Alternatives To Antibiotics For Uti?

[zirkel]

My 9 yo indoor female tortie, Stella, has ongoing urinary issues that don't seem to be completely resolved by antibiotics.

Every few months she will "spot" blood in her urine, both in the litter box or, when really bad, in the shower. She previously had a polyp in her bladder (diagnosed by US), which she later passed. The poly was determined to NOT be TCC. Two recent US's have revealed a healthy bladder. Two cystos in the past year have revealed cocci and eColi, respectively. She has been on antibiotics FIVE times (clavamox, enroflaxin, amoxi-drops). She had a bad response to the enroflaxin.

She eats WELL-HYDRATED Primal freeze-dried and a high quality canned grain-free. She never drinks water because her food is well-hydrated. Litter box gets scooped three times a day, freshly filled every few days, although I only scrub clean with soap and water maybe 2-3 times/year. She otherwise does not seem to be struggling, or in pain, while urinating.

Any thoughts on the underlying causes of these semi-frequent UTI's? Any alternatives to antibiotics for a UTI?

 

[zirkel]

I will add that stress does not appear to be an issue with this cat. She's is otherwise very comfortable and playful in her surroundings.

 

[Sarthur2]

Some cats are more prone to these issues than others, and I'm not sure why.

Her diet sounds excellent for her situation.

Have you tried Metronidazole?

Hopefully, others with more experience with this will chime in soon.

 

[catsknowme]

You might try consulting a holistic vet about herbs. My vet told me that not all urinary tract issues are bacterial infections.

 

[foxden]

FYI Several posts in TCS forums have discussed use of apple cider vinegar (ACV) in cats with recurring urinary issues, as well as other health conditions. I have not used this myself, and don't know the dosing or how it is administered.

This site: Apple Cider Vinegar for Cats
has a list of health conditions ACV has been reported for use in cats.
Since your cat has recurring issues, this might be helpful.

 

[cat princesses]

Hi!

I had a cat who was getting constant UTI's as well. I would suggest that you dump the litter box 1x per month, sanitize and fill with fresh litter - we don't like a dirty toilet and they don't either so to me, that's key.
Second - when they do have a UTI, it's critical that the vet collect the sample and send it for a urine culture. It's more expensive to do that but when the results come back it tell you the exact strain of bacteria you are dealing with and also the best antibiotic for that particular strain. If they just guess sometimes it doesn't knock it all out and you end up with this repeat UTI issue. I also always had to take her back in after we were done with the antibiotics for another urine culture to confirm that she was clear. We ended up doing antibiotic pulse therapy for her since it was happening so often - so with this you give antibiotics for a certain number of days in a row each month and that really helped to keep her UTI free. I would also say if the culture comes back and the UTI's are from Ecoli - you can use L lysine it's a simple over the counter supplement which makes the e coli bind to and then it's just urinated out - but this ONLY works if the UTI's are caused by E coli and I see you mentioned that E coli did come back so this might work for you! Otherwise, I am not aware of anything homeopathic that would work other than using antibiotics to knock it out. Google l lysine for cats with UTI and you'll see the dosing info. I used to buy those mini jars of gerber baby food, turkey and gravy and warm a small spoon full in a glass dish ( be careful, this stuff heats us super fast, 6 seconds in the microwave is usually plenty and always check first with your finger before giving to kitty ). Empty the l lysine capsule into that, mix and they will usually eat off the spoon or just mix it into the wet canned food. I always prefered the baby food method because I knew she was getting the full dose and not leaving any behind in the un eaten wet food.
Best of luck! My vet also gave me some broad range antibiotics to have on hand at home just incase she was straining and had blood drops from a UTI over a weekend, at least that got us by until the monday when we could take her in and provided her with some much needed relief in the mean time.

 

[zed xyzed]

There is a new supposedly safer version of Baytril call veraflox. I posted some info here antibiotic option to Baytril I would discuss this option with your vet if you do need to try another antibiotic. Good luck I hope you can help Stella beat this