My cat has FIC and pees blood outside the litter box. What helps?

He likely has FIC - feline idiopathic cystitis. It is associated with stress. Here is article about this issue: http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=612 The article will address things you can do to help prevent occurrences of these episodes however, you will never full prevent them from happening 100%. I strongly suggest you start using Feliway diffusers in the house if you are not already doing so. This will reduce his stress and stress is a huge contributing factor to this issue. Be sure to get enough diffusers to cover the total square footage of your house. https://www.feliway.com/us/ https://www.petco.com/shop/en/petcostore/product/comfort-zone-diffuser-with-feliway-for-cats Hope this helps. If you have more questions after reading the article please feel free to post again. Best wishes.

I'm so sorry that you are dealing with this with Fred. Since there is blood in her urine, I would first continue to look for medical causes of blood in the urine if she doesn't have a history of urinary tract problems. Here is more information on FLUTD. http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&C=&A=611&SourceID= From that handout, in older cats (over 10 years old), here is the distribution of why they have FLUTD... 50% will have true urinary tract infections. 10% will have bladder stones. 17% will have a combination of infection and bladder stone. 7% will have urethral blockage. 3% will have urinary tract cancer. 5% will not have a cause that can be determined despite extensive testing. 66% will be in some stage of kidney failure. 5% will have urinary incontinence. So, my first recommendation if there is still blood in Fred's urine is to have your vet run a urine culture. That requires the urine to be sent to the lab to see if they can grow any bacteria from the urine. This is sometimes needed if the bacteria does not respond as expected to antibiotics. If that is negative, then I would recommend an abdominal ultrasound to evaluate the kidneys and bladder for any abnormalities (including stones that don't show up on x-rays). I would not consider blood in the urine to be idiopathic until I have done all that testing. Then, I would consider treating Fred for Feline Idiopathic Cystitis (FIC). http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&C=&A=612&SourceID= Good luck! I hope that was helpful and that Fred feels better soon. Thanks for using PetCoach.

Urination outside the litterbox and blood in the urine can be caused by stress or behavioural issues, but can also be due to urinary tract infection, crystals in the urine, stones in the urinary tract, toxin ingestion, coagulation disorders, or trauma to the area. Another cause, which you referenced, is idiopathic cystitis or Feline Urinary Tract Disease, which can cause the symptoms you've noticed and can be triggered by stress. It is important that you make an appointment to have Keiko seen by your veterinarian immediately to help determine the cause of his behaviour and to start treatment. If you notice him straining to urinate/unable to produce urine, this is a medical emergency and he should be seen by a vet immediately. Pain medications meant for humans can be very dangerous (and even deadly) for cats, so I do not recommend giving any to Keiko without consulting with your vet. If medical causes are ruled out, it is possible that Keiko is exhibiting signs of stress in his home environment. You can do the following to help make sure Keiko ’s environmental needs are being met. Cats need at least one litterbox per cat plus one extra to help reduce stress associated with the litterbox. They should be placed in separate rooms, away from the food and water bowls, must be scooped at least daily (preferably multiple times a day)and washed out at least weekly with a mild soap, followed by thorough rinsing. Cats need a lot of space to explore, but keeping them indoors is much safer than letting them outside, due to the risk of injury from cars, wildlife, other animals, etc. The key is providing space (particularly vertical space for climbing, such as cat trees, ledges, and the like) inside the home. Visit http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=T&C=33&S=2 and https://indoorpet.osu.edu// for tips on stress reduction. Also look into Feliway, a synthetic pheromone that is available in a diffuser and spray form that promotes calm feelings in cats http://www.feliway.com, and Feliway Friends, which helps cats get along with each other www.feliway.com/ca_en/Products/FELIWAY-FRIENDS-Diffuser .

I hate to hear that Lulu is having issues with FIC. It is a very common condition in cats. When you are feeding any of the urinary diets, you must feed that diet exclusively. The diets are generally designed to affect the acidity of the urine as well as stimulate drinking. When you mix the diet, those properties are negated so they don't work. I would recommend to feed a diet made by Royal Canin that combines Urinary S/O and Calm. It's a multifunction diet. The S/O will control the urinary signs and the Calm actually helps relieve stress. As you likely know, FIC is in part related to stress. Once you start the diet, it will take about 1 month to take full effect. For her anal glands, you could try a product such as Glandex to see if that helps control her anal sac issues. If the issue continues, follow the recommendation of your vet as far as testing her urine for infection. I hope this helps and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

Hello, sorry to hear about Felix. This could be a one time accident, however it could be an early sign of FLUTD (feline lower urinary tract disease) which may also be referred to as FIC (Feline idiopathic cystitis). Other causes of abnormal urinations include bladder stones, urinary tract infections, and crystals in the urine. If you note any more of these behavior, it will be beneficial to have Felix examined sooner rather than later. Some cats may develop severe inflammation of their bladder which can lead to an obstruction. In the interim, you should add wet food to his diet and ensure he has readily access to copious amounts of water. Hope this helps and best of luck.

Reducing stress is an important part of the treatment, because this is suspected cause of idiopathic cystitis. Try to identify any stressors in the household and do your best to eliminate them. You can also buy a cat pheromone product like Feliway at the pet store, which may help to reduce stress. Aside from reducing stress, there's really not much more you can do besides giving the prescribed medication. Below is a link to more information about this condition. https://vcahospitals.com/know-your-pet/cystitis-and-lower-urinary-tract-disease-in-cats I hope that helps and Ollie gets better soon.

Unfortunately you will not be able to just order an antibiotic online. This may not be a urinary tract infection and could be what we call a sterile cystitis. You could start by ensuring she is drinking plenty of water (recirculating water fountains help), switch to canned food and start a supplement called paxon or cranberry supplement treats for cats, which can be found online. If the symptoms are no better, the next step would be to have her seen by a veterinarian for testing and further treatment. I hope this helps guide you in the right direction. Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns.