Reptile & Amphibian Forums

My 3 or 4 year old Siamese male cat has had two attacks of this, and the vet diagnosed him. He had blood and crystals in his urine, has sprayed right in front of me, straining to urinate, and was licking the tip of himself excessively.

He was on an oral rinse of Buprenoraphine for two days to help with the localized pain; also he is on Baytril and Phenoxybenzamine. He is on Hills c/d canned and dry foods, I guess forever. I can tell that he is a lot better, and his amount of urination is increasing. But he still has some difficulty urinating, or he can't tell when he is done, so he keeps trying to go.

My question is whether it is okay to give him some cranberry juice on a daily basis. The vet said that the pH of his urine is way to high. I gave him 0.5 ml today, but want to know if it can possibly harm him. I'm thinking he ought to have 1 ml several times a day, to stop the burning and discomfort. I think he is still having pain because he is still doing some minimal excessive licking. Thanks.

Holly

It sounds like he still has a bladder infection. There is no down side to cranberry juice, but some cats dislike the sour taste. You might try cranberry concentrate in softgels if you can pill your cat. The active component of the cranberry juice that eliminates the bacteria is d-mannose, which is available as a capsule or powder. If you use it, use 1/4 tsp, or the contents of one capsule, in his food twice a day. It works by keeping the bacteria from adhering to the bladder wall, so he pees out all the bacteria within 2 days. Once the bacteria is gone, the urinary pH will drop and he will stop producing crystals.
The most important step is to eliminate all dry food, as it does not have enough water, so the urine is very concentrated, leading to crystal formation. Feed canned food, and for a while, add water to it as well as salt, to dilute the urine and flush out and dissolve crystals.

SingHa only started on his medications during the afternoon 4 days ago, so his bladder infection wasn't even close to being resolved when I posted initially. I haven't noticed any excessive licking today, happily. And he is doing lots more "talking" and purring, as well as bounding up on furniture to be petted and cuddle. I think it is important to complete his antibiotic regime. I will look into d-mannose for him.

The vet we went to had also told me to add water to the canned food. She also said to provide distilled water for drinking. I had thought that my excellent well water with lots of minerals was good for my cats and birds. What do you think? Would filtering the well water be useful? It tastes like good spring water straight from the tap.

My oldest cat, Charcoal, thought that I was trying to poison her when she had to eat canned food after a serious illness. It seems risky to force her to change food types now. She is very slender, and can not afford to drop weight from a forced dietary change.

SingHa is a rescue who has been with me for about 2 years. My other rescue, Katrina, has been with me for about 3 or 4 months longer. I think that she would eat canned food. Is boiling meats the proper way to prepare food for then from scratch? Is grocery store raw meat safe or even desirable? Will feeding meats provide a balanced diet? The two rescues are indoor only cats, and Katrina tries to eat my houseplants, which I attempt to discourage. What plants should I grow for them to eat, if any?

Please let me know if anything I am doing is unhealthy for these little darlings. I have taken note that you are totally opposed to dry foods, which is distressing, considering what I just spent on the dry Rx food. Thanks for your help.

Holly

Cats are descended from desert animals; they get most of their water through their food and therefore don't drink much. Their natural diet consists of birds and small animals, mostly protein and fat, with almost no carbohydrates. Feeding dry food tends to lead to urinary tract problems due to lack of water and very concentrated urine, makes them fat due to the carbohydrates, often causes vomiting, and can lead to diabetes in older cats, again due to carbohydrates. Of course few cats develop all of these problems, but on the other hand, few cats escape all of them.
A minimal diet for a cat consists of meat, bone, animal fats, and at times probiotics. Cats can eat their food raw without any problems, but if you must cook it, it is best to bake or roast it.
If the cat eats plants, it may be due to the fiber or some nutrient in the plant. ZYou could grow wheat grass or barley grass. Spider plants are also safe and appealing to cats.
If you have any questions about your water, you can bring a sample to your local health department which will test it for you for free.

Thanks a lot, Dr Tobin.

I have lived here for 16 years, and my well water has always been good for me as well as all of my pets. I have now read all of the relevant threads on your board, and will puree raw chicken, including some of the skin, fat, and bones with some water. This will be frozen in ice cube trays, and defrosted a day ahead of time.

I'll also freeze fatty hamburger (beef) with some extra water and bone meal and sea salt.

Holly