u/MajavaOuo

Yams is 6 years old and never had issues with her extra toes before, but this year she started pulling on the claws and chewing them into stubs. We found a cat orthopedist who determined that since Yams was putting weight on the malformed extra toes, they were causing pain. Her most outward normal toes had also started turning sideways because of how much she was compensating posture-wise. That unfortunately meant the thumbs had to go.

She's still recovering from the surgery but seems energetic and more bothered by the drugs and cone than having just been operated on. We on the other hand loved her big paws so it's like we're feeling the loss more than she is. Yams is a very active cat and I take her on walks with me, which probably contributed to the toe issues. A less active, exclusively indoor cat probably doesn't move around as much.

Despite losing her iconic thumbs, I'm looking forward to taking her on walks again. Curious to see if her silly gait stays or if she starts walking like a normal cat.

This also as a heads up that the extra toes aren't always problem free.

EDIT: Wanted to add that Yams was on painkillers for a week before we decided what to do with the toes. The gnawing stopped immediately. She was otherwise perfectly healthy and left other toes alone, so there was only one conclusion to come to.

As the title says.

I have a long history with UTIs, around 12 years of it. First it was multiple times a year, then I got it under control with supplements and medication so I only had occasional "scares" but was able to stop a full on hell before it got properly started.

That is until this spring, when I had to ask for different antibiotics to stop an infection. Long story short, it took over 2 months and multiple runs of different antibiotics to finally come out with negative urine culture. But the symptoms didn't end. In some ways they were the same (urgency, burning, discomfort during and after peeing), but in many ways they were also reverse (bladder full was worse instead of empty, and cranberry juice was poison instead of helping, mornings I felt fine but bedtime was killing me, ibuprofen did nothing). The bacteria being gone but symptoms continuing was soul-crushing.

That's when I started looking into causes and eventually found this subreddit. I'm not diagnosed yet, but IC describes me accurately and IC treatment has helped me. Ditched the cranberry juice and pepsi, been taking D-mannose, and the relaxants I've been prescribed for my stiff af legs seemed to help calm down the tension in my pelvic area as well. From the start of July to until a week ago I was in horrible pain, but now I've been almost symptomless since then. For the first time since April I've been able to piss like a normal person.

I don't know if I even have IC. I have a doctor's appointment coming up and they can refer me to a urologist/gynecologist/wherever. I'm old and stubborn enough to not accept "wipe front to back" as my takeaway talking to a professional, so I have decent faith in being able to find an expert that takes me seriously. Being asymptomatic now doesn't mean it can't get bad again.

My main fears are that this isn't just post-infection irritation, and that I need to accept having a new chronic illness. I've been able to follow the IC diet recommendations since they helped me so much, but I also have an ED and my dietician has advised heavily against any kind of strict all-or-nothing dietary restrictions. I might have to pick the lesser of two very big evils, and that worries me.
Another thing is that IC is poorly understood where I live. Finland offers basically no medication or supplements for it and I'd have to order everything for high prices from the US. Already have to do that for D-mannose but I haven't been able to find ANY good sources for the other stuff people here have mentioned. Would Prelief help me? Would I pay triple price for it in addition to 20€ shipping?
The point is: I pray I don't have to. I'm begging for all powers that be that I don't end up as a regular here.

That said, I am very grateful for this sub existing. I would not have found all the information and advice for my condition otherwise.

No more thumbs for Yams

Newcomer here and praying this won't last long