Bob and his Cat Diaper - 5 Months Later

Looking back at my original post about Bob and his cat diaper, everything was so new and exciting then. I think it's time to revisit how the cat diaper is working now that we've been at it for 5 months or so.

Bob in his cat diaper by Kara Hartz

The pluses:

It is still working really well - far better than any training or household modifications ever did for us. Now that I see how little control he has over his bladder, that all makes sense. Hard to teach him not to urinate in the wrong place if he can't always control when urine comes out.

In the past I needed to be very careful about how much of his stool softener I gave him - diarrhea was a serious problem for trying to live with Bob. So I was usually very skimpy with his dose. Now, if things get a little too lose, the diaper catches all. That, however, is rare. He is actually getting more and more regular, passing stools on his own - something he hasn't done in a year or more. That also means he is eating better , and vomiting less than before.

When I see him squatting on my pillow, I don't have to drop what I'm doing to whisk him away to the litter box. Have at it Bob! You go guy!

The minuses:

Because he lacks control, sometimes he'll have a dry diaper for days, then overflow, and we still have to strip the bed and wash everything. I'm learning to keep tabs on this and help him get things started if he has gone 24 hours without peeing.

Same with the poop. If he gets constipated, there can be a serious blow out when things get moving again. The diaper makes the mess much more manageable that it would be otherwise, but there have been a couple times that overflowed and needed major cleanup.

Fiddling with his stool softener dose led to occasional diarrhea. While this no longer gets all over the house (yea!) it does still get all over Bob's backside. Luckily, he has gotten used to baths and is very tolerant of getting tossed in the sink for a scrubbing. For awhile I worried about the longer term damage urine or stool might cause to the skin on his back and undersides, but so far, after 5 months, that doesn't seem to be a concern. Just have to make sure to change him regularly.

Lastly - it's kinda a bummer, with kids that have been using the potty on their own for 7-plus years now, to be back at changing diapers, and it's tempting to skip sometimes. Still, it's more than worth the hassle in the end. (Pun intended)