Urinary care

So my 9yr old cat has urinary crystal problems. Hes had 3 episodes in 2yrs. My vet wants him on a urinary care diet only sd chicken. He only eats the dry food so my vet told me to wet it. I noticed my cat is definetly not in taking enough water. Barely any pee in the litter box.

For those with this issue what are you able to do? Is there another brand of food that works best for you? Or kind of wet food? As he does love wet food but not the sd brand.

If the problem is definitely specifically crystals that he keeps developing and not just general FLUTD (I say just, but there is really no just about it since it's a very very difficult condition to treat) then there is a possibility that prescription food is the best bet for your kitty, since the prescription foods (while some will say they have certain other problems) really are formulated specifically to break down those crystals before they become a problem.I would try adding water to the food as the vet suggests.  If you do this, be sure you don't leave it laying around for more than a few hours though.... if you leave it longer than that bacteria may start to grow.

Have you tried adding other water bowls around the house, maybe in different shapes and sizes to see if he has a preference? Just having more available is always good.  You could always also supplement the dry food with a bit of wet food as a 'treat' sometime during the day.  Some cats also like water 'fountains' and this may be an option you want to explore.  Amazon has some cheaply available options.

Good luck getting this under control.  I know firsthand how difficult it can be.

Like tulosai said, it is important to get his urine PH balanced to prevent the crystals from forming, and the prescription foods are supposed to do that. Having said that, we transitioned our cat off the Hills c/d diet after he'd been on it for over a year (and doing well) and now he's on a rotation of wet. It's great that your cat likes wet food, as that is really better for him than the dry, particularly as he's not drinking enough. Can you use toppers to entice him to eat the s/d? Like Fortiflora maybe?

Sorry I should have said it is perscription. So far its the only thing the vet wants him on.

Ive never tried enticing him to eat the wet food with other stuff, im going to look into that.

My cat is a kibble addict that's had numerous UTI issues in his 5 short years (mainly struvite crystals). I know how frustrating and totally scary this issue can be...Have you tried Weruva? They have a bunch of flavors that are high quality and grain free - and I've had great success getting him to eat it for the past 2 years. He (along with my other 3 cats) is especially fond of their Lamb Burgini receipt. I haven't been able to ween him off kibble completely (which I'm sure is why we've still had some issues) so I also started him on an all natural Urinary Tract Support Kit in August... the kit is for struvite crystals (but they also have a formula for oxalate crystals too - make sure you know which kind your cat has). After 5 years of constant issues, he has not had a problem since! The wet food along with the kit have worked way better than any prescription diet (check out cat.info.org for some good extra info on prescription diets for UTI's). Best of luck to you and your little one!

Crystals, stones, I should have a necklace with all that I've had to deal with. Emergency room visits, weekends, holidays....Diet is the most critical and obvious answer. Unfortunately, I've had rather tough cuties who decided to refuse to eat the proper food. Drove me to the brink of insanity until I found a product. It's made by an online company called Only Natural Pet . It's Cranberry Wellness Powder. Unbelievable. It stopped all crystals and stones from forming. I am currently using it with 3 cats. I use much less than the recommended amount and it works. One cat has been on it for 5 years, ( stopped all his crystals) another 3 years ( she had 12 stones at one time and was blocked) and a 3rd cat has been on it for 2 years. ( prevention ) I highly recommend it.

The website didnt work wich is to bad. Sounded very helpful.

I will look into the second other options and see what I can find.

Sorry about the link. There's actually quite a bit of research to support this by credible sources. Your gut instinct is correct. Look up , for example, vca hospitals flea allergies in cats. I have a son with asthma and was also a classroom teacher. Insect saliva will trigger asthmatic responses in humans. There's plenty of research out there. More importantly, now that you know, you must be diligent about keeping fleas away from your cat. Also just because a vet doesn't know or agree with your assumption doesn't mean you are wrong. I have been able to enlighten/ educate many primere vets on various topics. They are swamped in vet school / their practices and can't keep up with all current information. By you proving the link to your vet you will be helping many other patients out there in the practice. You have to be clinical. Brains aren't limited to just vets. You asked a good question.

Oops I responded to a question about asthma and fleas. Excuse me.

You could not find the OnlyNaturalpet.com online? It's a fantastic store. I like their particular blends but they do offer products from other manufacturers.

Here's the link:

http://www.onlynaturalpet.com