My cat got diagnosed with FIC yesterday and I’m not sure if his behavior is normal after his vet visit
I have a 8yr old male cat that I ended up taking him to urgent care yesterday due to low urination over the last two days. The vet ended up doing a x-ray, ultrasound, and took a urinary sample. He had to be given Gabapentin and fluids for the urine sample to be taken because he was very stressed out and started to claw at the tech.
She informed me that they saw no crystals or any sort of blockage from the x-ray and urine sample. However she diagnosed him with FIC and told me that stress from environmental changes, etc. could have led to the inflammation he had that caused him to not be able to pee properly. I got sent home with meloxicam to give him for the next three days (I think to help with inflammation), and purina calming care supplements.
He ended up peeing over night and again at 2pm today but has been licking his genitals more than usual and his bladder is still enlarged. He also hasn’t eaten his wet food today which I put the supplement over (only his dry) and did not drink any water from what I can tell. I wash and refill his water bowls every day and have 2 of them for him to drink from. I also have been cleaning his litter box anytime he poops/pees to try and see how often he goes.
I gave him his first dose of meloxicam around 40 minutes ago but read that with dehydration there’s a higher risk of kidney issues. I might be overthinking but I’m just worried since he didn’t drink water or eat his wet food today, and still has an enlarged bladder that something might happen? he’s engaging in low activity play by pawing at a string toy, but has been hiding more today as well. I ended up calling my vet before giving the dose and she said if he doesn’t pee by 2pm tomorrow to send photos of his bladder, and she’ll let me know if I need to go back to urgent care.
I think I’m just overthinking and overwhelmed as this all happened super quickly and I’m a first time pet parent. I’m not very educated on what FIC is and am not sure if these are normal signs after a flair up/urgent care visit given all the testing they did and the Gabapentin they gave him. I also don’t know if the meloxicam can have a negative effect especially because he isn’t drinking much water or eating his wet food that I mix water into. I would love some advice on if this is normal behavior/expected to happen. I’ve looked at other reddit post about FIC and they have honestly scared me and have been making me not want to leave him alone at all, especially since male cats are more prone to blockages and urinary issues.