Joint supp. and/or pain management for cats?

One of my cats has an ouchy spot, low back/hip region, center of the spine. It doesn't affect him in his every day life. He jumps up to his food and water just fine [it's on a bookshelf], runs, plays, feels fine and normal in general. It's just when you pet or scratch him too roughly in the area that he reacts [meows, will swat and leave if the meow doesn't work].

I'm wondering if a joint supplement will help. Glucosamine or MSM or something else? Has anyone used this with a cat? A quick Google search shows that lots of sites sell such products specifically for cats, I'm just wondering if anyone has had any luck using it on a cat and which product specifically.

I also have to get the darn cat's weight down. He was nice and slender when I brought him home from the shelter, but even though he's always been on portioned meals with me, he still got all nice and fat. So I'll have to find a nice high quality, low fat/calorie food, because I haven't had much luck [I normally feed Acana, right now he's on Kirkland/Costco brand weight maintenance] so I'm open to suggestions for that.

I have no problem taking him to a vet when/if he needs it, I just don't feel he needs it now. If it ever gets worse, he'll certainly see one. As it is, it's relatively minor so I'd like to see what a joint supplement will do first. Thanks for any input!

I actually use MSM on my dog. He's 200 pounds and 8 years old so he's got some hip issues. We looked at the dog stuff and found that it was REALLY more expensive than we wanted to pay - So I bought a bag of straight up pure MSM powder meant for horses. AJ gets 1/4 teaspoon on his food in the morning, so I'm guessing a cat would literally get just a little pinch - but it was a night and day difference in him in a matter of two days. He plays again, he runs and jumps.

MSM for cats is the same stuff as MSM for horses - just, less of it, all dosed out and seemingly more expensive for the amount you get. We just got a 1 pound bag for the dog and it's lasting forever. My last BO gave me the ides (she used it on her dog, and I noticed the difference in his walking immediately). So, I would definitely recommend it to anyone who has an animal with joint problems.

Cosequin has a joint supplement for cats which also helps with UTI's, btw.
Have you checked for an injury or an abscess? Its kinda odd that he jumps and plays but shows that sensitivity on one spot.

Yes, I've used MSM with my mare before. I am hoping to find something like that, as it's way, WAY cheaper, than something specifically for cats. Isn't it silly? Lol.

Nope, not an abscess or wound. I've a feeling he's way older than he was aged [put at 5, I'm thinking more 8-10] so he's just an old grouchy cat.

Interesting about the UTI's! You mean for people? Or for critters? Or both? I've always just chewed the ish out of Vit C tablets for a UTI, the bacteria can't handle the acid and unless you don't pee ever, you can't consume too much of it, lol.

Well the horse stuff works just as well... You just need a lot less of it! :)

UTI/bladder stones in cats. It somehow soothes the urinary tract, helps therefore pass any stones or grit easier. I haven't seen it advertised for it here, but was told to use it when living in Europe.
Interesting the vitamin C " treatment" I will remember that!

The horse stuff is exactly the same! Lol. But for some reason taking the product and putting it in smaller doses and different packaging makes a huge difference in price!

I also always found it interesting that the active ingredients in most joint supplements [horse and other] is MSM, and it is cheaper to buy straight MSM than it is the solution with added inactive ingredients. Makes me wonder how they can stay in business, do people really not pay attention? Lol.

That said, I had to give my ID for a photo copy and my name was put on a list for buying MSM as apparently you can use it to make meth. My area also only sells it in 1lb packages over the counter. If you want it in the 3lb, you have to go to the desk, and for some reason it's a much bigger hassle. It's monitored how much you are purchasing, so I guess it would really suck if you ran a rescue and had some two dozen achey horses, haha.

ETA: Interesting, Desert! I'll remember that. Not that I've ever had that problem with my cats but you never know! And yeah, I've had two. First was treated with antibiotics and it went away in about a week. Second time I took Vit C and it was gone in three days. You can buy that and Azo [the pain reliever] over the counter for less than $10.

I just bought it online. It was around 8 dollars for the one pound bag (all you would need for a cat, it would last forever!) Do they have restrictions in shipping it to you too?

No idea, I didn't look into shipping it. Just went to the local co-op and bought it.