Chronic UTI

It has been a while since I have posted anything but I am in serious need of some advice! Turbo is a 3 yr old NM who keeps having chronic UTIs, he is currently battling one right now as I caught him inappropriately urinating last Thursday night. He is on Baytril for 14 days, but this is becoming a huge problem. I decided we needed to try something else as well so I started him on Tinkle Tonic as well. He remains confined for now as he seems a little untrustworthy when out and about-and as we all know cat pee will outlive us all!!!

Has anyone else had this same problem and if so what worked for you to clear the problem. I should also explain that we are not able to change food too easily as we have 10 special needs kitties and all require something different so food allergies being one of the problems, we have found what seems to work best for everyone to do more of a "herd management" type of feeding style.

Multiple cats with special needs is a mega PITA, trust me, I feel your pain. (I have some with a history of UTIs, one with hairball problems, one with allergy problems, and two who should still be on kitten food) There, unfortunately, to my knowledge is no UTI certified food that is also good for a cat with allergies.

Is there any way you can feed your cats in meals to feed different foods to different cats? I have had to resort to doing so previously because of some health concerns with my kitties. I had a male who had frequent UTIs & I was very concerned he would suffer a blockage.

Some questions I can think of that may be of help if you can answer:
Have you always treated him with Baytril?
Alwayas for 14 days?
Do you re-test his urine after the anti-biotics to ensure he's UTI free?
Have you done any x-rays to rule out stones?
Have you sent his urine for a culture to see what anti-biotic it responds to best?

I should also explain that we are not able to change food too easily as we have 10 special needs kitties and all require something different so food allergies being one of the problems

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In that case, get the pH reading from the vet. It will be high, otherwise kitty wouldn't get UTIs. (Bacterial infections cannot develop in an acidic environment.) Start him on a natural acidifier such as Carpon
http://www.doggiefood.com/canaurac100t.html
and keep testing the pH. You'll have to bring it down to the level where UTIs can't develop and then keep it there.

However, making the effort to feed him a diet that will keep the pH naturally low without the need for acidifying additives, would still be the best thing. UTIs are very painful, the poor kitty needs to have a chance to get permanent relief. Not to mention that, if it hasn't yet, the high pH will lead to crystal and stone formation. Also very painful and not always easy and simple to deal with.

Were there crystals in his urine? This is a definate need to know. If so, needs to be on a prescription food from the vet.

Originally Posted by farleyv

Were there crystals in his urine? This is a definate need to know. If so, needs to be on a prescription food from the vet.

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Repeat infections indicate something else is going on and further in depth testing is needed, not just endless rounds of antibiotics.

He avoids the litter box because it HURTS him to pee, and he blames the litter box. A little pain medication the first couple days of treatment can help with that, and will help reduce stress associated with pain and the feeling of having to "go" all the time.

Males can block very easily and suddenly and once blocked, he will die within 24 hours without emergency treatment. He NEEDS to be on a prescription diet, and canned is better than dry.

Stress can be a big contributor to flare ups for these cats. Does he have trouble getting along with any of the other cats? If so they need to be kept separated.

I recommend you install a few feliway plug in diffusers and keep them running all the time, to help reduce stress including any territorial issues that can cause stress.

Do you have enough litter boxes? With 10 cats you need at least 11 boxes, and they should be kept scrupulously clean.

Let us know how your boy Turbo is doing.