Constipation and urinary retention caused by a vaginal epithelial inclusion cyst in a 1 year old intact cat

Abstract This case report describes a rare instance of a keratinising vaginal epithelial inclusion cyst causing significant clinical signs in a 1‐year‐old domestic shorthair queen. The cat presented with severe constipation, urinary retention and a caudal abdominal/cranial intrapelvic mass identified on diagnostic imaging. Differential diagnoses for the vaginal mass included non‐neoplastic causes such as a Gartner's cyst, Müllerian cyst, abscess and epithelial inclusion cyst. Less likely differentials included leiomyoma, fibroma, polyp, leiomyosarcoma or epidermoid carcinoma among others. Histopathological evaluation confirmed a benign vaginal epithelial inclusion cyst lined by stratified squamous epithelium. The cyst caused marked extraluminal compression of the colon and urinary bladder. Ovariohysterectomy resulted in the resolution of symptoms and marked improvement in the cat's quality of life. Vaginal epithelial inclusion cysts are rarely reported in veterinary literature and have not been reported in queens.