Hello all,

I am new to the list and was referred to you all to help me with one of my kittys. Here's my information:

My very shy and basically feral indoor 11 year old female Calico kitty Sasha has had bladder surgery October 30, 2006 for bladder stones. She had three stones removed and they were analyzed as “Magnesium Ammonoium Phosphate Hexahydrate Stone” or as my vet calls them Struvite Stones. She was also diagnosed at the same time for Hyperthyroidism. Three weeks after the surgery she reoccurred with straining in the litter box and we put her on Clavamox 62.5 mg twice daily for two weeks. During this time Sasha was also on 2.5 mg of Methimazole for the Hyperthyroidism. On January 2, 2007 she had been having trouble urinating once again and had blood in her urine – this time she was examined by our vet with ultrasound and found another small stone.

Rather than another surgery she has been put on Hill’s Prescription Diet S/D for 30 days to try and dissolve the stone. Also Zeniquin 25mg for two weeks which ended today. The end of January will end her special diet and we will again do an ultra sound and hope to see that the stone has dissolved on its own. If it has dissolved we then have to attack the diet issue and try and add some homeopathic and/or herbal remedies to keep the stones under control. Because Sasha is extremely shy and unable to be handled she free feeds with the other 6 cats in the household. Presently she is confined to a large kitty condo cage so she can only eat the S/D and will not get into the other cats food. When she has to go to the vets we have to trap her and needless to say this has also put a lot of stress on her because she is unable to be handled. At the vets she is put under sedation to be examined. It is a very hard situation on her and we are very concerned about how this is affecting her.

She will allow me to pet her while she is in the cage but very very slowly. When she is out of the cage she will take small pills rolled into a small food bite from me most of the time. But again she will hide and run and I could not count being able to confine her daily for a small period of time to have her eat a special diet – presently all the cats are on dry Innova Reduced Fat Adult Cat Food a very good and natural food product. I give the cats their supplements and/or pills in a small amount of wet food treat – Friskies – daily. I am hoping that by adding remedies and/or supplements we can keep the stones under control and still allow her to eat the same Innova Cat food as the other cats. I also had been giving her Cranberry supplements but stopped that while she is on this special diet for 30 days.

She also remains on 3.75 mg of Methimazole a day for the Hyperthyroidism.
Do you have any advice on what my options might be for her? I would welcome any advice and help on trying to keep her calm and any supplements to reduce the chance of reoccurring stones?

Thank you for your help.

Pam Lock and Sasha

Hello Pam,

Berberis Vulgaris 6c or 12c (or 6k or 12k) is most likely the best remedy for Sasha right now, because it covers a large number of kidney and bladder problems, especially stones (struvites), crystals and cystitis. Usually the cat`s lower back and abdomen are tender and there may be blood or urine passed in the urine.

Give one dose of Berberis twice daily for 3 weeks and repeat if necessary.

For an even better prevention also give Calcarea phosphorica 30c (or 30k), one weekly dose for 8 weeks (longer if necessary). Many of the calculi consist of phosphates and this remedy will also help to reduce the production of such calculi.

One dose for your cat is 1 tablet or a few pellets (pills/pillules) which can be incorporated in a little cream cheese or minced meat, but not in a full meal !

If the allopathic treatment for the thyroid problems is no longer sufficient in the future please keep in mind that it`s sometimes possible to give homeopathic remedies as well.

Wim

__________________
Homeopath for people and animals.
(Sorry, Wim no longer works here.)

Hello Pam,

Please confirm you have read my answer to your post !

Wim

__________________
Homeopath for people and animals.
(Sorry, Wim no longer works here.)

Hi Wim,

Thank you for your answer. I will check with my local health food store to see if I can find the remedies and will start her on them right away for the initial 3 weeks.

When you say repeat if necessary I assume if she once again appears to be straining or having problems after the initial 3 weeks I would start the treatment for another 3 weeks? Should I combine the Berberis and Calcarea or wait to start the Calcarea after the three week Berberis treatment?

Again thank you for the input!!

Pam and Sasha

Hi Pam,

You`re welcome !

It`s correct what you say about repeating the Berb. vulg.

You can give both remedies simultaneously, but it`s best not to give them together but with some time in between...say 15-20 minutes, which is easy because the Calc. phos. should only be given once a week. The 2 remedies aren`t inimical (unfavourable/hostile) to one another and don`t antidote one another either.

Wim

__________________
Homeopath for people and animals.
(Sorry, Wim no longer works here.)

Hi Wim,

I can not get the remedies locally - and have ordered them on line - I should have them by weeks end I hope. Also I have been told that Cantharis 30C and STAPHYSAGRIA 30 C are also good for blockages? Should I keep them on hand - add them to the dosages or ??

Thanks!

Pam and Sasha

Hi again Wim,

You mentioned earlier that there may be homopathic remedies for the Hyperthyroid issue? Sasha seems to be doing OK on the present dosage as she was just diagnosed - I have another cat however ("Magic") that has been on Methimazole for a couple of years now - 2.5mg per day - what would you recommend to add to suppliment this dose for him.

Thanks!

Pam

Hi Pam,

One can never have enough or too many remedies at home. But the remedies you mention are not the only ones which (one day?) might be indicated for your companion. Remedies such as Apis, Causticum, Hydrangea, Lycopodium, Mercurius corrosivus, Nux vomica, Pulsatilla, Sepia etc. can also be indicated in this situation, all depending on the presenting symptomatology(symptoms/modalities.

Wim

__________________
Homeopath for people and animals.
(Sorry, Wim no longer works here.)

Pam......as for Thyroid disorders.....if you`re cat is doing OK I would continue the treatment as it is now.....but if you have a cat with serious symptoms of e.g. Hyperthyroidism (with or without conventional/allopathic treatment) it`s always possible to start a new thread asking homeopathic treatment for your cat on this forum.

Often more than one (usually 2 or 3)hom. remedy should be given and in order to prescribe properly you should give me a full picture of the presenting symptoms/modalities, such as enlargement of the thyroid gland, inappetance or healthy appetite, thirst, kidney problems, is your cat greasy/unkempt, emaciation, increased heart rate, dilation of pupils, mental stress, muscular weakness, etc. (Modalities are conditions that make your ill cat or a particular symptom better or worse, i.e. (a) circumstance(s) giving rise to an increase or decrease of a symptom, e.g. your cat is worse from cold or cold weather and better from resting etc.).

Wim

__________________
Homeopath for people and animals.
(Sorry, Wim no longer works here.)

Hi Wim,

I will post another thread and give you information on Magic. I have ordered the remedies for Sasha and will let you know when I start them.

Thanks,

Pam