GoGoKitty’s Cat Secrets

Did you know that up to 1.5 percent of all cats in the US are plagued with feline urinary problems? That’s a lot of cats.

Your cat may suffer from an uncomfortable cat bladder infection, or his life may be threatened by a cat urinary blockage. An an informed cat owner, you should always be on the lookout for cat urinary problems.

What’s The Difference Between FLUTD And FUS?

Many cat owners are confused, and rightfully so, over the terms used to describe cat urinary problems. FLUTD is an acronym that stands for Feline Lower Urinary Tract Disease. FLUTD used to be known as FUS, or Feline Urologic Syndrome. Feline Urologic Syndrome has been renamed as Feline Lower Urinary Tract Disease to reflect that most of the urinary problems in cats happen in the lower urinary tract, which includes the bladder and urethra.

Overview Of Feline Urinary Disease

There are many different aspects to feline urinary problems. Here’s a quick overview of a few different conditions that can affect your cat’s urinary tract.

• An inflammation of your cat’s bladder is called cystitis.
• If your cat’s urethra is inflamed, he has urethritis.
• Idiopathic cystitis means that the cause of the bladder inflammation is not known.
• Bladder stones in cats often occur as a result of feline urinary crystals.
• if your kitty has a tumor in his bladder, it can cause problems, too.

You can see that it’s important to pinpoint what’s causing your cat’s urinary tract problems in order to treat his condition successfully.

Symptoms of Cat Urinary Problems

No matter what’s causing the feline urinary tract problems, your cat will show these symptoms:

• Bloody urine
• Urinating in places other than his litter box
• Urinating often, but passing only small amounts of urine
• Straining to urinate, or not being able to pass urine at all
• Crying out in pain in the litter box

Any of these symptoms should be enough for you to take your cat to the vet for a check-up.

What Your Vet Will Do

Your vet will examine your cat and feel his bladder to see how full it is. The vet will also want to do a urinalysis to check for infection or feline urinary crystals, and may want to do a cat urine culture to see if bacteria are present. If your kitty’s bladder is distended, that indicates a cat urinary blockage, and your vet may want to take x-rays or do an ultrasound to look for feline bladder stones.

What You Can Do At Home To Prevent Feline Urinary Disease?

There are many steps cat owners can take to prevent their cats from developing feline urinary tract problems. The most important thing you can do is to feed a high-quality canned food. Cats are supposed to get most of their water from their food.

A cat who eats only dry food is usually chronically dehydrated, which leads to his urine becoming concentrated. And concentrated urine can lead to cat bladder stones, and a whole host of problems that goes along with them.

Be sure your cat always has access to plenty of clean, fresh water, too.

You may want to consider giving your cat a natural remedy for pets that supports bladder health in felines. This remedy should contain herbal extracts of barberry and uva ursi, along with the homeopathic remedies Cantharis and Staphysagria. Not only are these natural treatments effective for bladder problems in people, but they have been proven to work just as well in cats.

Your goal now? To make sure your cat doesn’t become a statistic suffering from feline urinary problems.

Visit Natural Pet Urinary Health to learn how to prevent feline urinary problems, and find the best place to buy herbal pet remedies.

Our affection for cats often leads us to spoil of loved pets. A fancy scratching post? No problem. The best quality food available in today’s market? It is all about money. Ten dollars for a mouse made from old scraps of material? Here is the source- the credit card.

But what about a special house for your cat? Is that worth the expense? If your cat were a dog, there would be no question. Dogs have inherited the willingness to sleep in dens from their ancestors like wolfs. An anxious or overtired puppy is often happiest tucked away in its carrier or crate.

Cats, however, have the blood of lions flowing through their . Lions don’t seek dens. They lie out on veldt sunning themselves and surveying their kingdoms. This is the primary reason your cat also intends to do well. He or she will, therefore, take a dim view on being shut away in a carrier or crate like a puppy.

Another reason not to purchase a cat house for your cat is that the odds of your feline actually sleeping in it are astronomically low. When do cats ever sleep where you want them to? You are free to shell out a hundred dollar bill for a sheepskin cat bed, however in all probablity you will find you pet sleeping in the laundry basket in next half an hour.

Let’s face it. Your cat doesn’t need a special house. He or she already has the run of your house.

But, if you are determined to spoil your cat by buying it the best cat house in town, here are a few options to consider.

Wicker Cat Bed - PetSmart

The Wicker Cat Bed is available through PetSmart and will cost you around forty dollars. It has the potential to be a winner, because there’s a bed on top of the basket as well as a hole on the side for your cat to crawl into the basket. A cat might receive a kick out while scratching at the wicker. Considering the plethora of available options, even the most choosy pet cat will not be able to avoid noticing this living space.

Cat Hutch - Dura Craft

This hutch, which retails for around $35, is like a teepee for your cat. A hole in the side to crawl through and soft cushions inside will tempt any feline to give home dwelling a try. And if your cat finds other…er…uses for the hutch, both the cushions and the outer cover are machine washable.

Half Moon Multi Tier Tower - Green Duck

For $130, you can make your cat a condo dweller. This cat house is wonderful for scratching, climbing, and napping. It sould not be closed from all ends and allow the kitty to survey it’s dwelling place. If your cat must have a house, this is definitely the way to go.