What did you feed your cat after urinary blockage?

Hi,

This is my first time posting here! 

I have a 4 year old male cat that has now had 2 complete urinary blockages.  Both times he needed a catheter to be unblocked and it was very expensive.  Prior to the first blockage, he was eating dry food (Wellness for a little while, then Instinct). After the blockage, my vet recommended switching him to a raw diet.  I fed him the frozen Primal raw formula for about a year, and then he blocked again.  He is currently temporarily on Hills s/d canned food until the crystals in his urine are completely gone, then I'm not sure what to feed him. I just switched to a new vet who is a little more old school, so I think they will recommend one of the long-term prescription diets.  

I just wanted to know what other people are feeding their cats that have had this problem. What has been successful and what hasn't?  If you feed your cat a urinary prescription diet, is he otherwise healthy/not overweight?

I would like to stick to canned food, and luckily my cat isn't picky, but he does have some food allergies which might limit my options.

Thanks!

After my cats blockage I was broke and couldn't afford the prescription diets. I gave my boy pro plan urinary dry which you can find at the pet store and just plan friskies wet food. But I pushed lots of water and put bowls all over the house where I knew my kitty would walk past. He would more often drink. He has continued to be on prazosin now I'm a dosage every other day. His blockage was in October and his bladder was just check and he his fine. I really believe keeping him on the bladder relaxer has helped I also think that repeat blockages warrant keeping you cat on some kind of relaxer. My vet tried to pull him off of it in November but he started hesitating so she kept him on and I have been in no hurry to take him off. The cat specialist was recommending purina ur dry so I tried some with him now that that I have recovered from the expense and he likes it but I have to say it looks and smells just like the pro plan unrinary also made by purina but costs 3 times more. He still eats friskies wet as well. My cat is a big boy with a congenitally smaller urethra but with these combos I have been able to keep him healthy except the weight issue of course. The bottomline the vet told me is water and keeping moisture in their food. If you can feed yours only wet food and push lots of water I think that's the key. I didnt put my kitty on any expensive diet and he is doing well(knock on wood)

After my cat blocked twice, I fed him Hills c/d dry formula for 3 years, as per the vets recommendation. He didn't block again, but he did have cystitis twice. After the second time, I was educated on the dangers of dry food & recommended an all wet diet by his new vet. She recommended staying on the Hills c/d wet stew formula, although she admitted that new studies show little evidence that low magnesium & phosphorous formulas are as effective as previously thought. She told me the most important was that it was all wet & with added water stirred in, regardless of brand.

So now, he eats 50% Hills c/d wet stew formula & 50% high protein, grain-free, no fish wet food (Tiki Cat, Cats in the Kitchen). I mix in about 1/4c of water with each meal. He has had a bit of diarrhea lately, so I'm also including a tsp of pumpkin. He has always been thin, but he did lose about 2lb since switching from dry to wet. 

bode said:

 
I would like to stick to canned food, and luckily my cat isn't picky, but he does have some food allergies which might limit my options.

Thanks!

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You can try a limited ingredient diet. Nature's Variety Instinct Limited Ingredients is one. It comes in both dry and canned. Obviously the canned is better for urinary issues

I'm surprised your cat got blocked on raw food. Do you think it was the Primal brand?

My GA cat had urinary issues once a long time ago. Back then there was no Internet, no Catinfo.org, etc so I had no idea about nutrition. I went with the vet's suggestion of Hills C/D. My cat didn't like the canned so he only ate the dry. I did occasionally fed him Fancy Feast. My cat never had a urinary issue again but he did develop other health issues most likely related to eating dry food.