Question:
Our male cat, 6 years old, has recently begun to #1 pee in the house and #2 subsequently have difficulty peeing. He and his sister have 2 litterboxes which we clean every other day. He eats Purina Cat Chow, a little bit of wet food each day and drinks filtered water.

Took him to the vet several times. Latest trip resulted in catheterization and 3 days inpatient. The vet is still unclear on a diagnosis ($1,100 US). He has had a full work-up, twice (urine, blood and x-rays). The vet mentions crystals in the urine and the possibility of UTI. We have been prescribed oral antibiotics, twice, which we are currently administering.

The vet claims that its the Cat Chow that's causing the crystals. This makes no sense to me.

Please.....anyone help out there?

Mike :(

Answer:
I had a cat about five years ago that the vet recommend be on a low ash diet due the crystals forming in his urethra. I'm not sure of the specifics but apparently this is an all too common problem with cats, especially males. May I suggest staying away from the generic cat foods as there are others which consist of more quality ingredients. I'm sure your vet would be able to further clarify this issue. Good-Luck!

Answer:
My 6 yr old male cat has been doing the same exact thing. He would get a UTI with crystals, get antibiotics, after 2 weeks he would be fine, then a few days after that he would have it back again.
This is what I did.
#1 A low ash diet does seem to work in conjunction with other remedies
#2 Making wet food the primary food for the day
#3 Making SURE he never ever goes without water, even for an hour
#4 He gets Feline Urinary Support sprinkled on his food every single day
It is pill form, but we crush a whole bottle all at once and then put a few pinches on his wet food and his dry.

He had a UTI with crystals about 3 months ago (before doing all of this) and the last time he got one I did not take him to the vet for more meds because it seemed like it was always going to occur and we had to make changes. We have not had a problem since making these changes and I hope these things will work for you as well. Good luck to you.

Here is the link for the Urinary Support, your pet store may carry it.

http://www.worldpetstore.com/nofeursu.html

Answer:
Okay, sounds like your cat was "Blocked".
Otherwise known as FLUTD
-Feline lower urinary tract disease. Without catheterization, he would have died. Crystals or mucous plugs block the urethra (passage between the bladder and the penis), preventing urination and the release of toxins, making the other organs work too hard. The bladder can also rupture. If left untreated, the body becomes toxic and a painful death occurs.

I am so glad that you got him the surgery

The cause of this can be congenitive, but normally diet related. Changing the diet depends on what crystals are found. (please ask your vet)

-Struvite crystals (most common): A diet with low magnesium content and that maintains a urine PH balance <6.4 helps limit the development of crystals and mucous plugs.

-Calcium Oxalate crystals (rare) a diet with reduced calcium intake and produce an alkaline urine pH.

Also the bigger the water bowl, the more water your cat should drink. Thus, very important urine dilution (specific gravity) and a whole body acid-base balance.

So the purina chow is basically junk food for your cat, hence the vet urging you to change diets. Whilst on poor quality foods, your cat will most likely
"re-block".
Use the food your vet is advising for atleast the recovery stage, then ask your vets opinion on a good quality store brand that he could eventually change to. Feed a recommended wet food if your cat has been blocked, there's more moisture in it.
When a cat has been blocked, it's advisable to stay on the vet's food, but do discuss it with your vet.


Hope this answers some questions and I haven't bored you to death

Answer:
Hi,

My cat was blocked by crystals and the vet successfully unblocked him. He has been home now 24 hours and he will not eat the food the the vet has given him. He is 2 years old and has been raised on nothing but hard food. I don't know how to get him to eat. I bought a tin of tuna to stimulate his appetite at the vet's request and he ran to it..he was starving.. I did not give him too much as I don't want him to get used to it. Does anyone know of another food I can give him that will not cause these crystals again?

Thanks in advance

Answer:
lovecosts,

I have a bit of a menagerie here and have dealt with the various urinary blockage problems. What I have discovered and have heard from numerous vets now is that;

1. Once a cat has urinary issues as such, it is best to purchase dry food that is targeted for this problem. We bought the outrageously expensive stuff from the vet, for a while, and then switched to the Purina brand - for Urinary Health. Also Pro Plan.

2. Your cat needs liquids in the diet.

3. Wet foods are an excellent means of introducing liquid to your cat's diet. We have upped the proportion of wet food in our cats' diet and we have not had the problem recur. Most vets will concur with this assessment of wet food. We do still give them the special Urinary diet dry food. I'm not sure why, except that it seems like some ridiculous matter of principle with us. I justify it by worrying about the cats maintaining strong teeth.

MPG

Answer:
Please give your cat canned food. Eating dry only contributes to blockages and crystals since urine becomes very concentrated. This problem is very common in neutered males who only eat dry food.

Try something tasty, like Fancy Feast. Your cat will be much better off when he's getting more moisture.

Answer:
Hi,

Thank you so much for your replies. I will go out today and buy some other form of wet food and try that. He did not eat again last night.

Answer:
I had a cat I picked up stray and he had a urinary problem at that time. The vet gave me the prescription wet food and my cat wouldn't touch it. It may be very good food for that problem, but won't help if the cat won't eat it.

So I did a little research of my own, started feeding him canned food from the store. He never had another problem and lived to be 20.

Answer:
Hi again,

Well I went and bought some wet food from Pet Valu. I spoke to them and the lady said her cat had the same problem and showed me what kind of food she gives her cat. So I bought it and brought it home and he still won't eat. I really don't know what else I can do. I also bought some hard food that was recommened but I don't want to put it out yet until I get some liquid in his diet because since he's only used to hard food, I think he might just eat that. I'm stumped.

Thanks again for all your replies

Answer:
Our littlest cat, she weighs only 5-1/2 lbs., she will ONLY eat "FLAKED TUNA". Not "TUNAWITHEGG" or "SEAFOODPLATTER" or "OCEANWHITEFISH" or some other such nonsense. She wants to see the FISH!

It took us 6 months to realize this.

Whatever the case, our cats are very particular. Yours might be also. Mix it up a little.

!! CLARIFICATION - Cat Food "Flaked Tuna". Not CHICKEN OF THE SEA

Fancy Feast has it. 9Lives is her favorite version. S

he doesn't like Friskies Flaked Tuna & Egg.

Answer:
Tuna cat food should not be fed to cats with urinary problems. It's too high in magnesium.

Try this: Get a can of something like Friskies Turkey & Giblet Buffet. Mix in a TINY bit with his dry food and see if he'll eat it.

OR pour some juice from a can of people tuna and add some of the tun to the canned food, just to encourage him to eat it. The tuna can be slowly phased out.

Cats are "junkies" and get hooked on one type of food. Changing foods can be very difficult but it can be done.

Pet food manufacturers should be sued for promoting dry-only diets for cats. It's really bad!

Answer:
Hi,

I called the vet back. She told me to bring in the wet cat food they gave me and they exchanged it with dry food that is the same thing.. "Dissolution". As soon as I put it in his dish he ate. It was amazing. Very finicky apparently.
She also gave me a syringe to try and get some water into him. I am waiting for my son to wake up to try that on him.


Thanks for your repiles

Answer: