My male cat, Speck, has a bladder infection

Has anyone had a male cat with this issue? The vet said it is worse for them due to narrower "plumbing parts," and that they could die within 2 days without treatment - never ever adopt a "lets wait and see" attitude if this happens to your cat! Kidney damage can set in very quickly, and they will die, especially males, no doubt!

We noticed he was in and out of the litter box too much, constantly licking himself down there, and just not himself personality-wise, he was just listless and laying around. (more so than usual, anyway!) We got him to the vet in time to save him, he had to be sedated, have a catheter inserted to drain his bladder and remove the crystals blocking it, then he was on iv drugs for a few days....the vet said he had been blocked for a while, but that some cats just don't show it till it gets really bad, so when you see those signs I mentioned above, get vet care IMMEDIATELY! Now he is home and seems to be better, but he isn't drinking water like he should be. The vet said to put garlic powder on his food, which should make him thirsty, but this cat is a finicky eater, he doesn't even like canned food! So we got the food with very low ash/magnesium content, which is much better for all cats, and no more tuna fish as a treat, but I don't know if the garlic powder is working.

Does anyone have any ideas or suggestions about food that is good for cats with these urinary tract issues, or how to get him to drink more water? I tried telling him how important it was that he drink, but all he did was give me that blank stare....you know the one....sometimes I really feel like I am just being ignored, you know?