Henry's Ordeal.

A week ago last Sunday there was a snow storm that kept me from traveling home to the cities. During the day, I noticed that Henry wasn't his normal self. He wanted to be by us, but stayed in a different room. I also was noticing that he wasn't eating or peeing. The saddest part was his tail. It was hanging really low. Then he had issues of throwing up and was constantly dry heaving after throwing everything up. He acted like he was an old man that was stoned and hungover. He could barely walk and would lay in the bathroom.

About one in the morning, I went to check on him and found him laying in the litter box. I thought about forcing some water down, but around that time Levi, my youngest brother, came over and helped keep the situation light. The guys in my family are cat guys. Levi joked with Henry that if he didn't pee on everything like guys do and then we wouldn't have this problem. I knew I had to take Henry into the vet the next morning. His vital signs seemed okay so I wasn't too stressed out. I finally went to bed and got up early to make the call.

The next morning, I couldn't find Henry at all. Levi got up to help me find him and we searched everywhere a couple of times. Finally, he showed up in the middle of the dining room. I was so relieved. I was afraid that he had gone somewhere to die. How can a big guy like that hide? I still say time warp. ;)

I get him to the vet and crystals were blocking his pee. That happens when the urine is too acidic. So they need a protein diet. I had taken him to the vet a week earlier, but we were a little late with the timing of the food. The vet felt his bladder and that was the only time that Henry hissed. The vet said that it was a size of a baseball and said that the reason Henry was vomiting so much was that he was in a lot of pain. So with sedation and manipulation of the bladder they were able to get the crystals out.

 We got him back the next day and we had to keep him in confinement because he would be so often and he wouldn't have made it to the box every time. It was so good to have him back to his normal obnoxious self. He was headbutting me a lot and sleeping on my lap while we watched TV.

This is an old picture of Henry, but this is the way we always are.

Mom emailed me just today and said that he was peeing like Tom Hanks in "A League of Their Own." So that's a good sign, I think. ;) I'm just glad to have my kitty back.