Urinary food for post-op cat

My cat had been hospitalized for a blocked urethra 6 years ago. He had been on SO food for about a year, then normal dry food (he wasn't living with me then but at the farm where I boarded my horse). He recently had a relapse and got the surgery and now has a 4mm urethra. They recommended staying on a urinary diet, but he would pass any stones easily. He's (She's?) on SO now, dry and wet. I have another cat and I feed a stray when he sneaks into their dish. I've also caught a Blue Jay stealing a snack.

I'd like to have a dry available, and a wet to supplement. I've looked at recommendations here but the all seem pre-surgery cats.

His crystals were struvite.

What would you recommend? I don't mind buying bulk online.

Hi, and welcome to TCS

IMO, the ONLY dry food I'd ever feed a cat with a history of crystals is a prescription urinary diet - either Royal Canin S/O (the one I actually feed my crystals boy) or Hills c/d. I really would feed as little dry as possible - I feed about 80% wet and 20% dry (in caloric terms). It isn't actually necessary to have food available 24/7. Cats aren't designed as grazers, and will often do better on timed meals.

In terms of wet food - stick to the prescription food for your crystals cat for now. It's really important to follow veterinary advice at this stage, as relapse is most likely within the first year of a flare.

The best option would be to use prescription dry for all the cats, but have the majority of their food as wet (giving normal wet to the other two and prescription wet to the crystals boy). Once he's fully stable (and I'm talking months, not weeks), you could tentatively look at transitioning him onto non prescription wet food - ideally high meat, grain free wet. I can't give you specific brands as I'm not familiar with US food brands. If budget is an issue, I do know that both the Sheba and the Fancy Feast PATES are generally grain fee and reasonably priced.

Hydration is the other big factor when dealing with crystals. The better hydrated the cat, the less acidic the urine and the lower the chance of crystals building up. Cats evolved as desert creatures, and as such are designed to get around 80% of their fluid intake from their food. Their thirst drive is just too low to compensate when fed kibble, so they need a little help. As a rough guide, a cat eating 100% kibble needs to drink about one cup of fluid a day. Definitely something to bear in mind if you do decide to stick to feeding primarily dry food.

A great indicator as to whether your crystals boy is relapsing is the pee clumps in the litter box. Big clumps mean he's doing fine; lots of little clumps mean there's a problem brewing. Ph testing the urine is another indicator as to how well he's doing.

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I'd keep him on a urinary diet it's just not worth the risk regardless of the surgery. I feed all my cats Purina UR.

If you can afford it, feed prescription urinary tract food. If you cant, feed as much wet as possibile and feed only dry food labeled "urinary tract health". Preferably all wet, though. The big thing is hydration, it will help pass the crystals before they form into stones.

A water fountain is good. Add a tablespoon or two of water to the wet food.

My cat had a stone four years ago, and has done well since.