Urinary issues

[rileyb]

Oh no she doesn't like canned! Or cranberry extract! I force the cranberry via a syringe. She HATES wet food. She's a crazy cat...she won't eat ANY human food either. The oy thing she eats without complaint is her dry food or oils.

 

[ldg]

She's on medication for the UTI, correct? I'm confused as to why you want to use supplements at this point? Are you trying to lower her urine pH?

Cranberries - though marketed for cats, an ingredient in many pet foods for cats - are actually not healthy for cats. They contain benzoic acid, which is toxic to kitties, and salicylic acid, the active metabolite in aspirin - which we know is toxic to cats.

Here is more information: http://www.thecatsite.com/t/245844/cranberry#post_3220685

Now, obviously there are cats that are prescribed low doses of aspirin by vets for some things - but there are illnesses where the impact on the kidneys is worth it vs not using the aspirin.

And clearly the impact of small amounts of cranberry aren't noticeable, or foods containing cranberry would be pulled. But it is the effect, over time, on a kitty's kidneys that is the issue.

If you want to lower her urine pH, then I suggest talking to your vet about the use of methionine. This is an amino acid; meat contains a good amount of methionine, actually. It is best used under the supervision of a vet who is willing to look up the doses, and best used only if you are willing and able to track her urine pH at home.

As to the canned food, what kind did you use? Many cats love the pate style Fancy Feast. And transitioning a die-hard kibble addict to canned food can take some work. Did you try crushing any kibble and putting that on top of the food? The kibble is so addictive because it has rendered animal fats sprayed onto it to make it tasty to cats. :lol3: Without that, most cats would probably hate the kibble - kind of like how kids will always choose sweet cereal over something like plain shredded wheat. :lol3:

Dr. Pierson has helpful information on transitioning from kibble to wet food on her site: http://www.catinfo.org/docs/TipsForTransitioning1-14-11.pdf

Hope your girl is feeling better!

 

[rileyb]

I was just trying to support her body through the antibiotics (I'm very anti-antibiotics, except for in case of emergencies). I am able to get her to lick the canned food, and I've already tried fancy feast but she won't touch it. She eats blue buffalo wilderness grain free duck kibble. The only wet food I can get her to eat is blue buffalo flaky tuna. I have tried five other brands and at least twice as many flavors. It looks like this transition will be a slow one .

 

[ldg]

I completely understand. I feel the same way about antibiotics. All meds, in fact. I prefer to use them only if necessary. I don't use antibiotics after a dental - even if teeth were pulled - unless it was something major, like a canine.

The best thing you can do for her is probably probiotics. You can use a human acidophilus+bifidus supplement to restore her healthy gut bacteria. :nod: I use either Natural Factors or Nexabiotic 20-strain. With the Natural Factors, I use 5 billion CFU 2x daily; with the Nexabiotic I use 1/2 capsule 2x daily.

When using probiotics at the same time as antibiotics, it's best to give it 2 hours before/after the antibiotics though. So you may want to wait until the course of antibiotics is done, makes it much easier!

And yeah... the best thing for her long term bladder (and overall) health is the canned food. For me, the hardest part was the transition to timed meals. This is crucial for the transition - but has to be handled properly, because the last thing she needs right now is more stress! Are you home so that you would be able to feed her many small meals throughout the day? That really is the best way to manage it, if possible. I pulled the kibble during the day first. I divided up the amount of canned food the kitties should be eating into something like 6 meals, and then fed those small amounts every couple of hours.

Using crushed kibble on top of a very small portion of wet food doesn't help? What about mixing it with warm water? The trick, really, is to find a "topper" that she'll at least lick off. The rest is just patience and time. IMO, it's not about finding a food she likes, so much as it's getting her to eat something off the top of it, or around it, so she gets "used" to the food you WANT her to eat being there. Of course... finding one she likes helps. But if you're always throwing food away (though you can freeze small portions in baggies rather than throwing it away, and then warm those up in warm water to try again another time), then it's more about getting creative, and outwitting her. :lol3: Think of it as like tricking a child into eating salad. At first, it'll take heaps of dressing and bacon bits and shredded cheese... and they may only eat a few bites of the lettuce. But over time, you can cut down on all the toppings, and they'll eat more and more of the veggies in there.

ETA: in the transition to timed meals, you can go ahead and use the kibble before worrying about the switch to canned. Again - for us the harder part was the move to timed meals.

 

[rileyb]

I'm home about 14 hours a day, counting nighttime, and often less. For timed meals with kibble, do I then remove the food after a certain point? She NEVER eats at the same time every day, and she nibbles every coue of hours...it is quite infuriating.

I'm thinking of waiting until her appetite is back once the antibiotics are finished. That way I won't worry as much about her outright refusing to eat

 

[denice]

For now getting her to eat as much as possible is what is important.  Getting her used to meals will take a while.  I think half the battle is getting her used to the idea that the food won't always be there.  Every two or three hours put her food down for 15 or 20 minutes.  Eventually she will realize that the food isn't always there and she needs to eat when the food is down.  Until she is eating well for meals I would continue to leave her some food while you are at work.

After she is eating well when the food is down then you can start cutting down on the number of meals and using the toppers on wet food.  You may not succeed in getting her completely off kibble, I haven't been able to with my kibble addicts, but if you can get her to at least half of her intake being wet food that would be really good.  A wet food that isn't fish would be the best.

 

[ldg]

You may even want to offer her meals more frequently than every two hours.

But right now, just work on trying to add some wet, don't worry about the timed meals yet. Not while she's recovering. :rub:

I forgot to mention another important part of timed meals - "calling" for the meal. :nod: Because the first meal of wet food I introduced was dinner, every meal is now dinner. :lol3: For the ferals, food time is "MEOW." :lol3: But have some identifying call you make, whatever you choose. Call out loudly, pop the can top, and put the food down in a different place than she eats her kibble. If she doesn't come running, go get her. You can even do this with treats you know she loves. And as Denice says, leave it down for a set period of time - 10 to 20 minutes. :nod: The main point is to get her associating the call with coming for food that will only be there for a short period.

When you're ready, and you've got stuff she's eating at that additional one or two or three meals a day, then pull the kibble during the day only. If she won't eat canned, crush the kibble and put it on top. Her timed meals can be kibble. But getting those timed meals down - and her associating the call with a "meal" that occurs over a set period of time is one of the most important part of the transition. :nod: Of course, with kibble down to be free fed, it can be a challenge for her to have the motivation to come for a called meal. But mine thought they were getting a "treat," so I was able to add wet food meals while they were still free feeding dry.

 

[denice]

My cats come running when I pop the top on the can, even though they won't completely give up kibble they get excited about wet food.  I can't feed them the same food more than maybe three days in a row though.  By that fourth day they just sniff it and walk away.  It's the same with the homemade cooked food.  Three days in a row and their done with it for a while.

 

[ldg]

I can't feed my cats the same food two meals in a row. :lol3: Thank goodness for freezers.