Concerns about cat on C/D diet

[Draftmare]

Well, I now have a puppy that is on a set feeding schedule due to food anxiety issues. So, trying some “tough love” with the cat starting tonight since I have to prepare one pet his meal anyway. Switched out his gravity feeder to a bowl with half wet food and half dry food in it mixed together. Guess we shall see how this goes.

How long can I safely leave this food out for? I would hate to waste it since it is the C/D stuff, but want to give him ample time to check it out and hopefully eat some.

Has anybody tried the “OTC” version of Science Diet’s urinary wet food? Much cheaper at .96 a can.

[ASBJumper]

[QUOTE=Draftmare;8474087]
Well, I now have a puppy that is on a set feeding schedule due to food anxiety issues. So, trying some “tough love” with the cat starting tonight since I have to prepare one pet his meal anyway. Switched out his gravity feeder to a bowl with half wet food and half dry food in it mixed together. Guess we shall see how this goes.

How long can I safely leave this food out for? I would hate to waste it since it is the C/D stuff, but want to give him ample time to check it out and hopefully eat some.

Has anybody tried the “OTC” version of Science Diet’s urinary wet food? Much cheaper at .96 a can.[/QUOTE]

K, so first thing - you already stated that you tried the half+half technique and your cat just picked around the wet, ate the kibble and left the wet food. So, chances are this time will be no different (though if it is - great!).

Let’s assume, though, that he does the same thing again. You’ve likely wasted your wet food - as it will dry out and not really be palatable after about half a day sitting out.

To avoid this, do what I suggested - smash up some pieces of kibble, mix them in some wet food. Warm up the wet food a little bit. Offer it to him, but put less out than you would normally. Do it at a time when you can monitor him for about an hour. If in that time has has not touched it, cover it in saran wrap and put in fridge so it doesn’t go to waste. Next mealtime - warm it up, crush some more kibble pieces and put it out again. Tough love. He will likely be hungry enough that he will eat at least some of it. Does he have any favorite treats? Grind those up and put them in there as well - whatever it takes. Try different canned brands, see if he likes some textures better than others (my cats prefer the pate versions to the more textured/chunky types). My cats also markedly prefer turkey/fish flavours over bland chicken.

Keep us posted! Well, I’m interested, anyway… lol… you can PM me if you like.

[Draftmare]

Well…the good news is that he has suddenly decided that he will eat wet food. Picked up some cans of Science Diet Urinary OTC wet food and he is going to town on it. He still needs to get his dry food per the vet, so he gets wet food for breakfast and dinner and then his dry food free choice over night. He is actually pretty obnoxious now about wanting his wet food first thing in the morning!

[horsenut_8700]

Why does he still need dry food? The majority of vets I’ve worked with (especially the ones who are more info cats) recommend feeding a wet food ONLY diet, especially after urinary issues.

[CdnRider]

OP - the problem is that your cat will be prone to continued problems. We call it FLUTD (feline lower urinary tract disorder), but it’s also been called FUS (Feline Urinary Syndrome) and FIC (Feline Idiopathic Cystitis). The veterinary field does not completely understand why some cats are prone to this problem. But usually when a cat has it occur once, they easily can have it recur.

Diet in these cats is very important (although not the only factor). Your cat should stay on a VETERINARY diet for life. FLUTD cats are prone to struvite crystal formation (usually without concurrent infection). Veterinary diets are PROVEN to reduce struvite formation and increase water intake (Royal Canin Urinary SO’s dry food has been proven to improve water intake as well). The chances of your cat having a recurrence diminishes on the Hills, Royal Canin and Purina Veterinary Diet Urinary formulas.

Stress is another important factor. These cats are usually more sensitive to changes in lifestyle and reducing environmental stress is important.

What most people fail to recognize is that once diagnosed (as your cat was) with FLUTD/FUS/FIC, non-veterinary foods are not formulated to treat this specific condition. Yes there are urinary health OTC diets, but they are for a general cat’s urinary health, not a FLUTD cat. The ramifications of feeding other foods can mean urethral obstruction which means the cat can not urinate and if left untreated he will die a slow, painful death (in all seriousness).

I would encourage anyone who has questions about the quality of a veterinary diet to call the company. From my experience they are very forthcoming with providing information on the quality of their ingredients as well as why some things that may seem low quality may be included in the ingredient list.
More info about FLUTD cats -
http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=3587
http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=612

As you can tell I’m super passionate about this. I’ve seen too many cats euthanized because of cost for treating urethral obstruction.

[WNT]

After the better part of $2000 in vet bills in 2015, I don’t mess around with my cat’s diet. He is on the Royal Canin SO canned with water added to make a mush. I tried still water, fountain water, water in multiple places, tap water, filtered water, warm water, and my cat will not drink. I will not take chances with dry food, and so far (knock on wood) we’ve been in good shape. Really hoping I didn’t just totally jinx myself.

[Draftmare]

[QUOTE=CdnRider;8491798]
OP - the problem is that your cat will be prone to continued problems. We call it FLUTD (feline lower urinary tract disorder), but it’s also been called FUS (Feline Urinary Syndrome) and FIC (Feline Idiopathic Cystitis). The veterinary field does not completely understand why some cats are prone to this problem. But usually when a cat has it occur once, they easily can have it recur.

Diet in these cats is very important (although not the only factor). Your cat should stay on a VETERINARY diet for life. FLUTD cats are prone to struvite crystal formation (usually without concurrent infection). Veterinary diets are PROVEN to reduce struvite formation and increase water intake (Royal Canin Urinary SO’s dry food has been proven to improve water intake as well). The chances of your cat having a recurrence diminishes on the Hills, Royal Canin and Purina Veterinary Diet Urinary formulas.

Stress is another important factor. These cats are usually more sensitive to changes in lifestyle and reducing environmental stress is important.

What most people fail to recognize is that once diagnosed (as your cat was) with FLUTD/FUS/FIC, non-veterinary foods are not formulated to treat this specific condition. Yes there are urinary health OTC diets, but they are for a general cat’s urinary health, not a FLUTD cat. The ramifications of feeding other foods can mean urethral obstruction which means the cat can not urinate and if left untreated he will die a slow, painful death (in all seriousness).

I would encourage anyone who has questions about the quality of a veterinary diet to call the company. From my experience they are very forthcoming with providing information on the quality of their ingredients as well as why some things that may seem low quality may be included in the ingredient list.
More info about FLUTD cats -
http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=3587
http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=612

As you can tell I’m super passionate about this. I’ve seen too many cats euthanized because of cost for treating urethral obstruction.[/QUOTE]

While I appreciate your concern, I got the okay from my vet to feed him a combination of the OTC wet food, and his prescription diet dry food. He gets the wet food for breakfast and lunch/snack time and is getting the dry food for dinner and free choice overnight. I have been carefully monitoring that he eats his dry food. I am not really sure why he got this issue to start with. My family has always had male cats, and not one of them has ever had an obstruction. My cat has always been a good drinker as well. I am scratching my head just as much as anybody else with a cat with urinary issues.

[Draftmare]

[QUOTE=horsenut_8700;8491143]
Why does he still need dry food? The majority of vets I’ve worked with (especially the ones who are more info cats) recommend feeding a wet food ONLY diet, especially after urinary issues.[/QUOTE]

Because he still needs to get the “stuff” in the prescription diet that prevents him from getting more crystals and helps dissolve any crystals he does form.

[horsenut_8700]

I see. There are multiple rx diets that are appropriate for crystals. I would find an option where he will eat the wet if you can.