Feline Lower Urinary Tract Disease (FLUTD)

Feline Lower Urinary Tract Disease (FLUTD) is a set of symptoms that affects a small precentage of the cat population. The syndrome is multi-factorial, but genetics and diet are a major issue. The reported rate of occurrence is approximately 1% of the cat population. Improved feline diets have dramatically reduced the incidence.


For years, this set of symptoms was lumped under the name, Feline Urologic Syndrome (FUS),
but too often, this term became associated with a specific disease. Affected cats may show a constellation of symptoms that have a mutitude of causes. In other words, FLUTD is not a "what is", but a "what are" with more than one cause. It's complex nature is many times straight forward, but many times is very frustrating and difficult to diagnose and treat.


FLUTD has been observed in both males and females and occurs most commonly between the ages of two and six years of age. It tends to be associated with a number of factors: obesity, diet, lack of exersice, inadequate water consumption and urinary infections.


Symptoms include:

• Urinating outside of the litter box
• Blood in the urine
• Excessive licking of the genital area
• Straining to urinate (constantly in the litter box)
• Lack of appetite with vomiting

In order to reduce the risk of FLUTD be sure that your cat has plenty of water to drink. Many