Bladder Crystals

[Three-kitties]

I have 3 rescues, all siblings. When they turned one, one of them started having blood in her urine and was peeing or trying to pee everywhere. After spending over 1k with multiple vets visits it was determined that she had crystals in her bladder and the vet put her on very expensive wet and dry food. After about 3 months she seems to be all better. 6 months have gone by and she is again having blood in her urine and I put her back on the prescription food. It is very difficult to have them eat separately and I cannot afford to have all three cats eating the expensive food. I am not even sure if the prescription food is good for the kitties that aren’t sick. They are only 1 ½ years old. They were eating mostly wet food when this starting happening. Is there an alternative cat food that is affordable that can help shrink the crystals? I tried one food the brand is Wysong but that is also very expensive. When I purchased I thought I was getting at least a 4 pack but it was actually just a single can and the dry food was such a tiny bag. If I’m going to spend as much for a non prescription I might as well keep buying the prescription that I know works. Any other suggestions?

 

[ska003]

Hi! My cat had this about a month ago and is doing great off the antibiotics. They said he could be at risk for getting more crystals so we have been giving him cystaid pills in regular wet food for long-term support once a day, as well as prescription food for now, but as you said it's pricier. The cystaid pills for us are cheaper than the prescription food as the bag seems to last under a month for him/ Not sure if that helps but it could be something to look into or talk to your vet about! Good luck

 

[Mamanyt1953]

First, rest easy, the prescription food won't hurt the kitties that aren't sick. There isn't any actual medication in that food, it is just formulated for cats with urinary problems. But, as you said, it is very expensive to have all three chowing down on it. I know how hard it can be to feed one cat separately, but for the short term, you'll have to struggle through.

There are any number of good urinary care foods available on the market, at different prices, and some of the less expensive are every bit as good (and occasionally, better) than the prescription foods. Google "urinary care food for cats" and take a look at the articles available on the subject. I'd also suggest making a list of the ingredients in the prescription food, and comparing labels. You might find something with the same ingredients for considerably less.

And water intake is VITAL to a cat with urinary issues. Try to get her to drink more. There are a couple of tricks for this. One is moving the water bowl away from the food bowl. Instinct tells cats that having food near water can contaminate the water...it does NOT tell them that a bowl prevents that. Sometimes, that is all it takes. And some cats prefer moving (therefore fresh) water, again, instinct is a work here. Look into a reasonably priced cat fountain.

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

You might find something helpful in this thread about finding another food: Urinary So Substitute?