Phil: Thanks so much!! Indeed my cat is on Cosequin, for about 16 days now.
It seems to help. I will request that information about the urine sample
and the virulence of the e coli strain from my vet tomorrow morning. With
any luck, it will be okay. She does have bladder stones and sediment
according to the ultrasound and x-rays, so perhaps it's not the bug that's
bothering her. Besides straining and a little less appetite, she has no
other clinical symptoms. Her CRF is showing up only in her
bloodwork---alittle extra water drinking perhaps---and her creatinine level
is a bit above 200, which according to my vet is elevated but not very high.
So...I'd like to think I could avoid highly potent drugs, and maybe even
bladder stone removal surgery, but my vet is hesitant to switch her from the
k/d to s/d or the like due to the CRF and kidney stones. Perhaps she might
live okay if the cosequin kicks in without either surgery or dangerous meds,
do you think that's a possibility? Ocassional straining may be the least of
her worries given the CRF. On the other hand, surgery may increase her
quality of life, if it can be done with little harm to her kidneys. These
choices are so hard. But, you've given me hope about the e coli. I'll post
the results of my discussion with my vet tomorrow. All the best!

JB

I don't know if you're aware of this, but many strains of E. coli and
Klebsiella are relatively avirulent. Has the specific strain of E. coli
been
positively identified? If there were only a few leukocytes and
erythrocytes
in the urine sediment, the strain is probably relatively avirulent.
Avirulent strains are opportunists, and capable only of invading and
surviving in a compromised urinary tract- the cat's defenses are probably
compromised due to CRF-, but they sure can be highly resistant to
antibiotics! E.coli is especially capable of adapting their resistance to
different antibiotics. Before trying potentially toxic antibiotics, you
might want to find out if your cat's particular strain of E. coli is
indeed
virulent.

Generally, most cats don't show any symptoms when they have a UTI.
Straining to urinate is almost always a symptom of feline interstitial
cystitis (inflammation of the bladder wall)- which could be caused by
crystals or a defect in layer that coats the bladder wall (GAG layer).
Inflammation in the bladder wall causes a nervous sensation that mimics
the
feeling of a full bladder. So, she may be straining to urinate because
she
feels like her bladder is full even though its empty.

You might want to speak to your vet about a GAG supplement such as
Cosequin
and Adequan to help repair the bladder wall. Amitriptyline has also been
used to treat cats with interstitial cystitis and seems to help.
Amitriptyline also has some analgesic and anti-inflammatory properties in
addition to producing a calming effect.

Best of luck,

Phil