Switching food for urinary reasons

Well, I got Jack back home! He had a UTI and after looking at his urine under the microscope the vet said he also had crystals. He got an antibiotic shot and they gave me some metacam to give him also.

They told me I needed to switch Jack's food. Right now both he and Asher get Purina Cat Chow and split a pouch of Whiskas wet food in the morning (I know it's probably not the best food but Asher is extremely picky. I've tried healthier food but he won't touch it). The vet said Jack can't have this diet any more so I picked up some Purina UR for Jack. They told me that Asher could also eat this as it wouldn't hurt him. They also told me to mix in the UR with the Cat Chow for a couple of days until they get used to it. I think it will be easiesty if they both switch over. Otherwise I don't see how I can keep Jack from eating Asher's food and Asher from eating Jack's.

They both love the Whiskas wet pouch food and expect it in the mornings. Is there something else I can substitute for this? I'm going to feel really bad in the morning when they are both sitting there meowing at me waiting for it. Also the UR is dry. Don't I need to incorporate some wet food into their diet? Does Purina UR make a wet food? I'm so confused as to what to do. The dry food change I can handle, it's the wet food that I don't know what to do.

Any thoughts and suggestions are greatly appreciated!! Thank you!

friskies make a urinary canned .... you may try that ... if you really need to separate youll likely need to feed in different rooms

My boyfriend is a bit skeptical about the Purina UR. He doesn't see how it's any different from the Cat Chow we've been feeding our kitties and he thinks it's too expensive. He read online that most commercially availble cat foods make the urine acidic enough. I told him it was either pay more for this food or pay for a vet bill every time Jack has a flare up. But he did make me wonder how/what makes it better? I realize it's supposed to prevent oxalates/struvites but how do I know if it does?

I use Royal Canin Wet Urinary for Coco and C/D. I would never use Metacam though. So many Cats get Kidney Problems from it. Did you get Clavamox for the problem?

Charlie is on Royal Canin for Urinary and a few select cans of food - Max Cat (chicken, lamb, turkey), Iams Beef and Natural Balance (venison, duck). He hasn't had a problem with this diet since the UTI last November.

My kitty is on Science Diet k/d for her kidney problems. I'm looking to switch, though.

Do NOT give the metacam. Do a search here on this board for metacam and see what people have to say about it. The vet gave it to my older cat once, and I told him to NEVER give that to her again. PERIOD!

I have had good results with this product for years. I have two crystal males.

http://www.belfield.com/carpon.php

Everyone eats the same food, only the crystal cats get one pill a day.

stephanietx has given you some advice about using the drug Metacam, and I would support that fully.

Here is one of the threads on TCS in this regard

http://www.thecatsite.com/forums/sho...hlight=metacam

I did not know this about the Metacam. My mom told me that it's hard on their kidneys and should only be given to them for a very short period of time. They gave me four syringes of it. I don't really know what it's for...I always thought it was for pain? They did give him an antibiotic injection while at the vet. I'll not give him the Metacam. Does he really need anything like Metacam? He doesn't seem to be in any pain, at least he's not acting like it. Thanks for the heads up, we really appreciate it!

I do not know why the vet gave your cat metacam. Coco never got anything for her bladder pains. She did get a metacam shot for her arthritis last Nov. The Vet told me then to never give Oral Metacam because it causes kidney damage. That is a pain med. Did the vet give you anything else.

Metacam is, at heart, an anti-inflamatory agent. Indirectly, by reducing inflamation, it may relieve the pain. We use the same kinds of drugs (NSAIDS) for the same purpose/effect. Trouble is, cats do not do well with NSAIDS, and some, like this can be extremely dangerous.

Obviously, it's best to ask your Vet what her/his purpose was...if the cat may be in pain, there are pleanty of other choices. (Remember, cats hide pain well.)

I am surprised that you do not have a course of antibioticsfor the UTI...maybe that's another question to put to the Vet?

Originally Posted by BLAISE

Metacam is, at heart, an anti-inflamatory agent. Indirectly, by reducing inflamation, it may relieve the pain. We use the same kinds of drugs (NSAIDS) for the same purpose/effect. Trouble is, cats do not do well with NSAIDS, and some, like this can be extremely dangerous.

Obviously, it's best to ask your Vet what her/his purpose was...if the cat may be in pain, there are pleanty of other choices. (Remember, cats hide pain well.)

I am surprised that you do not have a course of antibioticsfor the UTI...maybe that's another question to put to the Vet?

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They said they gave him an antibiotic shot that would last 2 weeks. On my receipt it's called Convenia CD.
I don't know what to do. Should I call the vet and get something else in place of the Metacam or should I just not give Jack the Metacam and let it be?

Have you looked at the carpon? All natural, no side effects? If the doctor wants you to acidify his system, this is a great, safe way to do it.
You do not add acidified foods with this becaus you don't want to overdue it. You might also want to get some PH sticks to check his PH.

I would not give him the Metacam. I never heard of the shot he got either. I wonder why he gave the shot insted of oral antibiotics.

Where do I get Carpon? I just read a thread about that on here.
They asked if I wanted him to have the shot or give him oral meds. I said to go ahead and give the shot. Below is a link to Convenia.
http://www.convenia.com/

My mom has a cat that has urinary problems. He kept getting UTI's. I don't know if it was because of crystals but she said she tried every kind of food and nothing worked. She said she finally switched him over to strictly wet food and very very minimal dry and he hasn't had a problem since. She said dry food is not good for cats with urinary problems. She doesn't use prescription food, she buys from the store. The vet gave me a bag of dry Purina UR, do you think I need to get the canned Purina UR? I'm so confused as to what to do food wise. Do I switch to only dry Purina UR? Do I switch only to canned Purina UR? Do I feed both? Do I do what my mom did? I don't know what to do!

I think it depends on the Cat. I tried taking mine off the food and with in 2 weeks the problem came back. My sisters cat has had the problem I think 3 times and he isnt on the food right now.

Different cats require different foods. Purina UR may work for you kitty, but not someone else's.

Wet food is beneficial to urinary tract health. It increases the amount of water intake. I suggest bumping up the amount of wet food you feed. There are several OTC canned foods that are OK for urinary tract healthy.

What it comes down to is what you can afford, what works for your kitties, & your kitties needs. I'd like all mine to eat one food, but that ain't gonna happen. 2 have UTI issues, but those 2 can't eat the same food as one will get a UTI on a food that the other does good on & vice versa.

missourigrl-
Let me say that I really feel for you - it can get really confusing.

First,

Should I call the vet and get something else in place of the Metacam or should I just not give Jack the Metacam and let it be

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What I would do about this is to call the Vet, and ask what he expected the Metacam to do. I would tell him that my mother has serious concerns about it and that I'm not comfortable using it. I would then ask for an alternate drug for his intended purpose.

Now...the food question. Frankly, your mom's got it right about wet foods. (In fact, your mom's now batting 1000. (Hopefully, one of you will know enough about baseball to understand that.) (If not, that's a perfect score!)

If you want a safe way out of this which will allow you some time to sort the "which foods" thing, then get some of the Vet's canned Purina UR - enough to last you a few days. It will keep his urine at the correct ph level, won't poison him (which many of the Vet foods long-term will do) and will allow you the time to read a feline Vet's recommendations (she's a nutritionist) for what a cat needs to eat to stay healthy. (I suspect that, even with a quick read, you'll discover that it sounds like what your mom is saying)

Meantime, (if you haven't cheated by going directly to the part where she recommends good wet foods), find out where you can pick up some Wellness grain free wet foods. This link will help.

BLAISE has some good pts ... PERSONALLY I would READ EVERY label as some of the grain frees %ages are NOT UTI friendly ... there are MANY quality wets avail that ARE UTI certified or match the UTI % ages

IMHO as I have stated MANYMANY times...Go with the vets RX and research then confir with the vet and show what you have found