Firskies cat food causes Chronic Urinary Tract problems!

urell

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Hello, I have had cats all my life. They always have been apart of a family. I have noticed something quite odd.. I have 2 cats one a girl and boy. I have been using fancy feast for majority of their lives. Then i have decided to change to Friskies just to give my cats a twist on food. Then all of a sudden, my male cat had trouble using the litter box. He started going out the box and one time i watched him do his thing and he only dripped urine. From right there i knew something was wrong. Cats just don't want to drip, something must be blocking him up. So, i take him to the vet and they tell me he has a blockage. Then the veterinarian tells me blockages are common on male cats. I found that weird because my cat was 16 years old and never had any issues in till i switched the food. I then said it may just be a coincidence so i didn't think nothing of it. The Vet recommended the urinary tract food made by Friskies and that's like double the price and we had no choice but to get the food. The problem went away after a week. Once he was using the box as normal i thought he fine now ill just switch back to the normal Friskies. A few days after that he got blocked up again! I then said OK maybe its just the cat not reacting right with the food so i switch to 9 lives. He lived the rest of his life blockage free and passed on thanksgiving day year 2015. We then got 2 more cats, both boys, to help the family get over the passing. These cats are kittens. We fed them the normal kitten food like we were recommend then switched to normal food. I went with the Friskies thinking nothing of it. After 1 month of feeding my cat that food, he started to get bigger.. like very big near his stomach. I thought he was just growing up because he is still less that a year old and hes a kitten. Then he started going outside the box. Now i automatically thought oh no.. not this again. I then let him do his attempted business outside the box and he peed all this blood! I then rushed him to the vet and they held him and let him urinate and the vet did a test under the microscope of his urine. They said there are crystals forming in the urine coming from what ever food we were giving him and those crystals cut up is tract causing him to bleed. I then said that's so weird the moment i start using Friskies my cats started getting urinary problems. Then the vet recommend the urinary tract food that is double the price and he got better. I have yet to get Friskies again because i believe that that food causes urinary tract issues. I haven't fed my old cat friskes almost all of his 16 years of life then the moment i do, i get problems. I get these brand new cats then the moment i switch to Friskies i get problems. Thats not a coincidence. Then i did some research. I am not the only person that has this problem with Friskies but while researching, no one assumed its the cat food its just the cat getting problems because males always get urinary problems. I find that not true. Its the food that caused male cats to get urinary tract infections and females don't get affected by it because their tract is obviously different. Then that got me thinking... What if the company purposely put something in the food that causes urinary problems then you take your cat to the vet then they recommend that charged up urinary cat food that's double the price then they make more money? What if this whole urinary tract thing is just a setup? Its the corporations trying to make more money selling double the price food. How do they get people to buy double the price food? They use the love of our pets so you will not hesitate to buy that food to make your pet that you love get better. Please if this has happened to your cat and you feed he for she Friskies please spread the word. Corporations that do these evil type of things just to make an extra buck should be put away for life. If you are reading this and your saying this guy is crazy, just do your own research on this you will be surprised. Friskies isn't the only cat food company doing this.
 
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urell

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Please correct me if im wrong
 

evolily

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Correlation does not equal causation.

Stones and crystals happen in cats all the time. The biggest risk is feeding an all dry diet, since it's dehydrating. After that, the cause depends on the type of mineral building up. Of course, male cats have a bigger issue with them.

So, maybe friskies contributed, but more likely it was a coincidence.
 

ralphscats

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Cats in the wild eat mice, birds, rabbits, etc. Wild prey is composed of 70-80% moisture. Dry kibble, any brand, ranges between 7-8% moisture. A cat who is fed exclusively dry kibble will be chronically dehydrated. They cannot drink enough to rehydrate themselves. Cats need the high moisture in canned and raw food to keep them hydrated. This then helps flush out their kidneys and prevents urinary issues. The urinary food probably altered the ph of the urine, but I would guess, but am not sure, that continued use of the food would result in another type of crystal and eventually more urinary issues.
 

stephanietx

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It's not uncommon for the grains and fillers in food to cause urinary issues in all cats.  Male cats seem to be more prone to these issues, though female cats also have issues. 
 

PonyoBoy

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I signed up just to share I had the exact same experience with Friskies cat food. I have 2 cats, a 2y old male and a female.

The 2yo male has been completely healthy since we got him as a kitten. Last month we went away for a month, and my mother took care of him for 3 weeks. When I got back i noticed he had started licking his genitals and seemed progressively more irritated. Took him to the vet today who confirmed he had crystals and blood in his urine.

The vet also indicated that the food is usually the culprit. The only thing that changed was that this cat began eating Friskies daily. I immediately told my parents to throw out the the cans of Friskies, and he will be back on a higher quality food like he was when he was healthy. I feel everyone should know about this.
 

arr

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Maybe, but it’s hard to definitively say for sure. There are many factors that could contribute. Maybe stress from the change of routine, perhaps the litter box wasn’t just as he likes it, maybe a predisposition that would’ve happened anyway. My cats are 3 and 4 years old and have been eating Friskies canned food in a rotation with other canned foods their whole lives, and so far they are good. It‘s actually their favorite of all the canned foods, I can be sure nobody is going to get picky when Friskies is on the menu, so I’m inclined to leave well enough alone.

I do think it’s best, though, if possible to try to feed a variety of canned foods. I feel like maybe it will help them to be exposed to different formulations.
 

jclark

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Have we compared the phosphorus levels of Friskies to their other food?
 

PonyoBoy

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Update:

Ponyo (My 2yo male cat) has recovered from his urinary block. It took 1 week after the swap for him to start urinating freely, without straining.

2 months ago a veterinary clinic found blood/crystals in his bladder. The doctor immediately changed his food. In this case it was from regular Purina FRISKIES dry/wet, over to ROYAL CANIN SO urinary dry/wet.

Directly from the vet:
1. Closely monitor urine quantity. Watch for spotting. Check on his ease of urination as he shouldn't be spending extra time in the litter box.
2. Continue on this strict diet. He explained that the pH of urine is closely related to what a cat consumes. Particular food varieties can increase the likelihood of struvite crystal formation. There were no other procedures.

The vet bill consisted of 1 urine test, 1 case of dry food and 1 small box of cans. Both were Royal Canin Veterinary Diet Urinary SO.

The vet added that male cats are often more at risk of obstruction due to a smaller urethra.

What I came to learn is that all cats are at varying risk levels for struvite crystals. Males are at the highest risk. Other factors may include hydration, stress, age, and a cat's general health. I also learned that the only procedure offered is to simply change the food.

And finally, I learned that there are several grades of cat food. Ive read plenty of stories that "my cat has been eating X and is fine." But in this particular case, as well as in the op's post, we had the same situstion, calling for the same remedy. The expert opinion? Just change the food.

If anything changes I'll be back. 🙏
 
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