# Chronic urinary tract infections in cats?



## Caty M (Aug 13, 2010)

I know this is the DOG health, but I have an important question about my kitty, Benny.

We got him three years ago when his owner went to Australia and when he came back, didn't want his cat back, so we ended up keeping him. We have no idea how old he is as he has been passed from home to home but we think he was around five or six when we got him which would make him around 8-9 now.

His problem is, he has inappropriate spraying and urinary tract infections every three months or so. The spraying is a little understandable as he wasn't neutered until we took him in, but no idea about the UTIs. We have probably done around $4,000 in tests on him and we can't get answers other than bring him in again, we will check his urine and give you antibiotics. He has never had crystals in his urine.

It's getting a bit tiring having $500 every three months in vet bills just to have no answer. I ended up getting a human doctor (my best friend) to prescribe me human amoxicillin which is the same antibiotic my cat was on and I just break up the tab into cat dosage which has worked great the last two infections but I really want to know what's wrong with him as it must be really painful for him..  And as I said I have been to three vets with no answer or cure.


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## Nani (Apr 14, 2010)

Cat's really really need a lot of water in their diet. 

The very best thing you could do is, start your kitty on a raw diet and even add a little water to each feeding. 
If you are unable to feed raw then I would suggest finding a high quality canned food and switch her to that with added water. 

Also, there is a product called a Drinkwell Fountain. It is a very good thing to own if you have a kitty or a dog. It is a water bowl/fountain that constantly runs water through a filter so the kitty has fresh running water 24/7. Cats like fresh running water the best. 

As for the spraying maybe you could try purchasing a Feliway plug in and get a Feliway spritzer as well. Feliway is a feline pheromone that will calm kitty and make him/her more relaxed in their environment.

I have a kitty that had struvite crystals about 6 years ago. He was eating kibble. I had been feeding my dogs raw for 5 years already but I just didn't feel like I knew enough about kitty nutrition to go that route....big mistake!

After he got better and a huge vet bill I did my research and found that if you are already feeding raw to dogs it's pretty simple to switch your cats though I must say Juju is a porker and will eat ANYTHING!!! LOL I add water into his raw every feeding and I also put a supplement called Wysong biotic ph- on his food. (the supplement isn't something you would need just for struvite crystals to balance his ph in his urine) I don't even really think I need to give the ph- anymore but it's been 5 yrs of good health and it's only like $20 for 3 months so....

Hope this helps!


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## Caty M (Aug 13, 2010)

Thanks for the reply, I would LOVE to get him on raw like my dog is but both my cats are just so picky. The non-problem cat will eat liver and pork, the problem cat, maybe a bite of chicken and that's all. They don't even like canned that much though they do get canned sardines or salmon every two or three days. They are on EVO cat food right now but I do switch it up.

They already do have a fountain that they use.

If you have any tips on switching cats that would be great.. my cat LOVES starches and cooked meats. I can't leave the bread on the counter anymore cause he will jump up and tear open the bag and take bites out of it. The coffee sugar has to have a lid on it. Donuts he will beg like a dog if I am eating one. He even will eat RAW potatoes. I ended up getting child locks on the cupboards..

But he will not take more than a bite or so of raw meat. :faint:


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## Nani (Apr 14, 2010)

Well, as much as I prefer homemade raw you could try some pre-packaged raw medallions like Stella and Chewy's (Stella and Chewy's have a large selection of proteins). Just pan sear them in a little butter and put it in with their dry a little at a time. It's so hard when kitties are picky! As you probably know you can't withhold food for long at all.

If worse comes to worse would they eat their kibble soaked? And, at least they're eating a little raw and tinned fish!

Do you have a holistic vet in your area? Maybe they would have some suggestions like cranberry pills or other good things for bladder issues like marshmallow root. Don't know if either of those would work but I'd ask a holistic vet if I could. 

If you couldn't find a good one in your area maybe you could have your kitties info faxed to one out of your area and you could do a phone consult?


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## cprcheetah (Jul 14, 2010)

My cat DeeJay has a condition called Interstitial Cystitis, out of the blue she'll start peeing where she shouldn't and screaming when she does, it's also called Sterile Cystitis where the bladder is inflammed but no crystals or infection. This site helped me out a ton: Feline Urinary Tract Health: Cystitis, Urethral Obstruction, Urinary Tract Infection by Lisa A. Pierson, DVM :: cat urinary tract health I switched my cats to an all canned food diet, added water to their canned food to make it soupy, and give DeeJay glucosamine/chondroitin (Cosequin or Happy Hips chicken treats) every day. She hasn't had an infection since I switched them to a canned food diet over a year ago...she was having them every few months and she is the WORST patient to give pills to twice a day...horrible, so her getting a UTI isn't fun at all. There are also LOTS of tips on how to switch cats to canned food/raw on that site I sent the link on.

ETA: Am trying to convert my kitties to full raw...but for now they are only partial raw.


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## Savage Destiny (Mar 16, 2011)

Nani has given you some amazing information. The first thing that you can do is get your kitty off kibble! Cats are obligate carnivores, and as Nani mentioned they need lots of moisture- their bodies are simply not designed to process dry matter. If your kitty won't eat raw, switch to canned, even add in some water if he'll eat it that way. You want high quality, high meat cans. Look for ones that list the calciumhosphorus ratio, or ones you can find that info on their web site. CalH ratio is really important. It should ideally be 1.1:1 for kitties, so look for things close to that ratio. I would avoid fish items. Fish is higher in phosphorus, and in cooked foods higher in ash, which is hard on the urinary tract system.

My Persian Ewu is prone to UTIs, and for a while she was on prescription food. She's been on strictly canned (she is one that WILL NOT eat raw) for about five or six years now, and she hasn't had a single problem in that time. If you do want your boy to try raw, I suggest the same Stella and Chewy's that Nani did. That is the ONLY brand my oldest cat Monstee will eat- and even then only the Duck and Chicken varieties. Monstee won't eat home made or any other brand. 

She wouldn't touch raw at all to begin with. What I did was switch her to canned for roughly a month, so she got used to wet food and eating stuff cold from the fridge. Then I started sneaking in teeeeeeny little bits of raw at a time, gradually increasing how much was in the mix. Now she gobbles her S&C.


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## mel2mdl (Sep 7, 2008)

My cat had UTI's very often - sometimes four times a year. We found out two things:

1. He didn't drink enough water when we were gone - he likes a dripping faucet.
2. Poor quality kibble was killing him. 

He used to leave the house and the neighbors fed him different food. Every time he got out, he would get a UTI. Strictly an indoor cat now. He hasn't had an infection in almost two years now. We did a few things to help:

1. NO MORE KIBBLE. He eats straight canned food now. Much more moisture, more protein, better teeth. (Not up to doing raw with the cat.)
2. NO food changes. We have a canned food that is high in protein and the cat will eat. He's been eating it for over a year now with no illness.
3. NO going outside. He liked to hunt for food, but not small animals - just handouts from the neighbors, or stealing from open feeders. 
4. We found a water fountain he would use - oddly enough, it is one made for dogs, just a gravity thing. Go figure. Stupid cat.

Try switching your cat to at least canned food only and get rid of the kibble. Also, once he starts to eat the canned food, don't switch the brands up. Good luck and I hope your kitty feels better soon.


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