My 5yr old cat has a history of urinary problems, and she doesn't like the food that the vet recommends. Suggestions?

My 5yr old cat has a history of urinary problems, and she doesn't like the food that the vet recommends. Suggestions? The vet insists that she be fed only lls C/D Prescription Diet food.

Problem is, she doesn't like it, and will nearly starve herself rather than eating it. I have tried both dry and canned varieties of this, but she walks away from both. Has anyone else had this problem and found a solution that will be favorable to my cats continued good health?

Asked by montananewbie 51 months ago Similar questions: 5yr cat history urinary problems food vet recommends Suggestions Pets > Pets - Health.

Similar questions: 5yr cat history urinary problems food vet recommends Suggestions.

I have 13 years experience in cat shelters, and I have never seen a cat that readily eats ll's prescription diets. If you read the label, you will find that the quality is poor for the price. Vets continue to push ll's C/D for every cat with a urinary tract ailment.

I have read articles by feline nutrition experts stating that cats with a history of UTI's should be fed only canned food and no dry. Canned food contains adequate moisture so that the urine does not become too concentrated. Dry foods contain a lot of grain and carbohydrates, which are not a natural part of a cat's diet.

Stress is another contributing factor to UTI's. Declawed cats are more likely to have urinary tract problems due to stress. Male cats are more likely to suffer from urinary tract problems, but any cat that has been consistently fed poor quality food is at risk, as well as cats that are stressed by environmental or physical conditions.

I look forward to hearing from you and I hope your cat has no further problems. Here is a link to an article that may be of help: catsofaustralia.com/cat-urinarytract-pro... .

Try a different brand and/or a different vet You appear to have 2 problems: --a cat who won't eat --a vet who won't compromise Both are problems, and both I can sympathize with, because we've been there. The vet issue is easier to fix. You may as well try to teach the cat to sing before you'll be able to make it eat food it doesn't want.

First, is she truly starving? Cats are excellent little divas and can easily give the impression they've not been fed in days, when they've really been snacking bits here and there when you aren't looking. Is she losing weight, however?

Litter box, um, "accumulations" dropped? If not, she's probably not starving, she's just giving you a guilt trip. Before you give up entirely on have you tried adding in things to make it more appealing?

Small bits of cat food she does like? Tuna juice? A sprinkling of catnip?

Is the wet being served at room temperature and not cold from the fridge? Lls also makes several flavors of C/D -- with chicken, with seafood -- have you tried them all? Have you tried hand feeding her?

My parents have to do this for one of their cats, who has serious medical problems and doesn't like the only food she can have. Just like a toddler, with more petting and less "open your mouth and in comes the choo choo spoon". Failing that, there are other manufacturers who make veterinary diets for urinary problems.

Royal Canin is one. Different brands taste differently, so try something else and see if that works. Failing that, talk to the vet about trying another veterinary diet that perhaps isn't the preferred one, but might provide the desired benefits with a taste the cat likes better -- maybe S/D, for example.

Lastly, there are diets you can make at home for medical conditions that she might prefer, though it will be a lot more work for you. Here is one example; this may or may not be appropriate for your cat so ASK YOUR VET FIRST before trying homemade recipes found on the web or elsewhere (yes, there are cat cookbooks out there). If the vet is obstinate and insists the cat must eat C/D and nothing else, even if she loses weight and you are stressed, consider a second opinion.To give you an example, there are 3 vets in our own practice.

Of our 5 cats, in a perfect world they need 4 separate foods. The 1st vet with no cats (just dogs) insisted we do this. Yeah, right, as though everyone is only going to eat out of their own bowl, is going to ignore that what some other cat is eating smells better, etc. When we talked to a more senior vet in the practice, who has cats, he found one food while, not perfect, would do a reasonable job of meeting everyone's needs while allowing us to retain our sanity.

:-) Good luck! Sources: lots of family cats with medical conditions and decades of practice juggling them all .

Our cat likes Z/D (dry only) Our ten-year old cat (pictured as my icon when he was a kitty) had a couple of urinary blockages when he was little, and then spent many years on C/D (wet and dry). He developed an allergy to the dry C/D (diarrhea every time he ate it) and we had him on wet C/D only, which he liked. But it was a pain not being able to have him free-feed.

We started giving him Z/D (which is fine for urinary issues, but is formulated for cats with allergies) wet and dry. He HATED the wet Z/D (which, frankly, looked pretty disgusting to me, too), but he was very happy with the dry Z/D. So he now eats dry Z/D and wet C/D.

He's not crazy about the C/D (which they seem to have recently reformulated - he used to love it), but he does eat it. He loves the dry Z/D. Sources: Life with Latte .

Cranberries have been a natural homeopathy remidy for urinary tract infactions. What I persoanally do when my cat is having a similiar problem is stop by the local vitamin shop and pick up crushed cranberries. Open the little pill and pour it into the bottom of her dish.

Mix it in with some Pet Promise pet food (their slogan is "Let by products be bygones" because their pet food does not contain any animal byproducts). After it is mixed in I'll let her eat it and do that for a couple says straight. Urinary Tract problems cured and the kitty loves it!

:-) Sources: It is my opinion .

2 The C/D prescription diet food smells awful and is not too wonderful tasting...I don't blame the cat for not wanting to eat this stuff : and the ingredients are poor quality. The vet makes a 40% profit from the sales of Science diet and . A quality WET food and Water is the Key to Kidney disease in cats and dogs.Cat's with Struvites and Crystals / UTI s *** the main thing is to get plenty of water - or WET food - Many cats do well on the SoJo home cooking program... ( a WET food program)**you just add the fresh or lightly cooked meats...see so jo here....They also make a grain-free food for dogs with Allergies..We get free shipping to our door -http://www.sojos.com/index.aspx?affiliate=petnurseAlso, you can see Pet Nurse Marie here:7 year old cat with CRF ( renal failure) - diet and supplementshttp://en.allexperts.com/q/Alternative-Medicine-Pets-3721/2009/4/CRF-chronic-UTIs-feline.htmPuggle dog with kidney UTI and stones:http://en.allexperts.com/q/Dog-Food-Canine-3799/2009/4/Food-Allergies-Struvite-stones.htm .

The C/D prescription diet food smells awful and is not too wonderful tasting...I don't blame the cat for not wanting to eat this stuff : and the ingredients are poor quality. The vet makes a 40% profit from the sales of Science diet and . A quality WET food and Water is the Key to Kidney disease in cats and dogs.Cat's with Struvites and Crystals / UTI s *** the main thing is to get plenty of water - or WET food - Many cats do well on the SoJo home cooking program... ( a WET food program)**you just add the fresh or lightly cooked meats...see so jo here....They also make a grain-free food for dogs with Allergies..We get free shipping to our door -http://www.sojos.com/index.aspx?affiliate=petnurseAlso, you can see Pet Nurse Marie here:7 year old cat with CRF ( renal failure) - diet and supplementshttp://en.allexperts.com/q/Alternative-Medicine-Pets-3721/2009/4/CRF-chronic-UTIs-feline.htmPuggle dog with kidney UTI and stones:http://en.allexperts.com/q/Dog-Food-Canine-3799/2009/4/Food-Allergies-Struvite-stones.htm.

Attention Cat Lovers: My sister has a cat with urinary problems. Could you recommend a cat food with a low PH? " "Cat vomiting, not related to food or hairballs.

Seen Vet! Anybody have any suggestions?

Attention Cat Lovers: My sister has a cat with urinary problems. Could you recommend a cat food with a low PH?

Cat vomiting, not related to food or hairballs. Seen Vet! Anybody have any suggestions?

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