Erik D. Jones’s Blog

A PU surgery essentially removes the penis and creates an opening at the widest part of the urethra in a male cat. They don’t pee any differently in terms of the coarse mechanics of how a cat uses a litter box. To our knowledge, he may not even know what has happened to him. Certainly it must feel differently, but no one really believes that a male cat experiences any of the gender identity issues one might associate with removing one’s penis. Although frankly I find the whole thought of this surgery a little upsetting, but I doubt Jake has the same thought.

Keeping with the luck that Brian and I have been having these past two months, our new kitty Jake nearly died on New Year’s due to a condition known as Feline Lower Urinary Tract Disorder (FLUTD). Having only had him for four days it was very disheartening to find him laying in his litter box early in the morning on New Year’s day. His urethra had become blocked by either a kidney stone or what the vet calls “sediment”–basically calcium or magnesium crystals that can form in the blatter.

When his blatter became full, his kidneys shut down to prevent any additional urine from being produced. This resulted in a rapid increase in blood-urea-nitrogen (BUN), potassium, creatinine and other blood chemicals that become toxic in excessive quantities. He was not far from coma and death.