Cat can't seem to get rid of Crystals

[Rukes]

I have this cat that was a stray, rescued from the strret when she was a kitten. I adopted her, took her to the vet, did the full nine yards.

Got her spayed when she was of age to get it done. Apparently, the first vet didn't do the surgery too well, as soon after the surgery, she developed a pretty bad unrinary tract infection. This developed into a severe case of crystals. As a result, she decided to pee on most of the furniture, especially the bed. Everything was deep cleaned and given a huge dose of Natures Miracle.

The new vet just gives us a bunch of Amoxicillin, and had the diet change from Natural Balance to Hills Feline S/D. Apparently nothing seemed to help, as now she is still peeing on the bed.

From reading some previous posts, it seems Amoxicillin doesn't work at all for Crystals, and the Hlls Feline S/D probably isn't helping because it is dry food.

Does anyone have opinions, or anything I could talk to the vet about? I don't want to go in and have him give the same antibiotics again...

[coaster]

I'm no expert on UTIs, but it sounds like the treatment is the "standard" treatment. The antibiotics are preventative, because a bladder infection could develop when the urine stagnates in there. It sounds like you need more than the usual treatment, and for that, I think you need a second opinion. I'm not sure about this, someone else post here with the info, please, but I think there are medications which help dissolve the crystals. That might be what you need.

[OsnobunnieO]

I'd just like to add that I wouldn't be so quick to blame the vet who did the surgery. Normaly bladder infections and cyrstals are caused mainly by diet and general health of the animal. Now, if she had some sort of internal infection because of a poorly closed surgery site or something, that'd be different.

But the crystals themselves are the big key that there's something wrong with your cat, not the way the surgery was done.

Canned food is good at preventing crystals, but I'm not sure it actually helps get rid of them (it couldn't hurt though!)

As much as I hate Science Diet, I think for now you should feed it short term as it is meant to change the pH of the urine and break up the crystals.

How long has it been since the new diet and medications? This is going to take time. While you wait, you may try to restrict the amount of free space you let your kitty have, to reduce the area she can pee on. Watch her closely. Its not really her fault though, so try not to get mad. It can be frustrated, so just be patient and try to keep her relatively confined until she's through the treatment.

[betsy]

My cat, Felix, had crystals and was peeing everywhere (with blood in his urine). It was actually very little urine when he did this but urine nonetheless. Anyway, I left my cat overnight at the vet and from the time I brought him home the next day, it never occurred again. The vet suggested Science Diet but after doing some research I decided to try Wellness cat food instead (canned only). That's what I've been giving him now for the past year or so and the crystals have not reappeared. I also stayed away from fish flavored foods.

Good luck.

[emma_pen]

I agree that S/D is the way to go for getting rid of STRUVITE crystals. Has your vet told you these are STRUVITE crystals? They are pretty uncommon in female cats, thats all. You can get tinned s/d if you would prefer to feed a wet diet, and supplementing with raw meat would also help (though always freeze first). My friend changed her cat with FLUTD from prescription foods to an all raw BARF diet and the results were astonishing. He has not had a problem since.

[OsnobunnieO]

Originally Posted by betsy

My cat, Felix, had crystals and was peeing everywhere (with blood in his urine). It was actually very little urine when he did this but urine nonetheless. Anyway, I left my cat overnight at the vet and from the time I brought him home the next day, it never occurred again. The vet suggested Science Diet but after doing some research I decided to try Wellness cat food instead (canned only). That's what I've been giving him now for the past year or so and the crystals have not reappeared. I also stayed away from fish flavored foods.

Good luck.

do you know what was done at the vet? Chances are, he had a urinary catheter placed and was flushed out so most of the crystals left that way. If not, there's not much of a way to instantly get rid of them.

I do agree that keeping your cat on a canned (or raw) diet from now on is going to be best for her overall health later on.