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A feline Urinary
Tract Infection (UTI) often causes cats to stop using their litter
boxes. This is a very painful condition for kitty. Using her logic, she
thinks that because it hurts to use the litter box, maybe she should
urinate someplace else. It might not hurt to urinate in another part of
the house. And so the problems begin...
Feline UTIs are
quite preventable and treatable. Your vet will prescribe antibiotics to
clear up the infection. But the deeper cause is most often the food
your cat eats.
Most commercial
pet foods contain only meat by products and carbohydrates. Cats are
pure carnivores - they must eat meat to stay healthy. Cats don't need
carbohydrates, but unfortunately from their youngest days, they're fed
commercial pet foods that are chock full of everything but meat. Many
experts believe carbohydrates contribute to feline UTIs.
Along with the
antibiotics, your vet will often prescribe special cat food to prevent
UTIs.
But, cats being
the creatures they are sometimes reject what's good for them. This
doesn't mean you have to despair and give up, because many pet food
manufacturers sell high quality cat food that doesn't promote feline
UTI episodes.
One diet option
that is very successful in stopping feline UTIs is a raw meat diet for
your cat.
Raw meat! Why?
Because feral cats
exist on whatever they can hunt down. Wild kitties subsist on protein -
mice, moles, rats, and any other creature they can kill and eat.
Because ferals eat pure protein, they usually don't end up with feline
UTIs.
I like the idea of
a raw food diet, but there are special considerations you must know.
First, raw food is
very prone to spoiling quickly, so whatever amount you put out for your
cat must be eaten in one session. This will take some guessing on your
part to determine a consistent amount to thaw out for each meal.
Next, you need to
be sure the quality of the raw food you buy for kitty is pure and safe,
and not already spoiled. Check around your neighborhood for merchants
who specialize in raw pet diets. They purchase extremely high quality
raw rabbit, turkey, chicken, duck, and mutton.
But the real joker
in the deck regarding a raw food diet is kitty herself. Will she even
eat raw food? Soon after diagnosing my cat Scout with a feline UTI, I
did the research on raw food and decided to try to switch her over. I
found a local pet food store that sold raw meat. I picked up a small
amount of rabbit and chicken for her.
Well, I got home
all excited and put the raw chicken down for Scout. I crossed my
fingers, hoping this would relieve me of trying to do more research on
cat food that wouldn't infect her urinary tract.
Scout crouched
over the chicken, sniffed it and gagged! Then she gave me a look of
pure misery and slunk away.
Her step brother
JJ wolfed it down and asked for more. Sheesh!
OK...back to the
drawing board! I then fell back on Plan B for getting Scout to eat
better and prevent future feline UTI problems. I'll share that with you
next week.
If you think you'd
like to try a raw food diet for your kitty, please consult with your
vet before doing so. Follow her advice and instructions on how to
transition your cat safely. And don't forget - the biggest veto resides
with your kitty!
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