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- Jun 24, 2017
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So I have not been able to find a single instance of this online (either on the Catsite or elsewhere). Our cat Avi (who is now a little over 2 years old) has of late developed a taste for his own urine-soaked litter. It's unclear whether it is the pee itself or just the litter that he likes (he sometimes snacks on the litter dry as well, but lately has just been eating the pee patties). This has probably been going on for a month but lately seems to be more frequent. During much of this time he has had diarrhea on and off, which I assume is a result of his new snack routine. It might also be worth mentioning that he will eat pretty much anything. To our frustration, he's constantly jumping onto the counters and into the sink to try and get any scraps of food he can muster. We even had to stop giving him those tiny toy mice as he would methodically skin them and eat all of the fur whole in a matter of minutes.
We use Smart Cat litter, which is made of 100% grass and is a "soft clumping" litter. I've read in a few different places that cats sometimes like to eat this litter, but have never come across anything about cats eating their own urine. For a few days we tried switching it out with something less tasty (in particular the pellets made of walnut shells), but he started snacking on that as well, and we switched back for fear that the pellets would be less easily digestible. I'm aware that hard clumping litters, such as those made of clay, can be quite dangerous if digested, but am unsure about a natural clumping litter such as Smartcat. We've done our best to minimize the issue by frequently cleaning the litter box, but are unsure what else can be done since switching the litter didn't work.
We spoke to our vet about the issue, and they claimed that there isn't really any medical reason a cat would be doing such a thing, but to keep an eye out for further symptoms. He's still eating well and is active, so beyond the diarrhea nothing really jumps out. We had a full blood panel done not too long ago (maybe about 4 months ago) when he had crystals in his urine and everything came back normal.
One last thing - we just recently got a 5 month old kitten and have been in the process of integrating him into our home (which has been going okay, but not great thus far). Avi, it turns out, will eat his pee as well. We are starting to worry that this is a health related issue that is more than just a phase. Has anyone dealt with or heard of anything like this? I've read that cats will sometimes eat clay litters if they are anemic - could there be something similar going on here? We aren't sure where to even start since the vet didn't even know what to say without symptoms beyond diarrhea.
We would appreciate any advice you have!
We use Smart Cat litter, which is made of 100% grass and is a "soft clumping" litter. I've read in a few different places that cats sometimes like to eat this litter, but have never come across anything about cats eating their own urine. For a few days we tried switching it out with something less tasty (in particular the pellets made of walnut shells), but he started snacking on that as well, and we switched back for fear that the pellets would be less easily digestible. I'm aware that hard clumping litters, such as those made of clay, can be quite dangerous if digested, but am unsure about a natural clumping litter such as Smartcat. We've done our best to minimize the issue by frequently cleaning the litter box, but are unsure what else can be done since switching the litter didn't work.
We spoke to our vet about the issue, and they claimed that there isn't really any medical reason a cat would be doing such a thing, but to keep an eye out for further symptoms. He's still eating well and is active, so beyond the diarrhea nothing really jumps out. We had a full blood panel done not too long ago (maybe about 4 months ago) when he had crystals in his urine and everything came back normal.
One last thing - we just recently got a 5 month old kitten and have been in the process of integrating him into our home (which has been going okay, but not great thus far). Avi, it turns out, will eat his pee as well. We are starting to worry that this is a health related issue that is more than just a phase. Has anyone dealt with or heard of anything like this? I've read that cats will sometimes eat clay litters if they are anemic - could there be something similar going on here? We aren't sure where to even start since the vet didn't even know what to say without symptoms beyond diarrhea.
We would appreciate any advice you have!
