Are you sick and tired of dealing with feline bladder infections?Join the crowd.  Cat urinary problems are probably the most common reason for a vet visit.In this article, we’ll look at veterinary treatments for a cat bladder infection, along with tips for home care.

Cat Bladder Infection Treatments

Your vet may want to do a urinalysis to check your cat’s urine for the presence of bacteria, blood, white blood cells, or crystals.  White blood cells indicate an infection, while crystals can show that bladder stones are forming.  If your vet suspects bladder stones, x-rays or an ultrasound may be the next step.

Most bladder infections are treated with antibiotics.  If your cat suffers from frequent feline bladder infections, your vet will want to do a urine culture to try to identify the bacteria involved.Your vet needs this information to decide which antibiotic will work the best.

If your cat has a bladder infection, it’s very important to treat it.  If you don’t, it can progress to a feline kidney infection, cat bladder stones, or other cat urinary problems.

Home Treatments for Bladder Infections In Cats

Diet is very important for cats with urinary problems.  If your cat eats only dry food, you probably don’t realize that chances are good that he’s chronically dehydrated.If your cat is dehydrated, his urine is very concentrated, which can cause a cat bladder infection or cat bladder stones.

Some cats don’t drink enough water either.  This is because cats in the wild get most of their water from their prey, so they don’t have to drink a lot of water.If you feed your cat only dry food, you may be setting him up for big problems.

What can you do?  The best answer is to feed your cat a good-quality canned food.Canned food has a moisture level closer to what a cat would eat in the wild.  

Be sure that your cat always has access to clean, fresh water.  You wouldn’t want to drink water that’s old and has stuff floating in it, and your cat won’t either.

Cranberry juice is an old remedy for preventing bladder infections in people.  However, most cats won’t drink it.  You can find cranberry capsules at the drugstore.  If you’re good at giving your cat pills, this can be an effective way to prevent and treat bladder infections in cats.  But if you’re like most cat owners, poking a pill down your cat’s throat is not high on your list of fun things to do.

Natural Treatments For Cat Urinary Problems

Over the centuries, people have learned by trial and error which plants can help heal different health conditions.  Uva ursi and barberry are two herbal remedies for human urinary tract problems that have stood the test of time. 

Safe, gentle homeopathic remedies are very effective for bladder problems in people.  Cantharis and Staphysagris are proven natural remedies to support bladder health.

The question is, how to use these natural remedies on your cat.  It’s very important to find a product that’s specially formulated for pets, not people, so it’s safe for your kitty.  And of course, it has to be easy to give to your feline friend, or you won’t use it for long.

Take charge of your cat’s health by finding a product that’s effective and easy to use, and so safe that you can give it to your cat every day. This is the easiest way to prevent feline bladder infections.

Darlene Norris has combined her long-time interest in natural healing with her experience working at a vet clinic to bring you her new website, Natural Pet Urinary Health.  Here you can discover how herbal and homeopathic remedies can help prevent and treat feline bladder infections.  Find the best place to buy these remedies at http://naturalpeturinaryhealth.com

feline lower urinary tract disease

This is a scary thought.  If your male cat has had FLUTD, or Feline Lower Urinary Tract Disease, he’s at risk for developing a cat urinary blockage.Don’t delay emergency veterinary treatment for this life-threatening complication, as your cat can die within 36 hours. 

What Are the Signs Of Urinary Blockage In Cats?

It can be hard for cat owners to tell if a cat urinary blockage is present.  The symptoms are pretty much the same as for a feline urinary tract infection:  straining, not able to pass much or any urine, crying in the litter box, urinating in places other than the litter box. 

Your vet will diagnose this by feeling your cat’s belly for a distended bladder.If your cat’s bladder is normal, it will be soft and small when it’s empty.  A cat with a urinary blockage will have a hard bladder about the size of a peach.You can imagine how much this hurts your cat.

It’s also dangerous.  When a cat can’t empty his bladder, his kidneys stop filtering waste products out of the blood and making urine because it can’t go anywhere.  When this happens, toxins start building up in your cat’s body, which will kill him within a few days.

What Causes A Cat Urinary Blockage?

Bladder stones are the culprit.  These stones form from minerals present in your cat’s urine.Stones ranging in size from grains of sand to pea gravel are formed when minerals in the urine crystallize.  Your cat may have only one stone, or he could have dozens. 

A male cat has a very long, narrow urethra (the tube that carries urine from the bladder outside the body).  If he has even a few tiny cat bladder stones, it’s very easy for him to develop a urinary blockage.

How Is A Urinary Blockage In Cats Treated?

Your vet may be able to get the blockage out by putting pressure on your cat’s bladder.  Sometimes this works, but usually the cat will need to be catheterized. 

If urinary toxins build up in your cat’s system, the result can be vomiting and loss of appetite, along with heart rhythm irregularities.  Your cat will probably be dehydrated too.Fluids may be given by IV or under his skin. 

Your cat may need to stay at the animal hospital for several days, until the catheter can be removed. 

Home Treatment

When you bring your cat home, you’ll need to feed him a special diet.The formation of mineral crystals can be avoided by feeding a diet lower in magnesium.To prevent another blockage from happening, he’ll need to eat this special food for the rest of his life.

It’s also important to make sure he has plenty of fresh clean water available.  The more water he drinks, the more dilute his urine will be.  This helps to prevent cat bladder stone formation.

Homeopathic and herbal remedies are now available for cat urinary problems.  Probably the best way to prevent this problem in the first place, or to keep it from happening again, is to put your cat on one of these remedies.

Take action now to prevent a urinary blockage in cats from happening to your feline friend.

Darlene Norris has combined her long-time interest in natural healing with her experience working at a vet clinic to bring you her new website, Natural Pet Urinary Health.  Here you can discover how herbal and homeopathic remedies can help prevent and treat feline bladder infection that can lead to urinary blockage in cats.  Find the best place to buy these remedies at http://naturalpeturinaryhealth.com

If you’ve ever had any experience with a cat bladder stone, you want to know why this happened to your cat and how to prevent it from happening in the future.  By the time you’ve finished reading this article, you’ll have a better understanding of bladder stones in cats.

Why Do Bladder Stones In Cats Happen?

Researchers have several theories on this.The general consensus is that high mineral levels in the urine cause the formation of stones.  This can be due to a bladder infection or from his diet.  When the mineral levels get too high, crystals form.  These crystals grow and form stones in your cat’s bladder.  These stones can be very small, about the size of a grain of sand, or they can grow to the size of a small pebble.

Passing urine can be very difficult for your cat if one of his ureters (the tube that runs between his kidney and his bladder) or his urethra is blocked by a stone. 

Tips For Preventing Bladder Stones In Cats

The most important thing you can do is to start feeding your cat a high quality canned food.  Cats who eat dry food exclusively are more prone to developing bladder stones because they are usually chronically dehydrated.  Cats are made to get most of their water from their prey.  A mouse is over 90% water, so a cat in its natural environment doesn’t need to drink as much water.

Most canned foods have a moisture level of about 78%.  You can see that feeding your cat canned food will help prevent him from becoming dehydrated.If your cat is always dehydrated, his urine is more concentrated, which can lead to bladder stones forming.

Your cat needs access to lots of clean fresh water.  It’s best to give him filtered water to be sure it’s pure.  A cat that drinks plenty of water will have dilute urine, which is helpful in preventing bladder stones.

Some cat owners give their cats a supplement containing cranberry.  Cranberry is great for making the urine more acidic and preventing the formation of bladder stones.  It also helps to prevent cat bladder infections, too.

Herbal Pet Remedies Can Help Prevent Cat Urinary Problems

People have been using herbal remedies like uva ursi and barberry to treat and prevent urinary problems for centuries.The popularity of homeopathic remedies has also increased. 

Now cat owners are asking if these herbal pet remedies can help their cats.  The answer is yes.  The advantages of these remedies is that not only are they safe and effective, but they’re inexpensive, and don’t have any side effects.

However, it’s extremely important to buy products that are formulated especially for animals.  You’ll want to purchase herbal pet remedies only from reputable companies that stand behind their products.

Natural remedies for cat urinary problems can help treat and prevent the problem of cat bladder stones.  This is an easy way to keep your kitty healthy.

Darlene Norris has combined her long-time interest in natural healing with her experience working at a vet clinic to bring you her new website, Natural Pet Urinary Health.  Discover how herbal and homeopathic remedies can help treat cat bladder stones, and find the best place to buy these remedies at http://naturalpeturinaryhealth.com