Posts tagged: cat urinary problems

Common Questions And Answers About Cat Urinary Infection Treatment

Do you have unanswered questions about the cat urinary infection treatment your vet provides?Many cat owners don’t understand the treatment for cat urinary tract infections, and they still have questions that haven’t been answered.Find answers to your questions in this article.

Are Feline Bladder Infections Contagious?

The short answer is no.  You don’t need to worry, because cat urinary tract infections can’t be passed from your kitty to you or to another cat.

What’s The Difference Between Feline Bladder Infections And Cat Urinary Tract Infections?

People get really confused about this, and for good reason, since the terms are used interchangeably.  However, to answer the question, a cat bladder infection really only affects his bladder.  A feline urinary tract infection (also called a UTI) can affect any part of your cat’s urinary tract.  This includes his kidneys, his ureters (the tubes that carry urine from his kidney to his bladder), his bladder, and his urethra (the tube that carries urine out of his body). 

Usually, when someone is talking about a UTI, they really mean a feline bladder infection.

What’s The Difference Between A Urinalysis And A Urine Culture?

Your vet may want to perform both of these tests.  Many cat owners don’t understand exactly what they are, and what they’re for.

Usually a urinalysis is done first.  Your vet looks at the sample to see if the urine is cloudy or bloody.  Cloudy urine is due to the presence of white blood cells, which indicate an infection.Blood in the urine shows that there’s a problem.  Your vet may see that crystals are present, which indicate cat bladder stones.  The urine is also checked for protein. 

Based on the results from the urinalysis, your vet may want to do a urine culture.

A urine culture involves separating out the bacteria found in the urine sample from your cat.  These bacteria are then grown in the lab.  This test gives your vet some important information, namely, how many bacteria are present, what kind of bacteria it is, and which antibiotic will kill it. 

It takes at least a couple of days to do this test, as the bacteria need time to grow.

Why Do I Need To Give My Cat All Of The Antibiotic?

The good thing about antibiotics is that the cat urinary problems go away quickly.  However, this doesn’t mean the infection is gone.  Many cat owners make the mistake of not giving their cats the antibiotics for the entire ten or fourteen days.If you don’t give your cat all the antibiotics, he may be at risk for the infection to return. 

A more serious problem is that of antibiotic resistance.  More and more disease-causing bacteria are becoming resistant to common antibiotics.  One of the reasons is that people are not finishing up all the antibiotics, which encourages the bacteria which aren’t killed right away to keep growing.So you can understand that no matter how hard your cat makes it for you, it’s essential to finish the antibiotic treatment.

Natural Remedies For Pets Can Help

You may be interested in learning more about herbal pet remedies.  These remedies are safe and effective, and are easy to give every day to keep problems from cropping up.Buy them only from a reputable company that’s known for providing high-quality pet products.

Just click on any link in the article to learn how natural remedies can help prevent and treat cat urinary tract infections.  Your kitty will thank you!

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Feline Urinary Problems — A Guide For Every Cat Owner

Did you know that up to 1.5 percent of all cats in the US are plagued with feline urinary disease? That’s a lot of cats.

The severity of these problems can range from an uncomfortable cat bladder infection to a life-threatening cat urinary blockage. An an informed cat owner, you should always be on the lookout for cat urinary problems LINK http://tinyurl.com/yg4r28u.

What’s The Difference Between FLUTD And FUS?

Many cat owners are confused, and rightfully so, over the terms used to describe cat urinary problems. FLUTD is an acronym that stands for Feline Lower Urinary Tract Disease. FLUTD used to be known as FUS, or Feline Urologic Syndrome. Feline Urologic Syndrome has been renamed as Feline Lower Urinary Tract Disease to reflect that most of the urinary problems in cats happen in the lower urinary tract, which includes the bladder and urethra.

Overview Of Feline Urinary Disease

There are many different aspects to feline urinary problems. Here’s a quick overview of a few different conditions that can affect your cat’s urinary tract.

  • An inflammation of your cat’s bladder is known as cystitis.
  • If your cat’s urethra is inflamed, he has urethritis.
  • Idiopathic cystitis means that the cause of the bladder inflammation is not known.
  • Bladder stones in cats often occur as a result of feline urinary crystals.
  • A tumor in your kitty’s bladder may be the source of his problems, too.

You can see that it’s important to pinpoint what’s causing your cat’s urinary tract problems in order to treat his condition successfully.

Symptoms of Cat Urinary Problems

No matter what’s causing the feline urinary tract problems, your cat will show these symptoms:

  • Bloody urine
  • Urinating in places other than his litter box
  • Urinating often, but passing only small amounts of urine
  • Straining to urinate, or not being able to pass urine at all
  • Crying out in pain in the litter box

Any of these symptoms should be enough for you to take your cat to the vet for a check-up.

What Your Vet Will Do

Your vet will examine your cat and feel his bladder to see how full it is. The vet will also want to do a urinalysis to check for infection or feline urinary crystals, and may want to do a cat urine culture to see if bacteria are present. If your cat has a distended bladder, he may have a cat urinary blockage, which may lead your vet to take x-rays or do an ultrasound to look for cat bladder stones.

What Can You Do To Prevent Feline Urinary Disease?

There are many steps cat owners can take to prevent their cats from developing feline urinary tract problems. The most important thing you can do is to feed a high-quality canned food.

Because cats are supposed to get most of their water from their food, a kitty who eats only dry food is usually chronically dehydrated, which leads to his urine becoming concentrated. And concentrated urine can lead to cat bladder stones, and a whole host of problems that goes along with them.

Be sure your cat always has access to plenty of clean, fresh water, too.

Think about treating your cat with natural remedies for cats that support feline bladder health. This remedy should contain the homeopathic remedies Cantharis and Staphysagria, along with herbal extracts of barberry and uva ursi. These time-honored natural treatments work very well for bladder problems in humans, and the have been proven to work as well in cats.

Don’t let your cat suffer any longer from feline urinary problems.  Just click on any link in this article to find out how to prevent and treat this problem with a safe, effective natural remedy.

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A Guide To Feline Bladder Infections

Are you sick and tired of dealing with cat urinary problems?  You’re not the only one.  Cat urinary problems are probably the most common reason for a vet visit.In this article, we’ll look at veterinary treatments for a cat bladder infection, along with tips for home care.

Cat Bladder Infection Treatments

Your vet may want to do a urinalysis to check your cat’s urine for the presence of bacteria, blood, white blood cells, or crystals.  White blood cells indicate an infection, while crystals can show that bladder stones are forming.  If your vet suspects bladder stones, x-rays or an ultrasound may be the next step.

Most bladder infections are treated with antibiotics.  If your cat suffers from frequent feline bladder infections, your vet will want to do a urine culture to try to identify the bacteria involved.This will help your vet choose the correct antibiotic to treat the infection.

If your cat has a bladder infection, it’s very important to treat it.  If you don’t, it can progress to a feline kidney infection, cat bladder stones, or other cat urinary problems.

Home Treatments for Bladder Infections In Cats

Diet is very important for cats with urinary problems.Most cat owners are shocked to learn that if their cats eat only dry food, they’re probably chronically dehydrated.A consequence of a dehydrated cat is extremely concentrated urine, which has been linked to both cat bladder infection and cat bladder stones.

Some cats don’t drink enough water either.  This is because cats in the wild get most of their water from their prey, so they don’t have to drink a lot of water.  However this leads to big problems when cats are fed only dry food.

What can you do?  The best answer is to feed your cat a good-quality canned food.Canned food has a higher moisture level, nearly the same as what your cat would naturally eat. 

Be sure that your cat always has access to clean, fresh water.  You wouldn’t want to drink water that’s old and has stuff floating in it, and your cat won’t either.

Cranberry juice is an old remedy for preventing bladder infections in people.  However, most cats won’t drink it.  You can find cranberry capsules at the drugstore.  If you’re good at giving your cat pills, this can be an effective way to prevent and treat bladder infections in cats.  But if you’re like most cat owners, poking a pill down your cat’s throat is not high on your list of fun things to do.

How To Treat Cat Urinary Problems With Natural Remedies For Pets

Over the centuries, people have learned by trial and error which plants can help heal different health conditions.  Uva ursi and barberry are two herbal remedies for human urinary tract problems that have stood the test of time.

Homeopathic remedies for people with urinary problems are also effective and safe.  Cantharis and Staphysagris are proven natural remedies to support bladder health.

The question is, how to use these natural remedies on your cat.  It’s very important to find a product that’s specially formulated for pets, not people, so it’s safe for your kitty.  And of course, it has to be easy to give to your feline friend, or you won’t use it for long.

Don’t let your kitty suffer any longer with cat urinary problems.  Click on any link in this article to learn about a herbal pet remedy for cat bladder infection that’s not only safe, but easy to give, as well.

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Feline Bladder Infection Basics

Has your pet ever been blindsided by a cat bladder infection?  Don’t let this happen to your kitty.This article will answer your questions about cat bladder infection.

Your Cat’s Urinary Tract

Your cat’s urinary tract includes his kidneys, ureters, bladder, and urethra.  The kidneys are constantly filtering waste products out of your cat’s blood.  These waste products are carried out of the kidneys into the bladder by the ureters, tubes that run between your cat’s kidneys and his bladder.

The bladder is a muscular little bag that holds the urine until it leaves the body.  The urine passes out of the body through the urethra.

This system usually works with no problems, but sometimes trouble arises in the form of a bladder infection.

Cat Bladder Infection Symptoms

It may be hard to believe, but the bladder is a sterile environment, so bacteria aren’t normally found there.  However, if bacteria find a way in, they can cause a bladder infection in your cat.
Symptoms of a feline bladder infection include:

  • Urinating outside the litter box
  • Straining to urinate or having trouble passing urine
  • Crying out in pain when trying to urinate
  • Bloody urine
  • Drinking a lot of water

Inflammation in the bladder is what causes these symptoms, not the infection itself.  It’s possible for a cat to have a bladder infection without showing inflammation, especially if your cat is being treated with an anti-inflammatory medication like cortisone.

Be aware that if your cat can’t urinate at all, this is a blockage, which is a veterinary emergency.  Get your cat to the vet as soon as possible.

How Your Vet Treats Cat Bladder Infection

Your vet will probably prescribe antibiotics to clear up the infection.  Tests ordered may include a urinalysis to check for white blood cells and crystals in the urine, and a urine culture to identify which bacteria is causing the problem.  The results of the urine culture can help determine which is the best antibiotic to use.

Tips For Preventing Cat Bladder Infection

There are several ways to prevent your cat from getting a bladder infection in the first place.

First, try to feed your cat canned food.If your cat eats only dry food, he may be more susceptible to a bladder infection.  Cats are meant to get most of their water from their food, and moisture levels are much too low in dry cat food.

Second, your cat must have access to lots of pure, clean water at all times.  You may want to give him filtered water to be sure he’s not being exposed to any contaminants in his water.

Cat Bladder Infection Can Be Prevented With Natural Remedies For Pets

People have been using herbal and homeopathic remedies for bladder problems for centuries.”Are these remedies available for cats?” is the question many cat owners are asking.

The answer is yes.Do your homework and find a remedy that’s formulated for pets, not humans.  The remedy should include the herbs uva ursi and barberry, along with the homeopathic remedies Cantharis and Staphysagris.  These ingredients have a proven track record for treating bladder problems.

You’ll also want to find a remedy that’s safe enough to give your cat every day to prevent cat urinary problems.  It needs to be easy to administer, too.  You won’t use it for long if you have to force your cat to take a pill every day.  Be sure you purchase your remedies only from a company with a good reputation that stands behind its products.

Now it’s time for you to put these tips into action so your cat won’t suffer from cat urinary problems.  Click on any link in this article to learn how to help your furry friend.

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How You Can Use Natural Remedies For Cats To Prevent Feline Cystitis

Can natural remedies for cats help to prevent cat bladder infection?  Many cat owners who have had a long and frustrating battle with feline lower urinary tract disease, or FLUTD, wonder if natural remedies, along with holistic cat care, would help.

What Is Holistic Cat Care?

Holistic cat care involves looking at your kitty as a whole, as an alternative to focusing on her kidneys and bladder when she has feline lower urinary tract disease.Instead of just focusing on the symptoms of FLUTD, a holistic practitioner will want to know about your cat’s diet, and stress in her life.Natural remedies for cats are commonly used, too.

Cat Urinary Problems And Your Kitty’s Diet

Many cat owners don’t realize that there’s a direct link between their cat’s diet and cat cystitis.  Ads on tv and in magazines tell us repeatedly how great dry food is for our cats.  It has all the nutrients your cats needs, yes.  But that’s not the whole truth.

Here’s the problem.  In the wild, cats don’t drink much water, for the simple reason that they’ve been designed to get most of their water from their food.  All people and animals are over 90% water.  A cat who eats mice and other prey animals will almost completely satisfy her water requirements without having to drink any extra water.

It’s a different story for our kitties.  We want to do the best for them, so we feed them what we have been told is the best possible diet.  But dry cat food has a moisture content of less than 10%.  This is good for a long shelf life, but it’s not so good for your cat’s health.  A cat who eats only dry food is probably a chronically dehydrated cat, since it’s hard for her to drink enough water to make up the difference between what’s in her diet, and what her body needs.

Did you know that kidney failure is the leading cause of death in older cats?This often results from a lifetime of chronic dehydration.

It’s also been proven that the best way to prevent FLUTD is to increase the amount of water going through your cat.  A more than adequate water intake flushes impurities out of your cat’s body and his urinary system.  Be sure your kitty always has access to plenty of clean fresh water.

Cat Stress Is Linked To Feline Cystitis

Most of us would think that our cats lead a charmed life.Just laying around and sleeping all day sounds like a rough life, doesn’t it?

Well, maybe not.  Cats face a lot more stress than most of us realize.  Just being an indoor cat is a stress on an animal that’s meant to be outside hunting, and slinking around in the dark.  Add a lack of exercise, too much of the wrong food, not enough water, annoyances from other cats and pets, and just being cooped up inside, and you can see that maybe life isn’t quite as easy as you thought for your furball.

Feline interstitial cystitis has been linked to cat stress.  If your vet can’t find any reason for your cat’s bladder problems, maybe you should be looking for hidden stress in your cat’s life.

Natural Remedies For Cats

You may be interested in one of the many natural remedies for cats available now.  You should look for one that contains the herbs uva ursi and barberry, along with the homeopathic remedies Cantharis and Staphysagris.These remedies keep your cat’s urinary system working well by preventing feline cystitis.

Learn more about natural remedies for cats with FLUTD, and find the best place to buy these remedies, by clicking on any link in this article.

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Bladder Stones In Cats

Has this ever happened to you?  You find your cat in his litter box, straining to urinate, crying out in pain.  He can’t seem to pass any urine.Your vet informs you that your cat’s urinary problem is caused by cat bladder stones.

Bladder Stones In Cats

A bladder stone, or urolith, is made up from minerals present in your cat’s urine.  These minerals sometimes form crystals that stick together to form a stone in your cat’s bladder.The stones can vary in size from the size of a grain of sand, or they can be pebble sized.

Your feline friend may have only one stone, or he could have several dozen.

Why do the minerals form crystals?  There are several theories.  Your cat’s urine may be high in minerals due to his diet, or it may be because he has an infection in his bladder.

Cat bladder stones usually take several months to form, but they can grow in just a couple of weeks.

Symptoms Of Cat Urinary Problems

If your cat suddenly starts urinating in places other than his litter box, this can indicate that he’s having a urinary problem.Another sign of trouble is when your cat is licking his bottom more than he usually does.

Blood in the urine is another symptom to watch for.  It can sometimes be hard to see this in cats as they usually go in the litter box.  But if he’s urinating outside his box, you may see it.

If your cat is straining to urinate, or can’t pass any urine, this indicates a blockage.  A urinary blockage is a veterinary emergency, and you need to get your cat to the vet as soon as possible.

Treatment For Cat Bladder Stones

Your vet will probably take some x-rays or do an ultrasound to verify the presence of bladder stones.  Once they are diagnosed, you vet will probably outline two treatment options.

Your vet may suggest surgery to remove the bladder stones.  This is the fastest solution to the problem.

The second is to try to dissolve the stones with a special diet.Unless the stones are causing blockages, this can be a good treatment option for most cats.  However, it may not work well for all felines.  The major reason is that it’s a slower treatment.  It can take several weeks or months for the stones to dissolve.  During this time your cat will still be passing bloody urine, and may still be straining to urinate.

Diet therapy doesn’t work with all stones.  It’s helpful if the cat passes a stone so that you vet can analyze it to see what it’s made of.  Some types of stones can’t be dissolved.

Some cats won’t eat the special diet food.The downside is that unless this special diet is the only thing your kitty is eating, it won’t do any good.

Are Herbal Pet Remedies The Answer To Cat Bladder Stones?

Many kitty owners are turning to herbal pet remedies to help solve cat urinary problems.  These herbal and homeopathic remedies have been used by people across the world for centuries.  These remedies work to solve the underlying problem, instead of just treating the symptoms.

It’s very important to buy these herbal pet remedies only from reputable companies that specialize in producing them.  Do your homework and be sure that the company stands behind its products.  You want to be sure that you find remedies especially formulated for pets.

These natural remedies are inexpensive and readily available.Side effects aren’t a concern when using these proven remedies.

Now that you have this information, you can take action to prevent bladder stones in cats.

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Cat Urinary Tract Infection And Holistic Cat Care: Ten Benefits

If your kitty suffers from a recurring cat urinary tract infection, perhaps holistic cat care can help.  Here are ten benefits of using natural remedies for cats to treat feline cystitis.

What Is Holistic Cat Care?

Holistic medicine is a different way of looking at illness. Conventional medicine treats the symptoms of cat urinary problems, but doesn’t address why your pet is showing these symptoms.

Holistic practitioners, on the other hand, look at the animal as a whole, not just as a urinary tract. Holistic cat care follows the principle that your cat’s body is able to maintain a balance that protects her from disease and helps her to heal herself. If this balance is upset, the result is that your cat gets sick. The holistic approach is to restore this balance.

Our pets are exposed to many toxins in their food, from the environment, and even in the grooming products you use on them. Choosing to use only natural food and pet supplies will go a long way toward keeping your kitty healthy and protecting her from FLUTD, or feline lower urinary tract disease.

Ten Benefits Of Holistic Cat Care

  1. Feeding your cat a natural diet reduces her exposure to artificial coloring agents and preservatives which can upset her system. The first line of defense in your feline’s ability to fight off a cat urinary tract infection is good nutrition.
  2. A high-quality natural diet will prevent health problems like allergies, digestive problems, and cat urinary problems.
  3. Less stress in your cat’s life will help her to stay healthy. Observe her around the house to see if she has stressful situations in her life. Is she having territory issues with another cat? Is she lonely? Exercise can also help to lower her stress levels, too, as well as keeping her in shape.
  4. With excellent holistic cat care, your kitty will live a long and healthy life.
  5. If your pet doesn’t feel well, her quality of life won’t be as good. Natural cat care will improve your feline friend’s quality of life by helping her to stay healthy.
  6. Your kitty will heal faster in the event she suffers an injury or illness. Ingredients in natural remedies for cats are absorbed better, which aids in the healing process.
  7. By using natural pet care products, you’ll reduce your own exposure to toxins. Not only your cat, but you and your family are all exposed to the ingredients in the products used on you cat.
  8. Natural products are more earth-friendly than conventional remedies. They break down quickly, and don’t leave harmful residues in the environment,
  9. You’ll save time by not having to take your kitty to the vet as often. With holistic cat care, you’ll be treating the source of feline cystitis, not just the symptoms, which will help prevent new a cat urinary tract infection from developing.
  10. And, finally, you’ll be saving money in the long run by avoiding expensive products that can lead to more health problems for your cat.

The Best Natural Remedies For Cats

It can be overwhelming to try to choose the best natural remedy for your cat from the many on the market. Look for a product that’s specially formulated for pets, not people. You’ll need to find a long-established company that has a good reputation for producing high-quality pet remedies. Find out what other pet owners think of the product by reading testimonials.

If your cat is already struggling with cat urinary problems, click on any link in this article to learn more about safe and effective natural remedies for cats that can help solve your problem.

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Don’t Let Your Cat Be A Victim Of Cat Urinary Tract Infection

Are you concerned about cat urinary tract infection?  All cat owners should be aware of FLUTD, or feline lower urinary tract disease, to prevent their beloved companions from becoming victims of cat urinary problems.

What Cat Urinary Tract Infection Symptoms Should You Be Aware Of?

Sometimes the most obvious symptom is that your cat is urinating outside the litter box.  As wonderful as cats are, they don’t have advanced powers of reasoning.  If your cat is hurting every time he uses the litter pan, he thinks that somehow the litter pan is causing his pain.  In his little kitty mind, if he urinates someplace else, it won’t hurt when he goes.

Of course, we humans know it doesn’t work that way.  But if your cat suddenly stops using his litter box, it may not be a behavior issue.  It could be one of several cat urinary tract infection symptoms.

If you use clumping cat litter, be observant of the size of the clumps when you scoop or change his litter.  You should see a few large clumps.  A whole bunch of little clumps indicates that he can’t pass much urine at one time.  This is another symptom of cat urinary problems.

Bloody urine is another clue to watch for.  It’s a little harder to see in cats than it is in dogs.  However, if your cat is urinating outside his box, you may be more apt to notice it.

Be aware of your cat’s behavior in his litter box.  Is he crying out in pain when he tries to urinate?  Is he straining to pass urine?  Often cat owners mistake this for constipation.

Your feline should be visiting his litter pan several times during the day.  If he is urinating less and less, or stops completely, he may have a cat urinary blockage, which is a veterinary emergency.

Treatments For FLUTD

In order to treat a cat urinary tract infection, your vet will need to run several tests to find out what’s going on with your cat.  A urinalysis is necessary to determine if your cat has feline cystitis, or if he has feline bladder stones.  A cat urine culture will tell your vet which bacteria are causing the problem, and a sensitivity test indicates which antibiotic will work best.

A cat with a cat urinary tract infection is usually treated with antibiotics.  Bladder stones in cats are a common problem, too.  Your cat may have to eat a special diet so the stones can dissolve.  If your cat is blocked, he may need to be catheterized.

Can Cat Urinary Problems Be Prevented?

You can prevent your feline friend from becoming a statistic by taking these easy steps.

First, feed your cat a high-quality canned food.A cat in the wild doesn’t drink much water because he’s meant to get his water from his food.  When we take our cats out of a natural situation and feed them an unnatural diet of dry food with an extremely low moisture content, we’re setting them up for cat urinary problems.

Canned cat food has a moisture level of about 75%, which is much closer to a cat’s natural diet.If your kitty has always been fed dry food, he may not appreciate a change in his diet.Patience, time, and persistence are often needed to switch a cat over to canned food, since kitties are notoriously resistant to change.

A steady supply of clean, fresh water is a must, too.

Consider giving your feline friend natural remedies for cats that support bladder health.  Look for a remedy that’s made especially for cats.Deal only with a a company with a spotless reputation for producing high-quality pet remedies.

If your furry friend is already a victim of FLUTD, click on any link in this article to learn more about natural remedies for cats that can help treat and prevent this problem.

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Discover How Cat Urinary Problems Are Related To A Stressed Out Cat

Cat urinary problems can be frustrating to deal with.  If recurring FLUTD is a problem for your kitty, maybe stress has something to do with it, especially if your vet can’t find any reason for the repeated feline urinary problems.  If your kitty has been diagnosed with feline idiopathic cystitis, read on for answers.

What Is Feline Idiopathic Cystitis?

Your kitty is showing all the symptoms of feline cystitis.  He strains to urinate, but doesn’t pass much urine.  His urine may be bloody.  He’s obviously in pain when he’s using the litter box.  And he may be urinating in places other than his litter box. 

But when your vet examines him and runs a urinalysis and a urine culture, there’s no sign of a feline bladder infection.  There’s no bacteria in his urine, and bladder stones, tumors, and even an anatomical defect have all been ruled out. 

Feline idiopathic cystitis is the diagnosis when there doesn’t seem to be any reason for feline urinary problems.  It’s very difficult to watch your cat suffer with FLUTD symptoms when there doesn’t appear to be any reason for these cat urinary problems.Vets are seeing this condition more and more often in cats.

Is A Stressed Out Cat Related To Feline Idiopathic Cystitis?

Research is showing that this condition in cats is very similar to interstitial cystitis in people.  In both cats and people, some sort of stressful event often happens just before the cat or person suffers another bout of cystitis.

We aren’t always aware of the stresses our cats have in their lives.  It may be hard to believe, but being an indoor cat is stressful for felines.  We keep them inside for their own safety, but this is an unnatural environment for felines.  They do like to prowl around, especially at night.Hunting for food helps to keep them in shape because of all the exercise they get. 

We also feed them the wrong type of diet, which is another stressor.  Most dry cat foods are made mostly from corn, which is very high in carbohydrates.  Too much of the wrong type of food leads to obesity, feline diabetes, and other health issues. 

Most cat owners don’t realize how the low moisture levels in dry food impact their cats’ heatlh.  Cats are meant to get most of their water from their diet, which should be mostly meat-based.  A cat who is always fed dry food is more than likely chronically dehydrated.  Even if a cat who is fed dry food does drink water, it’s hard for him to drink enough.

The problem with a dehydrated cat is that water doesn’t pass through his body often enough to flush out toxins.  His urine is also concentrated.  Urine is caustic, and if it’s too concentrated, it can irritate the bladder, which often leads to FLUTD.If his urine is too concentrated, the result is high mineral levels, which can cause cat bladder stones and urinary blockage in cats.

This type of stress is low-level, but it can lead to problems over time. 

Your kitty may be under other types of stress.  Cats are very set in their ways, and any kind of change can be upsetting for them.  Moving to a new home, remodeling, adding another person or pet to the household, even a change in the weather, can all be stressful for your cat.  Your cat may be having problems with another cat in the home, too, especially if the other pet is more aggressive and seems to bother him a lot.

Helping Your Stressed Out Cat

It’s been shown that reducing stress in cats does reduce the frequency of FLUTD.It’s essential to reduce stress on your cat’s body by feeding him a diet more naturally suited to felines.

If your kitty is plagued with recurring feline urinary problems, natural remedies for cats may help.  Just click on any link in this article to learn more.

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Felne Urinary Problems — What You Need To Know

Did you know that up to 1.5 percent of all cats in the US are plagued with feline urinary problems? That’s a lot of cats.

Your cat may suffer from an uncomfortable cat bladder infection, or his life may be threatened by a cat urinary blockage. An an informed cat owner, you should always be on the lookout for cat urinary problems.

Is There A Difference Between FLUTD And FUS?

Many cat owners are confused, and rightfully so, over the terms used to describe cat urinary problems. FLUTD is an acronym that stands for Feline Lower Urinary Tract Disease. FLUTD used to be known as FUS, or Feline Urologic Syndrome. Feline Urologic Syndrome has been renamed as Feline Lower Urinary Tract Disease to reflect that most of the urinary problems in cats happen in the lower urinary tract, which includes the bladder and urethra.

Overview Of Feline Urinary Disease

There are many different aspects to feline urinary problems. Here’s a quick overview of a few different conditions that can affect your cat’s urinary tract.

  • Cystitis is an inflammation of your cat’s bladder.
  • If your cat’s urethra is inflamed, he has urethritis.
  • Idiopathic cystitis means that the cause of the bladder inflammation is not known.
  • Bladder stones in cats often occur as a result of feline urinary crystals.
  • if your kitty has a tumor in his bladder, it can cause problems, too.

You can see that it’s important to pinpoint what’s causing your cat’s urinary tract problems in order to treat his condition successfully.

Symptoms of Cat Urinary Problems

No matter what’s causing the feline urinary tract problems, your cat will show these symptoms:

  • Bloody urine
  • Urinating in places other than his litter box
  • Urinating often, but passing only small amounts of urine
  • Straining to urinate, or not being able to pass urine at all
  • Crying out in pain in the litter box

Any of these symptoms should be enough for you to take your cat to the vet for a check-up.

What Your Vet Will Do

Your vet will examine your cat and feel his bladder to see how full it is. The vet will also want to do a urinalysis to check for infection or feline urinary crystals, and may want to do a cat urine culture to see if bacteria are present. A distended bladder indicates that your kitty may have a cat urinary blockage, and your vet may want to take x-rays or do an ultrasound to look for stones in your cat’s bladder.

How You Can Prevent Feline Urinary Disease?

There are many steps cat owners can take to prevent their cats from developing feline urinary tract problems. The most important thing you can do is to feed a high-quality canned food.

Because cats are supposed to get most of their water from their food, a kitty who eats only dry food is usually chronically dehydrated, which leads to his urine becoming concentrated. And concentrated urine can lead to cat bladder stones, and a whole host of problems that goes along with them.

Be sure your cat always has access to plenty of clean, fresh water, too.

You might want to think about treating your kitty with  natural remedies for cats that support feline bladder health. This remedy should contain herbal extracts of barberry and uva ursi, along with the homeopathic remedies Cantharis and Staphysagria. These natural treatments have been used for many years to treat bladder infections in humans, and they work just as well in cats.

Click on any link in this article to learn how natural remedies for cats can help to prevent and treat feline urinary problems.

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