If you’re in Portland, Maine (or the surrounding area) and you’re worried your cat may be blocked, Portland Veterinary Emergency & Specialty Care (PVESC) provides 24/7/365 emergency care. You can call 207-878-3121 (option 1) and head straight in—time matters.
What Is a Urinary Blockage?
In the simplest terms, a urinary blockage is a “plug” in the urethra, the tube that carries urine from the bladder out of the body. When that tube gets clogged, urine can’t get out.
It’s like a completely clogged pipe. The kidneys (the “faucet”) don’t stop producing urine, so it all backs up.
This can quickly become life-threatening, leading to excruciating pain, acute kidney failure, and dangerous electrolyte imbalances.
Without immediate treatment, a “blocked” cat can die within 24 to 48 hours.
Why is it more common in Male Cats?
You’ll almost always hear this discussed as a male cat problem. Why? It’s simply a matter of anatomy. Female cats have a short, wide urethra, so it’s very hard for it to get completely plugged.
Your poor male cat has a long, narrow urethra that tapers to a tiny point. It doesn’t take much—a small stone, a bit of sludge, or a muscle spasm—to clog it completely.
Critical Signs of a Urinary Blockage in Cats
Your cat can’t tell you, “My tummy hurts, and I can’t pee!” So it’s up to us to be detectives.
This is the most important part: Many owners mistake the signs for constipation. The straining looks almost identical. If you see these signs, it’s an emergency. Don’t wait.
- Straining to Urinate: Your cat will repeatedly go to the litter box, get into position, and strain with little to no urine coming out.
- Vocalizing in Pain: Crying, yowling, or howling when in the litter box or when you try to pick them up, especially around the abdomen.
- Frequent Litter Box Trips: Going back and forth to the box frequently, possibly every few minutes with no urination.
- Licking the Genital Area: The area may be irritated from the straining and pain
- Hiding or Behavioral Changes: Pain and illness make cats reclusive. They may hide, become irritable, or “just not seem right.”
- Vomiting, Lethargy, or Collapse: These are late-stage signs. It means the toxins are overwhelming their system.
We can’t stress this enough: This is not a “wait-and-see-until-morning” problem. Straining at 2 AM is a 2 AM emergency.
What Causes a Feline Urinary Blockage?
So, what is this ‘plug’? It’s rarely just one thing. A blockage is usually the painful result of other underlying issues, often grouped under the term Feline Lower Urinary Tract Disease (FLUTD).
Common culprits are:
- Feline Idiopathic Cystitis (FIC): This is a frustrating “we don’t know the exact cause” inflammation of the bladder. But we do know it’s strongly linked to stress. This inflammation can cause swelling, spasms, and the creation of inflammatory debris that leads to a plug.
- Urethral Plugs: It’s not a solid stone but a soft, dense “sludge” made of mucus, inflammatory cells, and tiny crystals (often struvite).
- Urinary Stones (Uroliths): These are larger, hard “rocks” that form in the bladder and can get lodged in the narrow urethra on their way out.
While any cat can block, the “classic” patient we see is often a middle-aged, indoor-only male cat, a little on the heavier side, who eats only dry food and might be feeling stressed (like from a new baby, a move, or a neighborhood cat outside).
Treatment: What to Expect at the Emergency Vet
Okay, you’ve rushed to the hospital. It’s scary. Here’s what will happen. The moment you arrive at the hospital, our team will immediately triage your cat. Our first priority is to get them stable and out of pain.
At triage, we will obtain a brief history on your pet and what you have seen at home along with vital monitoring (temperature, heart rate, respiratory rate). The doctor will then perform a physical examination, confirming that there is a urinary blockage.
Once confirmed, the goal is to stabilize with pain medication and IV fluids. Baseline blood work will be performed to evaluate the kidneys, electrolytes, and other organ health.
At this point, the doctor will discuss next steps with you. In most cases, relieving the blockage is crucial. This is done by passing a sterile urinary catheter and using sterile fluids to gently flush the plug backward into the bladder. Your pet will be placed under anesthesia for this procedure.
Once unblocked, it is recommended that cats remain hospitalized with the catheter in place for 1-3 days. This decreases the chance of your pet reblocking at home.
Finally, going home. Once their bloodwork looks good and their urine is clear, we’ll remove the catheter. The last step is the most important: we need to see them urinate freely on their own. Once they’ve passed that test, they can go home to you.
Life After a Blockage: Prevention is Key
This is the hard truth: once a cat blocks, many are at a high risk of doing it again. The “unblocking” procedure fixes the emergency, but it doesn’t fix the underlying cause.
Your job now is to become a master of prevention. Your vet will create a long-term plan, and it’s vital you stick to it.
- The Right Food: This is a big one. Talk to your primary care vet about a therapeutic urinary diet. This isn’t a suggestion; it’s medicine. These foods are specially designed to manage urinary pH and prevent crystals. This is a for-life change.
- Water: This is non-negotiable. More water means more dilute (less “sludgy”) urine, which is less likely to form crystals and helps flush the bladder.
- Switch to canned food. This is the single easiest way to get water into a cat.
- Place multiple, wide-brimmed water bowls and/or a water fountain available to your cat
- Discuss an Environmental Enhancements Protocol: If stress is a trigger for your cat (and for many, it is), this is paramount.
- Think like a cat: provide “vertical space” (cat trees), scratching posts, and daily playtime. Keep litter boxes spotless (the rule is one box per cat, plus one extra, scooped daily).
Trust PVESC in an Emergency
A urinary blockage is one of the most critical emergencies we treat. Our emergency department is open every day of the year, fully staffed with a compassionate team that is always ready to provide immediate, life-saving care. If you even suspect your cat has a blockage, do not wait. Time is everything. Call us on the way, or come directly to our hospital. We are here for you and your cat.