, Caleb, which I haven’t shared online. It’s a long story so I have to post it in parts unless you have 5 hours to read it.

Caleb was adopted when he was 2 months old. He was so small, I thought he’d either get stepped on or he would get lost in the house.

Neither of that happened, but he was able to squeeze in some tiny spaces and underneath anything he wanted.

He was in good health, he played, he ate, he slept and had regular shots and vet visits. He was always given a clean bill of health.

After having had to put a cat down because of an illness, I was OCD about his care. I never wanted to feel that hurt again.

I warned my vet that if anything happened to Caleb he was going to have to deal with me, again.

Mostly me sobbing in his office for hours making his other patients very uncomfortable. I let him know Caleb’s care and life were in his hands.

Fast forward a year and a half. One day I noticed when Caleb squatted to use the litter box, (only the first time I saw him, he did it outside) he squatted for a long time.

Did he pee or didn’t he?

I don’t see any poop, so what in the heck was he doing in that stance for so long?

On another occasion, I watched him use the litter box and the same thing happened, he strained to do anything.

I opened my Google browser and typed the phrase: “cat can’t pee.”

Oh. My. God.

He had every disease I read about because that’s how my mind works, but I decided he had a urinary tract infection.

I called the vet and said, “My cat is straining when he uses the litter box, we need to come in as soon as possible. If his regular doctor is not available, I don’t care which doctor he…”

I must say his veterinarian is very good about pop-up emergencies. I’ve always been able to get an appointment the same day, so shout-out to Verona and Montclair Animal Hospitals.

The vet examined him and said his bladder was full and she expressed it. I didn’t get a lot of detail, but his bladder was blocked and he could possibly have something called perineal urethrostomy or PU. The vet said if it happened again, he would need to have surgery.

What is Perineal Urethrostomy?

“A perineal urethrostomy (sometimes referred to as a ‘PU’) is a surgery performed on male cats who have a urinary blockage or severe trauma to the penis. Male cats can more easily develop a blockage of urine because of the anatomy of their urinary system. The urethra is a tubular structure that leads from the bladder to the outside of the body. In the female cat, the urethra is shorter and larger in diameter. In the male cat, the urethra, especially the portion that is within the penis, is quite narrow. It, therefore, can become more easily blocked with urinary stones, a combination of crystals and mucus that forms a ‘plug’, blood clots, or a tumor. Trauma can also cause a blockage if the urethra is damaged.”

Perineal Urethrostomy is my worst nightmare.

I took Caleb home and hoped the visit to the vet was the end of it.

Unfortunately, it was just the beginning. I doubt it had been a week.

On Monday morning Caleb – and if he could have stood on hind legs he would have been – walked out of the bedroom and growled like an animal 10 times his size. He hissed. He roared. He frightened me.

I immediately called the vet’s office to listen to the voicemail message and get the name of the Animal Hospital they recommended and called them.

I explained what happened and they gave me an 11:00 appointment.

I got his pet carrier out of the closet, sat at the computer and cried.

Little did I know he was hours from death.

Find out what happened in Part II.  Stay tuned.