Two Easy Ways to Start Earning Rewards!
Become a member today!
Members-only pricing and offers, personalized care notifications, Vital Care points back on every purchase and more!
Already a member? Sign in
Become a credit card member today!
Earn 2X Pals Rewards points at Petco
when you use Petco Pay!
APPLY NOW
Learn More About Petco Pay Benefits

My cat peed with crystals. Is this a serious health concern?

Updated on September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Cat | Domestic Shorthair | Female | spayed | 5 years and 10 months old | 11 lbs

Hi, this morning I found that my cat has peed on the floor (she’s never done this before) but it would appear that it has some sort of fine granules/crystals in it. She’s still her vocal and energetic self; no change in behaviour, but is this cause for concern? Thanks.

3 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

Answered By Angel Alvarado, LVT

Licensed Veterinary Technician

Published on March 7th, 2020

Have her seen by your veterinarian. A urine sample can be collected and submitted for urinalysis. Crystals in the urine can cause inflammation or infection. Enough crystals may form kidney or bladder stones. Depending on the type of crystals, a diet change or medication may be needed.

https://www.petcoach.co/cat/condition/urine-crystals-and-bladder-stones/

1Pet Parents found this answer helpful

Related Answers from Veterinarians

Answered By Destini R. Holloway, DVM
Veterinarian
Published on February 20th, 2018
Thanks for visiting the coach. I’m sorry that your pet Molly has crystals in her urine. This is caused by the pets genetics. Some pets just don’t proccess their food properly causing minerals to accumulate in their urine and these form into crystals. There is nothing that you have done incorrectly as a pet parent at all! The best thing you can do for Molly now is to keep her on a prescription diet which will dissolve the crystals so that they don’t form into urinary stones, which can cause major complications for your pet. Discuss this with your veterinarian if you have not done so already. I hope this helps! And best of luck with Molly and keeping her bladder stone free. Best wishes and take care.
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
Answered By Destini R. Holloway, DVM
Veterinarian
Published on February 28th, 2020
Raw food has not been proven to cause urinary stones/crystals; therefore, we have to assume that she is just not metabolizing her food properly which is causing the crystals. I would get her on the recommend urinary diet your vet provided right away and keep her on that for the duration of her lifespan. If you want to test your theory at some point on the future, you surely can discuss taking her off the urinary diet and then retesting her urine to see if crystals are present again while off the raw food. But chances are, they will still be present b/c of an underyling metabolism issue.
Best of luck with your pet Isabelle moving forward and I hope that you can manage her urinary issues well here moving forward. Take care.
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful

Smart Picks for Smart Questions

Related Questions

Health & Wellness

My cat has shiny urine crystals. Does he need an emergency vet now?

As long as he is urinating within his usual frequency and volume and does not have any discomfort or blood with the urine I would not be immediately concerned with regards to an emergency visit unless anything changes. I would recommend submitting a urine sample to your vets office for analysis - you can use special urine collection litter in order to collect this from his litter tray. Your vet team can then assess concentration, pH and presence of microscopic crystals which can help to evaluate urinary health. A wet diet, or a dry diet specifically formulated to reduce crystal formation can be used to lower risk also.

Updated on September 23rd, 2025

Why is my senior cat peeing dark, crystallized urine outside the box?

Hi there and thank you for using Pet Coach! With your description, I would recommend having him examined by a veterinarian and having his urine tested. He may have crystals in his urine with a secondary urinary tract infection. If he does have crystals in his urine, there is a chance he already has stones in his bladder or will develop bladder stones down the road in the near future. With crystals and stones, male cats run the risk of getting a urinary obstruction, which can be life threatening if not treated as it will cause backup of the urine into the kidneys and lead to kidney failure and other systemic abnormalities secondary to the obstruction. I would have this checked sooner rather than later because if you wait until he is obstructed, it can easily cost up to $3000 for treatment. If you take him now, it is the exam fee, urine test and treatments, which come nowhere near $3000. I hope this helps guide you int he right direction! Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further!

Updated on September 23rd, 2025

My cat's Pretty Litter turned green. What should I expect at the vet?

HI, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Poor Frida Katio (great name!) I understand your worry! Try to bring a urine sample to the vet with you or don't let her urinate a few hours before the appointment so the Vet can collect urine. Frida is a young girl and I am assuming otherwise doing well. At a minimum your Vet will do a urinalysis which looks for blood, protein, crystals, white blood cells and bacteria in the urine. Based on that they may send extra urine out to the lab to culture it. Struvite crystals are common when a urinary tract infection is present and we hope once the infection is treated the crystals will go away. If there is an infection your Vet will prescribe an antibiotic in either a pill, liquid or injectable form based on your ability to medicate her. If there are just crystals and no infection they may check for bladder stones or start her on a prescription urinary diet. i wish you and Frida Katio the best is luck!

Updated on September 23rd, 2025

Health & Wellness

My cat's struvite crystals returned. Is a vet visit necessary?

Poor girl. Crystals in the urine don't come from stress typically. This is a metabolic issue that is causing her to not break down her food properly, which causes crystals to form in the bladder. Stress in cats only causes hematuria (bloody urine) without infection or stones. This is called Stress cystitis. Therefore, if your pets "symptoms" have returned, I would be best to have Kiki rechecked. In particular, I would consider getting her bladder checked for urinary stones by having an x-ray done. She also could have developed a UTI, so a urinalysis should be done first. Adding water is good, but it does not help resolve any of these possible issues. She needs to be seen unfortunately to get to the bottom of things, since this is a bit complex in nature. I hope that your pet Kiki has some resolve to her urinary issues soon! Best wishes and take care.

Updated on September 23rd, 2025

Why is my cat peeing on the bed with sparkly urine when stressed?

Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! The sparkles you are seein may be crystals, which are formed in the bladder and can be very irritating. I would recommend making sure this is not the case in the litter box as well (you can take a some Saran Wrap and line the bottom of the box under the litter). Inappropriate urination in cats during times of stress is fairly common, and can be compounded by a condition known as feline idiopathic cystitis, which is essentially inflammation of the bladder wall due to an unknown cause. I recommend bringing Sahale to her vet for a urinalysis to make sure that these crystals are not persistent. If crystals are present, they can be managed with a dietary change that can be prescribed by your vet. You can also try Feliway products during times of anticipated stress to keep her calm. I hope this helps and am happy to answer any other questions you have!

Updated on September 23rd, 2025

Why is my cat peeing pinkish urine? Is it a serious health issue?

Poor kitty. Cats can have blood in their urine as a result of stress, bladder stones or even an underlying urinary tract infection. As long as he is urinating readily with no excessive straining, vocalization, or lethargy, he shouldn't be in any immediate danger. I would recommend taking him in to your vet within the next day or two to have a urinalysis done so that he can ge properly diagnosed and treated. Until then, continue to monitor him for any of the symptoms that I mentioned above, which would warrant an emergency visit to the vet. Otherwise, a regular vet visit is appropriate. Best wishes with your pet Beef and I hope he gets his urinary issues resolved soon. Take care. http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=611 http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=612 http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=1111

Updated on September 23rd, 2025

Health & Wellness

My cat is in pain and peeing white clumps. What's causing this?

Hello. This is an urgent and serious issue. Your cat needs to be seen by a veterinarian ASAP. These are urinary calculi or hard mineral deposits that he is forming in his bladder. These can become stuck and render him unable to urinate. Then it becomes a life threatening emergency. Your veterinarian can determine if he has more of these and if surgery or medical and dietary treatment can be successful.

Updated on September 23rd, 2025

Have A Vet Question?

Book an appointment with the pros – our expert vets are here to help.

Share