Dear Cat

[Biciclista]

In the end and IME, treating chronic UTIs and/or kidney disease ends up costing more--financially and emotionally--than dry food. I lost a cat to chronic kidney failure, after feeding her a dry diet her whole life. I wish I could go back and undo that.

wow, what an angle. no kidding. and watching your cat be in pain ... horrible

[indysteel]

wow, what an angle. no kidding. and watching your cat be in pain ... horrible

Perhaps I stated this inartfully. What I meant is that I would have gladly paid more for canned food to spare my cat and myself the pain of CKF.

[smilingcat]

Yes, we also have a cat with chronic UTI and Urinary tract blockage problem. He has been to emergency on three occasions so far. First two times, his bladder was ready to rupture and he would have died.

We now keep a very close eye on him and watch for signs for urinary related distress: trying to pee out of the box and nothing. Peeing in inappropriate places but just small amount drop or two sometimes maybe teaspoon worth of pee. I also check the litter box to make sure he is peeing. Usually the volume is much bigger than the other cats so I know its him. If I don't find big clump of litter from pee or he does any of the above, we get ready to take him to the emergency.

Definitely no dry food for your cat!! Strictly wet food. We also thin down his food with water about one and half teaspoon of water per feeding. It should be soft paste. It's not so watered down that he would suffer from loss of minerals in his system.

We also buy whole chicken on sale around 99cents a pound and boil the whole chicken. We add pieces of cooked chicken to their food. At 99cents a pound, its cheaper than premium canned cat food. We feed Wellness brand. And the broth/stock is skimmed of fat and we give it to the cat with urinary tract problem.

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getting rid of pee smell.

use hydrogen peroxide mixed with baking soda. Test the fabric to make sure it doesn't bleach or change the color first. We use it around the house and it does breakdown the urea. Even the cats can't smell the pee afterwards.
www.remove-cat-urine.com

[indysteel]

I'd also suggest having your vet show you how to palpate your cat's bladder. It is possible to check it yourself to see if it is full. But there are other issues that dehydration can cause short of a UTI or obstruction, constipation being one of them and, obviously, chronic dehydration can lead to kidney failure. Finally, I'd note that you should determine, if you haven't already, if your cat has any crystals in his urine and, if so, their type. This could necessitate other changes to his diet.

[Biciclista]

oh yeah, i used to do that constantly. But have not had any issues since we turned dry cat food from a staple to an occasional treat.

[Bethany1]

Thanks for all the help. I do give both of my cats canned food, just not every day. Probably once or twice a week. Favorites seem to be Fancy Feast and anything with fish or chicken of some other brands. Tuna fish out of the can when I make sandwiches is a big hit as well.

Absolute no-no favorite for both cats is chocolate milk. If my kids don't put the glass away, one is dipping its paws in to drink out of it.

It never hit me as a UTI as he has been using the litter box.

And yes, I'd rather put the money into canned food than a huge vet bill.

[Biciclista]

good luck
dry cat food is also known in some circles as kitty crack. they put something in it that makes it SO appealing. I look forward to the day that i have a cat who never had dry cat food.

Thanks for all the help. I do give both of my cats canned food, just not every day. Probably once or twice a week. Favorites seem to be Fancy Feast and anything with fish or chicken of some other brands. Tuna fish out of the can when I make sandwiches is a big hit as well.

Absolute no-no favorite for both cats is chocolate milk. If my kids don't put the glass away, one is dipping its paws in to drink out of it.

It never hit me as a UTI as he has been using the litter box.

And yes, I'd rather put the money into canned food than a huge vet bill.

[indysteel]

I've admittedly had trouble totally weening mine off dry food entirely. One cat will only eat a small amount of canned at a time, even without access to any other food. The other cat will inhale any food he leaves behind so I have to supervise every meal. Well, there's only so many times a day that I can give him wet food and only so much of it that he'll eat, so we end up leaving a high protein dry food out for them as well. He is drinking a decent amount of water these days, too. It's not perfect, but it's arguably going to have to do. The vet is happy with his labs and appearance. Thankfully, our younger cat poses no problem. She lives for canned food.