How to Prevent Urinary Tract Infections in Cats
Keep your cat at a healthy weight., Give your cat canned cat food., Be sure your cat always has fresh, clean water., Provide enough litter boxes for your cat or cats., Minimize stress to your cat.
Step-by-Step Guide
-
Step 1: Keep your cat at a healthy weight.
Obese cats tend to have more problems than normal weight cats.
Use the Body Condition Scoring system to determine if your cat is a healthy size.
These charts rank your cat on a scale of 1 to 9, to determine if your cat is overweight, underweight, or at the ideal weight.
The scale considers:how easy it is to feel the ribs how obvious the waist and abdominal tuck are how much excess fat is below the skin how much muscle mass is present -
Step 2: Give your cat canned cat food.
Canned cat food more closely resembles the natural diet (rodents, birds) of cats and has more protein and moisture than dry food.
If your cat is hooked on dry food, consider gradually adding small amounts of canned food and see if you can get your cat to transition to all or mostly all canned diet.
If canned food just will not go over with your cat, try offering small amounts of cooked beef or chicken in the form of muscle or organ meat to entice them.
Do not supplement a commercial diet with medicines that promote urinary acidity.
Too much of a “good thing” will cause an imbalance, leading to new problems.
Talk to your vet before giving your cat any urinary medications. , Water is key to a happy urinary tract.
Keeping the urine at the proper pH will help prevent crystal and stone formation in the urine.
By feeding a balanced diet with plenty of water, the crystals are flushed out of the bladder.
This prevents urinary problems.
Some cats will drink more water if it's flowing, so providing a kitty water fountain may help them consume more water than if it is just in a bowl.
If your cat uses a bowl, be sure to clean it regularly.
Have multiple places for your cat to drink.
If you have more than one cat, sometimes dominance over certain food and water dishes is an issue. , The rule is to have 1 more litter box than the number of cats in your home when practical.
So if you have 2 cats, you should have 3 litter boxes.
If your cat eats canned food, she'll probably be drinking more water and urinating more.
You might need to get bigger litter boxes and you may need to clean them more often.Check litter boxes frequently and remove waste as soon as you see it.
Wash the litter boxes with soap and water every time you change the litter. , Some cats are just more nervous and worked up than other, more mellow cats.
Anxiety does seem to play a part in urinary issues with cats, so try to keep changes in your cat's routine to a minimum.Try to feed her at the same time everyday.
Be aware that a change in the weather or a move to a new home could trigger a problem with a cat's urinary tract. -
Step 3: Be sure your cat always has fresh
-
Step 4: clean water.
-
Step 5: Provide enough litter boxes for your cat or cats.
-
Step 6: Minimize stress to your cat.
Detailed Guide
Obese cats tend to have more problems than normal weight cats.
Use the Body Condition Scoring system to determine if your cat is a healthy size.
These charts rank your cat on a scale of 1 to 9, to determine if your cat is overweight, underweight, or at the ideal weight.
The scale considers:how easy it is to feel the ribs how obvious the waist and abdominal tuck are how much excess fat is below the skin how much muscle mass is present
Canned cat food more closely resembles the natural diet (rodents, birds) of cats and has more protein and moisture than dry food.
If your cat is hooked on dry food, consider gradually adding small amounts of canned food and see if you can get your cat to transition to all or mostly all canned diet.
If canned food just will not go over with your cat, try offering small amounts of cooked beef or chicken in the form of muscle or organ meat to entice them.
Do not supplement a commercial diet with medicines that promote urinary acidity.
Too much of a “good thing” will cause an imbalance, leading to new problems.
Talk to your vet before giving your cat any urinary medications. , Water is key to a happy urinary tract.
Keeping the urine at the proper pH will help prevent crystal and stone formation in the urine.
By feeding a balanced diet with plenty of water, the crystals are flushed out of the bladder.
This prevents urinary problems.
Some cats will drink more water if it's flowing, so providing a kitty water fountain may help them consume more water than if it is just in a bowl.
If your cat uses a bowl, be sure to clean it regularly.
Have multiple places for your cat to drink.
If you have more than one cat, sometimes dominance over certain food and water dishes is an issue. , The rule is to have 1 more litter box than the number of cats in your home when practical.
So if you have 2 cats, you should have 3 litter boxes.
If your cat eats canned food, she'll probably be drinking more water and urinating more.
You might need to get bigger litter boxes and you may need to clean them more often.Check litter boxes frequently and remove waste as soon as you see it.
Wash the litter boxes with soap and water every time you change the litter. , Some cats are just more nervous and worked up than other, more mellow cats.
Anxiety does seem to play a part in urinary issues with cats, so try to keep changes in your cat's routine to a minimum.Try to feed her at the same time everyday.
Be aware that a change in the weather or a move to a new home could trigger a problem with a cat's urinary tract.
About the Author
Marie Torres
Professional writer focused on creating easy-to-follow creative arts tutorials.
Rate This Guide
How helpful was this guide? Click to rate: