Question:
did you know that Urinary Tract Infection is most common in male indoor cats.....usually an outdoor cat will not get UTI....I watched it on Pet Guys this morning,,i thought it was interesting


Answer:
That is interesting. Did it say anything about females with UTI's?


Answer:
it said most females dont get them because they have a bigger hole to urinate and it tends to all come out ,,,(the crystals or somehting) so usually with males it ends up staying inside and getting blocked with causes the infection


Answer:
so how could we find out if the cat has UTI?? without taking it to the vet?? is there some kind of sign?


Answer:
Pam, some signs include, straining to urinate, inappropriate urination (in the bathtub usually), loss of appetite, blood in urine, dark urine, or smelly urine, to name a few. I closely monitor my cats' litter box trips to keep an eye on Syd's urinary tract and Max's IBS. That is the best way to know there is something wrong IMHO.


Answer:
if your cat is straining in the litter box but is expelling very little or no urine...that's a major sign


Answer:
Did the program say how come outdoor cats don't seem to get UTIs as much?


Answer:
I would hazard to guess that it has something to do with life expectancies: according the HSUS, the life expectancy for an outdoor cat is 3 years old; the expected lifespan for an indoor cat is 15 yrs. Hence -- the longer your cat lives, the more likely it is to develop health problems.
As well, cats that go outdoors also eat wildlife, which is undoubtably closer to the diet cats evolved to. Eating small animals and birds probably helps regulate the urinary ph level. Considering a lot of cats are fed gross foods such as Cat Chow and Meow Mix, it isn't any wonder they are getting sick.
Keeping a close eye on your cat's litterbox behaviour will help alert you to signs of FLUTD (feline lower urinary tract disease). My late Gil got it in 1995 -- he cried pitifully while digging in the litterbox, and he had an accident on the chair he was lying on. I rushed him right away to the vet's: because of the early intervention, it was easier (and cheaper) to treat.
Males are more susceptible to it because their urethra has an "hourglass" shape to it; females urethras are wider. However, females seem to be more prone to bladder infections caused by bacteria -- the bigger the hole, the more that can get in!


Answer:
ahhh thanks guys... well then Aspen has absolutely no problem then.. hehe when he goes.. he realy goes.. lol he pees loud!!!