Can I Give My Cat Cranberry Juice?

Can I give my cat cranberry juice?

Can I give my cat cranberry juice?Due to their nutritional qualities cranberries and cranberry juice are marketed as so-called โ€œsuper-fruitsโ€.

They are extremely rich in vitamins and minerals, but the quality cranberries are often sought after for is their effectiveness in reducing the occurrence of urinary tract infections and bladder infections.

Cats also suffer from urinary tract infections, which are most likely to occur after psychologically stressful events. Chances are that your cat has a urinary tract infection (UTI) if they suffer while urinating, urinate outside their usual places, and have frequent, abnormal urination.

In times where veterinarian care is not always an option people may turn to traditional home remedies such as cranberry juice to treat a simple urinary tract infection.

Can I Give My Cat Cranberry Juice? Answer: Only Unsweetened.

Cranberry juice is an affordable home remedy, but should be discussed with a veterinarian beforehand. The problem with providing your cat with the cranberry juice home treatment is that there are so many urinary problems that have the same symptoms you risk misdiagnosing. Urinary problems can become serious health issues, so it is best to see a veterinarian as soon as possible. Early treatment may save you bills in the long run.

If you are certain that your cat is suffering from a UTI, then pure, unsweetened, unmixed cranberry juice might help them overcome it. Cranberry juice prevents bacteria from attaching to the bladder and urethra to start infections. It also ensures less crystal build up on the walls of the bladder and urethra.

Urinary tract infections
A cat will not receive any nutritional benefit from cranberry juice, other than its bladder and urethra cleansing effects. As pure carnivores they rely on their prey for all their nutritional needs and would not consume cranberries in the wild. Therefore, it is important to check if your cat does indeed have a urinary tract infection, otherwise there is no benefit in offering them cranberry juice.

If your furry friend has a urinary tract infection you may witness insistent grooming of that area accompanied by meowing. The first signal is usually the discomfort they feel during urination and this often leads them to urinate in inappropriate places, like the carpet or your bed. Blood in the urine, identifiable by traces of red or pink in the kitty litter, is usually an indicator of a full-fledged urinary tract infection.

Most Cranberry Juice Contains Sugar
The main problem is that most cranberry juice contains a lot of sugar and very little actual cranberries. Many popular brands mix it with large quantities of grape or apple juice and add a lot of sugar to smoothen the taste. Sugar is not a part of the feline diet and compromises their immune system. Unfortunately cats usually dislike the taste of unsweetened cranberry juice so you will have a harder time getting them to drink it.

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How to Use
If you discuss the treatment with your veterinarian he or she can suggest a method that best fits your cat. A good tip is mix the pure cranberry juice into their food so the taste is disguised by tasty cat food.

Can I give my cat Cranberry Pills?
Cranberry pills can be given to cats, although it should ideally be discussed with a veterinarian beforehand. The advantage of the pills is that do not contain as much sugar as the readily available commercial cranberry juices and they definitely contain cranberries. Pills can be crushed and fed with their meals. They work best as preventative measure for cats that have frequent urinary tract infections. Cranberry extract is also available in a powder form that is easy to mix into cat food. Both the pills and the powder extract are available in most drugstores and pharmacies.

Clean Water
Felines and humans experiencing a urinary tract infection are encouraged to drink lots of water. Consuming more water reduces the concentration of the toxins and irritants produced by the bacteria. The water provided should also be clean because dirty water may increase the concentration of bacteria in the bladder. Increased hydration is very important to help combat urinary tract infections. If your cat suffers from urinary tract infections frequently it may be useful to buy a pet fountain. Cats love to drink running water and the fountain may encourage them to drink more. Feeding your clawed companion some wet food will also help increase his fluid intake.

Cranberries for UTI
The components of cranberries certainly help against urinary tract infections by preventing crystallization and the adhesion of bacteria to the bladder and urethra walls, but should not be seen as a substitute for veterinary care. A veterinarian should be consulted in any case where your cat has urinary problems since the causes can be so varied and some of them can be very serious. In the case that is is diagnosed as a urinary tract infection, cranberry products will help with the treatment, but remember that water is just as important in combating the infection.

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16 thoughts on “Can I Give My Cat Cranberry Juice?”

  1. I have an older male cat who has recently been drinking so much water. I brought him to vet but got no answers. Then I started giving only bottled water with cranberry (just a few drops) daily plus high quality wet food mixed in with a little dry. My cat seems so much better, not power drinking anymore and loves water in his wet food! We’re both happy.

  2. My cat has a lot of hair and I have to get it cut. However, my question is for now I know she has a bit of a problem urinating. So just like me, I am going to give her a drop of cranberry juice with 50% less sugar.

    1. There are a number of unsweetened 100% pure cranberry juice. It’s usually in the natural food section rather then the juice aisle. I just got some for both my cat and me. No sugar, no grape juice, no artificial flavors just pure cranberry juice.

  3. I saved an old vial with an eye dropper. I took a 1/4 tsp of cranberry/grape juice and poured it into the vial. Then I added 1/4 tsp of water so the mixture was 50-50. Make enough for future doses.

    Then, how to give it to her? I’m not too smart, but I believe where there is a will there is a way. I needed to know how much the eyedropper would hold, so I extracted 2 droppers that were half full which equaled 1/4 tsp. So, her dose is 2 half droppers twice a day.

  4. You can find 100 Pure cranberry juice at health food stores, and most super markets. Do not buy cranberry juice cocktails, that has sugar (if it has sugar forget it, its wrong product!).

  5. I struggle with my boy. He is 5 years of age and this past 2 days his urine is almost a blood color. How much cranberry juice can I give my boy to help with his infection? I don’t have the income to take him to a vet.

    1. Cranberry juice will be no good for a full blown infection, he need antibiotics you MUST take him to the vet ask about paying in instalments rather then all at once my vet let me do it good luck

      1. You can use colloidal silver for infections. It kills all bacteria in the body. It is safe to give everyday and you can’t overdose. I’ve been taking it everyday for years. I had two baby kittens, both with respiratory infection, and colloidal silver cleared this up in hours. It can prevent other infections in the your animal’s body as well. For dehydration, give clear Pedialyte only for this (no colored versions).

    2. My cat had blood and crystals in her urine and they put her on antibiotics…twice. Didn’t work. So I researched…what ended up working was making soup for her meals made up of mixing water with canned food.

      I got her to drink so much water in every meal and smaller meals more often to make sure she gets lots of water. That cured her. Although the unsweetened cranberry juice would have been a great addition to the soup.

      She has another round with an inflamed bladder so, I’ll add it to the soup this time.

    1. No! Cranberry supplements or small amounts of diet cranberry juice (sweetened with sucralose only) will make your cat pee and also helps to prevent urinary tract infections. Do not give your cat regular cranberry juice because it contains too much sugar.

  6. I have a male cat that had a full blown urine infection. I took him to the vet. They gave him medication. I talk to my vet on regular basis if something is wrong with my cat. I ask if there’s an alternative to giving him pills because we have tried 3 different times. They didn’t work.

    I was told dry food is not good. So, I give him healthy wet food all the time. I put about 1/4 of water to the wet food to help the intake of water. But I asked the vet if I could put about 1/3 of unsweetened with nothing else in the cranberry juice, and give it to him in the syringe. My vet said it would be better to give it to him pure.

    The thinking is it would help fight the UTI.

    1. I have a 17-year-old male cat who I adore. He had an ๐˜‚๐—ฝ๐—ฝ๐—ฒ๐—ฟ ๐—ฟ๐—ฒ๐˜€๐—ฝ๐—ถ๐—ฟ๐—ฎ๐˜๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐˜† ๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ณ๐—ฒ๐—ฐ๐˜๐—ถ๐—ผ๐—ป
      last week with many sneezing fits, a runny eye and a blocked nostril. Vitamin D wasn’t helping so I figured he needed some Vitamin C so I mixed 2 capfuls of my ๐—ฑ๐—ถ๐—ฒ๐˜ (๐˜€๐˜‚๐—ฐ๐—ฟ๐—ฎ๐—น๐—ผ๐˜€๐—ฒ) ๐—ฐ๐—ฟ๐—ฎ๐—ป๐—ฏ๐—ฒ๐—ฟ๐—ฟ๐˜† ๐—ท๐˜‚๐—ถ๐—ฐ๐—ฒ into a can of wet food He absolutely loves it!!! After 2 days, his sneezing stopped and his runny eye was fine, and he was clearly ๐—ณ๐—ฒ๐—ฒ๐—น๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ด ๐˜€๐—ผ ๐—บ๐˜‚๐—ฐ๐—ต ๐—ฏ๐—ฒ๐˜๐˜๐—ฒ๐—ฟ. Now he won’t eat his wet food without some diet cranberry juice in it, lol.

      (I was also mixing in some collodial silver [12 ppm] into his drinking water. I also used some on a damp paper towel to wipe his nose and eyes after his sneezing fits).

      Save your money! Research natural remedies first and only use if they are not toxic.

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