Is this crystals? Or what is it?

[washu]

One of my cats prefers to urine on news paper. So I line a litter box with paper for her, and she's been really good about using that or she'll go in the shower if I leave the curtains open. I'm not even exactly sure its always been the same cat or not, since I have 3 cats. Just a few days ago I noticed what looked like glitter in the paper box. So I changed the paper, and checked the next morning and there it was again, like a sparkly white powder. I've already made a vet appointment for next monday. But I'm going to have to figure out which cat is leaving the glitter before I go. I suspect it is Ohki, but it could be another.

Whether it's Ohki or not, she'll be making a trip to the vet since she's developed scabs on her back. I just changed food from Authority Sensitive Solutions to Blue Wilderness dry. For canned I was only feeding By Nature Organics, then started feeding a variety of cans. I think I saw the first scab before the food change, so I really don't know.

 

[mews2much]

That sounds like crystals to me.
My Coco has had them with bladder stones.
Do you have any male cats?
If you do and its a male with the crystals you need a vet now.
If its your girl she will not block.
A male can.

 

[washu]

I have 1 male and 2 females. I'm pretty sure it is not the male, as he has a habit of standing while peeing, and you can see the stream of urine on the sides of the litter box. If he used the paper-lined box there would be urine everywhere, since it has really low sides.

Is there any special type of food I should feed the cat with crystals? I'm pretty sure it is Ohki. Every time I hear a cat scratching at the paper, I go look and it is Ohki in there. I've been working on getting her to eat more wet food, so far I give her 1/2 a 5.5 oz can a day, and she only eats about half of that, so 1/4 can a day really gets eaten by her, then the other cats eat what she leaves behind.

I'm going to try to do a scheduled feeding for my cats, hopefully they'll get the hang of it and eat more than a couple bites when I feed them. I feel that doing this I can restrict Ohki's dry food, and encourage more canned.

I also had a petmate freshflow, but the motor died. I was thinking about trying a drinkwell because of the way the water pours out of it, since Ohki loves drinking from the faucet.

 

[sharky]

You need to get a vet to diagnosis .. and then go by type of crystal if found...

 

[washu]

I have an appointment for the vet on Monday. I am still working out which cat is the one leaving sparkles. So far Vivi (female) and Edie (male) did not use the paper when isolated. Ohki did use the paper, but I didn't see any crystals. I am going to buy a new litter box and try to get her to use it before we go to the vet, so I can bring a sample. How close to the vet appointment should I try to get a sample? Could the urine get "old" if I collect it too early?

 

[sweetpea24]

Go to the vet's office now and ask them for Nosorb. You add it to the litter and it willcollect the urine. then you bring the Nosorb with the urine back to the vet. It's not the best way but the next best thing to an actual urine sample. And maybe keep an eye on who is doing it; this may require you to scoop the litter every single time it's being used. If it's the male cat, get him to the vet immediately, before Monday so he doesn't get blocked. To unblock a cat, the average price is $1400 so you want to nip it in the bud.

 

[washu]

Well, I locked Ohki in the bathroom overnight with a clean box of paper, and this morning there were sparkles in it. Ohki will use an empty litter box. She used one that I had drying out in the tub.

 

[aswient]

Another way I can tell is by taking a little between your figures, you can feel the grit. Good luck for Ohki

 

[yosemite]

Try soaking the motor for your petmate in vinegar. I have to do that with my CatIt motor about once a month to get all the lime buildup out of it. The motor also gets clogged with fur so I use a dental tool to clean it out every week.

 

[washu]

Ok, back from the vet. The vet found struvite crystals in Ohki's urine. She said that she didn't see any infection. Her urine PH was an 8 and it's supposed to be 6-6.5. The vet also said that her urine was concentrated.

Since we are doing a food trial for allergies, the vet didn't give a prescription food. Instead she prescribed Methio Form Chewables. I am going to bring another urine sample after 1 week to see if there is any improvement.

Now I need to find a food that will work for is. Right now I think she is allergic to chicken. I was thinking I could try Natural Balance Pea and Duck Dry and canned, as well as the Evo 95% duck.

 

[sharky]

IMHO if you suspect chicken I would avoid ALL poultry , Just MHO...

Struvite are the "easier" to control thru OTC diets of the two common crystals ...

the chewables you were given are a methionine supplement and VERY common to aid in prevention of this type of crystal


http://www.thecatsite.com/forums/sho...ghlight=points may help also sent it via the pm you sent