One morning, you wake up to find that your house-trained dog urinated on the carpet. You scold her and then take her outside and notice that she squats more than normal and her urine is bloody. Alarmed, you take her to the veterinarian. A bladder infection and bladder crystals are diagnosed. Four weeks later after two courses of antibiotics, the bladder infection and crystals are still present. The veterinarian performs an ultrasound and finds bladder stones. Medication, a special diet and surgery remove the bladder stones and crystals. Now you want to find ways to prevent a re-occurrence. A combination of nutrition and pet care can prevent canine bladder stones and crystals.
Instructions
1. Ask the veterinarian to prescribe a diet plan to prevent bladder crystals and stones. There are a number of different types of bladder stones, and each stone requires a different preventative diet. If your dog previously had bladder stones, the veterinarian will gear the diet based upon preventing the specific stone type. Many prescription diets to prevent stones and crystals involve low protein and avoiding certain minerals.
2. Place your dog on long-term antibiotic therapy if recommended by the veterinarian. If your dog’s bladder stones and crystals were caused by infection, antibiotic therapy can prevent re-occurrences.
3. Provide the dog with plenty of fresh water. Your dog needs to drink enough water to maintain his urine at a healthy pH level. High alkaline urine leads to the formation of crystals and stones. Keep your dog’s water bowls full and easily accessible.
4. Test your water for high concentrations of the minerals that aggravate the stone formation. If you have a high content of minerals, give your dog bottled water to drink in place of tap water.
5. Mix canned food with your dog’s dry food to provide more water in her diet.
6. Walk the dog so that she can urinate frequently to prevent the build-up of bacteria in the bladder. Never let the dog go more than 8 hours without an opportunity to urinate.
7. Have your dog’s urine tested periodically for infection. If a bladder infection caused the crystals and stones, you should ask your veterinarian for a schedule to check the dog for an infection re-occurrence. You want an infection diagnosed early to avoid crystal formation. Since crystals form stones, eliminating crystals also prevents stones.
8. Give the dog vitamin supplements if your veterinarian allows it. Vitamins B and C may help dissolve stones and keep crystals from forming. Ask your veterinarian if your dog can benefit from vitamin supplements to prevent bladder crystals and stones.
9. Use cranberry juice to maintain bladder health. Mix a cup of cranberry juice into the dog’s food or offer the juice to the dog to drink in small doses. Cranberry juice helps acidify the dog’s urine to fight off bacteria and conditions that support the formation of crystals and stones. Get your veterinarian’s approval to add cranberry juice to your pet’s diet, especially if your dog is on a prescription diet.
10. Add salmon oil to the dog’s diet. Stir in 1 tbsp. of salmon oil to the dog’s food once week to help fight inflammation and strengthen the dog’s immune system. Check with the veterinarian to make sure that salmon oil will not conflict with the dog’s medication or diet.
Tags: crystals stones, bladder stones, , bladder crystals, bladder infection, bladder stones crystals