Urolithiasis In Cats - Causes, Prevention And Treatment

2024 Author: Sebastian Paterson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:47

The main argument of the owners who do not feed the cats with ready-made dry food: "This is from them, nasty, all diseases in general and urolithiasis in particular." Of course, the nature of food and diet have a significant impact on the development or prevention of urolithiasis. But in reality, there are several predisposing factors. Activity level - with insufficient physical activity, the body's metabolism slows down. Overweight is a consequence of lack of movement and overfeeding. The body receives much more nutrients than it needs and cannot cope with the excretion of excess. The excess accumulates and undergoes changes (in our case, with an excess of mineral substances, salt crystals form).

Genetic predisposition. Studies have shown that Siamese and Oriental cats have a low risk of developing the disease, while Persian and European Shorthair cats have an increased risk.

Castration

Cats and cats are equally susceptible to the development of urolithiasis, but the differences in the anatomical structure in males cause the development of urethral obstruction and, as a result, life-threatening conditions.

In most cases, combined uroliths (struvites) are found in the urine.

Crystals form under certain conditions:

1. The urine should contain a sufficient amount of minerals (magnesium, ammonium, phosphates).
2. Minerals must remain in the lumen of the urinary tract for as long as necessary for crystallization.
3. The most important condition is the pH value. Combined uroliths dissolve at pH values less than 6.6 (more acidic environment) and precipitate at pH 7 and higher (more alkaline). Calcium compounds (oxalates), on the contrary, are formed in a more acidic medium and dissolve in an alkaline one.
4. The presence of colloidal proteins matters.

But let us return to the "feed topic" and consider the nutritional factors affecting the formation of uroliths, and the possibility of choosing a feed that does not provoke the development of urolithiasis.

Magnesium intake

As we found out, the predisposing factor for the formation of uroliths in cats is a high concentration of ammonium, phosphate and magnesium in the urine. Cat urine contains a lot of ammonia, which is associated with a high protein requirement of a cat and, accordingly, a high intake of it. There are also a lot of phosphates in the urine of cats, and it does not depend on the amount of phosphorus in the food. But there is usually little magnesium in urine, and the amount directly depends on its content in food. Attention! When choosing a feed, one must take into account not only the amount of magnesium in the analysis on the package, but also FEEDING RATES. As we know, the percentage analysis of the feed on the package is given per 100 grams of the product. If you compare different feeds, then the level of minerals or ash (in English ash) is practically the same. But the feeding rate for high quality feed is about 35-50 g per day,and for economy class feeds - up to 120 g. As a result, the magnesium content on the package does not differ for different feeds, but when fed with an economy class product, the animal receives two (TWO !!!) times more magnesium. Here is the first reason for the development of urolithiasis.

Urine pH value

In healthy cats, urine is acidic (6.0-6.5). But after eating, all animals have an increase in urine pH within 4 hours after feeding. This effect is called alkaline flush. The severity of the alkaline flush is directly proportional to the amount of food eaten and the ratio of alkalizing and acidifying food components. After eating, the pH can reach 8.0. Therefore, the more a pet eats, the greater the risk of disease.

Good meat based feed

Domestic cats are truly carnivores. They cannot synthesize amino acids missing in the diet and need a high content of animal protein in the feed. Their natural carnivorous diet results in a decrease in urine pH. This effect is due to the large amount of sulfur-containing amino acids in meat. When a large amount of cereals is kept in the feed, more alkaline urine is produced. It was found that the use of feed with a high content of cereals (corn, wheat) contributes to the development of urolithiasis. Conversely, a high percentage of meat in the feed is a natural prevention of urolithiasis. Of the plant products, cereal glutein has the strongest acidifying properties.

Again, feeding rates will help you determine a high percentage of meat content - the higher the percentage of animal protein, the lower the feeding rates. More meat means less feed per day.

Also pay attention to the listed ingredients. In high-quality feed, meat should be in the first place and in the composition of at least 3 sources of animal protein. In more detail about how to choose food, I told in previous issues.

Danger of artificial acidification

Acidifiers are often used in cereal-based feeds. When feeding with artificial acidifiers, osteoporosis, renal failure, and potassium deficiency develop. Such feeds, in combination with a low magnesium content, provoke the formation of crystals of another type - calcium oxalate, and, as a result, urolithiasis.

Feeding mode

Free feeding is recommended for cats. When fed a good unflavored food, most cats will eat a small amount of food every few hours during the day. This will keep the urine pH in the range of 6.5-6.9 during alkaline flush. When feeding 1 time per day with the entire daily norm, this figure rises to 8.0.

VERY IMPORTANT! Don't overfeed your cat. A constant excess of the recommended norms by more than 15% provokes the formation of uroliths when feeding with any feed.

In connection with the above, I would like to draw your attention to very high quality feed BENTO KRONEN premium.

All BENTO KRONEN premium cat food:

• contain a high percentage of fresh meat;
• maintain the optimal pH level of urine;
• contain special fiber for removing wool from the intestines;
• contain fructo-oligosaccharides (FOS) for gut health;
• have low feeding rates;
• have a medical certificate for raw materials of animal origin.