Crystals

My kitty Reilly has a problem with crystals in his urine, and the vet told me that I could feed him Iams dry and wet cat food. Latley he has been getting picky and I was thinking of trying a different brand. Anyone else had this problem???

Good question... Male cats can get crystals from cheap food. That is why your vet suggested Iams. You can also try Eukanuba! There are also some Nature ones out there that I am sure someone will tell you more about =)

Nutros Max cat adult and lite are certified for helping uniarey issues ... I would get a food with balanced with lower phos

My problem kitty is on prescription Waltham's So diet.

Well if cheap food is the problem, I don't know why the vet would have suggested a cheap quality food. Iams has a lot of corn.
I vote for Nutro Max Cat.

Amber

Its also a "type of food" problem. Dry food is a poor choice. Many vets recommends taking cats with FLUTD off dry food entirely. Beef is better than chicken. Seafood must be completely removed from the diet. Crystals indicate a high PH in the urine as well and you can try accidifying the diet with cranberry powder cat food suppliments. By reducing the ph to a normal value (around 6) the tendency to develope crystals will be reduced. There are also prescription foods to help with all of this.

Originally Posted by stephenq

Its also a "type of food" problem. Dry food is a poor choice. Many vets recommends taking cats with FLUTD off dry food entirely. Beef is better than chicken. Seafood must be completely removed from the diet. Crystals indicate a high PH in the urine as well and you can try accidifying the diet with cranberry powder cat food suppliments. By reducing the ph to a normal value (around 6) the tendency to develope crystals will be reduced. There are also prescription foods to help with all of this.

Click to expand...

Not ALL crystals are due to a high pH, although in cats this is the most common problem. I would consult your vet before adding supplements. I agree that wet is better and high quality food is a must. IME Eukanuba is a good diet and most cats really like it, I would give that a try, it is the parent company for Iams but it is a higher-end diet. Nutro Max is also a good choice. Royal Canin would be another. Of course prescription diets available at the vet like Walthams, Medi-cal and Hills are all guaranteed to maintain urinary tract health.

There is a Yahoo Group for people with FLUTD cats, and they have a list of good cat foods and the pH range in them. It might be a good place to look.