UPDATE: Took the String-Eating Feline to the Vet

[Kathy in Cambridge]

The vet couldn't definitively see the string in the x-ray because Reno had some food in his intestines. I have to wait and see if he poops. If not, I have to bring him to have an endoscope put up his bum (YUCK)! Poor baby!

He is eating and acting normally so here's hoping he passes it!

The vet told me it can kill him! :-(

[omshanti]

1. He'll pass it or throw it up. Kitties are resilient.

My kitty ate an entire spool of cassette tape... to this day I can't figure out where it came from or how he managed to get the tape loose from the casette.
We were finding bits of cassette tape ribbon in little "presents" all over the house for about a week.

[Clark Can WIN]

2. My cats have sparkly poo every christmas

I don't buy tinsel any more but they find it somewhere. Always.

[Kathy in Cambridge]

3. Tinsel is bad-the vet told me it's made from metal

ans she sees several deaths a year from it.

[wantnobush]

4. I hope

your kitty will be ok.

[zbdent]

5. I'm sure everything will come out okay in the end

Sorry, couldn't resist.

I love kitties!

[Padraig18]

7. What a crappy thing to say.

I couldn't resist, either. :P

[LiberalVoice]

6. I wish you the best...

Not to put a damper on your hopes...but my Ex-GF's cat passed away because the string caused sever lacerations to many of her organs.

I hope everything turns out ok.

[grannylib]

8. I hope kitty will be OK...

"this too shall pass"

[coralrf]

9. Do not let them do that...

there is no way that vet can diagnose the condition with a colonoscopy. No fucking way. That is cash register medicine in its purest form.

A string will 'plicate' (draw up into tight folds) the bowl and that is usually visible in a normal or plain X ray. The test of choice is a contrast X ray or GI contrast study. The Veterinarian, in this study, will give your cat an oral dose of barium that enhances the image if the intestines. If the string is causing a problem it will be seen definitively by this, (much less then expensive than colonoscopy) test.

I will be very blunt. Any veterinarian that would do a large bowl (colonoscopy) procedure for a small bowl disease ( string ingestion ) is a total quack. Total total quack!

If you cat has a problem it will do the following:

Vomit
Have a high fever
become very dehydrated
show considerable lethargy and malaise
not eat and stop drinking after time
have all the signs of great pain