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My cat had a blockage. How to prevent future costly vet visits?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

How can I prevent a UTI for my cat? He was blocked and had to go to the vet and it wiped us financially. We can not afford to do that again. How can we keep this from happening again?

3 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Lotus Altholtz

Veterinarian, Board-Certified Lab Animal Medicine Specialist

Published on January 23rd, 2019

Any cat that has blocked in the past should be on a prescription urinary crystal dissolving diet for life such as Hills c/d or Royal Canin Urinary SO wet and dry. You can get these diets from your veterinarian or request a prescription from your veterinarian. These diets prevent formation of and help dissolve struvite crystals. Feeding at least a partially wet prescription urinary diet is also recommended as wet food provides more better hydration than dry food alone, thus minimizing the chances of recurring urethral blockages. Purchasing a water fountain also encourages drinking which will help minimize chances of a repeat blockage. Lastly, dosing of VetriScience UT Strength Feline chews can help minimize the chances of your Cat developing a urinary tract infections caused by bacteria. You can also look into different Pet Insurance plans and whether they will partially cover a repeat blockage if there is a history of one in the past. Best of luck!

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Other Answers

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    Answered By Dr. Elizabeth

    Veterinarian

    Published on

    I hate to hear that but I am glad that your cat is now ok. The absolute best thing you can do in my opinion is keep him on the special prescription diet and NEVER take him off of it. People are tempted due to cost or because the pet seems better. There is also a urinary formula sold over the counter in some diets but it is not as good as prescription strength food. When you figure the cost to repair a blockage (not to mention it can be fatal), the cost of the prescription food is a smart investment. This diet needs the absolute primary component of his daily intake so don’t be tempted to give many treats. Make sure he takes in lots of water so feeding the canned version of the prescription food helps, adding additional water to the canned food and adding a cat water fountain will also help. Keep the litter box sparkling as you need him to urinate any time he feels the need- basically you don’t want to give him a reason to hold it. There are a few varieties of the prescription food and my favorite is the Royal Canin Urinary S/O. Discuss which food is best for you cat though, with his veterinarian. I hope this is helpful and please feel free to post any additional questions.

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    Answered By Christie Long, DVM

    Veterinarian, Certified Veterinary Acupuncturist

    Published on January 27th, 2017

    Urinary foods help prevent blockages by maintaining the urine pH in the neutral range. There are no over-the-counter diets (grain-free or not) that can do this - unfortunately this is only something that the prescription diet companies have figured out. Sometimes if their disease is mild they can be maintained with a canned diet of any variety, however if Jack has a history of blockages I would not risk him developing another one and I would recommend keeping him on the urinary food.

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