Beeba has crystals

Hi, oh man, vet just called and said Beeba does have both kinds of crystals. I have to up his acidifyer to two daily from one.

I am so depressed. The day started so well, with him doing much better. I had a cat 13 years ago Farley V who had them and was on CD for quite a while. But he ended up just on urinary tract formula Purina. I know, junk. But at that time I didn't know. However, he lived till 13 and never had a reoccurance of them.

What is the protocal now? CD? acidifyers the rest of his life? Low magnisium food?

I haven't even given him one yet today as he is in hiding and if I try to force him out, I will create the distrust atmosphere that will make future pilling a nightmare. I have to wait till he comes out at dinner and give both at once.

Thanks for any info you can give me.

Oh, I'm sorry - my boy was diagnosed with struvite crystals last September, so I'm early in the learning stages. I'm sure more expert folks will come along, and I'm sure your vet will be happy to sit down with you and talk once you've had a chance to absorb the news and figure out what questions you'd like to cover more thoroughly.

I suspect this is a vet question, but does your cat like Pill Pockets? If so, and vet is good with it, that might be a way to go. My boy happily ate his Baytril as long as it was in a pill pocket, so I was thrilled.

Right now we're just doing prescription CD. My vet said not to get ahead of myself - that often food and plenty of water will manage things very well for years, just like you and the Purina. And, hey, any food that got you to age 13 must have had its good points as well.

Thanks Darlili, You'd think I would be used to these things by now. I can pill him ok as long as he is in his room and I sit on the floor. He will come over for pets and I manage to get the Baytril in him. He is suspicious of pill pockets now because I put the seditives in them to get him to the vet! Ahhhh, he is so smart! Why can't cats be more like dogs!

Boy, it is a common thing tho isn't it? So you are in the beginning too. I have an excellent rapport with my vet. So good, I have sent his kids to college!

I usually put a little butter on pills for my cats. They seem to like the after taste and it makes it go down a little easier. He will be out about dinner time and go up to eat. I will then close the door and give him the two acidifyers.

It sure helps to talk to someone who understands. Good luck to us and our boys!

Three of our males are prone to crystals. Two had problems with struvite, one had problems with calcium oxalate. We put them all on C/D. OK - not high quality and expensive for what it is... but there weren't so many high quality options back in 2003 when all this happened as there are today, and it has worked, so we're not switching. We have the whole house free feeding on dry C/D, and we give the boys wet C/D for an evening meal. We bought water fountains to spur drinking water (which worked), and at our vet's recommendation, we give them distilled water.

Obviously he needs the acidifier because of the struvite... but as you know, you have to address the calcium oxalate via diet.

The low-magensium diet helps the struvite problem by lowering pH... but our vet pointed out a VERY interesting study that indicates cat food manufacturers started lowering magnesium to help prevent the incidents of struvite crystals, and now more and more cats are turning up with calcium oxalate crystal problems! This is addressed by a diet with moderate calcium intake. Avoiding greens is a big one - we had to stop feeding our kitties grass, for instance.

We're sticking with C/D because it is working - and has been for six years now. But here's a great article that may help you decide what to do: http://www.peteducation.com/article....+1402&aid=2729

I've had a few male cats with crystals....first off mine were eating SD for a few months til they were clear of crystals then CD for maintenance for life....and I also switched all my cats to it...back then....Now the cat I have now prone to crystals....eats ONLY canned food no dry what so ever....We went thru several vet prescribed diets til his crystals disappeared...I know how your feeling right now....I've dealt with just mild cases to severe..where in the end surgery was needed....Right now what works for us or should I say Tigger is stress free living and canned food and tempting water to drink....I have water all over my house...and 2 water fountains...I sure hope it all works out for Beeba..pls keep us posted

I've been hesitant to mention this even when my own kitty had crystals and a UTI, but I guess I'll throw it out there on the off chance it can be of benefit to someone.

My Tiko had a UTI and crystals, and after the obligatory two weeks of S/D, the vet put him on a food called "Dad's Gourmet Blend". She said some bags are labeled "Urinary Tract" and some aren't, but that they're the same food (which, after some research, seems to be true). When they told me that, I thought at best it may be an economic coup of a slight degree, but when I got to the store, I saw it was in fact the lowest priced food on the shelves. I bought it anyway, fed them a bit of it with their other food, and was distraught the rest of the night that I was feeding them garbage.

Next day, I go to my vet asking about it, if perhaps they made a mistake. Mind you, they sell the S/D (and presumably the C/D) themselves, and I asked why they didn't recommend the C/D, since it seemed to be the food of choice in these situations. The vet told me that they could, but the Dad's is so much cheaper and has consistently given the same results, that it wouldn't make any sense for me to go that route right now.

So, long story short...everyone is eating a 50/25/25 blend of Dad's, Purina Pro Plan Urinary Tract (to ease my conscience a bit, since Chicken is the #2 ingredient), and Iams kitten food (for Oliver, who is still pretty young, and gets wet kitten food as well). Everyone is healthy as can be, and all love the food blend.

I love my vet, and they have always done me right and shown excellent care for my kitties. Everyone shows disbelief when I tell them of my route I took with Tiko, but I trusted my vet, and it is working.

I guess the point of my post is...there are possibly many avenues to averting a problem. If the path you choose bucks the trend a bit, don't get discouraged...you may be surprised at what ends up working!

Really, that is such good advice. You have to see what works. We tried Purina Pro Plan - in fact, we tried quite a few urinary tract healthier foods (including Royal Canin) - but our boys continued having problems, which is why, in the end, we went with C/D. Lazlo almost had to have surgery, so we went the the C/D and it worked. ...But they'd be eating something else if one of the experiments before we got there had worked!

Originally Posted by LDG

Really, that is such good advice. You have to see what works. We tried Purina Pro Plan - in fact, we tried quite a few urinary tract healthier foods (including Royal Canin) - but our boys continued having problems, which is why, in the end, we went with C/D. Lazlo almost had to have surgery, so we went the the C/D and it worked. ...But they'd be eating something else if one of the experiments before we got there had worked!

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And see here - Purina ONE Urinary works for my UTI kitties. For Squishy (due to severe/chronic blood in urine) he eats C/D mixed with the Purina ONE & we have not had one single re-occurance since we got it under control!

Every kitty is different - so while my cats can eat Purina ONE urinary with no problems, other cats won't be able to.

Everyone has been so helpful. I printed out the article from Foster and Smith. So much information for my brain to absorb!

I got 2 acidifyers in him and he is now in the livingroom on the back of the chair by my DH. He has been eating and drinking and playing and washing. So good to see that.

I will study all the info you guys gave me and make an educated decision. All great suggestions.

I hope the Beeb sleeps with us tonight. I missed him when he was in his room so he could be close to the box. He gave me a nice bit of urine this afternoon. Yahoo!

It IS a lot to absorb! But it really is a great article, I'm glad you printed it out.

I hope the Beeb sleeps with you tonight too! And isn't it a relief when they pee a big pee? For about a year we'd run to the litter box any time one of the boys went to make sure it was a good size pee. With 6 cats, you couldn't count on being able to tell later who did what.

I had him to vets on Monday due to straining in box. This is Thursday am about 5 am and he is still having problems. Nothing overnight and he is going up and down the stairs, in and out of the box. Nothing but a few crumbles.

I will be calling the vet at 8 am. This is all very upsetting. He is restless, vocal, but at times playful. He did drink this am. I just gave him his Baytril. I did get a moderate pee yesterday.

How long is this going to last? Last night he was his old self, purring and washing and content. I am on my last nerve. I start to feel confident and then wham, it starts again.

Any ideas? But he is definitely getting seen today.

I dont want to scare you but I've had one cat get better at home with meds and vet recommened foods...in about 2 weeks...Then I've had to hospitalize another for 2 to 4 days a few times b4 they were better....and one never got better til after battling it for months he had surgery..even then we weren't outta the woods for months..but then he lived to be close to 18....So my point is its different for all cats....But having a large pee yesterday is a good sign....Maybe he needs to be flushed out at the vets....I feel for you....I know what its like rushing to the litter box each time they go...I would try not to let him see me...so I would hide around the corner and listen...nothing better than hearing a large strong pee....I sure hope your Beeba gets over this soon...

Our experience is similar to Nance, only Lazlo didn't end up having surgery. At the time we had six cats and 3 were boys - all of them ended up having problems (not at the same time), and of the 3, two had to go back several times, those two both had to be catheterized at one time or another, and Lazlo blocked several times in a row. Had he blocked one more time, he would have had the surgery. So yes, that's why we ran to the litter box to see how much who was peeing for about a year. We took them to the vet several times unnecessarily - but we couldn't tell the difference between straining with an empty bladder and straining with a full one, and we never got the hang of being able to find the bladder to tell. If there's a UTI or any kind of irritation involved, it can look like they're straining when it's just an issue of the irritation making them feel like they have to pee.

Oh, best wishes that it's just a scare and nothing drastic. One thing, that's probably the hardest for many of us, if for us to be calm and act normal and, in my case, stop chasing after kitty to watch him pee. It's thought now that stress itself is a factor in urinary issues, so the calmer and more confident you can try to make yourself, the better it is for your boy. Believe me, I know it's extremely tough.

My first time going thru this was back in the 80's....which was the worst case out of all the times I've dealt with this...I swore no more male cats for me....I didn't get any new males til we kept a pregnant stray(2001) who had 5 kittens and we kept 3 ....2 males ...and when they reached 4 yrs of age one of them started having the blockage issues...He had crystal for about 6 months off and on....and then he was well for 2 yrs and had another flare up...but I caught it earlier enough he didn't block the last time...I know it can be a struggle to deal with....Again I sure hope he can get passed this flare up ....I keep checking to see what happens with the vet today....wishing u lots of

I think we are all related! We seem to think alike. But great minds do that

Took him in at 11. His bladdar was practically empty. When I asked him to show me how to feel for the bladdar, Beeb peed! So now it is completely empty. I had envisioned it being full and hard and nasty.

He upped the acidifyer to two - two times a day. He gave him two in the office. I could have left him there and they would monitor. Or I could have him catherized. Decided against both. Also got more Baytril for longer regimen. At least he is going. As was pointed out, who knows if he has to go or just "feels" like he has to go. Oh man. It's nice to know I have you guys to run things past.

So, he is upstairs until he is over the seditive. Don't want him falling down the stairs. You are right, I am going to try to calm down. Darn these male cats. But there is something about the males that I just love.

Will keep posted. Thanks so much you will never know!!

Originally Posted by farleyv

I had him to vets on Monday due to straining in box. This is Thursday am about 5 am and he is still having problems. Nothing overnight and he is going up and down the stairs, in and out of the box. Nothing but a few crumbles.

I will be calling the vet at 8 am. This is all very upsetting. He is restless, vocal, but at times playful. He did drink this am. I just gave him his Baytril. I did get a moderate pee yesterday.

How long is this going to last? Last night he was his old self, purring and washing and content. I am on my last nerve. I start to feel confident and then wham, it starts again.

Any ideas? But he is definitely getting seen today.

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My vet always gives me a couple doses of pain medication to get kitty over the first couple days of the infection.

My FLUTD kitty is on Hills Prescription kibble c/d multicare for life, unless I can find a canned prescription food she will eat.

I already tried her on a "regular" food, Wellness, which makes big claims about preventing urinary tract problems and keeping the urine at the proper pH. they lie.

In my opinion if your cat is forming crystals of either kind, and especially male cats, who can block without warning, which is fatal within 24 hours and it is a terrible death, if your cat has FLUTD, the cat should be on prescription food, for life.

And they should never ever have any kind of fish or seafood, except for the hills prescription canned flavor.

There are several brands to choose from if you or your cat do not like Hills. After my experience with the Wellness experiment I will not be playing any more russian roulette with my FLUTD kitty (Mazy cat)

Yep, it is tempting to try other things. As soon as this gets settled, he is going on a urinary food. Just happened to be reading a Cat Fancy in the office and there was an article about this.

It said not to switch foods until the problem is cleared. So I have a bit to decide. Everyone has given such good advice!

My son will be stopping on his way home. I am going to call him and have him p/u an automatic water dish for the Beeb. I want him to get plenty of water to flush this junk out of him!!

You all sure are well versed in this. I have a lot to learn, and remember from 13 years ago when Farley V had it.

Thats not a bad vet visit...his bladder was empty so he is getting rid of his urine and not blocking....Yes not changing the food til he is better...if u change at all....some respond well others don't....My vets also told me he was leaning more to believe it could be caused by a virus....well whatever the reasons its stressful on cats and humans...Well Beeba seems to be holding his own for now...thats good news

Good Morning, This am Beeb is better. He gave me a nice round urine at 4 am. I was trying to think how I could frame it!

Last night his third eyelid was almost covering his eye. It was a delayed reaction to the seditive I had given him in the morning. He was so wired being at the vets, that it didn't kick in till later! Poor boy. He just wanted to sleep.

He ate this am and just wants to lay on my lap. But his demeanor is a lot better and he was washing also. That's a good thing too.

Hey, I found out that if you pill your cat, put butter on it to make it slip down easier. Then take the extra bit of butter and put on their paw. They will wash and wash that paw. That leads to more swallowing, more saliva and helping push the pill down to the stomach. Not an earth shattering bit of info, but it works.

So, I hope this is the beginning of the end of this nasty deal. Now the fun begins to research all the info you guys gave me regarding diet.

Thanks again for caring about my little guy!