Can I safely keep my cat's urine in the fridge overnight for the vet?

Good question. The "normal" level of glucose in urine is none. In a non-diabetic, the urine glucose should read negative. This is rarely the case with our diabetic animals. They often have some glucose in their urine because their blood glucose levels are higher than normal and that high glucose "spills over" into their urine. So, we use the urine glucose level as an indicator of blood glucose levels and changes in blood glucose levels. I hope that was helfpul and answered your question. Please post again if you have any other questions. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

I'm sorry that Pepper isn't doing well! Yes, I do recommend having the fructosemine test done. Cats can have glucose in their urine due to stress, and this test will tell the vet if the glucose in her urine is due to stress or if she truly has diabetes. I hope this helps!

Yes, that is correct. You remove the litter, and place the material in the box. Mitzi will use the box when she has to pee, as the material will be appealing to her to urinate in. This is a non-invasive way to get a urine sample from the cat. I hope this helps!

Lack of urination is certainly concerning. Port may simply be holding his urine, or he could be suffering from a bladder obstruction. I would contact your regular vet and let them know how things are going - they may consider collecting a sample directly from Port’s bladder using ultrasound and a long needle. This has the benefit of being a sterile sample, of cultures are needed. If your Vet has concerns that Port has a bladder obstruction they may also recommend X-rays to check for stones. I would seek veterinary care today, as a bladder obstruction can potentially be fatal.

A higher fluid diet should result in a lower specific gravity (she should be excreting more water than when on a drier diet). Test strips are poorly accurate for specific gravity and this should be cross-checked with a refractometer to determine the exact value especially if she has any history of urinary issues. Monitoring of the pH would be recommended as a slightly acidic urine is normal (fresh samples are required as it will change over time/storage); acidic urine helps to provide a natural barrier to infection.

HI, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Poor Frida Katio (great name!) I understand your worry! Try to bring a urine sample to the vet with you or don't let her urinate a few hours before the appointment so the Vet can collect urine. Frida is a young girl and I am assuming otherwise doing well. At a minimum your Vet will do a urinalysis which looks for blood, protein, crystals, white blood cells and bacteria in the urine. Based on that they may send extra urine out to the lab to culture it. Struvite crystals are common when a urinary tract infection is present and we hope once the infection is treated the crystals will go away. If there is an infection your Vet will prescribe an antibiotic in either a pill, liquid or injectable form based on your ability to medicate her. If there are just crystals and no infection they may check for bladder stones or start her on a prescription urinary diet. i wish you and Frida Katio the best is luck!

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! There is not a set number of times per day or anything like that. That is something that is determined based on the current control of the diabetes and is adjusted accordingly. That should be recommended by the veterinarian who is prescribing the insulin and keeping tract of the case closely. There is no way to accurately measure glucose in the urine for these cases. How long it takes to achieve steady levels also varies widely per case but possibly within a week or so. Best of luck!