My cat has FIC. What else can I do to comfort him during an episode?

Have your veterinarian eliminate underlying medical causes for her cystitis first. You can then discuss using Cosequin sprinkles with your veterinarian. This product is supposed to decrease inflammation and can be sprinkled on food. Also, consider a pheromone product (Feliway plug ins or spray) to decrease any anxiety or stress. Stress plays a big role in FIC, so controlling or eliminating it will help greatly.

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.

This is a frustrating disease to deal with. You can try to add Feliway diffusers or plugs in to help with stress in her environment and add more litter boxes. Some times you have to change the type of litter or litter box because some have a preference. They always make fountains to recycle their water to encourage more water intake. There are several different types of urinary food to help with infections, sediment and crystals, and stress that may help. I would monitor her a urinalysis frequently to make sure there is no infection or sudden changes.

Stress-related cystitis can be very frustrating to manage! It sounds as though you are doing everything you can to help Duck. Cats can become stressed by nearly anything - a new person in the house, rearranged furniture, a new type of litter, etc. I'm glad to hear that he is eating the SO food and has been started on Prozac. It can take 2 months to see full efficacy from the Prozac, and if it still isn't effective after 2 months, he may need to have a dose adjustment. Unfortunately, there isn't anything else to try at home since you're already using Feliway, an extra litter box and water fountains. A new kitten is likely to cause more stress to Duck. Until you have his stress-related cystitis under control, I would wait to bring a new kitten into your home. I hope that all goes well!

Poor Dylan! I would recommend you keep him on a canned prescription diet for urinary crystals. Your veterinarian can recommend one that should work. I usually recommend rechecking the urine after at least 2 weeks of this diet to make sure the crystals are no longer present and the diet is working. You also can try environmental enrichment to see if that helps with his stress level. For example, you can use shelves to make space so he can perch up high away from the other cats and have his space. I would also make sure you have multiple litter boxes and they are cleaned regularly. We want to encourage him to use the litter box often and not hold his urine. Feliway is a product you can purchase either through your vet or at a pet store that sometimes helps with stress. It is a synthetic cat pheromone that is sometimes effective to help with stress and urinary issues with cats. It will not impact the crystals, but hopefully help calm him and make him more relaxed and use the litter box more readily. Some vets also will add in glucosamine to the cats diet. It won't hurt and could possibly help with his cystitis. Some cats needs other medications, like anti-depressants, if they are still having problems. Hopefully a few changes will improve Dylan's overall situation. Good luck!

I'm sorry to hear of your concerns with Harry. FIC is a very frustrating condition. Individual cats can respond very differently to different therapies and so there is not one single, best way to treat FIC. There are diets on the market that can dissolve struvite crystals and stones, but these are not effective in all cases. The concentration of the urine and the components of the diet are the most important factors long-term. Different brands of diets can sometimes work better in different cats. If the c/d diet is not working for Harry, you may want to try a different brand such as the Royal Canin urinary s/o diet. If he has only had one obstructive episode you do not necessarily need to proceed with a PU at this time, but keep in mind that if he has small stones present and continues have to have flare-ups, he is at risk for another blockage. A PU surgery will greatly reduce the risk of an obstruction but is not without risk itself and is expensive, as you know. Most cases of FIC can be managed via diet and supplements but I cannot speak to the need for a cystotomy without reviewing x-rays and medical history. If you would like to discuss this case further, using our consultation option may be helpful as you are able to upload X-rays and other medical information. This would allow us to give more specific recommendations. I wish you the best of luckin managing Harry's condition. He's very lucky to have you.

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!