Painful Conditions of Poor Cat Urinary Tract Health 

Cat urinary tract health care remains one of the top challenges facing caring cat owners. Be on the lookout for the symptoms cats show when they have poor cat urinary tract health.

In fact, male cats are more susceptible to one condition more so than female cats — urinary stones.

5 Conditions of Poor Cat Urinary Cat Health

1. Incessant licking in the genital area
2. Blood in the urine
3. Urinary(Bladder) stones also called uroliths
4. Urethral obstruction
5. Death

The only way your cat knows how to deal with an itch or burning sensation in his genital area is to lick and lick and lick. One clue to a urinary tract infection in cats is that you find urine on the floor, or on tile or in the bathtub — a blessing because you can see it.

Blood may be visible in the urine. However, if you don’t see any blood that doesn’t mean its not there. A trained eye using a microscope will note if there is blood in the urine.

Urinary stones are a huge reason to alert on changes in your cat’s behavior pointing out urinary tract infections in cats. These stones are mineral crystals formed in the bladder.

When the stones leave the bladder, they travel down the urethra tube to exit the body. The stones become lodged in the urethra and block the passage of urine. This problem occurs more in male cats than females as the male urethra tube is narrower. Smaller stones cause a blockage where the female’s wider urethra allows the smaller crystals to pass through.

Causes

It was once thought that certain minerals in cat food contributed to urinary stones. Bacteria can also lead to poor cat urinary tract health.

Today, veterinarians pay more attention to the ph level of the cat’s urine. Ph is the measurement of the acid or alkaline level of the urine. Veterinarians recommend the ph level be around 6.0 to 6.5.

Prevention

Ask your vet to check the ph level in your cat’s urine.

Place clean, fresh water bowls throughout the house and outdoors so that water is very available to your cats. Provide smaller meals more frequently. Minimize major routine changes.

If your cat’s urinary tract infection has you baffled read on. Our cats are amazing creatures. When they get sick, they deal with it, and we don’t know they are sick. But sometimes they do display some odd behavior.

Sometimes they may squat on the edge of the litter box for a very long time and not produce anything. Then an hour later you may find a puddle of urine on the bathroom floor. Even more bizarre you may find cat urine in the shower stall. When you inspect it further, you find it has blood in it.

The primary cause of a urinary tract infection is when bacteria get inside the bladder. This results in an infection that inflames the bladder and results in a urinary tract infection. Advanced cases include bladder stones which can cause a cat urinary blockage. This can turn fatal fast.

After cat bladder infections have occurred, the animals need help maintaining a natural flow of urine and get the proper nutrients to live healthily. As you can imagine, this is quite important.

If you ignore your cat’s urinary health, she can quickly digress into another cat illness or kidney problems. There are effective natural remedies to help support the functions of the kidney and bladder.

A Pet Sitter colleague of mine Kelley Stewart owner of Sit Stay Play  also wrote a great blog about Litter Box Problems? Could be Urinary Tract Infection click here to read more

Need a cat sitter?  Call Love and Kisses Pet Sitting 704-763-9857

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