Kitty Kool-Aid for my crystal plagued felines

My cats have always been neutered males, with two exceptions (that’s another column). You cat parents out there may be familiar with the urinary tract problems common to male house cats. The narrow passage of the urethra in male cats is easily clogged with calcium crystals that build up in the bladder.

Several of my cats have had this issue. Resolving the issue meant a mandatory vet visit, a lifelong regimen of wet cat food and potentially a medication. Female cats don’t have this issue, because their urethra is a larger diameter and the crystals move through it unimpeded.

Back when I lived in Iowa, I asked my veterinarian how to prevent this. He said the fix was water: “Whatever you can do to get your cats to drink as much water as possible will really help.” Apparently, more water in their systems keeps the crystals from forming in the first place. So, I thought about how to make water more enticing to my fur babies.  

I thought: Flavor. People like their water and liquids flavored. Lemon water, soda, juice, coffee, tea. And the favorite of my childhood:  Kool-Aid. I found a low-profile, wide-mouthed goldfish bowl and stocked it with a fantail goldfish. I placed it next to the cats’ food bowls. With the first few visits to the bowl the cats were mesmerized by the fish. After a few taps at the water and shaking the wet from their paws, they gave up trying to “catch” the fish. Only one goldfish in a long line of fantails died under suspicious circumstances. The fish captured the cats’ attentions long-term, and they lapped copious amounts of H2O while watching it swim about. They drank long and often. Kitty Kool-Aid was a hit!

On the flip side, I did have one goldfish I renamed Killer after it bit my cats. Galahad, a 25-pound Maine Coon tabby, did a full back flip when his tongue was first bit while drinking from the two-gallon pickle jar the fish lived in. Needless to say, that wasn’t conducive to the cats drinking more water, so Killer went into an aquarium by himself and a new more docile goldfish took up residence in the pickle jar.

Since incorporating “flavored water” into my cats’ lives, they’ve not had any issues with crystals. Except the few times I stopped offering their Kitty Kool-Aid because their goldfish died and I didn’t replace it. I let them go back to drinking regular water. Sure enough, in a matter of months, one of my cats would develop crystals and off to the vet we would go. I’d get another goldfish to replenish the Kitty Kool-Aid and, eventually, all was well again.

A few weeks ago, Mufasa ended up with crystals in his urinary tract. The last goldfish died a little over a year ago. Looking back, there were signs. For a few weeks, he’d been walking with a sort of hunch in his spine and had difficulty leaping onto high surfaces. I was thinking arthritis. Mufasa is approximately 10-plus years old.

Then there were a couple days where Mack didn’t want Mufasa near him, and Mufasa was just not his purry self. Then he insisted on going outside one evening and didn’t come home that night. He didn’t show up the next morning to be fed. He has this little house on our patio he hangs out in while he waits for us to let him in. I called him several times that day and nothing. Finally, late afternoon, I went looking. He was hiding in the tall grass behind my husband’s shop. Cats often find a place to hide when they are in pain. I took him into the house. He immediately went to the cat box.  

OK, I thought. I had a cat that did that, came in from outside to use the cat box, then he’d go back out. Mufasa laid down on the carpet to be petted afterwards. Then a few minutes later -- back to the litter box. Hmmmm. I checked the litter -- nothing. Then I heard Mufasa yowl in pain. Yep, crystals. He was blocked. Couldn’t urinate. I called the vet and took him right in. Of course it was the weekend, so there would be an emergency charge. Couldn’t be helped. The condition had reached a point where it was very painful and potentially lethal if not dealt with immediately. Mufasa’s veterinarian sedated him and got an IV in his left front leg (apparently Mufasa is left-pawed). The vet was able to clear the crystal and empty his bladder. He would be kept at the vet’s for a couple days to make sure there weren’t more crystals.

Well, long story short, Mufasa had several more episodes over the next few days and wound up getting a surgery that rerouted his urethra through the skin in the rear end. So, while genetically he’s male, physiologically he’s now female and pees like a girl. He won’t care. The crystals had damaged tissues beyond saving. So, this was the only option. Going forward, he needs to be kept on a special wet diet and, you got it … Kitty Kool-Aid.

His current vet loved the idea. I went to Billings last weekend and bought another goldfish. A fantail. I named this one Cleo.