Urinary Tract Infection in cats

[Steph_D]

I just got Highway home from the vet. She has a urinary tract infection, the poor baby

I know there's cat food out there to help with them, but is one better than the other? She's already eating a cat food for UTI and obviously that didn't help her any. The vet said they all work about the same. Any recommendations? Is there something out there for UTI and hairballs, which my other cat gets often?

Now I have to give her antibiotics and she HATES medicine, but it's gotta be done.

 

[Miniv]

Steph, Once the infection is taken care of with antibiotics, we've had good luck using Purina One - Urinary Health Care dry food. For canned food, Friskies makes a "special diet" brand for the same problem.

We need to feed the canned for our older fixed male, "Ted", because he's lost all but one of his teeth!

 

[mininik]

If you're up to it I suggest you try the raw prey model diet. Many (most) ingredients in processed cat food are unnecessary and can cause problems of their own. Cats are obligate carnivores and thrive on what they're supposed to be eating: MEAT (organs and bones).

 

[Dona]

Just a thought here....have you changed anything at home that may have upset your cat?

We used to board our cat whenever we went on vacation. Everytime we got back, about a week later, she would have a full blown UTI. This happened 3 times in a row (always right after being boarded). So, we figured out that for some reason, she didn't like using the litter box at the boarding kennel. It wasn't covered like hers at home, so maybe she didn't like that it wasn't "private"...or maybe it was the litter, or maybe just the fact that there were other cats close by. Regardless...she wasn't eliminating as often as she should, which resulted in the UTI. Now, we leave her at home where she's comfortable & just have our sons check on her every couple of days.....and she hasn't had a UTI since.

 

[Steph_D]

Thanks all, for the advice. Dona, actually I have changed something. I changed her "normal" litter pan to a covered cat box. Maybe I'll go back to the normal pan and see if that helps her at all. She's currently eating 9 Lives for UTI and the vet said that's "good enough" to help her. Other than this, she's been fat and sassy since summer.

Thanks again!