My 2-yr-old male tabby sometimes has episodes of frequent visits to the litter box without producing anything. The vet previously prescribed daily methigel to help prevent crystal formation. Is this a common male problem, or more common in tabbies? Our previous 2 male (black) cats never had this problem. Will this guy need prophylactic methigel for the rest of his life?
Hi Susan,
What you’re referring to falls under the category of feline lower urinary tract disease/signs (FLUTD/FLUTS) or also now called feline urologic syndrome (FUS) or Pandora Syndrome. It is not caused exclusively by the presence of urinary crystals though that can be one cause. This cause can be determined if crystals are seen on a fresh urine sample. I also think it’s helpful to see the presence of sediment in a cat’s bladder either on x-ray or ultrasound.
A supplement like methigel may be helpful for those particular cases because it is supposed to adjust the urine pH to prevent the formation of struvite crystals. But for cats with a true crystal formation issue, a prescription urinary diet is the only proven method to prevent crystals. Besides adjusting the urine pH, these diets are also limited in certain mineral content that leads to stone formation. The type of diet can be one cause of issues with urinary crystals.
But I find that more commonly than actual urinary crystals being an issue, that underlying stress is actually a cause. We know that stress can contribute to bladder wall inflammation, which leads to mucus production along the bladder wall and can contribute to similar signs as urinary crystals.
Cats may be stressed intermittently for a number of reasons. These cats are not necessarily antisocial, but may not do well with large groups of people, loud events, new pets, other changes in the home like repairs, new furniture, etc. If you have more than one cat, there can also be social hierarchy complications between cats causing tension that may be hard to recognize sometimes.
Many of the cats we see for urinary issues like you describe may have no other apparent cause other than underlying stress. Male cats are more often affected because their urethra is so much longer and narrower, making it harder to pee when inflamed.
While there are some pure bred cats that are at more risk of urinary crystals, there is no specific breed at higher risk for stress-induced urinary tract inflammation. Overweight/obese cats appear to be at higher risk and there are simply some cats who are described as being “wired” differently where they are less able to cope with stress. Tabby cats are not considered at higher risk. I actually have a black cat who has had such issues, so it can be very individualized.
What we often recommend, if the stressor cannot be determined, is to provide as much environmental enrichment as possible in the home. Also make sure there is one more litterbox in the home than the number of cats (i.e. if there are two cats, have 3 litterboxes). Feline pheromone products like Feliway can also be helpful to provide a calming effect.
There are some cats that require longterm medication to prevent such episodes, but I couldn’t say if this is the case with yours. Each individual cat needs their own catered medical work up to determine the best approach.