But what if cat rejects their offering? As an alternative, there are specific, non-prescription cat foods available to maintain your cat's urine pH balance at 6.6. A high urine pH value indicates struvite crystal formation in your cat's urinary tract. The challenge is to find right cat food that appeals to kitty, contains proper amount of protein and magnesium, and has few or no by-products.

If you turn out to be one of those owners who has to find an alternative cat food, then here's five things to evaluate when selecting cat food to prevent future FLUTD occurences in your kitty:

1. What's Most Common Ingredient?

The first and most common ingredient that should be listed is protein - meat or fish. Read label carefully - here's some variations you could see:

Canned cat food:

Beef Chicken Liver Deboned Chicken Beef Broth

Dry cat food:

Chicken Organic Chicken Herring Meal Chicken Meal

Some other good ingredients that will help your kitty maintain good urinary tract health are blueberries and cranberries. Vegetables such as carrots are good, and rice is a good grain for your kitty to consume.

2. Are There Any By-Products?

Just because a cat must scratch doesn't mean she must destroy your furniture. Redirecting a cat's scratching to an appropriate object simply requires patience, flexibiity and time. To keep your cat from grooming her claws on your couch, you must give her some furniture of her own.

Scratching posts come in a wide variety of sizes and textures. If your cat doesn't use scratching post you have purchased, observe what she does scratch. Most cats have a preference as to texture they scratch on. Experts discourage providing carpet-covered posts, especially if you have carpeting in your house. Your cat won't understand difference between carpet on scratching post and that on floor. They both feel good to her.