My cat had a urinary blockage. Can D-mannose & cranberry help?

The two main things to prevent the formation of a blockage in a male cat are prescription urinary diet, a supplement called Cystophan and generally reduce any stress factors that might affect your cat.

Hi, thanks fir using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Poor Jose! The most common causes for urinary obstruction are: crystals in the urine (struvite or Calcium oxalate), bladder stones, stress causing inflammation or a urinary tract infection (not common). The goals of therapy are to relieve the obstruction, test the urine for crystals and infection, do blood work to make sure he isn't sick (high potassium, increased kidney values) take an X-ray to look fro bladder stones. We treat with antibiotics for 2-3 weeks, a urethral relaxant (Prazocin) for a week, and pain medications for a few days. If he has bladder stones surgery is require to remove them. Long-term management is a life long diet change to a prescription urinary diet (royal canin s/o, Hill's c/d, Purina UR) and increase water intake. You can buy a water fountain and change him to an all canned food diet (more water in canned food) from one of the above company's. Jose will also be at risk to reblock and should always be monitored and on a prescription diet. Other wise there are no life long medications. I hope this helps and I wish Jose a speedy recovery!

Sounds like you all are doing quite a bit already. If you feel that pain is not well controlled the addition of something like buprenorphine may be beneficial. Also, there is a surgical procedure that is commonly performed on cats that get urinary blockages. Essentially the urinary tract is changed from a male to a female shape, thereby widening the urethra and making it much less likely to allow for obstruction in the future. Whether or not your vet is comfortable performing this procedure is another thing altogether. I know many vets that can perform it perfectly well while I know others that have never had to perform it a single time. It is a delicate procedure because the urethra of the cat is so small so finding a doctor that is comfortable with it is of utmost importance. If your cat is not a repeat offender or has not yet blocked completely, surgical change may not be the best option at this time. Continue following the directions of the doctor and be patient with waiting for dissolution. You can also consider lithotripsy to break apart stones if there are any instead of bladder surgery. Hope this helps.

Cranberry juice doesn't work very well for cats with urinary issues. Depending on the type of crystals present, it could actually make it worse. The best thing you can do for them is increase their water consumption. This can be done by adding water to their food, feeding canned cat food, and adding a pet fountain (cats usually prefer to drink from a running water source). This article talks about a similar problem in cats, but has great advice on how to improve bladder health (like decreasing stress): http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=612

I would not advise to wait and monitor. Male cats like Lio can develop urethral obstruction which requires sedation, urinary catheter placement and 1-5 days of hospitalization. It would be best to get him checked out ASAP. If you can catch it early, there is a better chance he will not obstruct. He will need a urinalysis and possibly culture and ultrasound/radiographs (depending on doctor preference). The doctor will prescribe medications for pain, inflammation and possibly a diet to break down urine crystals. I hope this helps.

I'm sorry to see that Beau has this large bladder stone! The most common types of bladder stones in cats are struvite and calcium oxalate, but the only surefire way to differentiate between the two is with a stone analysis after the stone has been surgically removed. The Hill's C/D multicare can dissolve some struvite stones, but will not dissolve calcium oxalate stones. For the long term, however, this diet is fantastic at preventing a recurrence of such bladder stones and crystals. It's a bit of a gamble using a diet to dissolve stones, particularly in male cats, because of the potential of part of the stone breaking off and causing a urinary obstruction, or blockage, as this is a life-threatening emergency. I generally find it to be safest and most effective to remove bladder stones surgically since you know that it's going to work right away without the same obstruction risks. I hope that everything goes well for Beau!

Hello Cats can develop urinary issues for lots of reasons including stones and infection. Sometimes we never know the cause. It is unlikely that mild dehydration would've caused an issue leading to an obstruction. I would check with the veterinarian that diagnosed your cat about what caused his obstruction and how to best for prevent a recurrence in the future.