How to Cure a Feline Urinary Tract Infection

The two types of feline urinary tract infection (called UTI) have similar symptoms and can be considered a veterinary emergency. Obstructive UTI is commonly found in male cats and results from uroliths (mineral crystals formed in urine) blocking either the urethra or the opening in the bladder that leads to the urethra. Ideopathic UTI affects mostly females, and its causes are not known. Symptoms of feline urinary tract infection include pink or bloody urine, inappropriate urination (using sinks, bathtubs and floors), pain on urination or straining to urinate.

The veterinarian will need a sterile urine sample to diagnose both types of this disease. The best way to do this is by cystocentesis -- introducing a sterile needle into the bladder and drawing urine into a sterile syringe. Urine contained in the body is considered sterile because urine in the bladder has not been contaminated by outside bacteria. The next step for the veterinarian is to perform a complete urinalysis including the urine dipstick used in human medicine and a microscopic analysis of urine sediments. Diagnosis is determined by finding either uroliths or bacteria in the urine. If urine crystals are found, the vet might ask for radiographs to determine where the crystals are located.

Instructions

  1. Obstructive UTI

    • 1

      Allow your veterinarian to remove a stone from the cat's urinary tract and send it to a lab for analysis. The common method for removing uroliths is to flush the urethra or bladder with water and draw the stone into a syringe.

    • 2

      Change your cat's food to a prescription diet recommended by the veterinarian. The type of meal plan prescribed will depend on the type of stone diagnosed.

    • 3

      Administer antibiotics prescribed by the veterinarian. Use the entire prescription, refilling it if doctor recommends.

    • 4

      Schedule surgical intervention if additional tests show that the uroliths have not dissolved after the first set of antibiotics has been given.

    Ideopathic UTI

    • 5

      Allow your veterinarian to prescribe antibiotics if the cause of the infection is bacterial.

    • 6

      Reduce the stress in your cat's environment, because stress is considered a factor in this disease. You might need to move her to her own room or allow her to find a hiding space in the home.

    • 7

      Change your animal's diet to one prescribed by your veterinarian.

    • 8

      Administer any drugs prescribed by the vet -- these will usually include amitryptyline to relieve the clinical signs and discomfort of the infection, and propantheline to relieve incontinence.