Urinary Formula Vs Renal Formula Cat Food
I find some of my clients get confused when talking about urinary and renal prescription diets for cats.
Urinary foods are formulated to help with bladder problems. Renal formula foods are geared toward supporting cats with compromised kidney problems.
These are generally two different problems, although occasionally they occur in the same cat.
Cats with bladder problems tend to be younger while cats with kidney problems tend to be older.
Symptoms of Chronic Kidney Disease include increased drinking, increased volume of urination, weight loss and decreased appetite.
Symptoms of Feline Idiopathic Cystitis are increased frequency and urgency of urination, straining to urinate, blood and crystals in the urine. Cats with FIC dont usually drink a lot more or lose weight.
Ask your vet to clarify whether your cat has a bladder problem, a kidney problem or both. That will help you and your vet choose the best diet option for your cat.
Many renal/kidney diets arent good maintenance food for growing young cats since they have a lower protein level. Make sure you ask your vet before you let young cats share prescription kidney diets!
Does Augmenting Urine Volume Have A Role In Managing Or Preventing Any Of The Lower Urinary Tract Diseases Seen In Cats In The 1990s
Most research relating diet to lower urinary tract disease in cats has focused on mineral content, or more recently, on the effect of diet on urinary pH much less research has been devoted to the effect of diet on urine volume or specific gravity. It can be predicted from theoretical considerations that increasing urine volume for a given solute load has a greater influence on the likelihood of struvite crystal formation than a reduction in urinary magnesium concentration . This concept has also been demonstrated experimentally in studies of struvite activity product in feline urine .
Epidemiologic studies of signs of lower urinary tract disease conducted in the 1970s implicated dry cat foods as a risk factor more recently, consumption of dry foods has been implicated as a risk factor specifically for idiopathic lower urinary tract disease . Multiple diet-related factors may be involved with this increased risk, but included within these is the tendency for cats to produce smaller volumes of more concentrated urine when fed dry foods . Explanations originally offered for these observations were that cats might not repair a water deficit as well as dogs, and that cats fed dry foods take in less water. These interpretations clearly require further discussion.
Does Dry Cat Food Cause Urinary Problems
There is no definitive answer to this question as there are many factors that can contribute to urinary problems in cats, including diet. Some experts believe that dry cat food may contribute to urinary problems because it is typically high in carbohydrates and low in moisture, which can lead to dehydration. Additionally, dry cat food may contain ingredients that can irritate the urinary tract or contribute to the formation of urinary stones. If your cat is experiencing urinary problems, it is best to speak to your veterinarian to determine the underlying cause and the best course of treatment.
Dry cat food appears to be linked to FLUTD in studies that show dry food increases the risk of developing FLUTD. While on a dry diet, we had a cat develop FLUTD. We switched him to a wet diet, and he began to feel better again after a few days. They are obligate carnivores, which means they must eat meat in order to survive. Chronic dehydration is a condition that can cause urinary tract disease in cats. Cats on a canned food diet consume nearly twice as much water as cats who consume dry food. The study does not prove that dry diets cause urinary tract disease, but DVM Karen Becker believes they do.
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Cat Foods For Urinary Health
The urinary health of your cat is incredibly important. If your cat begins displaying symptoms of feline lower urinary tract disease such as straining in the cat litter box, having increased urination, showing blood in the urine, urinating in an unusual spot or excessively licking the genitalsyour cat should see a vet right away. The syndrome can have many causes, some serious. Get facts on urinary tract disease in cats. Many foods, both prescription cat food and over-the-counter cat food, can help prevent and heal lower urinary tract disease. Here are five:
Buyers Guide: Tips For Choosing The Best Cat Food For Urinary Health
Choosing a urinary cat food for a feline can be difficult, especially if your feline has an underlying health problem that needs to be offset by diet, such as chronic urinary tract infections or stones. Many cats with common urinary tract problems are diagnosed with FLUTD, which stands for feline lower urinary tract disease. Felines with this problem have reoccurring bacterial bladder infections, develop bladder crystals, and have inflammation in their urinary tract.
This problem is more severe in males, as it can cause urinary blockage and be life-threatening. Females are more prone to bacterial infections, but they dont suffer blockages as often.
Diet can often be used to manage these problems, though it isnt the end-all to treatment. Often, different medications and supplements are needed as well.
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A Guide To Getting The Best Urinary Cat Food
Whether you are in the market for the best dry cat food for urinary health or youre looking to get some canned one, its a good thing youre reading this post.
Weve put together a list of some of the most important factors that you should consider if you want to get really good cat food for urinary health. Check it out below.
Supporting Your Cat If Theyre Suffering From A Food Allergy
If you believe your cat is showing signs of a food allergy, always speak to your veterinarian before taking action.Once your veterinarian has confirmed it is a food allergy they will advise the most suitable management options for your cat.Although a food allergy is a serious condition, if the signs are noticed early it can be properly managed so your cat can continue to live a healthy life.
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Foods That Increase Risk Of Uti In Cats
Did you know that the food you give to your cat is critical to its general health? Additionally, certain foods can increase the risk of urinary tract disease.
A high concentration of certain minerals, like calcium, phosphorus, and magnesium, which are commonly present in grocery store brand cat food, can cause crystals to develop in the urine. This can lead to urinary stones.
The pH, or acidity, of urine, is influenced by food. Urine should be mildly acidic, in the pH range of 6.36.6, for a healthy urinary system because struvite crystals form more slowly in an acidic environment.
Cat Food For Urinary Health
Urinary health cat food carefully balances the protein and minerals in the diet to help reduce the risk of bladder stone formation. It has been shown that one particular type of bladder stone called struvite stones can be dissolved by strictly feeding a prescription urinary diet. These stones tend to form in urine where the pH is too high . If youre able to reduce the pH of the urine, struvite stones may be able to be dissolved without surgery, demonstrating how critical nutrition can be in addressing urinary tract health.
A veterinary diet cat food is often the best choice for cats with recurrent urinary tract disease. Such foods include Hills Prescription c/d, Royal Canin Urinary s/o and Purina UR. Veterinary diets are often recommended as they can more adequately control the complex factors surrounding your cats optimal urinary health. Because a veterinarians prescription is needed to purchase these foods, consult your veterinarian to determine if these would be helpful for your kitty.
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Can Dry Foods Promote Urinary Health
Well, yes and no. Dry foods cant provide everything thats needed, at least not on their own. There are without a doubt certain premium dry cat foods that specialize in providing the nutrients and minerals that are commonly used to combat infections and diseases, but by nature they lack a crucial ingredient. Moisture.
Moisture is incredibly important in promoting good urinary tract health in felines. For this reason, you cant promote it using just dry cat food, you need make sure they are also consuming enough water.
If adequate water is provided and consumed, then theres no reason why a dry cat food designed for urinary health would be less effective than a wet food for urinary tract health.
Most owners have concerns that their cats dont consume enough water, and its certainly true that cats dont have much of a natural drive to drink water. If you want to feed a dry food, you should consider making use of a small cheap fountain to entice cats into keeping themselves hydrated around the clock, and make sure there are water bowls in every room. You can also soak their biscuits in water to force them to take in more moisture, but many cats will get fussy about this and refuse the food.
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Some Cats Should Not Eat Urinary Food
As shown in the table above, prescription urinary formula cat food is not safe for certain cats.
- Cats under a year of age are still growing. Urinary cat food might not have enough protein, fat and minerals for them.
- Pregnant or nursing cats have increased nutritional needs. The controlled nutrients in urinary food may not be enough to support them during this physiologically stressful time.
- Cats who are already taking urinary acidifying medications like ammonium chloride may not do well with additional acidification of urine from food. Consult your vet before using both.
- Avoid feedingcats who form oxalate crystals an acidifying diet since a lower urine pH favors the formation of calcium oxalate crystals.
- Cats who form struvite crystals should avoid eating prescription urinary foods that aim to increase urine pH.
- Cats with kidney disease or heart disease might have unwanted side effects from eating urinary formula food due to increased salt present in some formulas.
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Taste Of The Wild Rocky Mountain Grain
Most Popular Cat Food for Urinary Tract Health: There are many different cat foods out there, so it can be difficult to choose just one for your cat especially if there is not a specific formula your vet recommends. If you want to make a smart choice but youre not sure where to start, consider a popular brand like Taste of the Wild. This brand uses premium-quality roasted meats in grain-free recipes that are loaded with natural flavor. This Rocky Mountain Grain-Free Canned Food is a good option for cats with urinary health issues because it contains animal protein, it is rich in moisture, and it is supplemented with DL-methionine. It contains a fairly short list of main ingredients and has a low concentration of carbohydrates but is still complete and balanced with the use of beneficial supplements like vitamins and chelated minerals.
- Pros: Rich in animal protein, high in moisture, complete and balanced nutrition, very digestible, supplemented with DL-methionine, moderate calorie and fat content
- Cons: Not specifically formulated for urinary health, contains fish ingredients
The Best Cat Food For Urinary Tract Health Has The Right Mineral Balance
The concentrations of phosphorus, magnesium, and calcium contribute to the likelihood that your cat will develop urinary tract crystals. Your veterinarian can advise you on how dietary changes can help prevent the specific type of urinary crystal that is affecting your cat. In general, though, preventing these crystals involves decreasing the amounts of minerals that contribute to crystal formation.
An easy way to identify foods low in these minerals is by avoiding those with meat, fish, and animal by-product meals. These meals are usually ground with bones and connective tissue intact, increasing the foods mineral content.
In addition to performing our own qualitative analysis of the brands reviewed here, we submitted samples for analysis at an ISO 17025 certified food testing and analysis lab.
We bought the products at full retail price, and the entire testing process was funded by All About Cats without direct input or influence from the companies involved.
Analytical testing in a food chemistry lab gives us the exact macronutrient and micronutrient content of each recipe. The tests also look at microbial content, yeast, mold, and heavy metals, helping you ensure that youre only putting the best in your cats bowl.
To access the lab reports for each food reviewed here, click the view lab report link in the product review.
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Raw Cat Food: The Risks And The Rewards
When it comes to the risks of raw cat food, it is all about common pathogens like Salmonella and Listeria. People who want to feed their cats raw diet must know about animal to human disease transmission and contagion problems.
Despite these risks, more and more pet owners choose a raw food diet for their cats because it offers some fantastic rewards like big improvements in skin, coat, energy and overall well-being.
It is known that raw food helps felines recover faster from numerous health issues such as urinary tract problems, digestive problems, dental disease, allergies, asthma, degenerative diseases, immune disorders, epilepsy and so on.
Urinary Cat Food: The Best Way To Manage Struvite Crystals
struvite crystals, a type of struvite, are the most common cause of urinary tract problems in cats. Over time, these crystals can become sluggish, causing health problems such as obstruction and the formation of stones. If you want to reduce struvite crystals, feed your urinary cat food with a low amount of minerals, which will help to balance out the pH of the urine. Urine cat foods are also designed to keep crystals at bay, as they make urine slightly acidic. To conclude, dietary ingredients that dissolve struvite crystals are effective as well. Five prospective studies involving over 100 cats found that dietary dissolution was 100 percent effective, and no cats had difficulty with their urethras.
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Purina Pro Plan Focus Urinary Tract Health Canned Food Review
Another decent cat food for urinary health is this one by Purina. I dont really like recommending food from big pet food brands because most of the time, I find that they use fishy ingredients . But this one is a pretty good choice as it is designed specifically for supporting feline urinary health.
It has a balanced pH and reduced dietary magnesium, and the best thing about it is that it is made with real chicken. It does, however, contain animal by-products, as well as some artificial ingredients, so Id only recommend it for cats who are otherwise clinically healthy .
Additionally, it is rich in moisture which is a good thing since most cats arent keen on drinking a lot of water anyway.
It is a budget-friendly choice, so if you know that you cant afford the more expensive options and you want to feed your feline friend some wet urinary tract cat food, it definitely fits the bill.
The Best Diet For Your Cats Urinary Health
The diet of your cat should include high levels of protein and low levels of carbohydrate in order for him or her to be in good health. For cats with urinary problems, canned food with added water is an excellent choice. Minerals such as magnesium, phosphorus, and calcium can cause crystal formation and stone formation in the urinary tract. Urine diets are also used to make the urine slightly acidic, reducing the formation of crystals.
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Best 5 Urinary Cat Food: Benefits Reviews And Ingredient Analysis
By Anant Shastri | Updated November 16, 2022
Reviewed by: Ivana Crnec, DVM
If you buy something from a link on our site, we may earn a commision. See our advertising disclosure.
- Most Innovative Urinary Cat Food: Forza10 Active Urinary Dry Cat FoodMade using a special blend of ingredients, this cat food offers urinary support through an innovative food formula.
- Most Affordable Urinary Cat Food: Forza10 Actiwet Urinary Cat FoodThis cat food is easy on the pocket for most pet parents and is made with unique ingredients that offer relief from urinary infections.
- This dry cat food not only helps against urinary problems it also gives your cat a shiny and glossy coat thanks to its impactful formula.
Warning Signs And Symptoms Of Urinary Tract Disease
If your cat exhibits any of the warning signs of FLUTD, contact your veterinarian immediately. Especially if your cat is not urinating freely, a urinary blockage may be the cause and this condition may be life threatening. Consult your veterinarian immediately.
Signs of feline bladder health problems
- Urinating outside of the litter box
- Straining when urinating
- Lack of energy or interest in normal activities
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Stella & Chewys Dinner Morsels Freeze
The best thing about this cat urinary food is that theres no plant protein in it. Even though cats are carnivores and they need to get animal protein to receive the right nutrients, pet food manufacturers often seem to ignore this fact.
Stella & Chewys recipe has less than 1% carbohydrate, which makes it a suitable choice for cats who have weight problems or those who have diabetes. Its a species-appropriate food thats mostly made from freeze-dried goose meat, turkey, turkey liver, and duck.
The nuggets are kept in the bag at around five percent moisture, which means that you will have to rehydrate them with tepid water. This food contains as little as 0.68% phosphorus in its dry matter form, even though one of the first ingredients on the list is ground bone.