More UT problems for Gatsby

**katladyd** · 10-15-2009, 10:28 PM

Happy to help.

Amitryptiline relaxes any spasms or bladder irritations, as they thought that was part of Ming's problem, along with crystals. I still don't know why it works, but $10 every 3 months is a small price to pay for a healthy cat.

**Prairie Purrs** · 10-16-2009, 06:00 PM

Gatsby is back home. He's taking Zeniquin and amitriptyline. I really hope that'll help him avoid recurring episodes.

I think he's a little overexcited at being home, because he keeps making trips to the litter box. The first trip resulted in a decent sized "biscuit," and he can't possibly have anything left in his bladder by now, so I think he's just having a bit of an obsessive-compulsive spell. I've noticed recently that some of his litter box trips seem to be out of habit--for example, he'll head for the litter box immediately after eating or drinking even the slightest amount. The amitriptyline may help with that.

**Prairie Purrs** · 10-16-2009, 11:48 PM

Well, poor Gatsby (who is normally very little trouble to pill) hates taking the amitriptyline. I guess the taste is pretty horrible. katladyd, how do you get Ming to take the stuff?

**katladyd** · 10-17-2009, 12:19 AM

It is VERY bitter! I wrap it in a small piece of a Pill Pocket, they sell them at Pet Smart. After a year, Ming just opens his mouth and takes the pill without much trouble. It takes two of us, but it is done without much trouble. The first few weeks, until I discovered the Pill Pocket trick, was very hard. Ming won't eat the pill in the Pill Pocket on his own, the pills are that bitter, but you can ask you vet for a pill popper to shoot the pill down his throat, or just get behind him, lift his head up a little, and place the pill at the very back of his throat. He should then swallow as a reflex. Sometimes I have to almost shove the pill down his throat with my finger. As long as you are doing this from behing the cat, you can't be bitten. Your vet tech can show you how to do this.

**Prairie Purrs** · 10-17-2009, 12:31 AM

I've got a pill shooter, and that's how I got tonight's pill down him. It was a struggle, though, because he really didn't want to swallow. Which of course meant he had the nasty taste in his mouth longer.

I'll have to pick up some Pill Pockets. I wonder whether amitriptyline can be compounded into a less bitter form?

**katladyd** · 10-17-2009, 01:14 AM

I've wondered that myself. Now, and this is just a rumor, I've heard that amitryptiline can be made into a liquid or gel that can be applied topically. You could ask you vet about that. I do know that, like anything else, Ming got used to it and now is fairly easy to pill. Wishing you luck.

**Medusa** · 10-17-2009, 08:25 AM

Penny, ask your vet for #3 gel caps. The meds that Pidge takes are really nasty, too, plus they're cut in half which makes it even worse. I put them all in one gel cap and it's easier for her to swallow, no nasty taste, the gel cap dissolves quickly and best of all, no more gagging and vomiting.