Feline Lower Urinary Tract Disease
Symptoms of Lower Urinary Tract Disease include: Bloody or blood tinged urine Frequent, small
urinations (the cat seems to be going in and out of the litter box repeatedly) Straining to urinate (often
misinterpreted as constipation) Vocalizing during voiding Excessive licking at genitalia Urination in
inappropriate locations, often in a bathtub or sink Not producing urine It is a medical emergency
when any male cat has ceased to urinate. Contact your veterinarian immediately. These symptoms
may be readily apparent in cats that live indoors. They may easily be missed in cats that live
primarily outdoors.
Although the incidence of this syndrome occurs equally in female and male cats, it is more life
threatening to the male cat. Because the male urethra gets progressively smaller in diameter as it
progresses down the penis, debris formed inside the bladder can cause an obstruction and make
the male cat unable to pass any urine. Once a male cat becomes obstructed, he rapidly progresses
to severe depression, vomiting, coma, and death.
Your veterinarian can diagnose urinary tract infections by performing a urinalysis and physical exam.
If you suspect your cat is suffering from a urinary tract problem, call him/her immediately. They may
want to perform a urinalysis and physical exam as soon as possible. It is preferred that you bring a
urine specimen with you from home. It is not necessary to have a sterile sample of urine for the initial
urinalysis. Collect urine by: Empty the litter box, rinse with hot water, dry, and replace the litter with
aquarium gravel or a product called Nosorb which we carry here at
our office.
Neither Nosorb nor aquarium gravel will absorb urine. You cannot collect usable urine sample with
scoopable litter! Pour the urine specimen into a clean container. Place the container in the
refrigerator until you leave for your appointment.
In some cases, it may be necessary for us to do a much more extensive work-up to pin a diagnosis.
This may include blood work, urine cultures, x-rays (with or without contrast studies), ultrasonography
and surgery, including biopsy.
Treatment may include a variety of drug protocols, dietary changes, lifestyle changes or possible
surgery. Often they will prescribe antibiotics for most cats with symptoms of a bacterial infection. For
other cats, we may perform a urine culture to determine if there are any resistant organisms.
However, today urinary bacterial infections in cats is not as common. Instead, we are seeing more
feline bladder wall inflammation which gives the same symptoms.
Pet food has improved dramatically in the last few years and many
foods today are extremely good for maintaining healthy urinary tracts. Today
about 30-40% of urinary tract disease can be traced to diets that have produced
stones or urinary calculi that may irritate the bladder wall or cause an
obstruction as it attempts to pass out the urethra. Some cats on certain diets
may produce an excessive amount of crystallization in the urine. In general we
recommend Royal Canin feline
diets These diets are formulated to decrease the likelihood of crystal
formation, keep the urine acidified, and encourage water drinking. Although a dry diet alone will not
contribute to Lower Urinary Tract Disease, we recommend cats that have chronic problems with
urinary tract disease be fed mostly canned food in an effort to increase the cat's water consumption
(canned food is 75% water), flushing the bladder more frequently.
Another major factor in causing Lower Urinary Tract Disease is stress. This syndrome is called
interstitial cystitis and is characterized by an inflammatory reaction in the wall of the bladder. This
syndrome currently is not completely understood. We know that it is very painful and accounts for
20-40% of the cases that we see. There are two types of stress that contribute as factors: inter-cat
stress such as sharing litter boxes, food dishes, and territory; and human-cat stress. We see an
increased amount of Lower Urinary Tract Disease associated with the holiday schedules.
Remember cats are routine oriented animals. When we humans change our schedule or
behavior, our cats can sometimes react poorly to these changes. If your cat is suffering interstitial cystitis, we
will suggest a few lifestyle changes.
Small number of cats with Lower Urinary Tract Disease may have a problem with the bladder itself.
They may have a congenital defect in the bladder wall. There may be ployps polyps growing from
the bladder wall. Some cats may have a tumor of the bladder wall. Ten to fifteen percent of cats have
a stone or bladder calculus within the bladder. These cats most often require surgery to remove the
stone. We always have these stones analyzed in an effort to prevent their recurrence.
Many cats recover rapidly, within 3-5 days of a bout of Lower Urinary Tract Disease, but some cats
have chronic problems that are frustrating to you, your cat and to us! When this happens, we ask that
you frequently bring us follow-up urine specimens so that we can monitor the progress of your cat's
urinary tract.
Prevention of Lower Urinary Tract Disease can be accomplished by following some basic
suggestions: Establish a routine for cats and stick to it. New cats should be brought into a household
very slowly and carefully. If your life changes, try to keep your cats schedule intact or slowly change
it. Keep holiday stress to a minimum. Feed your cat a high quality and consistent diet. Cats don't
need variety, and the stress of constant diet changes can contribute to disease. Cats that are at risk
or have a history of urinary tract disease should be fed an increased proportion of canned food.
Keep you cats slim and trim. Obesity greatly increases the risk of urinary tract disease. Exercise your
cat! Develop game times on a daily basis. Activity encourages your cat to empty its bladder and
any debris in the urine with be well mixed and easier to pass. Encourage your cat to empty its
bladder frequently. Make sure the litter box is clean. We recommend scoopable litter so that it is
convenient for us humans to clean the box once or even twice per day. Have more than one box in
different locations in the house. Multiple cat households need a number of litter boxes. Scoopable
litter boxes allow you to monitor the size of the daily urination. Normal is golf ball to tennis ball sized
urine balls. If the urine balls suddenly become smaller (or larger) it may mean trouble! Some cats in
multiple cat households may need some private litter box time. Many cats like to have a "room" of
their own and enjoy spending time alone!
There is still a lot to learn about cats and Lower Urinary Tract Disease. Veterinarians are making
progress and we hope that these recommendations will keep your cat healthier and you happier with
your best friend.
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