cats living on hills science diet c/d long term
cats living on hills science diet c/d long term
My gorgeeous big ginger boy had struvine bladder srystals and this was cleared up very effectively with the science diet c/d version. His sister also has to eats this as we cannot effectively separfate them. the vet says this is ok. two years on and they are still eating this. Its suits them both. the vet wants to have the ginger in for a night to check his crystal levels. We come from a farming background where cats fend for themselves so to send a perfectly healthy cat to the vet seems a bit like a licence to print money for the vet practise. Does anyone have experience of this diet and can they reccommend staying on it. I have read that moving them onto s/d would be a good move.
Re: cats living on hills science diet c/d long term
Hill's Prescription C/D can be fed long term to cats with a history of crystals, blockage or FLUTD. It is often suggested for other cats in the home if it is difficult to seperate the cats during feeding, and providing the other cats do not have any health problems.
Any cat with a history of crystals, infection or inflammation, etc should have an exam and urinalysis done at regular intervals to ensure that newly forming crystals are not present, or if present, that the size and number of the crystals is not problematic or going to cause a blockage and infection. This is necessary to manage the problem. The diet is sometimes all that is necessary to manage crystals in some cats, but if there was even one incident of struvites or blockage, the cat may be predisposed for reoccurance of crystals again in the future. Stress also, is one common precursor to urinary tract infection reoccurance or crystals, so keep stress reduced at all times. Please also weigh your cats on a regular basis to ensure they are not gaining excess weight.
In your last sentence, you referred to "s/d"....if you are referring to Hill's Prescription S/D, this prescription diet is intended only for initial dissolution of struvites, and should NOT be fed long term. If a cat is on Prescription S/D and when the struvites resolve, then management begins by using the Prescription C/D. If you feed Prescription S/D long term, there is a risk of developing oxalate crystals, which are more difficult to treat/manage.
Please see Here for more information on veterinary diets. Hill's "Science Diet" regular cat foods are not prescription diets, but Hill's Prescription diets are. If your vet recommends your kitties remain on the Prescription C/D, he has good reason and you should follow your vet's advice, with regular health exams for all of your kitties.
Any cat with a history of crystals, infection or inflammation, etc should have an exam and urinalysis done at regular intervals to ensure that newly forming crystals are not present, or if present, that the size and number of the crystals is not problematic or going to cause a blockage and infection. This is necessary to manage the problem. The diet is sometimes all that is necessary to manage crystals in some cats, but if there was even one incident of struvites or blockage, the cat may be predisposed for reoccurance of crystals again in the future. Stress also, is one common precursor to urinary tract infection reoccurance or crystals, so keep stress reduced at all times. Please also weigh your cats on a regular basis to ensure they are not gaining excess weight.
In your last sentence, you referred to "s/d"....if you are referring to Hill's Prescription S/D, this prescription diet is intended only for initial dissolution of struvites, and should NOT be fed long term. If a cat is on Prescription S/D and when the struvites resolve, then management begins by using the Prescription C/D. If you feed Prescription S/D long term, there is a risk of developing oxalate crystals, which are more difficult to treat/manage.
Please see Here for more information on veterinary diets. Hill's "Science Diet" regular cat foods are not prescription diets, but Hill's Prescription diets are. If your vet recommends your kitties remain on the Prescription C/D, he has good reason and you should follow your vet's advice, with regular health exams for all of your kitties.
..........Traci
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Phoebe's human
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Re: cats living on hills science diet c/d long term
My previous cat had a UTI when she was under a year old, and struvite crystals were found. The vet put her on the c/d prescription diet (dry version), and she stayed on it for the rest of her life.
She lived to be nearly 13, and she probably died of a liver tumor. She never had another UTI in her life, though she had a number of other health problems, with no connection to the struvite crystals.
And she liked the c/d food, by the way.
She lived to be nearly 13, and she probably died of a liver tumor. She never had another UTI in her life, though she had a number of other health problems, with no connection to the struvite crystals.
And she liked the c/d food, by the way.