Me knows da question on all your minds is…what food is Dezi eating? Right? You all know me was a BB addict. And dat when mommy started this food change me was not a willing purrticipant. She had tried to change meez foods lots of times fru da years, but me wuld always go on a hunger strike till meez bowl was full of da old BB. And fur all of ya’ dat suggested a slow change, she did dat. Do you think us kitties can’t smell sumfin’ different in our plates? Me kuld smell a mile away dat there was sumfin’ new mixed with meez fave noms. And when me did finally try sum of it, well me tummy and bloomers paid da price. You know it’s not just outward change dat kitties don’t do well with. Mommy hadn’t had too clean meez bloomers in months when all this started.
Pull up a chair and get sum coffee, tea or whatever and let us tell ya’ all ’bout meez new noms.
And then finally it happened. Me got on board all da way with da change. OMC Da smell emanatin’ from meez plate was sooooooo amazin’. Mommy you did real good. Me luvs da new food.
Yummm mmmm mmmm Don’t bother me right now, meez eatin’.
I know you do baby and I’m so happy about that. And no tummy upsets or dirty bloomers during this switch either.
No mommy there sure wasn’t. and now when you tell peeps meez poop don’t stink you’ll be tellin’ da absolute truth.
Yes angel you are right. So now that you’ve got everybody intrigued why don’t I explain. I will never know the whole truth about Deztinee’s first 3 weeks of life but when she came to me she was malnourished and close to death. She apparently hadn’t eaten in a while because she didn’t want to suckle and the rescue had been told she was 6 weeks old and eating solid food. A bit impossible without actual teeth. Dezi’s never been a huge eater but the BB was the only thing she would consistently eat. She was terribly picky and always insisted on dry kibble or she wouldn’t eat canned. I know some of you have cats who won’t eat wet food no matter what so you understand part of my struggle. Her favorite treats are freeze dried chicken breasts, but she won’t eat them as a meal. I know, she’s a little…but she’s mine and so we do what we must.
So as you all know if you read our post on Sterile Cystitis, I started researching supplements, foods, pretty much anything that would fix my baby and keep this from ever happening again. And that’s when I came across the Wysong website. I recalled the name from a very long time ago, but had never actually tried any of their products. The more I looked at their website the more I liked what I saw. Wysong makes products for the whole family. They have pet foods, supplements, household products and even products for humans. A few emails later and they were gracious enough to send out a veriety of food for the girls, especially Dezi to try. I had already picked up their urine pH supplement and was hopeful that at least one of the foods would appeal to Dezi.
This is a photo of the Uretic kibble. It is a small star shape.
We received a bag of Wysong UreticFeline Formula dry kibble. Being a diet formulated by a veterinarian with the urinary tract in mind meant we must try it. It wasn’t my first choice for a long term diet, but only because it’s still kibble and ideally I would like to get Dezi away from dry food altogether. But of the foods we received this was the most traditional kibble so it was also the first I offered her. And to my surprise, she picked every piece out from the bottom of her plate and ate them. She left behind the other kibble and then asked for more. Kibble or not, I was thrilled and gladly gave her a whole plate full which she ate up in no time. The real test came later when she used the litter box. No tummy upset and clean bloomers. And she ate as heartily at the next meal. Wysong also makes a Uretic canned food that we got to try.
Wysong Anergen II in bag. Notice the ample amounts of freeze dried rabbit.
Since Dezi accepted the Wysong food so well and her favorite treats are freeze dried I decided to bump up her transition. We also received a bag of Wysong Anergen 2. This alternative protein rabbit formula is part kibble with chunks of freeze dried rabbit. So kibble to make Dezi happy and freeze dried to appease me. This formula is a step in the direction I would like to go in order to eventually switch her to a raw diet. But what did Deztinee think about it?
The freeze dried rabbit is easy to break up into smaller pieces without crumbling but soft enough to crumble if needed.
Oh meow mommy, me luvs wabbit. And me really likes da chunks of wabbit thru out da meal.
That’s a piece of the Archetype in front of the bag. Easily breakable or can be crumbled. Rehydrates in no time.
Yes Dezi took to it right away. And again no upset tummy, dirty bloomers or atrocious smell coming from the litter box. I love my baby, but oh my, everybody knew when she went to the litter box. Anyways, I wasn’t finished transitioning her. You’re probably wondering why I didn’t stop or slow way down and just be glad things were going so well. I just figured while she was in the mood to change, we might as well keep going. After all, Wysong had been generous enough to send my final choice; their original raw food diet called Archetype. This formula is designed to emulate the natural diet of felines and canines. They also make one for ferrets. We had the opportunity to try the chicken formula, but I will certainly be trying the other proteins as well, because the Archetype was a great hit. Both Dezi and Lexi love this food. This is a balanced diet that includes the necessary taurine for cats.
Both girls having a bit of Archetype as a treat. they love it.
Archetype is a freeze dried formula that can be served as is or reconstituted with water. It’s easily breakable so it can be crumbled over the top of your pets food, given as a treat or made smaller for those pets that prefer a smaller bite like Dezi. It’s starch free and meat based so those carbohydrates Dezi was getting too much of are no longer a problem. It comes in a variety of proteins like chicken, rabbit, quail and pollock. Because it comes in a bag as freeze dried, feeding your pets a raw diet is made easier for those who don’t have the time to make raw, those who don’t want to deal with the raw proteins, or anyone who would just like a better quality diet for your furry friends.
Oh this Archetype is sum yummy stuffs.
All of the formulas we tried are complete and balanced. Wysong also includes probiotics and prebiotics in all their formulas. Unlike some of the pet food manufacturers, Wysong doesn’t have a prescription line, but they will work with your veterinarian to make a prescription diet for your furry family member if needed. If you are interested in learning more about the reasons for a more natural raw food diet such as Archetype, you can read about it here or many other wonderful sites. Raw diets are wonderful, but they’re not all created equally or balanced. Please do your research before switching. You want to make sure your pet is getting a well balanced diet with all the nutrients they require in the right amounts.
I think that as pet parents we all want what’s best for our 4 legged family members and we’re label reading more and more these days. And I think a lot of us would love to feed our animals a high quality raw diet. But sometimes it’s just not possible for whatever reason, so we strive to do the best we can within our own limitations. We love the Wysong foods and think the Archetype line is a good option for those wanting as close to raw as possible. It is our fervent hope that we bring you more from Wysong as there’s just too much to cover in one post. For us, this works. Dezi has a new pep in her step and is feeling and looking better than she has in a while. We really do thank Wysong for sending us their great products to try.
Meez gunna go eat now. come back fur part 3 to find out ’bout da supplements and stress relieving techniques weez usin’
We sure do mommy. Lexi and me luvved everything we tried. And meez glad you kept pushing me, cuz da Archetype sure is yummy. Me can’t wait to try da wabbit and quail. Hopefully da peeps at Wysong will wanna continue workin’ wiff us and send us more pawsum products to try and to tell everypawdy about. Now everypawdy knows what’s in meez plate. And let me tell ya’, me luvs it so much dat fur da furst time in a long time, meez plate gets emptied at meal time. Stay tuned fur our post ‘bout supplements and stress relief. As you all know we always tell it like it is. Wysong is not respawnsible fur da content of this post. And all yummies are totally da truth. You can connect wiff Wysong on their social media sites: twitter and facebook.
Well here we are a few weeks after meez diagnosis with Sterile Cystitis to tell ya’ da truth as we have found it. We told you then what we were told by da VET. We told you dat this was very common ‘specially among cats who eat Blue Buffalo foods and dat it was caused from too much protein in da diet. Yep we wrote it as we was told, but we also included dat mommy wuld be duin’ a lot of little research herself. Just didn’t seem right dat an obligate carnivore kuld be eatin’ too much protein?.
Meez sure glad you don’t believe everything your told mommy. Me just wuldn’t like eatin’ salads and cereals.
No sweety you sure wouldn’t have, nor could you survive on those. Quite frankly I’m sick and tired of hearing from vets and pet food companies that cats, who everybody knows are “obligate carnivores,” need less protein. And I’m tired of pet food companies including so many ingredients in their foods that cats don’t need, can’t process and that could literally kill them.
Me thinks we oughtta ‘splain what dat means. Wikipedia says Obligate means by necessity. And Carnivore means flesh (meat) eating animal. In plain human English dat means Cats MUST eat meat. So how is it dat me kuld eat too much meat?
Pull up a chair, get’cha’ a cup of joe, tea, or whatever you dwink and let mommy tell ya’ how it is.
That’s just exactly what I wanted to know baby, and one of the many reasons I like to research everything myself. And the biggest thing I found in my research was not the amount of protein in cat foods but the amount of carbohydrates. High carbs can cause inflammation in the bladder and thus bring on a bout of Cystitis. Your grain free diet was full of them as are many cat foods regardless of quality or price, grain free or not. Pet parents almost need to become scientists to understand the labels on their pets’ food. The photo on the package is rarely indicative of the actual ingredients in the bag or can of that food in your cabinet. You can read the Truth About Pet Food for more information about what’s in your pets’ food and the FDA regulations, etc. Again, there are many other places to gather this information and you need to research and decide for yourself what is fact and what is fiction.
The ingredient list of the food Dezi was eating.
Ingredients on the Hills bag the vet recommended below:
Sterile Cystitis can be called a myriad of things such as, Idiopathic Cystitis, Urinary Tract Infection, and others. Anything having to do with the lower urinary tract is put under the umbrella of Feline Lower Urinary Tract Disease. Altho’ Sterile Cystitis is NOT an infection.
Sterile Cystitis is a condition that can affect both cats and kittens, male and female alike. The first occasion of Cystitis often occurs in young cats between the ages of 2 and 6 years old. The name implies an inflammation of the bladder of unknown origin with no infection present. In other words, they don’t really know what causes it. And altho’ there’s no infection, the cat is most likely in pain.
Vets make assumptions and all too often give bad or outdated information. We were told Dezi was eating too much protein and that the prescription diets for this condition (like the one for Lexi’s CKD) had a lower protein percentage and would clear up her symptoms. And that a lifetime switch would keep it from coming back.
Another assumption is that stress is a leading factor in causing Cystitis. For cats, stress could be anything. In general (not always) cats don’t like change. They are creatures of habit. Anything out of the ordinary can stress a cat. Boredom can cause stress as much as a thunderstorm or a house full of guests.
You can find a list of “typical” symptoms all over the internet, but I will list them here as well.
1. Frequent attempts to urinate
2. Straining in the litter box
3. Crying out while in the litter box
4. Blood in the urine
5. Urinating outside the litter box
These are the main symptoms that alert to a problem in your cat or kitten’s urinary tract. BUT Dezi had none of these symptoms. Altho’ Dezi went to the litter box 4-5 times a day, she never strained or cried out and there was never blood in her urine. She wasn’t drinking excessively, altho’ she did like to play in the water fountain, thus justifying her 1-2 extra trips a day. When she did use the piddle pads instead of the box, it was always because the box had been used and not yet scooped. If she poops before urinating, she won’t go in the same box. The only time she will do both in the box at the same time is when she urinates first. Yes I know she’s got a few strange quirks, but that’s my baby girl and I love her no matter what.
So what were Dezi’s symptoms you ask? What caused me to think a urinalysis would be a good idea as it’s not really part of the complete exam the vet was offering? Well a lot of you know I lost Lucky to a urethral blockage, and Dezi was mimicking some of the behaviors that he had. So we are going to list them as well because feline health is so important and they can hide an illness so well.
1. Excessive licking/cleaning of the genitals immediately after urinating.
2. Appearance of spraying without actually spraying. Example:Tail straight up, cat backed up to wall/chair/leg/etc. and then tail shimmies/shakes with no urine produced. (This is something both Lucky and Dezi did when they got excited so I never thought it was a symptom of anything other than joy. They would both sometimes chatter at the same time. However, Dezi no longer does this regardless of her excitement level so this is a symptom of a problem).
3. Smaller than normal urine clumps.
Meez harness helps keep da stress down durin’ a funder storm.
With Sterile Cystitis there is also the possibility that crystals have formed in the urine/bladder. There are 2 main forms of crystals called Struvite and Calcium Oxylate. Since this didn’t happen in Dezi’s case we won’t go into them here, but you can read more about them at uvma.org.
With a condition that has no real explanation as to it’s cause, how do you go about treating it? Something you should be aware of is the fact that cats can have this condition and have it clear up on its’ own in a week or two with no treatment whatsoever. Since there’s no infection, antibiotics are not helpful and should be avoided so your cat doesn’t build up a tolerance. If you’ve been alerted that there’s a problem then no doubt your cat is in pain. Since the bladder is most likely inflamed, an anti-inflammatory may be prescribed for 1-3 days as well as a pain medication by your vet. If you suspect anything is wrong with your cat’s health, please see a vet immediately.
In Dezi’s case, there was no infection and no formation of crystals so after a few days of an anti-inflammatory, pain meds and an increase in hydration, she appeared to be doing better. We also began a food change as I personally didn’t like her eating the BB kibble due to the ingredients. (We’ll cover all of this in another post) We have urine pH testers on their way so that we can test her urine pH and be sure, but she is leaving larger deposits in the litter box fewer times a day now and no longer “faux spraying”. She can also leave the litter box without plopping down immediately to clean her genitals.
As you all know, I’m not a fan of prescription diets from any manufacturer since they are all based on the studies done by Hill’s Pet. Instead of doing their own research they rely on old studies performed by a food manufacturer more than a decade ago. Now having said that, you must make the decision for your own cats. I only ask that you do some research before you believe everything you’re told. Vets are an invaluable resource, but even they don’t know everything, and can’t keep up with all the new information and studies. And you know your cat better than anyone. Okay, off my soap box now and back to the known facts.
Cats don’t drink like other species so a wet diet is preferred to aid in keeping them well hydrated. Water fountains are also a good choice because cats like fresh running water. (please clean your pets’ water bowl or fountain regularly.) A batch of cooled nip tea, cooled chicken broth or a few ice cubes in your pets drinking water may also entice your cat to drink more.
We’ll be discussing Dezi’s food change and supplements in a future post as well as the stress relieving supplements and changes we are making in our everyday lives so that we can lessen the possibility of a recurrence of Sterile Cystitis or any other FLUTD’s.
Fank you all fur helpin’ us. Our Chewy box arrived today wiff our noms, litter and pH testers.
Well mommy ifin anypawdy was wonderin’ where me got meez wordiness from, they be wonderin’ no more. MOL We know this is a long posty, but it’s full of good infurmation and in human English so it shuld be easy fur everypawdy to read. This post is in no way a comprehensive look at Sterile Cystitis, but is the truth as we have found it.
It’s finally Furiday. And just days afur meez birffday. 2 days to be exact. Da month of November will be here in no time and then it’ll be Christmas. Mommy sez she be runnin’ a little behind getting’ things ready fur meez birffday party on da 2nd, so we purrobly won’t be around much this weekend. But weez’ll be here Monday to celebrate me turnin’ 6 years old. Me be feelin’ really good. Da supplements and change of food is workin’ and as purromissed we will be givin’ ya’ da 411 on it soon. Mommy wanted to make sure da steps we was takin’ was workin’ afur we posted and pawssibly caused sum of you to have da mis infurmation we had from da VET. Shame on da VET and good fur mommy bein’ da kind to research and learn fur herself.
I’z so glad mommy adopted me.
Anyways, we did want to talk briefly today ‘bout da pawsumness an adopted kitty kuld bring to your life. As Cat month draws to a close, we want to remind peeps dat shelters and rescues are full of amazin’ furry purrers just lookin’ fur their furever home.
Love At the Shelter
Young and old and every age in between, kittens and cats abound at the shelter.
White cats, black cats, tabby cats, patterned cats, they can all be found at the shelter.
Long hair cats and short hair cats you can find what you need.
Needy cats, lap cats, independent kittys too; All hoping them, you’ll see.
Whether reaching through the bars or cowering in the back, a cage is no place for a kitty.
No matter where you live, apartment, barn or house, small town or even the city
You always have room for a furry little purrer, majestic hunter or sweet little house panther
They’re seeking a home with a love of their own; all the kitties at the shelter.
Are you looking for love? Do you feel all alone? Could you use a life helper?
Look no further the answer just might be…at the shelter.
Unconditional love, entertainment and adventures, in return fur a home you’re due
Fank you fur ‘doptin’ me mommy. And fanks fur da pawsum toy awnty Anonymous.
Well we hope you enjoyed our little poem fur Adopt a Shelter Cat Month. And as always, weez joinin’ Rascal and Rocco fur da Pet Parade Blog Hop. Be sure and come by on Monday to celebrate da big day.
Well da week is half over already and so is da month. We saw sumfin’ last night dat said there was only 65 days left till Christmas. Yes there was a panicked gasp here in our house, how ‘bout yours? Mommy says she sure dusn’t remember time flyin’ by so fast when she was younger. Anyways, Christmas will be here soon enuff. We wanna talk today ‘bout halloween and black cats. We talked a little da other day ‘bout safety tips for you, your pets and your children, but today we wanna focus on the least adoptable color of kitties in shelters.
Pull up a chair and let me tell ya’ a stowry.
Black kitties and cats still have a stigma attached to them. It’s hard to believe dat in 2016 these superstitions still purrsist. Oh they’re bad luck, or don’t cross da path of a black cat or you’ll die. We’ve actually heard these just this past year. Seems there was a stray black cat somewhere loose in our town. Unfortunately we never saw him/her, but enuff people did dat it was da talk of da town. Of course we tried to explain to these peeps ‘bout da pawsumness of these little black panthers, and we hope at least some of them heard us and changed their minds. You know black cats purr just da same as other cats and have just as much luv to give.
Da rescue didn’t want mommy to take in meez beautiful sis Lexi cuz she was “too” black. Mommy of course said Pshaw
And you know what they all want? They want the same thing da rest of us kitties do. A luvvin’ home, with laps and toys and hands for pettin’ and arms for holdin’ and beds for sleepin’ and food for eatin’. In exchange they’ll give ya’ luv unconditional, purrs a purrlenty and entertain you with their antics fur hours on end. And ifin you’re da home designer type, they fit into any color scheme of home décor. But purrlease, don’t adopt a black cat just to fit into your décor or halloween decorations. They deserve a furever home with lots and lots of luv.
Now all dat bein’ said, this time of year can be very scary and dangerous for da sweet black kitties. Me knows we like to think dat those groups who gather and make animal sacrifices are a thing of da past or are only in da movies, but alas, they still exist today. And halloween is a big night fur them. Black cats, all white cats and even da woofies are ask risk from these groups.
But maybe da biggest risk comes from bored teens and problem kids. And unfortunately almost every neighborhood has at least one of these. Mommy says no one can be more cruel than an experimenting bored teen. We prefur not to go into the details ‘bout what kinds of things they have done to these sweet helpless kitties, but needless to say da shelter would be a far better place fur da kitties and jail fur da teens. (just our opinion)
A lot of da shelters and rescues round here won’t adopt out black kitties in da month of October, and some do but they are very careful ‘bout da homes they’re placed in. Ifin you have a sweet black panther in your home, purrlease keep them inside and safe durin’ this season. And ifin you have any feral or stray black kitties in your neighborhood, maybe you kuld let them stay in your garage or screened in porch for da night of halloween and surrounding nights. Maybe the ferals won’t be all dat happy bein’ closed in, but at least they’ll be safe. And you know, sometimes mommys do know best and do things we don’t like fur our own good.
Wha’cha lookin’ at sissy?
So me guesses what we wanna say today is keep da black kitties safe this season, and da next time you’re lookin’ to adopt a sweet little purr pal, take a second and even third look at da black cat starin’ at ya’ from inside dat cage. They just might be your soul mate or as some peeps call it, your heart kitty. We have lots of black kitty furiends, but mommy didn’t get it together enuff to ask ’bout sharin’, and she tried to make me black, but as you know her foto editin’ skills are really limited. MOL
And don’t furget to enter our give away fur da pawsum Weruva Pumpkin Patch Ups. 2 U.S. readers will each win a case of their very own. Click here to check it out. And don’t furget meez birthday party. there’s still time to send me your photos.
Do you take extra steps to insure the safety of your black cats at this time of year?
Service Cats U.S. 