Food for cat with urinary problems?

Question

I have a cat that recently was hospitalized with a urinary blockage. The vet put him on a prescription food for urinary care that comes in both wet and dry varieties. He doesnt like the dry, so we've been feeding him the wet food twice a day.

Now heres the issue, I have a second cat who doesnt have this issue. He doesnt like scheduled feediings, and prefers to munch throughout the day. We leave a bowl of food available for him at all times. Sometimes, the cat with the urinary issue will eat some of the regular food.

So my question is: is there a food that's good for urinary health that isnt prescription and is safe for both of cats to consume, but that won't break the bank?

Answer 1

For clarity I will name your cats to cat 1 and cat 2. Cat 1 = Previously Blocked // Cat 2 = Healthy

For cat 1 keep him on the prescription wet food diet until your vet says otherwise, I would be afraid to switch him so soon and he re-blocks - they call it a prescription diet because it should be treated like a medication. You can price check from different veterinary hospitals as food prices will vary, the hospital I work at has much cheaper prices than other clinics around (10% difference).

If cat 1 picks at cat 2's food I would recommend that you feed Cat 2 more wet food - he may not have blocked yet but risks are much higher on dry food. Buy what's in your budget but keep in mind that with higher quality foods you won't need to feed as much (this varies from food to food) for your cats to obtain their daily nutritional needs. For example let's say a 0.50$ can of low grade food you'd need to feed 3 cans vs a 1.00$ high quality food where you only need to feed 1 can a day - you will also see increase in stool production on low grade foods.

Another thing you can try is called Surefeed this can be programmed to only open when a certain pet is near, it helps prevent unwanted food theft.

Water intake is very important to prevent cats from blocking: add a water fountain (cats prefer running cold water vs still), increase wet food, or add water to dry food. This allows them to pee more thus flushing out all the garbage. A cat that doesn't pee frequently (you will see 1 large pee in the box vs many small/medium pees) holds in all the junk that the kidneys filter out from their system and then you start seeing crystal/stone formations.

Answer 2

High quality food is important to any cat but definitely to those who have ANY health issue. With cats with urinary issues, if someone wants to switch from a prescription diet to a shelf diet:

1. Always ask your vet first - if you find one that you think you want to try, bring in a picture of the nutrition label for him or her to take a look at.

2. Look for a food with low ash content, lower proteins, higher moisture levels and possibly a cranberry derivative. Ash and proteins are hard for the kidneys to process and the more a compromised urinary tract is working to eliminate ash and proteins, the harder it has to work, and the weaker it is. Moisture and cranberry derivatives both help to flush out toxins filtered in the tract, and helps to build up acidity to keep the tract clean - the higher acidity in urine helps to kill bacteria - as does vitamin C (ascorbic acid).

Also, ALWAYS keep fresh, clean water out for your cats. Cats being finicky creatures need little excuse to turn their noses up at something, and you'd hate for either one of them to drink less water than is needed to help keep their UT in check.

Answer 3

I have the same problem. I separate the cat so he can have his urinary blockage food at night. I find it convenient to take him into the bathroom with me and shut the door when I brush my teeth at night etc.

Other than that he gets to munch on normal food throughout the day. If your cat still gets blockages then increase the percentage of medicated food in your cat's diet. So you could give him the medicated food in both the morning and at night. My vet says the more the cat eats of the medicated food the lower the risk of blockages.

I also use Royal Canin Veterinary Diet Urinary SO Dry Cat Food, which he loves. The other cats will go at great lengths to get a bite or two so it must have something they really like.