Question:
My female cat, Peaches, had "inappropriate" urination issues, similar to the male cat in a previous column. It happened about once every three months. She would become increasingly vocal and then begin peeing on the bed. Antibiotics seemed to clear it up. My previous cat had repeated urinary tract infections that were treated successfully with surgery (she had the problem where the umbilical connection hadn't healed completely, leaving a pouch in the bladder that collected stale urine). I finally took Peaches to a specialist, thinking maybe she had the same problem. She did not, but the specialist pointed out that her urine was very concentrated and also noted that she was a very smart, high-energy indoor cat. It was suggested that she should have more stimulation in her environment and more fluids in her diet. I switched her over to wet food and raw beef cubes and eliminated dry food almost entirely. I add a couple of tablespoons of water to the wet food. I added more toys to the house and switch them out, periodically. I leave a radio on during the day, or one of the Cat Sitters DVDs. I moved the bird feeder so it is near the window next to the cat tree. It has been nine months with no further problems. As a side benefit, my overstuffed male cat has lost a pound or so, since he doesn't have access to dry food 24 hours a day. She does get a little dry good, etc. to help keep the teeth clean; and the beef cubes are said to do the same thing.
J.O., Winston-Salem, NC Jul 12, 2009
Answer:
Your letter should help convince other cat owners to feed their cats what I have been recommending for some years in this column.
The domestic cat's lineage goes back to the desert cat Felis lybica and its desert-associated physiology means a poor thirst mechanism. This means that many cats on dry food don't drink sufficient fluids and can suffer in many ways, cystitis from hyper-concentrated urine being one.
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