Poor cat was blocked! Looking for food help.

So my poor cat, Mac, ended up in the vet a couple days ago, and it turns out he had struvite crystals and he was completely blocked. I guess with two kitties in one litterbox I didn't notice the change in pee levels like I should have. I feel terrible that we didn't notice before it got this bad! Anyway, they flushed him out and he had tons of crystals as well as some blood in his urine, and they say no infection (although they prescribed antibiotics). His urine was 10 pH (!!) and he is peeing again, though only in small bits, sometimes only quarter sized. The vet has also assured us that this is relatively normal while he is recovering, and we are just trying to get as much water into him as possible.

He is currently on Royal Canin Urinary SO. We are giving him only wet, and (although he is 14lbs) only about a can a day, since we are watering it down a ton and he still hasn't fully gotten his appetite back. However, he really should lose some weight, and this food isn't high quality at all. I resisted using it because I am not a fan of Royal Canin in general, but since it is specifically for crystals, he will get it at least for a couple months until we know he is recovered. Eventually, though, I hope to switch him (and our female cat) to something higher quality, and hopefully lower carb/fat, so he can stay healthy in EVERY way, and not just crystal-free.

I am thinking that I will keep him at least partially on the Royal Canin (assuming it works) for a good long time, and keep a very close eye on him. And I am hoping to find some people on here who have experience with cats susceptible to struvite crystals, and what foods will be beneficial. I have heard good things about EVO, although I hear they are now owned by P&G which makes me hesitant. 

I am also in the process of looking for a new vet. The place we take them currently is great, except when it comes to food. They are very one-minded toward Royal Canin, which, coincidentally, they sell in-house. When we took Mac home after the initial procedure, she insisted we feed him 1/4 wet and 3/4 dry, which made no sense to me. The next day we had him in for a followup and this vet said he should be on all wet, no dry. Now that food is suddenly a very important part of Mac's well-being, especially during his recovery, I don't feel comfortable taking him somewhere that not only can't agree on how to feed him, but insist that this is the 'only possible' food for him, permanently. I can't accept this without other opinions, and so I will probably be harassing all the vets in the K/W area

Sorry this got so long! Basically the tl;dr is that I am hoping to find a good quality food that will benefit both my cats long term. Also, if anyone has tips on how to source out a vet that is knowledgable and trustworthy, and not just selling their own brand, I would be grateful!

It does seem like many vets are not well informed on cat nutrition. Plus, I'm not sure why the vet prescribed antibiotics if there's no infection. For a cat with struvite crystals/blockage, I would not feed any dry food ever which I think you are already in agreement with. Also avoid any fish based foods. The important thing is to keep him as hydrated as possible to flush him out. There are other things you can do. You could ask your vet about regular subq fluids to flush him out even more (something you could learn to do at home as well). The active ingredient in the rx urinary foods is l-methionine which you could get separately and add to the food of your choice. You would probably want to monitor his urine pH at home with that.

There are many, many threads here about struvite crystals and blockages. Some members really advocate a raw diet as being very helpful in this case (as well as being the most species appropriate diet). Raw or not, you want a high animal protein/low carb/no grain food for Mac (and preferably your other kitty as well).

Thanks, the subq is a good idea to get him cleaned out. He doesn't really drink much as a rule, which is why we are watering the heck out of his food. Frustratingly, our cats have been on dry their whole lives (about two years) and just this month I started researching raw and decided to switch them off dry completely. Mac apparently wanted to EMPHASIZE why dry is so bad.

As far as raw, it is definitely something I would like to look into in the future, however at this point I dont feel confident balancing a raw diet AND keeping his crystals under control...I think I will wait until I know he is (mostly) out of harms way before I try that switch. I would also like to have a vet who would work with me on that, which is why I am now on the hunt!

I am also looking for a vet to at least be accepting and knowledgeable about raw feeding. I did find a holistic vet, but she's not full service. There is a site ahvma.org or com (can't remember which right now) that may be helpful.

jschwe said:

Thanks, the subq is a good idea to get him cleaned out. He doesn't really drink much as a rule, which is why we are watering the heck out of his food. Frustratingly, our cats have been on dry their whole lives (about two years) and just this month I started researching raw and decided to switch them off dry completely. Mac apparently wanted to EMPHASIZE why dry is so bad.

As far as raw, it is definitely something I would like to look into in the future, however at this point I dont feel confident balancing a raw diet AND keeping his crystals under control...I think I will wait until I know he is (mostly) out of harms way before I try that switch. I would also like to have a vet who would work with me on that, which is why I am now on the hunt!

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I believe LDG has experience with these crystals and raw diet, maybe she can be of help.

I'm sorry to hear that happened to your baby.  Angel has had cystitis 3 separate times sense August. The first time it was bacteria, but not the other two.  The 2nd time was in October, & the last time was on Christmas day, "of course." So we were in the E.R. on Christmas!

It's tough to pin point why. There's not a lot of stress here at all, as it's just the two of us, & pretty quiet.  I had also been feeding him good quality foods, wet only, like Before the Grain & by nature. Both 95% real meat, no fillers, no by products. So why it happened ???

I am still trying to get him over this last one, now over 2 months later!  He never blocked (thank God!!)  but I would see him straining, & on Christmas there was a little blood in it, & he threw up twice while he was trying to use the litter box. Poor baby! 

As hard as I tried good quality foods, Blue Buffalo Wellness, & even Bravo commercial raw included, in the end, I had to finally just put him on Rx food.

I also had to give him fluids every other day, each time. Just last month, we got to cut it to 2xs/wk. (2 bags in a row) I also mix water in his food.

Be careful w/ using L-Methionine. You will have to keep a check on his pH every day.  If the pH drops to low, you will get calcium crystals instead.

I did this, & always checked it, but sometimes it was hard to read, in that the top of the strip & the bottom square, matched 2 different ones on the chart.

His last follow up/ultrasound & urinalysis, the tech only found one struvite crystal, but two calcium, & he had never had those before, so at this point, I HAD to go to the Rx food.  The vet knew how I felt about that stuff & sort of agreed, so out of the three that were there, the R.C. , Hills, & Purina, the Purina UR had the least amount of crappy ingredients, so that's what he is on, & will probably stay on for as much as up to a year. I can't put him through that anymore, & I can't go through it either. (or financially!!).  Tomorrow, Saturday, will be just one wk that he has been solely on it. I weaned him in on it by mixing it half & half w/ the Before the Grain he had left, which was about 4 days.

He was also put on Amatriptyline. It's an anti-spasmodic for his bladder, but it's also anti-anxiety.

Sorry this got so long, but I know what you are going through, & I wanted to try & help, so I hope it did!

Good luck, & keep us posted!