Carolyn said:
> You aren't failing-- you're taking the best care of your girl that you can
> right? You chose to treat her, right? No way is that failing!
I have to agree with this sentiment 100% !! You are most definitely *not* failing.
> Ok, regarding the testing for UTI's the vet wants me to bring in a sample of her urine
> every once in a while when she starts to pee outside the box. I do know that she does
> pee outside the box when she is mad at me but usually I can tall when she is pissed at
> me. Is there anyway to know without taking her to the vet for testing constantly?
Hmm ... okay, first off, there are several reasons that a cat can urinate outside the box. Some of the causes can be because they're annoyed at you (as you know
); because their litterbox is dirty; because they had difficulty getting into the box due to arthritis or something similar; they mis-judge where the edge of the box is and, standing completely inside the box, they accidently aim over the side; that they had difficulty getting into or standing in the box due to diabetic neuropathy; or there was some urgency to going and they didn't make it into the box in time.
I'm assuming that you keep the box clean and that it's not a problem with arthritis or mis-judging, because this appears to be a new problem. I'm also assuming that it's not diabetic neuropathy; that's a problem where cats start to walk lower on their hind legs and sometimes their legs slip out from under them. You haven't mentioned any problems walking / standing, so let that go for now.
*If* there was urgency in going, that could be a symptom of a urinary tract infection. Other symptoms may include trying to go frequently, going in inappropriate places (mine favored peeing on plastic bags in the living room, right where I could see her so that I would know there was a problem), a pinkish tinge to the urine, blood clots in the urine, pain or meowing when going. But there also may be no symptoms at all. (You can see this article for a bit more info
http://www.marvistavet.com/html/urinary_tract_infection.html.)
May I ask how you're getting the sample to give to the vet? If you're cleaning it up off the floor, then the sample's almost certainly contaminated. There are two ways to get a urine sample from a cat. The one way that absolutely guarantees that the sample has not been contaminated is to put a needle into the cat's bladder and draw a sample directly from the source. The alternative is to have the cat pee directly into a sterile container; unfortunately, these samples may be contaminated by bacteria / fecal matter /etc around the urethral opening, and the results of the Culture and Sensitivity (C&S) test therefore may reflect the contamination: it may show an infection when there is none present, and the "infection" may present as not responding to some antibiotics.
So, if you suspect a UTI, the ideal is to bring the cat in to have a sample drawn from their bladder. Some vets don't like this procedure and will 'encourage' a cat to pee in a sterile container, or will try to catch a sample if the cat starts to pee at the vet's office. I've ometimes done free-catches at home and brought the sample in for testing, but I always remember that, if the results from a free-catch sample shows that Gwyn has a UTI, it doesn't necessarily mean that she actually *has* a UTI; the sample could have been contaminated.
If you do free-catches at home, remember to catch the sample in mid-flight, not by holding the container directly against Anya's fur or anywhere her fur might contaminate the sample. Seal the container immediately afterward, and refrigerate it until you can bring it to the vet.
To clean urine from the floor, I use part of an old towel to mop up the spill (if it happened next to the litterbox, there may be urine on the bottom of the litterbox as well). Then I splash the area with white vinegar, swish it around for a minute, and mop it up with the rest of the towel. (If the urine has been sitting for a while, I may let the vinegar sit for a few minutes as well.)
To clean the towel, or any other material that's been exposed to urine, throw it in the wash with your normal detergent, but add a cup of white vinegar to the laundry as well. (I'll use two cups if cleaning a comforter or pillow or something thick.) The white vinegar will get rid of the smell of urine. You can get white vinegar in gallon jugs at some stores; prices in my area range from about $1.79 to $3.29 per gallon jug.
If Anya *does* end up urinating around your house / apartment and you have problems finding the spot. you can get a black light from some hardware stores (in the fluorescent lightbulb section) or a thing called StinkFinder in many pet stores. Wait until dark, turn all the lights out, and run the light about 1-2 feet from any suspect surfaces. The urine (and some other stuff) will fluoresce in the light, making it easy to identify and clean the spots.
> No, I am sorry I do use a monitor and lancets, etc.
Remember to put pressure on the lancet 'wound' for a few seconds after you get the sample; that'll help reduce bruising.
![JJ & Gwyn [GA]](/FDMB/data/avatars/m/0/167.jpg?1419296044){kind=avatar}
So check around on the prices of test strips. One of the least expensive ones out there is the ReliOn from Walmart; IIRC, it's about $44 for 100 strips.
