Natural Pet Health

Home remedies for urinary tract problems in cats do work very well, however, the best time to use them is before a major infection breaks out. An infection involving bacteria in the bladder or urethra usually is very painful for your cat, as are bladder stones which if not treated immediately can result in very serious complications or death.

If your cat has had a urinary problem before, the likelihood of it happening again is very common. If this is the case, home remedies for urinary tract problems in cats can help prevent another occurrence. Natural remedies can improve the immune system so an infection can not take hold. Certain remedies actually improve urine flow to flush out crystals before they become stones and bacteria that causes infections.

Often feline UTI, or feline urinary tract infection, is mistaken as a behavioral problem with your cat. If you find your cat is urinating in odd places, or missing her litter box, she may be suffering from a cat UTI. Here are some tips for spotting this condition in your cat.

If you notice you cat is licking his genital area more often than usual you need to look for other signs of a feline UTI. Here are 5 telltale signs that your precious is suffering from a cat urinary tract infection.

1) He licks, and licks and licks in his genital area
2) He misses his litter box (more than usual)
3) He becomes withdrawn and doesn’t participate in playtime
4) He starts biting or nibbling on his rear-end
5) He ‘takes off’ in a spastic episodes

Have you ever wondered how your cat would tell you that she was suffering from a feline urinary tract infection? Here are 5 messages from your cat telling you she has this problem and tips on how to deal with a cat urinary tract infection.

You have experienced a urinary tract infection (UTI) sometime in your life. You had that burning, itchy nag down in your lower tract and remembered your Mother prescribing cranberry juice for you to drink. While cranberries helped relieve your distress, just what would your cat do if she had a similar infection?

Urinary tract infections respond very well to antibiotics. However, antibiotics tend to kill friendly bacteria along with the disease causing bacteria. Diminished friendly flora in the body can be a cause of other diseases that may be far more difficult to treat than urinary tract infection.

If you see the following signs in your cat, you should suspect prevalence of feline urinary infection.

-Â Â Â The urine has a bad smell.
-Â Â Â The cat is straining to urinate or cries while urinating.
-Â Â Â There is blood in urine.
-Â Â Â If it is urinating at odd places, often in small amounts.

There’s a couple different ways you can tell if your cat has a Feline Urinary Tract Infection (UTI). The most obvious way is if she cries while urinating, you see blood in her urine, and/or she won’t use the cat litter box to urinate.

If you see this behavior in your cat, please call your vet immediately to get her checked! This is a very painful infection for kitty to suffer through.

But here’s another way you can do a rough estimate check for a feline Urinary Tract Infection before your cat feels the pain. Quite simply, you can do a fast check of your cat’s urine pH balance. If it’s out of range, call your vet as fast as you can to schedule an appointment for kitty. She’ll need further examination for an accurate diagnosis.

Abnormal cat behavior is usually associated with psychological stress as cats are highly emotional creatures and react to environmental changes very quickly. At the same time odd behaviors can also result from an underlying disorder or infection. For example, if your cat suddenly develops a dislike for her litter box and urinates at odd places, more likely than not it is the first sign of an infection in lower urinary tract.

High frequency and difficulty in urination are the most prominent signs of feline urinary infection. The cat feels the urge but is not able to empty the bladder and is able to pass out only small amounts at a time, usually accompanied with severe pain. It perceives the litter box to be the cause of discomfort and starts avoiding it.

A natural filter in the urinary system

The kidneys have a number of very important life-sustaining functions. These include excretion, fluid conservation, and endocrine processes. The kidneys filter waste products from the bloodstream, so that they may be excreted from the body in the urine.

They kidneys act as natural ‘sieves’ of the body, filtering out goodness from ingested food and liquids and leaving waste to be excreted. Animals cannot function properly if their systems are not ‘clean’ of toxins. The kidneys also produce hormones, including erythropoietin, which stimulates the bone marrow to produce new red blood cells.

The natural way

Inappropriate urinary behavior in cats is normally associated with medical disorders like feline urinary infection. However, it is also true that many times it is a behavioral problem rather than a medical one.

It is only after ruling out medical causes after complete blood and urine tests that one can unequivocally state the real cause of inappropriate urinary behavior.

What we consider as abnormal may actually be appropriate when seen from the cat’s perspective. Owners train and expect their cat to always urinate in the litter box but cats, especially feral cats, are prone to mark their territory by spraying. This could be as frequent as 6 to 10 times a day.

Symptoms of UTI infection in pets

Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are uncomfortable and extremely painful. They tend to be more common in cats than dogs and can be caused by bacterial infection, bladder stones or urolithiasis (stones in the urinary tract).

UTIs often recur and can lead to more serious kidney infections if left untreated. Symptoms include

* Straining to urinate
* Obvious pain or discomfort when urinating
* Constantly licking their genitals
* Frequent urination without passing much urine
* Urinating in unusual places
* Cloudy or bloody urine
* Fever and loss of condition

What is the conventional treatment?

Conventional treatment of UTIs will depend on the specific cause of the problem. In many cases, antibiotics are prescribed which invariably relieve the animal’s symptoms rather speedily.

Practically the same drugs and antibiotics that are used for treating UTI in humans are used for treating urinary tract infections in cats. Amoxicillin is semi synthetic oral penicillin that is used for treating bacterial infections and is one of the primary antibiotics indicated for treating feline urinary tract infection.

As is widely known, antibiotics should be used only when they cannot be avoided as they are liable to become ineffective over time and with overuse. It is necessary that proper information be gathered about the drug before it is used to treat urinary infection in cats.