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Cat urinary infection (diet)

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  • 18-01-2011 11:45pm
    #1
    Orla K
    Registered Users Posts: 2,462 ✭✭✭


    Alright I am getting ahead of myself but I want to be prepared if it comes to changing his diet.

    It's my three legged little Oscar we've guessed he's about eight, he wasn't very healthy when I got him but I picked him up from the street.

    When I got up I noticed that his pee had turned red so it was to the vet and he has an infection. I have to keep an eye on him to make sure he pees (if he can't get it out it's a stone) but for now he's peeing. If he keeps on getting them he'll have to go on special food.

    Just to let people know that I'm not worried about him going on a diet (I am a little worried if it's a stone!) I really just want to be prepared with what foods there are avaible so if it does come to the change in diet I would be able to get one easier and quicker. And money is a big issue for me. So which foods have people found are good for cats with urinary infections (that the cats eat too, although Oscar isn't too fussy)


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    #2
    The Sweeper
    Registered Users Posts: 10,658 ✭✭✭✭The Sweeper


    OrlaK, if he has struvite and oxalate crystals, he'll have to be on a prescription food for the rest of his life. It's all to do with urinary PH and dry food diets being unnatural for cats. (And about a million other things.)

    Hills c/d is a prescription food for managing crystals and stones. Royal Canin also do one - these aren't cheap foods, but they do appear to work very well with cats who have these issues. You'll probably have to buy his food through your vet for the rest of his life.

    Blood in the urine is usually from cystitis in these cases, and that cystitis could just be from stress or anxiety. Did the vet spin a urine sample? They can take a urine sample from the cat and spin it in a machine that will identify if there are crystals or stones in the urine. Not a bad idea to also do a blood test for kidney function to examine if the cat's kidneys are working properly.

    If he has stones and crystals you'll need to watch him closely - if you ever see him becoming lethargic, feverish, cranky, or vomiting and hunching up he needs to be rushed to the vet. These can be symptoms of a urethral blockage, where the cat's urethra is literally blocked by a stone or crystal, the bladder is full, and it's a life threatening condition that requires emergency veterinary intervention to catheterise the cat and drain the urine and remove the blockage.

    Google 'painful bladder syndrome cats' for more information on all of the associated issues.


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    #3
    Orla K
    Registered Users Posts: 2,462 ✭✭✭Orla K


    Thanks sweeper, just to make sure can I only get the food from the vet or could I get it online?

    So far he's peeing fine only little bits at a time but quite alot of little bits(which the vet said was normal)

    She didn't do a spin test but if he still has trouble after the tablets he'll get one. She did check his temp, eyes and a feel of his abdomin and he showed her his teeth (more gums than teeth).


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    #4
    comongethappy
    Registered Users Posts: 2,753 ✭✭✭comongethappy


    Hi OP, my male cat as FLUD (feline lower urinary disease). My cat does not suffer from crystals in his urine, his problem is psychological. He's very prone to stress, and anytime he's stressed (a vet visit, agressive attitudes of other animals, etc), he'll start withholding urinating and will get a UTI.

    Hills C/D has an active ingredient in it to help acidify urine - L-Methionine. Besides having a lower magnesium content to help prevent stones, this is the only added benefit. I'm not a huge fan of hills, so I get a supplement from the states that I add into his food: http://www.entirelypets.com/uromaxx180.html

    Shipping is very dear, so if you would buy I would buy more than one as it's nearly the price of the product. It's 1 ml a day for your average cat, so a bottle nearly lasts half a year. If he has one coming on I up the dose to 2 ml a day. I always feed majority wet with a little dry for abrasion for his teeth

    On zooplus, they do some cat foods for urinary problems which I would rate just as highly as the hills - http://www.zooplus.ie/shop/cats/supplements_specialty_cat_food. Kattovit do a wet and dry.

    Good luck, I would recommend, especially if you have insurance, that the vet does a full lab to see what specific bateria or stone are causing his infection. I think this needs to be sent off to the UK, so it's quite dear


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