Evaluation of sodium bisulphate and phosphoric acid as urine acidifiers for cats

Eighteen cats were used to compare the urine acidifying properties of sodium bisulphate to phosphoric acid. Acidifying agents were added at one of three concentrations (0.4, 0.6, or 0.8%, as-is basis). Cats were offered a commercial diet to determine basal urinary pH, and then again for a 1 week period between blocks 1 and 2. Cats were acclimated to the diets for 6 days, and urine samples were collected on day 7 at 0, 4, and 8 h postfeeding to obtain pre- and postprandial urinary pH. Intakes of diets containing sodium bisulphate tended (P < 0.07) to be lower than intakes of diets containing phosphoric acid. Cats consuming the 0.8% phosphoric acid diet had higher (P < 0.05) food intakes than cats consuming either the 0.4 or 0.6% phosphoric acid-containing diets. There was significant (P = 0.01) linear and quadratic response for food intake in cats consuming the sodium bisulphate-containing diet. Cats consuming the 0.4 and 0.8% phosphoric acid-containing diets tended (P = 0.07) to have higher water intakes than cats consuming the 0.6% phosphoric acid-containing diet. There were no differences (P > 0.05) in urine pH and specific gravity between cats fed the different acidifier types. Cats consuming the 0.6% phosphoric acid-containing diet tended (P = 0.07) to have a higher urine pH 8 h post-feeding than cats consuming the 0.4 and 0.8% phosphoric acid-containing diets. Urine pH was highest at 4 h post-feeding except for cats fed the 0.4% sodium bisulphate- and the 0.6% phosphoric acid-containing diets. No differences (P > 0.05) between acidifiers were found in faecal score or in faecal dry matter and organic matter concentrations. A quadratic response was detected in faecal score for cats consuming the phosphoric acid-containing diets. Cats consuming the 0.6% phosphoric acid diet tended (P = 0.06) to have a lower faecal score than cats consuming the 0.4 and 0.8% phosphoric acid diets. For faecal dry matter, a linear trend was detected in cats consuming the sodium bisulphate (P = 0.08) and phosphoric acid-containing (P = 0.04) diets. Sodium bisulphate and phosphoric acid generally behaved in a similar fashion when incorporated in dry cat diets.