Cystitis is an inflammation of the lining of the urinary bladder.
It is always serious, and once a cat has suffered from cystitis once, there is an increased chance that the trouble will recur.

SIGNS
These are the same in both species
- the cat tries to pass urine more frequently than normal
- the cat will strain to pass small amounts of urine, often for minutes at a time (sometimes this straining may be mistaken for constipation)
- there may be blood in the urine, odd drops, clots or enough to produce a red coloured liquid
- there may be an excessive thirst
- occasionally there may be general illness, if bacteria from the bladder spreads through the system
Cystitis is part of Feline Lower Urinary Tract Disease (FLUTD) which describes a condition when salts crystallise out from the urine to form sandy deposits, which irritate the lining of the bladder. Alternatively, cystitis could start for a different reason, and the acidity of the urine may change which can then lead to formation of crystals.

Dry cat food can play a part in causing some cases of FLUTD. Cats get most of their fluid from food. Raw meat, fish and offal are nearly 75% water, as is canned food. Dry cat food is less than 10% water, and some cats do not have enough sense, or thirst, to drink extra and replace the water that is not in the food. This leads to very concentrated urine, from which salts crystallise out very easily.

TREATMENT
This must be from the vet. Antibiotics, and drugs or special diets to alter the acidity of the urine may be used. The vet will probably require a urine sample to diagnose the problem, but he will explain how this can be achieved.
There is an extra risk in male cats. Their urethra (the tube from the bladder to the outside world) is very narrow and can occasionally be blocked by the crystals from the bladder. As a result, the cat cannot pass any urine at all, and apart from the pain of an overfull bladder, the waste products in the retained urine lead to a general toxaemia and acute illness. This is a surgical emergency and the blockage must be cleared quickly, or the cat may die.
Signs of this would be a cat which is constantly straining to urinate, without any urine being produced. He will probably be licking his penis excessively. The cat will not be wanting to move around much due to the pain. He will quickly become ill, going off his food and appearing dull. He must be taken to the vets as soon as possible.
The female urethra is too wide to become blocked.

PREVENTION
Once a cat recovers from cystitis, any extra thirst returns to normal. However, extra drinking should be encouraged. Increasing the amount of water that enters a cat’s system leads to the production of dilute urine which flushes out the bladder, and there is less chance of crystal formation. The drinking water can be flavoured with milk, gravy or the liquor that fish has boiled in, to encourage drinking. Adding fluid to the food also helps.
Many vets will recommend the use of special diets to prevent the recurrence of cystitis. These diets both encourage an increased water intake and contain reduced quantities of the minerals from which the bladder crystals are produced.
Some cats may be more prone to developing cystitis in times of stress – moving house, new people in the house, going into the cattery. In these circumstances, reducing stress can help.

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