16 year cat with crf and licking his penis

Question
QUESTION: my sixteen year old cat mouzer was diagnose with crf with six  mos, to a year to live . He pick me out of the people at the shelter at six mos old loved him since and alway will . Why is he licking his penis i never seen him .do this in all the time he been with me.  Is this the sign of crystals and stones and if so what be the best treatment if any.  Since the vet he just lays and around all day he will play just alittle because of the laser pointer and eats the hills science diet for a couple of days now and cant seem to get enough and he drinks alot of water. His bun is 40 (high) his creatinine is 3.3 (high) and his amylase is 1416  (high) stated in the report. not sure what to do dont wanna have him here for me in pain. plz help. thanx

ANSWER: Hi Jeff,

So sorry to hear about Mouzer's condition.  Usually, when a cat starts paying a lot of attention to his penis, it's because he's experiencing pain.  This can be a sign of urinary tract crystals or a urinary tract infection.  It would be best to have him back to the vet for a urinalysis unless this was done within the last few days and it came back free of bacteria and crystals.

The treatment for crystals is a special diet.  You should talk to your vet about whether the kidney diet or the urinary tract diet would be more important at this point.  Especially for males, it's important to control crystals, because these can lead to blockages.  I would suspect controlling crystals would be most important.  You can give Mouzer supplements to help with the kidney issues, such as Fosrenol or AlternaGel.  This will help prevent him from absorbing the most harmful element from the urinary tract food - phosphorus.  Your vet can provide you with more information about helpful supplements.

If he has an infection, the treatment is simpler and will consist of a course of antibiotics.  This is very important to treat right away, since a long-standing lower urinary tract infection can spread to the kidneys.  In a cat with already compromised kidney function, this can be catastrophic.

If his urine sample turns up clear, it could be that he's grooming himself more often because he's urinating more often.  And in some cases, cats enjoy the sensation.

I hope he feels better soon!

Jessica


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QUESTION: this was the first time the vet was successful  in seeing him because the other vets freaked him out. now i am worried this visit could really traumatize him real bad an he gets worse i will try the remedies you gave me . ANY more advise would be appreciated very much i thank you for your good work and concern in this sad situation i as a pet owner has to go through. thank you

Answer
It's really important to get a proper diagnosis with urinary tract problems, especially because the urinary tract formula foods that are sold in stores only treat for one kind of crystal - struvite crystals. Unfortunately, these foods can make a different kind of crystal, called calcium oxalate crystals, even worse. So this would compound your problem. If he has these, he needs a prescription food. Also, if he has an infection, an appropriate antibiotic should be prescribed by your vet. Finally, be sure to get the appropriate dosage of AlternaGel from your vet before administering this.

I would recommend that you bring your kitty back to the vet to be diagnosed. If he's very upset, the vet can give him a small amount of gas anesthesia to sedate him, so they can obtain the urine sample necessary for the urinalysis. Or, you can talk to your vet about a sedative called acepromazine, which is an oral medication you could give 2 hours prior to his vet visit. However, I would advise against this choice, personally. Although your cat is in the beginning stages of renal failure, this drug can be risky to use in kidney patients.