Be Careful of Automatic Feeders for Cats

We had a bit of a scare with our female cat Cassy this week, so this is a cautionary tale for cat owners, even though we are a dog bakery (we have a kitty corner too).

We purchased about a year ago an automatic gravity feeder from a local mass merchandiser that allows food to drop down into a bowl after the bowls contents had been emptied. I'm sure many of you have seen this and maybe even own some. They are quite common.

We switched her to Solid Gold Katz-n-Flocken Cat Food, and were overjoyed she liked it. In fact, she loved it. It must have tasted so good, she wood occasionally eat too much or too fast and regurgitate a nice present for us to find somewhere in the house. The Katz-n-Flocken is all natural, no additives, so we didn't think much of it, other than she might have been gaining a little weight. Then it began on Monday night that she started yowling in the middle of the night, and wouldn't stop. Occasionally she does this when she wants attention, so again, no big deal - until the next day.

We found a large pool of urine with blood in it in our exercise room. Now we were worried. We immediately took her to the vet, diagnosed her with Feline lower urinary tract disease (FLUTD), and they told us her food had too much magnesium in it, which is common for dry food with fish in it, and immediately switched us over to prescription science diet.

Apparently this condition causes crystals to form in her urinary tract, much like kidney stones, and causes pain, uncontrollable urinating, straining without much production, and blood. This is apparently very deadly, especially in male cats, since their urethra is smaller, and can cause bladder ruptures if a complete blockage is left untreated, but medication and diet change will correct the condition.

There are many causes of FLUTD, which include bacterial or viral infections, trauma, crystals in the urine, bladder stones, tumors of the urinary tract, and congenital abnormalities. In many cases, the cause is never discovered.

Factors that may contribute to development of FLUTD include:
* Not drinking enough water
* A diet high in magnesium or other minerals
* Too much acidity or alkalinity of the urine
* Stress

The only problem is that now once she has had this condition, it is easier for it to return with too much magnesium in her diet. I don't think the Solid Gold food was to blame, unless you want to blame it for tasting too good. We're not going to chance it, as we will be switching her to a lower magnesium food.

If we hadn't taken the lazy route and feed her portions each day as opposed to filling up her feeder once a week or so, then I think this would have been averted. So, be careful with automatic feeders and the food that you are giving them - especially for male cats as this is much more dangerous!