What To Give Cat For Uti

How To Treat A Cat’s Uti

This article was co-authored by Lauren Baker, DVM, PhD. Dr. Baker is a Veterinarian and PhD candidate in Comparative Biomedical Sciences. Dr. Baker received her Doctor of Veterinary Medicine from the University of Wisconsin in 2016, and went on to pursue a PhD through her work in the Comparative Orthopaedic Research Laboratory.There are 8 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. This article has been viewed 70,070 times.

UTI stands for urinary tract infection, an infection which can occur in felines as well as humans. Treating a UTI without the use of antibiotics is difficult, if not impossible. If you try to clear an infection and only partially succeed, you run the risk of suppressing the symptoms, whilst bacteria are still present. This could lead to a long-term infection that could potentially damage your cat’s health. A low grade urinary infection is a ticking time bomb, because the bacteria could travel up to the kidney and cause a more serious infection. When possible, always seek veterinary attention and an appropriate course of antibiotics.

A Brief History Of Antibiotics

Alexander Fleming developed the first antibiotic in 1928. It was penicillin, which makes this an important medication. Today it isn’t used as commonly. Fleming discovered penicillin growing as a mold in Fleming’s laboratory. It ended up saving the lives of many soldiers in World War II after Fleming discovered that the mold killed certain bacterial cultures.

Developed for humans to take, antibiotics are used in most species of animals. These types of medicines are still saving lives today. Some, like amoxicillin, are bactericidal, which means they kill the bacteria. Others stop the bacteria from growing, making them bacteriostatic.

What Is The Cost Of Treating A Uti In Cats

The cost to treat a UTI can run anywhere from a few hundred dollars into the thousands, depending on the severity of the infection and what needs to be done. Generally, the bigger the city you live in, the higher the costs for medical treatment.

Owners can expect costs to include:

• Office visits

• Possible surgery / hospitalization and other life-saving procedures.

As mentioned above, treating most UTIs is very straightforward, so expenses should be very reasonable.

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Can Cats Take Amoxicillin

You might be wondering if Fluffy can take amoxicillin, and, unless she’s allergic, she can. There are specific times with the medication might be most useful.

As mentioned before, amoxicillin isn’t used in cases where viruses or fungal infections are suspected. Studies have shown that amoxicillin is effective against bacteria found in the skin and mouth. As such, amoxicillin is readily prescribed for some very common maladies.

Diagnosis And Prescription Of Antibiotics For Cats

The antibiotics that the veterinarian prescribes for your cats urinary tract infection have to target the specific bacteria causing the infection. Veterinarians perform a urinalysis to identify the cause of the infection. Depending on the result, he will prescribe the most appropriate antibiotic. When prescribing antibiotics, your veterinarian will take into consideration the toxicity and the incidence of side effects. Most common antibiotics for UTI in cats are:

• Amoxicillin

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Can A Cat Get An Uti Without Antibiotics

UTI stands for urinary tract infection, an infection which can occur in felines as well as humans. Treating a UTI without the use of antibiotics is difficult, if not impossible. If you try to clear an infection and only partially succeed, you run the risk of suppressing the symptoms, whilst bacteria are still present.

What To Give A Cat For Uti

Amoxicillin for cats. You can use antibiotics like Amoxicillin or Clavamox for treatment of uti in cats. It is generally given up to 10-15 days to treat bladder infections. Even if you go to a vet, he/she also would recommend for antibiotics for some days in order to eliminate the infection from the body thoroughly.

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Best Overall: Evanger’s Evx Restricted: Urinary Tract

• Incorporates D-mannose ingredient known to decrease urinary tract infections

• Several inactive ingredients

Although most urinary health cat foods are designed to offer your cat complete nutrition without supplements, an additional supplement could be used in combination with non-prescription foods to give your cats health an extra boost in the right direction.

Under the Weather Urinary Support Soft Chews for Cats is just one of many supplements made by this brand. The ingredients include N-acetyl glucosamine that supports a normal pH balance in the urinary tract as well as D-mannose and cranberry extract that promote normal urinary tract health.

Research in humans and animals has shown that D-mannose, a common sugar, helps prevent bacteria from sticking to bladder and urinary tract, reducing and preventing the reoccurrence of bacterial urinary tract infections.

Made in Vermont, this supplement is veterinarian formulated and free of corn, artificial flavors and dyes. A bonus is that a portion of ever sale is donated to the Ruffy Rescue Fund that supports spay and neutering of pets in overpopulated areas of the U.S. and transportation to Vermont for adoption.

Evangers EVx Restricted Diet for Urinary Tract wet food earned our top spot based on a range of characteristics for each food to identify those that can help improve and prevent feline urinary problems. If you’re looking for a dry option, consider Wysong Uretic Dry Cat Food .

What Does A Urinalysis Look At

If your cat presents to your veterinarian with urinary signs, your veterinarian will first perform a urinalysis. The urinalysis can reveal so much important information about the urine when a UTI is suspected. Your veterinarian will look for the following:

• urine-specific gravity
• pH
• ketones
• glucose
• bilirubin
• blood
• protein

Once these levels are measured, the urine specimen is placed into a centrifuge and spun down to allow cells and other debris to accumulate at the bottom of the sample tube. That debris can then be evaluated, revealing the presence of red blood cells, white blood cells, bacteria, and crystals.

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My Cat Suddenly Began Going To The Litterbox Very Frequently A Sample Of Urine Revealed A Bladder Infection How Did This Happen

While urinary tract disorders are fairly common in cats, urinary tract infections are fairly uncommon. Cats with UTIs try to urinate very frequently, they may pass only small amounts of urine, they may strain to urinate, they may cry out or whine when urinating, and there may be blood visible in their urine. Urinating outside of the litterbox is also a red flag that something is wrong in the bladder. Finally, frequent licking around the rear end may signal that a UTI is present.

Generally, a UTI occurs when bacteria travel up the urethra and into the bladder. Urine in the bladder is supposed to be sterile, but once bacteria find their way to the bladder, the bacteria can grow and reproduce, causing the UTI. Some cats will develop bladder stones, with or without a UTI, and this opens the door for additional health issues.

How And Why Urinary Tract Infections Occur

UTIs can develop in any pet. A common reason they develop in cats is because of poorly balanced diets or environmental factors such as stress. Some cats are naturally predisposed to UTIs, like older female cats or cats with diabetes. With pets who get UTIs more frequently, youll notice the symptoms sooner and become accustomed to the treatments that work well, but UTIs should always be taken seriously.

While your cat cant tell you what they feel, common physical symptoms of a UTI include fever, backache, painful and frequent urination, and lethargy. Causes could be related to diet, but may also include immunological deficiency or fungal or protozoan infections. Other causes could be bladder stones, injuries, or tumors.

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Why Trust The Spruce

This piece was written by Lorraine Wilde who has had at least two cat companions in her home for the past 35 years including some special needs kitties. Two of her cats lived happy and healthily into their early 20s. Her current feline companions have been challenged by digestive and urinary tract health issues. When researching these brands, Lorraine evaluated the type and quality of the ingredients, the companys research and development of the food, and their business ethics.

Because she has only the highest of standards for what she feeds her pets, Lorraine recently switched to Evangers EVx Restricted Diet Urinary Tract and Evanger Organics Turkey and Butternut Squash canned food to help improve her older cats’ health issues. Lorraines family will consider adding the supplement Under the Weather Urinary Support Soft Chews for the benefits imparted by D-mannose.

Dr. Danielle Bernal is a Global Veterinarian with Wellness Natural Pet Food. She holds a Bachelors of Veterinary Science from University of Sydney and is a Member of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons in the U.K. She has more than 15 years experience in veterinary care, animal nutrition and related communications. She travels across the United States and other countries to educate pet parents on the role that premium, natural nutrition plays in pets health and longevity.

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Home Remedy To Treat Urinary Tract Infections In Cats

By Angie Schilling

Having six indoor cats can get very expensive. Feeding them, buying litter every week, trips to the vet. It all adds up. But I have discovered a great home remedy for treating urinary tract infections on cats and it works like a charm.

A few months ago, I noticed that my cat Ash had blood in his urine. The only reason I caught it was because I had changed litters and the new litter was almost white, and you could see the red from the blood right after he used the litter box. I knew he needed to go to the vet, but the soonest I could get him there was on Thursday afternoon, and it was only Monday morning. I did not want to make him suffer any more than he had to.

That morning at work, I told a coworker about it. She suggested I give him vitamin C, like her vet had recommended when her cat had a urinary tract infection. So on my break, I went to Wal-Mart and purchased a bottle of Spring Valley natural Vitamin C tablets, 500 mg. For 100 tablets, it was less than $4.00. My coworker said her vet said to break a 500mg tablet in half, then crush it up and place in wet cat food.

Tuesday morning I repeated the process. For the rest of the day, canned food and plenty of fresh water were available for Ash. The vet recommended having the cat eat only wet food to get more water into him. On Wednesday, another half of a tablet was added to the food. By Thursday morning when I scooped the litter boxes, there was not a sign of blood.

Symptoms Of A Uti In Cats

So, how do you know when your cat has a UTI? There are quite a few urinary problems that cats can develop, so its important to be sure that your cat has a UTI before you start treating it.

Other problems like lower urinary tract disease and bladder stones can sometimes have serious consequences and can even become life-threatening. These conditions may require professional help, but a simple UTI can often be effectively managed with home remedies.

If you see your cat straining to urinate or attempting to urinate but failing, then its likely caused by a UTI. Likewise, if your cat is crying or whining when they urinate and grooming excessively afterward, then its probably a UTI. Bloody urine is also a sign of a UTI.

While cats will always make use of the litter box under normal circumstances, theyll often urinate outside the litter box if they have a UTI. They might also become very lethargic or develop a fever or even a sore back.

If you observe one or more of these symptoms in your cat, then they likely have a UTI and you can start administering a natural home remedy to help relieve the issue.

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How Long Does Dog Uti Last

urinary tract

Yasemin Peusen

Here are a few symptoms that you might see with dogs who have kidney infections:

• Excessive urination or difficulty urinating.
• Excessive thirst.
• Blood in urine or discolored urine.
• Foul-smelling urine.
• Pain in the side or abdomen.
• Hunching over.

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Carlyn Grenzdorfer

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Signs Causes And Investigation

Feline lower urinary tract disease is not a specific disease, but rather is the term used to describe conditions that can affect the urinary bladder and/or urethra of cats.

Clinical signs for these disorders are all very similar so it is often difficult or impossible to determine the underlying cause without doing further investigations. Although many different diseases can affect the lower urinary tract, frustratingly, a number of cats develop a disease without any obvious underlying cause so called feline idiopathic cystitis or FIC. This form of disease appears to bear many similarities to a disease in humans called interstitial cystitis, but in both cats and humans it can be difficult to manage.

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Dont Ignore The Problem

Its important to address urinary tract disorders in cats because of the other health consequences of stress-related disease. If the problem is ignored in male cats, due to their anatomy a potentially lethal blockage can occur. Because idiopathic cystitis can cause crystals, the narrow urethra of male cats can get blocked by crystals being lodged in the tube. If this problem is not addressed, it can become deadly to the cat.

This is a multi-systemic disorder in which the urinary system is just one aspect that is affected, explains Dr. Gal. These cats have gastrointestinal and behavior problems as well.

The stress causes numerous problems, so to have a happy, healthy cat, be sure to address possible behavioral or environmental stressors.

If you have any questions or concerns about a possible urinary tract infection in your cat, contact your local veterinarian.

Keep Your Cat’s Urinary Issues At Bay

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• Why Trust The Spruce?

Many house cats struggle with a variety of conditions that affect their bladder and/or urethra, broadly known as urinary tract health. This can present as difficulty and pain when urinating, increased frequency of urination and/or blood in the urine. Cats may urinate outside the litter box, in corners, a sink, or a bathtub. While these issues can occur at any age, it is often seen in middle-aged, overweight cats that dont get enough exercise.

A cats diet can contribute to urinary pH imbalance or help improve it. Diets can vary in how they support urinary tract health, but its important to look for restricted amounts of minerals, such as magnesium and phosphorus, which can contribute to the development of urinary crystal and stone formation, explains Dr. Danielle Bernal, Global Veterinarian with Wellness Natural Pet Food. The crystals cause painful urination and the stones are painful to pass. They may cause urinary tract infections, blockages, or kidney problems.

Below are a few of the best urinary tract health cat foods available today.

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Cats Are Obligate Carnivores And Have No Physiological Requirement For Carbohydrates Which Are Kibble Diet

Your veterinarian may recommend special prescription diets to help dissolve the stones, but make sure to continue reading for other natural remedies to help your cats crystal issue if this is occurring, because many of these diets are kibble which is a root cause for your cats urine problems in the first place.

The crystals and inflammatory changes are what can lead to sludgy debris that can lead to a urinary obstruction, especially in male cats whose urethras are not as wide as a females urethra.

So if youre seeing your cat, especially male cat, go in and out of the litter box but not product any urine or very little urine, this is a symptom of a urinary tract infection and urinary blockage.

You must go to the vet right away since this is an emergency.