Hi all!

My kitty just recently developed his first UTI and has struvite crystals. He's about 5 pills away from finishing his antibiotic and seems to be doing a lot better now, still not 100% but getting there!

(here is the original post about his problem: http://www.thecatsite.com/t/268415/kitty-has-his-first-uti-what-to-do-from-here  )

The vet put him on the Hills Prescription c/d dry food, and he's been eating it. I've stopped all of this normal food and treats as I know the ingredients could do him more harm than good, depending. I did get him some freeze dried chicken treats and beef liver treats and those seem to be a win for the most part

 After reading many posts I bought him some canned food (various flavors of the small cans of Fancy Feast). I've gotten him to eat 2 cans so far, and added a little water to it as well. I plan on keeping the dry food for now and see how he does on it, making it available 24/7 as we have always free fed him. He's always eaten dry food, and since the vet said that would be best, I'm sticking with it for now. I know they make the canned version of the c/d but I'd like to get something a bit more affordable and accessible if I could, if he's going to be eating it everyday and just nibbling the dry. 

But I was wondering what wet food is best for cats prone to struvite crystals? There are so many options and it's a little overwhelming. 

Also, how often should he have the canned food? Twice a day? + the kibble for nibbling? Not sure since he's never eaten it before. He is definitely a bit curious and hesitant at the same time since this is all VERY new to him, he's almost 11 years old and wondering why his mother has suddenly changed his routine after all this time. lol 

Thanks!

Daisy

Dry food is definitely not the best choice for a UTI kitty. Dry food dehydrates your kitty, which can lead to more UTIs. The only thing going for it in terms of UTI prevention is that it is prescription food, so it is lower in magnesium and phosphorus. However Hill's is famous for being full of carbs, and although the lower magnesium and phosphorus levels just prevent UTIs, they are essential minerals that when lowered can lead to other problems.

You have the right idea, giving wet food with additional water. Make sure the water is not tap water. Filtered or bottled (but not bottled mineral water). Ideally you want kitty on 100% wet or raw food since the hydration and carb issues address other health concerns, too.  I have heard Weruva or Fussie Cat are good foods for UTI kitties. Watch the calories on these brands. They are significantly lower, so you'll have to feed more.

Have you thought about monitoring his urine pH with urine testing strips? If you can get access to mid-stream urine, then you can test it and find out how his food is affecting his urine pH. You want urine pH to be around 6.5.

Raintyger: 

 Dry food is definitely not the best choice for a UTI kitty. Dry food dehydrates your kitty, which can lead to more UTIs. The only thing going for it in terms of UTI prevention is that it is prescription food, so it is lower in magnesium and phosphorus. However Hill's is famous for being full of carbs, and although the lower magnesium and phosphorus levels just prevent UTIs, they are essential minerals that when lowered can lead to other problems.

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I have read a lot about dry food vs. wet food and what I'm going to do for now is keep the dry food but introduce wet into his diet so he can get comfortable. If anything, the wet food will incorporate more water into his diet so he's at least getting more than he is now. He's under a lot of stress already from the vet visits, to the complete diet change, no more old treats, the UTI and pain, etc. so I don't want to change too much at once. The vet recommended the dry, and it's only been a week, so I do want to give it some time to see how he does on it before I go and switch to a completely wet diet. I have read that some kitties do great on the c/d dry and don't have anymore issues or any further health complications, so I guess I just want to see how he does individually before making a full decision. 

 You have the right idea, giving wet food with additional water. Make sure the water is not tap water. Filtered or bottled (but not bottled mineral water). Ideally you want kitty on 100% wet or raw food since the hydration and carb issues address other health concerns, too.  I have heard Weruva or Fussie Cat are good foods for UTI kitties. Watch the calories on these brands. They are significantly lower, so you'll have to feed more.

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I don't recall seeing the "Weruva or Fussie Cat" brands at our pet supply store or grocery store. Is it sold anywhere specifically? I will check again though and see if I can find them to try out! And I am adding bottled water to the canned food (easier to do it that way anyway)

 Have you thought about monitoring his urine pH with urine testing strips? If you can get access to mid-stream urine, then you can test it and find out how his food is affecting his urine pH. You want urine pH to be around 6.5.

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I have read about others doing this, but I haven't thought too much of it. I will see what happens after his next vet visit (the first visit he will have after he finishes his antibiotic) and see what his results are and go from there.

Ideally you want to feed grain free, low carb canned food with added water to it.  I have read that carbohydrates contribute to the formation of crystals.  I have also read that the cheapest canned food is better than the best dry food as cats need moisture in their diet.

Daisy707 said:

 
Raintyger: 

I have read a lot about dry food vs. wet food and what I'm going to do for now is keep the dry food but introduce wet into his diet so he can get comfortable. If anything, the wet food will incorporate more water into his diet so he's at least getting more than he is now. He's under a lot of stress already from the vet visits, to the complete diet change, no more old treats, the UTI and pain, etc. so I don't want to change too much at once. The vet recommended the dry, and it's only been a week, so I do want to give it some time to see how he does on it before I go and switch to a completely wet diet. I have read that some kitties do great on the c/d dry and don't have anymore issues or any further health complications, so I guess I just want to see how he does individually before making a full decision. 

I don't recall seeing the "Weruva or Fussie Cat" brands at our pet supply store or grocery store. Is it sold anywhere specifically? I will check again though and see if I can find them to try out! And I am adding bottled water to the canned food (easier to do it that way anyway)

I have read about others doing this, but I haven't thought too much of it. I will see what happens after his next vet visit (the first visit he will have after he finishes his antibiotic) and see what his results are and go from there.

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Going slow is good, cats hate change. I would, however, try to get him on all wet and preferably not Hill's since even their wet versions tend to be full of plant (not animal) protein and carbs. Most cats don't get UTIs while on Hill's, but the problem is the high carbs and low magnesium/phosphorus can cause other problems. These are nutritional, so you probably won't notice anything and your kitty will appear to be "doing just fine." But cats can't talk to you and will hide their diseases until late stages.  I'm not saying that all kitties on prescription diets will develop problems, but the carbs and lower mineral contents are a concern which you need to weigh.

I'm sure other members have already referred you to catinfo.org. I would read the information there and then start asking your vet questions. The one that treated my cat for a struvite stone could not even name the nutritional minerals that cause UTI stones. Assess the vet's nutritional knowledge and then evaluate how much weight to give their recommendation. I say this because most traditional vets don't get a whole lot of education in nutrition, and what they do get is taught by pet food companies which have profit motivation.

I don't remember if Weruva is at Petco or not, but both brands are more likely found in boutique, independently owned pet stores or grooming parlors. With Fussie Cat you want to stay mainly with the chicken flavors, as fish should only be fed once a week as a meal.

If you want to try different foods, I would test the urine. You can and should go slow--have only a portion of the food non-prescription and test the urine. The urine strip tests can provide a warning signal if the new food isn't working out. I know it is hard and scary, choosing to step away from the vet's advice--I was once in the same position. But if you can feed your cat better than what prescription food provides, your kitty will thank you with better health and no vet bills.

Good luck.

cprcheeta:  Thank you! I will keep an eye out on the carb and protein info in different brands, along with the no grains!  I've read quite a bit on here that fancy feast isn't terrible? Not too sure though, but he seems to like the classic versions of it.

Raintyger: Thank you! I am hoping for as much good luck as we can get! Definitely want my baby happy and healthy! 

 Going slow is good, cats hate change. I would, however, try to get him on all wet and preferably not Hill's since even their wet versions tend to be full of plant (not animal) protein and carbs. Most cats don't get UTIs while on Hill's, but the problem is the high carbs and low magnesium/phosphorus can cause other problems. These are nutritional, so you probably won't notice anything and your kitty will appear to be "doing just fine." But cats can't talk to you and will hide their diseases until late stages.  I'm not saying that all kitties on prescription diets will develop problems, but the carbs and lower mineral contents are a concern which you need to weigh.

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This is what I'm afraid of; the other issues that could happen from the Hill's. I've read through this forum seeing that this could be a possibility, or he could end up living a long time on the Hills but I definitely don't want to chance anything. I want the best for him, which is why I'm researching as much as I can (admitting that this along with school full time is frying my brain a bit lol) 

 I'm sure other members have already referred you to catinfo.org. I would read the information there and then start asking your vet questions. The one that treated my cat for a struvite stone could not even name the nutritional minerals that cause UTI stones. Assess the vet's nutritional knowledge and then evaluate how much weight to give their recommendation. I say this because most traditional vets don't get a whole lot of education in nutrition, and what they do get is taught by pet food companies which have profit motivation.

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Yes! I have read the catinfo site a bunch, just trying to decide what is best to do now, and what is best for the long run. I do trust my vet with taking care of my boy, but at the same time just as I do with my own health, I want to research what is best for him ultimately.

 
I don't remember if Weruva is at Petco or not, but both brands are more likely found in boutique, independently owned pet stores or grooming parlors. With Fussie Cat you want to stay mainly with the chicken flavors, as fish should only be fed once a week as a meal.

If you want to try different foods, I would test the urine. You can and should go slow--have only a portion of the food non-prescription and test the urine. The urine strip tests can provide a warning signal if the new food isn't working out. I know it is hard and scary, choosing to step away from the vet's advice--I was once in the same position. But if you can feed your cat better than what prescription food provides, your kitty will thank you with better health and no vet bills.

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I will take a look and see if I can find them. Unfortunately there aren't a lot of options around me for pet supplies, but I could also order if I had to. And I'm not even going to bother with the seafood types because he's not really a seafood type cat. He has the appetite for chicken mainly, sometimes beef, but tuna is about the only thing he'll go nuts for which he never got very often at all as we don't eat it much. And I will look into testing him as well. After his visit I will keep an eye on him when trying different types, because we really don't want to have to keep paying vet bills!!!

You can order single cans of food from the following companies:

http://www.gohealthypet.com

http://wholepetsholistic.com/store/category/5/6/Canned-Food/

Tiki Cat also claims to be low in magnesium.

Raintyger said:

 
You can order single cans of food from the following companies:

http://www.gohealthypet.com

http://wholepetsholistic.com/store/category/5/6/Canned-Food/

Tiki Cat also claims to be low in magnesium.

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Thank you!! I will definitely check out the brands you mentioned!

I saw this thread and had to post. Sorry its late but lost several family members including two cats in a 6 month time frame and dealing with life. My cat only vet says to feed dry food only and only as a snack. one of my cats about four years ago,almost lost his life from being blocked up from crystals from eating a grain free dry food. Even though the food was grain free he did not drink enough which caused the crystals. Fortunately my vet was able to save him and put him on Royal Canin So urinary canned food. He lovd this food,and they also sell the small cans in the morsels. That being said because of the ingredients, i slowley transitioned him to the wet food that my other cats all eat and he is just fine. I feed the Hounds and Gatos chicken canned food and mix with the Tiki chicken cans or the Soulistic good karma  that Petco sells. The other two foods you can order online .  Grain Free no fruits and veggies in it. Cats are meat eaters and do not need fruit and veggies in their diets. Try ordering from MRChewys .com Hope this helps your kitty.

Yes, it's an old thread but a constant question, and most vets just gravitate to the "prescripton diet" foods because that's what they are taught.  Your "cat only" vet is no better trained in nutrition than other vets.  Most of them have never read Dr. Lisa's excellent information.  Also, most owners don't want to design their own diets.  Hounds & Gatos is just one of several excellent foods that have no grains and no fillers, but you do have to search for them and read lots of ingredients lists.  Dr. Lisa's list is a little behind in what it includes (2012) since new foods have been introduced, but the other list, the sortable one, maintained by someone else on that same site, is more up to date.  Dr. Lisa's principles are sound, however.  Stay close to the cat's natural diet (small rodents and birds, beetles, and a tiny bit of grass and grass seeds) and cats' urine pH will stay between 6.0 and 6.5 and then they cannot produce struvite crystals.   pH Testing strips are cheap and easy to get on eBay and other online sources, and when there are too many carbs in the diet (peas, fruits, potatoes, starch, any kind of flour, rice, barley, wheat, corn, "maize" etc.) the pH goes up and crystals can form.   The pH can go up for other reasons too, so if you are concerned about crystals, spend $2.50 (or more) on simple pH test strips and test daily.

My advice to everyone wanting to prevent struvite crystals would be to use a meat based low carb wet food, and read the ingredients.  If the food does not tell you the carb content, it is obvious that if there are no starches, veggies or fruits, it will be low carb.  If it is called "grain free" but then includes peas and potatoes , it probably is NOT low carb.   And everyone who wants to know anything about cat nutritional needs should learn from Dr. Lisa Pierson at http://www.catinfo.org/.

Hills C/D comes in a canned wet food. Have you tried it?

There is not a single one of those Hills urinary foods that has MUSCLE MEAT as the number one ingredient!  The Multicare below is the best of that line, the others dont even start with by products.

Hill's Prescription Diet c/d Multicare Urinary Care with Chicken Canned Cat Food, 5.5-oz can, case of 24- $49.39 list price = $2.06/can

Ingredients

Pork by-products, water, pork liver, chicken, rice, corn starch, oat fiber, chicken fat, fish meal, corn gluten meal, chicken liver flavor, calcium sulfate, guar gum, fish oil, brewers dried yeast, dextrose, dl-methionine, choline chloride, vitamins (vitamin E supplement, thiamine mononitrate, pyridoxine hydrochloride, niacin supplement, calcium pantothenate, vitamin B12 supplement, riboflavin supplement, biotin, folic acid, vitamin D3 supplement), potassium chloride, taurine, cysteine, dried egg

What I use:

4health Grain Free Turkey & Giblet Dinner   Grain Free Turkey is the #1 Ingredient, Chicken is the #2 ingredient, and poultry giblets is the #3 ingredient.

Ingredients:
Turkey Broth, Turkey, Chicken, Poultry Giblets, Dried Egg Product, Guar Gum, Potassium Chloride, Salt, Carrageenan, Minerals (Zinc Amino Acid Chelate, Iron Amino Acid Chelate, Copper Amino Acid Chelate, Manganese Amino Acid Chelate, Sodium Selenite, Cobalt Amino Acid Chelate, Potassium Iodide), Vitamins (Vitamin E Supplement, Thiamine Mononitrate, Niacin Supplement, D-Calcium Pantothenate, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Riboflavin Supplement, Vitamin A Supplement, Biotin, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Folic Acid), Choline Chloride, Taurine.

No rice, corn starch, oat fiber, corn gluten meal, added fat or dextrose.  It also doesn't have DL-methionine in it because (1) methionine is highly available in muscle meat and egg whites, i.e. Turkey, Chicken, Fish, and Elk, pork is lower down the list and ONLY in the muscle meat, not the by products or liver; and (2) DL-methionine is a man made version, cheaper than the natural form, L-methionine  that you can buy in health food stores.  It is not the methionine itself that dissolves struvite crystals but actually the acidity of the urine.  That can be achieved with a good meat-based diet that is LOW IN CARBS.

Price 69 cents per 5.5 oz. can.

I rest my case.

 

If some of these vets would do some continuing education, they would stop "prescribing" these dry urinary foods.  Here are two articles showing that pH is more important than mineral content, and dry food tends to cause a higher pH.  For those of you who are scientifically minded, the research is out there.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3672831

Summary:  Feline struvite urolithiasis: factors affecting urine pH may be more important than magnesium levels in food.  urine pH is a more important controller of struvite precipitation than mineral intake. No spontaneous struvite was seen in urine samples (pH 5.8) from cats fed the canned complete diet but when its pH was raised to 7.0, 46 per cent of these samples showed struvite. Cats fed the dry pelleted diet had urine of higher pH (7.55) and 78 per cent of the samples contained struvite crystals.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3686783

Summary:  Pre-prandial fasting initiates a post prandial rise in urine pH and struvite crystalluria even when a normally effective urinary acidifier is used.   After feeding the dry diet the postprandial peak pH was 7.97 and struvite occurred spontaneously. Urine pH after feeding the dry diet supplemented with ammonium chloride peaked at 7.75 then fell to 6.1 12 hours after the start of feeding. Struvite occurred spontaneously at all times until the pH reached 6.1 but when the pH of urine was raised to 7.0 the struvite crystallised. Urine pH on the canned complete diet peaked at 6.8 then fell to 5.8; struvite did not occur spontaneously but when urine pH was raised to 7.0 struvite crystallised.

For any others here who want to delve more deeply into the subject of what type of diet is best to prevent urinary problems  (including idiopathic cystitis), here is a link to a very long and thorough study funded by The Waltham Foundation which will enlighten you.  https://www.waltham.com/document/nutrition/cat/cat-urinary-tract-health/276/.  This should be required reading for all veterinarians!

Veterinarians know about dry vs wet. If someone usually feeds dry they may have just suggested the dry if the cat won't accept it. No they do not get much nutrition in school though they are getting more now. However most do know the benefits of wet vs dry. They also know how crystals are formed and treated. I assure you they learn a lot more than what you can find on the internet. And if they are like the vet's with whom I work, they are required to have ce.

To the OP, feeding wet food is important but so is restricting certain nutrients like phosphorous, magnesium, calcium and protein. While many pet store foods will claim to be urinary, they may have an ingredient that purportedly helps urinary issues. Though I am not a fan of the ingredients in the vet foods, foods like Hills c/d are formulated to prevent both struvite and calcium oxalate crystals. The other types of crystals like urate and cystic are more complicated but thankfully not as common. There is a newer company called Rayne Clinical Nutrition and they make a a food called Adult Health RSS (RSS is a test that they do to determine at what point do the crystals start forming when a solvent is added to put it simply). Their foods are based on a whole foods philosophy. This food is kangaroo based I believe so good for those with food allergies. My cats love the wet as it is a maintenance diet as well.

I do think Canadian vets may know more about nutrition than American vets. However, this cat is not in Canada, and the original vet prescribed a Hills DRY urinary food, and that's basically wrong.  The U.S. vets have been basically in a partnership with the big 4 pet food companies for years, and they think they are doing a good thing by using the "prescription" foods but that is really a marketing ploy cleverly put in place by Hills in 1990 and joined by the others.  The companies (not the FDA or any other regulatory entity)  make their foods require a vet's prescription and have coined the name "prescription diet" which really has no meaning, but they are sold in vet's offices, giving the impression these foods are better than others and do the jobs they say they will, but most vets just take their word on this.  But things are changing.

As for the Raynes foods, now that they have an Australian manufacturing partner and they do use kangaroo meat, but  not in the cat urinary formulas, only in the dogs' formulas.  They have changed their formulas slightly since June of 2015.  I think they are basically a good company and heading in the right direction. 

http://www.raynecanada.ca/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/FE_AdultRSS_Indications_June.pdf

http://www.raynecanada.ca/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/FE_AdultRSS_Dec8.pdf

The Rayne RSS dry food is basically pork and potato, and way too high in carbs, at 31%.

Cats have no dietary need for carbohydrates and a diet that is high in carbohydrates can be detrimental to their health

June 2015 formula:

Pork, dried potatoes, potato protein, dried ground potato, pork meal, dried pork

liver, canola oil (preserved with mixed tocopherols), natural flavour, tapioca, tomato

pomace, salmon oil (preserved with mixed tocopherols), sea salt, vitamins and minerals,

fructooligosaccharides, potassium citrate, calcium chloride, taurine, rosemary extract.

December 2015 formula:

Pork, dried potatoes, potato protein, potato flour, pork meal, dried pork liver, chicken fat

(preserved with mixed tocopherols), natural flavor, tomato pomace, tapioca starch, salmon

oil (preserved with mixed tocopherols), salt, calcium chloride, fructooligosaccharides,

choline chloride, vitamins (vitamin E supplement, niacin, vitamin B12 supplement,

vitamin A acetate, thiamine mononitrate, pyridoxine hydrochloride, riboflavin, d-calcium

pantothenate, vitamin D3 supplement, biotin, folic acid), taurine, potassium citrate,

minerals (ferrous sulfate, zinc oxide, manganous oxide, copper sulfate, iron amino

acid chelate, zinc amino acid chelate, manganese amino acid chelate, copper amino

acid chelate, sodium selenite, cobalt carbonate, ethylenediamine dihydriodine), mixed

tocopherols, rosemary extract

Percentage of Metabolizable Energy from:

Protein 33.5 %

Fat 31.4 %

CHO-NFE 35.1 %

The Raynes RSS wet food is better, but it is still too high in carbohydrates at 16% (should be below 10%)

They could lower it more by omitting potato starch and dextrose.  The rest of the carbs are probably in the liver.

June 2015 formula:

Egg whites, pork, pork broth, pork liver, potato starch, sunflower oil, guar gum, glycine,

calcium sulfate, dextrose, vitamins and minerals (choline chloride, magnesium oxide,

zinc amino acid complex, vitamin E supplement, iron amino acid complex, thiamine

mononitrate, niacin, manganese amino acid complex, copper amino acid complex, vitamin

A supplement, pyridoxine hydrochloride, d-calcium pantothenate, riboflavin, sodium

selenite, folic acid, vitamin B12 supplement, calcium iodate, vitamin D supplement, biotin),

fish oil (preserved with mixed tocopherols), sea salt, fructooligosaccharides, potassium

chloride, taurine.

Wet (100g pate)  93 Calories (kcal) per tray;4.37 kcal/gram

December 2015 Formula

Pork broth, pork, pork liver, dried egg white, potato starch, sunflower oil, guar gum,

glycine, calcium sulfate, dextrose, vitamins and minerals (choline chloride, magnesium

oxide, zinc amino acid complex, vitamin e supplement, iron amino acid complex, thiamine

mononitrate, niacin, manganese amino acid complex, copper amino acid complex, vitamin

A supplement, pyridoxine hydrochloride, d-calcium pantothenate, riboflavin, sodium

selenite, folic acid, vitamin B12 supplement, calcium iodate, vitamin D3 supplement,

biotin), fish oil, sea salt, fructooligosaccharides, potassium chloride, taurine.

Percentage of Metabolizable Energy from:

Protein 42.7 %

Fat 41.3 %

CHO-NFE 16 %

Compared to Hills, it is an excellent food, but since the company is located in Canada and the food is manufactured in Australia, it's not a food you can find easily in the U.S. at the moment.

Red Top, out of all the canned foods I use in my rotation--Wellness Core, Dave's, Halo, Fancy Feast Classic, and Nature's Valley--my cats seem to enjoy 4Health Turkey and Giblets the most.  I feed a combination of raw and canned.  Raw in the morning and canned at night.  Sometimes I reverse that.

4Health is such an amazing quality food for the price. It's worth the hour drive to the Tractor Supply Store and the hour's drive back home.

My Tractor Supply is only 1/2 hour away so that's great.  I also use their pine pellet horse bedding for 2/3 of my litter boxes.  It's the same as Feline Pine but only costs $5.99 for a 40 lb. bag instead of $9.39 for a 20 lb. bag of Feline Pine.  Definitely worth the drive!

Daisy,  I hope you kitty is doing well. I found this thread in 2016.

I have heard Weruva or Fussie Cat are good foods for UTI kitties. Watch the calories on these brands. 

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I have a 1-year old kitty who was diagnosed with struvite crystals when she was about 9 months old. I was feeding her Wellness grain-free for kittens plus fresh, cooked chicken. So, I want to switch from Wellness. Have been looking for organic, more natural cat food forever. I have spend hours and hours researching and rarely do you find an suggestions for a commercial food. On both the websites for those foods, there is a store locator and stores are minutes from my home. Also, Weruva has this note on the nutritional breakdown, page which is optimistic:

Mineral content per 100 kcal

Leading veterinarians suggest looking into the numbers in this manner, especially if your cat may have certain issues, such as kidney or urinary tract issues. Please note that our formulas are not designed to prevent or treat any particular ailment.

http://www.bestfriendsfoods.com/nutrition.shtml

I'm going to try both Weruva and Fussie Cat (as well as giving her fresh cooked chicken and beef, pro-bi from ABC company, which is a miracle worker and SeaCure). Also am going to start chopping up fresh veggies. This kitten has only had bottled water. How did this happen? It has to be the food.

I found a traditional/holistic vet who will work with me so we don't have to go to Hills. Ugh.

I've been giving her Paul Newman's organic canned food (but I fed my last cat this food and she passed at age 14 from originally hyperthyroidism then finally kidney disease, so to me that is not the answer.

TY all for your feedback. I will let you know how this goes. My kitten is too young for this kind of thing.

p.s. I forgot to add this info.

Actually my kitten was 8 mos old when diagnosed with UTI.

Symptoms:

She started urinated often in little puddles and sits in the kitty litter box and looked like she was in pain. My traditional vet put her on the horrid pink antiobotic, which seemed to make her sick. She lost her appetite and started throwing up. On her 6th day of antiobiotics, I remembered how Pet Wellbeing products helped extend the life of my previous older cat. I wrote to Dr. Jan and I purchased:

Urinary Gold for Feline Urinary Tract Health (holistic remedy)

It started helping immediately. I haven't given it to her every day and I should be because it works. Also, my new trad/holistic vet has a Chinese treatment waiting for me to pick up, which she says has worked for other cats. 

I highly recommend PetWellBeing.com. You can call and talk to a specialist for free. Dr. Jan lets you email her with questions. Dr. Jan is a holistic vet in Canada.

I still need to go get both Weruva and Fussie Cat and I'm going to alternate them with Paul Newman's organic plus fresh cooked chicken, beef and veggies. Also, when my kitten suddenly started getting constipated, we gave her organic coconut oil and it works great.

SO TO SUM IT UP

My 1-yr old cat gets a meal of usually fresh cooked turkey or chicken, some good quality canned food as stated above (so she gets the proper nutrient balance), Urinary Gold. Then I mix it up on different days, and also give her Pro-Bi (amazing pro-biotics and organic goodies* that also settle the tummy) from ABC Company (which has saved many of our (& friends) pet's lives, SeaCure (amazing, look it up) and my holistic vet gave me Cosequin for Cats, which is mostly Glucosamine and Chondrotin, which she said will help strengthen her bladder.

*Pro-Bi Ingredients: Organic Aloe Vera Juice, Distilled Water, Liquid Lactobacillus Acidophilus Fermentation Product, Organic Peppermint, Organic Ginger Extract, Organic Dandelion Extract.

Hope this helps! This system is a result of years of research and trying different things for someone with a busy life who doesn't have time purchase raw and grind bones to make food from scratch.

If anyone is interested, let me know and I will let you know the best way to get some of these items at great savings - little hacks I have taken a year to figure out.

Best Wishes to you and your precious babies!

Sheri

I'm sorry to hear about your cat, I have had issues with my cat Freddie, he first was diagnosed 3 years ago with Struvite crystal, I like so many people listened to my vet, bad move....

The 2 most important things are a water fountain and WET food only.

He is doing great and there are no more incidences it did however take me 2 trips within those 3 years to figure out that prescription Dry food is so bad for cats with Struvite crystals.

Cats don't drink enough water, and if you have a larger cat they are more prone to these crystals.

Freddie was Catheterized 2 times, but I have learned the hard way and with lots of research.

I give him Cosequin, leaks no more from Homeopet, powder Culturelle probiotics and Biotic PH from Wysong. I ground up Organic raw chicken and add to his wet food, I feed him Wellness- no fish wet food.

He is doing great.

I hope your cat never has to go through the pain of Struvite crystals or a UTI.

Best of luck.

Renee