FLUTD care

What has worked foodwise for others dealing with FLUTD? 

I found my sweet kitty at the pound 2 years ago, she's about 4 years old now. It took 2 vets and lots of tests to diagnose her with FLUTD.

When I brought her home she would only eat dry food even though I offered her wet food as well when my older cat ate his. She refused to eat the expensive dry food one vet prescribed as well as other special kibble for urinary infections. Her symptom that sent me to the first vet was urinating on the carpeting. That vet couldn't find anything wrong with her, no urinary tract infection. Second vet read results of first vet's testings & prescribed low dose antibiotic pills for 30 days. This stopped her inappropriate urinating for some time. She now is eating wet food and wants to eat 2 or 3 times a day & seems to feel better. Older male cat is gaining weight as he loves to clean up any food she leaves. Am now weaning her off antibiotics to one pill every 3 days.

Thanks for any suggestions   

It sounds like you're doing great with your girl - she's definitely lucky to have found you :nod: I think just keep doing what you're doing with her (and maybe supervise feeding time so your boy stops stealing her leftovers ). She may well have developed the infection as a result of stress from being in the shelter and events leading up to that. Hopefully, she'll continue to do well as she comes off the antibiotics and you'll have no more issues :cross: Adding an extra litterbox can help too - it just ensures that there's always somewhere clean for her to 'go'.

You may find some tips in the following articles:-[article="29715"][/article][article="30756"][/article]

I've recently found out my girl has FIC. Adding an extra box seems to have helped her, though it's still relatively early days. I've also started her on Protexin Veterinary Cystophan (mixed into her food). We haven't had any incidents since (knocks on wood), but always check with your vet before adding in any kind of supplemntation. What works for one cat isn't always appropriate for another, and I never start on this kind of supplement without talking to my vet first.
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All wet food, a water fountain to encourage drinking, and look at giving a supplement like d-mannose help with bladder health. 

http://www.littlebigcat.com/health/urinary-tract-disorders-in-cats/

Welcome to TCS! 

Did your vet find crystals in the urine? FLUTD is a general name for several possible illnesses of the bladder. It could be a low-grade bacterial infection (which is maybe why the antibiotics help) or it could be a problem with the PH of the urine leading to the formation of crystals. It can also be Feline Idiopathic Cystitis which is basically stress hormones causing an inflammation.

The latter condition doesn't show up in standard tests so it's the go-to diagnosis with cats that have recurrent episodes of urinating outside the box but no findings in urine testing.

What I wonder about is the crystals issue. Can you get back to your vet and find out about urine PH and whether or not they actually saw crystals in the urine? The PH is also important. If it's out of range then it's important to gradually switch her over to the special food they gave you. The key here is to switch her over gradually, add just a few pieces more with every meal so that she becomes used to the scent and taste.

If the PH was ok and no crystals in the urine then regular wet food would be a good idea as it just generally dilutes the urine and that's good. It's good to add that to her diet. What I do with my own cat (he has crystals) is feed urinary-formula + wet food with water twice a day. I take just one spoon of his favorite flavor of fancy feast and mix that with about two-thirds part water. It's his "soup"   and he loves it. He also drinks from a water fountain which encourages him to drink more. That way I know he's getting hydrated and the right food for his PH imbalance issues.

It's important to keep working with your vet. Don't switch to another type of food without consulting with them because a lot depends on what the actual lab tests results for your cat were. Which is also why you absolutely should never start any supplement without consulting with your vet, just like @Columbine  said. What works for someone else's cat may not be a good choice for yours. A supplement is no different from medication in this case because you're trying to balance urinary PH.

As for your other cat, I think you'll have to start feeding them separately. It will give you better control over what the female actually eats. Also, the urinary dry food may not be good for him, definitely not if he's gaining weight. If he has weight issues those need to be addressed. For overweight cats, wet food may be better better because it makes them feel more "full" and eat less but either way, portion control is called for.

Good luck, and again, welcome! 

Thanks for the suggestions. I plan to talk with the vet as I didn't know to ask these questions.

Amy is feeling so much better today, she even ran through the house (first time in a month) and is enjoying eating 'soup' wet food

with water while I leave her brother in his beloved sunroom while she eats slowly.

Lynn

Thanks for your suggestions. Amy drinks a lot of water. I had asked vet to see if she was Diabetic as she drank so much, she is not Diabetic.

She is feeling so much better after finishing 30 days of antibiotics. She had her first bout about 6 months ago & antibiotics worked then. This time I'm offering her more wet food several times a day and she is responding with her precious happy disposition again. 

Going to agree with missmimz on the 100% wet diet and water fountain. It's what I am doing with my boy who had a blockage before (90% wet at least) and he has yet to have a problem since. You will also want to avoid fish, as the high mineral content can lead to kidney stones. I suggest no more than 1-3 times a week max. Weruva's fish flavors are low in minerals as I believe they do tests often....

Prescription urinary food really only artificially changes the urine's pH to make it impossible for crystals to form, and to be low in minerals such as magnesium. This doesn't really address the underlying issue of constant dehydration (a leading cause of FLUTD and blockages), which can lead to greater health problems down the road. Prescription foods are also very expensive for how low quality they are. 

Save your money spent on the Rx food and go for high quality, high protein, low carb wet food. A water fountain is a great addition to encourage a cat to drink. As is warm goat's milk if they'll drink it. Some people also make little ice cube treats flavored with a little tuna water to add extra hydration.

You could ask your vet if it is okay to supplement D-Mannose into the cat's diet as well. This is a common ingredient in Rx Urinary foods. It's good for bladder health. There's a bunch of different kinds of treats with D-Mannose on the market.

If your vet does wrangle you in for the Rx food, at least stick with the Rx wet food and ignore the dry as it's poor quality and chock full of unnecessary carbs (aka stinky litter box and giant cat poops).

Good luck!