Hey everyone -- it's been a while since I've posted here. I apologize in advance that this is so long -- But I figured I could get some feedback on a certain issue.
My cats are normally the picture of health (girl - Cassie, boy - Napoleon Dynamite) and besides checkups or whatever, they are rarely in the vet for any illness. So in April Cassie was having some potty issues, and she was diagnosed with a urinary tract infection. She was on meds for about 10 days, and fully recovered. Needless to say, now I am on the lookout for any weird potty behavior from my cats now. So the other day, I see Napoleon is exhibiting the same behaviors -- pacing outside the litter box, visibly straining, going back and forth between boxes with not much coming out, etc. Of course I take him to the vet THAT DAY. After some testing, I get essentially the same meds Cassie was on in April and he's back to 100% just finishing up the meds. So here's the thing -- like I said, my cats are really healthy. A little on the plump side ;-), but they've had all their blood work done and there are no red flags. But I thought it was strange that my two healthy kitties can have the same exact UTI within months of each other.
So the one common denominator I've thought of is that I changed their litter last year - actually, twice. I used to use just Fresh Step or whatever -- then I started using Feline Pine Clumping litter, but Cassie started having sneezles from the dust, so I switched to Feline Pine granular, which has been great -- but I wanted to know if anyone has had problems with maybe bacteria lingering around in the pine. See, the vet both times with both cats couldn't find any "grit" and they tested negative for kidney problems or blockages. She suggested that if they poop, the bacteria might get around the urinary tract area, causing an infection. Has anyone had these problems recurring?
My cats are normally the picture of health (girl - Cassie, boy - Napoleon Dynamite) and besides checkups or whatever, they are rarely in the vet for any illness. So in April Cassie was having some potty issues, and she was diagnosed with a urinary tract infection. She was on meds for about 10 days, and fully recovered. Needless to say, now I am on the lookout for any weird potty behavior from my cats now. So the other day, I see Napoleon is exhibiting the same behaviors -- pacing outside the litter box, visibly straining, going back and forth between boxes with not much coming out, etc. Of course I take him to the vet THAT DAY. After some testing, I get essentially the same meds Cassie was on in April and he's back to 100% just finishing up the meds. So here's the thing -- like I said, my cats are really healthy. A little on the plump side ;-), but they've had all their blood work done and there are no red flags. But I thought it was strange that my two healthy kitties can have the same exact UTI within months of each other.
So the one common denominator I've thought of is that I changed their litter last year - actually, twice. I used to use just Fresh Step or whatever -- then I started using Feline Pine Clumping litter, but Cassie started having sneezles from the dust, so I switched to Feline Pine granular, which has been great -- but I wanted to know if anyone has had problems with maybe bacteria lingering around in the pine. See, the vet both times with both cats couldn't find any "grit" and they tested negative for kidney problems or blockages. She suggested that if they poop, the bacteria might get around the urinary tract area, causing an infection. Has anyone had these problems recurring?
