Today I'm going to tell you a bit about my alternative treatments for my cystitis problem. First, a little bit of history. You might remember that I had my first case of cystitis in July 2009, shortly after my brother and I moved to Sydney. After a couple of occurences we thought we had it under control, but late last year it reared it's head up again. Since then, I've had it five times, which is no fun. Each time my urinalysis is clear, no infection, no crystals, no nothing. The vets I have seen always called it idiopathic, and said it was probably due to stress. It didn't sit well with mum as I have grown so much braver and more confident in the last two years, and I would often refuse to squat properly in the litter tray, but different vets kept saying the same thing.
Two weeks ago I had another episode. I had the same treatment as usual and it looked to be clearing up. This last Tuesday night however I started straining again and the blood came back, so I was booked in for another consult. This time, I saw a vet who consults at our usual clinic one day a week. In addition to her usual vet qualifications, she is also a specialist in companion animal chiropractic and acupuncture treatments.She did a quick examination of me, and then asked if I had been injured in my pelvic/tail area. Apparently I have a slight malformation where my tail meets my body. The vet was telling mum and dad about how the majority of cats she sees with bladder issues also have a pelvic issue, and that almost all of them benefit from chiropractic adjustments. She had a cat herself who blocked and had to be catheterised every single day for 6 weeks, then after just one adjustment he never blocked again! 
We decided that she would do a full chiropractic adjustment on me, and kitties, I enjoyed it! I was very calm and relaxed, and had a very curious look on my face the whole time. Mum and dad were fascinated by both what the vet was doing and my reaction to it. It seemed to have an effect on me immediately. I was swishier and seemed more comfortable. That night, I squatted right down in the litter box! There is no placebo effect in cats as we don't know what a treatment is supposed to do, so it really must have made a difference. I am going to have another adjustment this week, and we will discuss how acupuncture could help. We're also looking at seeing a naturopath to see if colloidal silver could help me.
Mum and dad have been talking a lot about how I may have been injured, and are wondering if something happened either while I was at the boarder or during my flight to Sydney. It was shortly after that when I had my first case, so the timeline would fit. Mum does feel very guilty for not knowing, but is also hopeful now that we will be able to get the cystitis under control once and for all. This was a lot of words, but we found it very interesting and thought you might too :)We're snuggling up together to watch the Royal wedding tonight. We're looking forward to seeing Kate's dress!
