[karen k]

My dog, a basset and hound mix has been on Royal Canine SO for about a year. We live in Mexico and have excellent vet care, but they did not find any evidence of infection, crystals or stones after doing all tests, excepting exploratory surgery. He does fine on the food, then starts the symptoms…pain, wanting to go pee constantly, pacing and whining when I try to wean him off the food. The food is very costly in Mexico, as it is imported and is twice the cost. Can anyone recommend a home made recipe I could try? The food cost about $50 a month here, but I want to avoid surgery. He eats about 2 cups dry food daily, and is around 60 pounds. Gracias!

[Anonymous]

/forums/topic/amonium-urate/ /forums/topic/struvite-crystals/

This subject has come up before, check the threads above for some helpful tips.
My dog with a hx of stones is doing well on Wysong senior (soaked in water), potassium citrate tabs, 4 small meals per day with water added, and frequent bathroom breaks

[karen k]

I returned home today and my dog is having major pain and wanting to pee constantly, he has not had an episode for a couple of months. Living in Mexico, I do not have access to a lot of different kinds of special prescription dog foods, which is why I was searching for home made http://dogcathomeprepareddiet.com/diet_and_urinary_tract_stone_and.htmld
There are recipes for dealing with the crystals. However, my vet could not confirm that there were stones or crystals. I did read on this forum about science diet to get rid of the crystals, I will see if I can locate it. If not, I fear we might have to go the exploratory surgery route, which I really hate to do. If the episodes are a few months apart, I guess we all can live through it, but more often, I am not so sure.

I also am sure cranberry supplements are not available here, maybe when I return to visit the US I can try and pick some up, or maybe there is a health food store that might have something like that.

[Anonymous]

The symptoms you describe sound like what my small breed dog had. I took him to the emergency veterinary clinic (open 24/7) and one x-ray showed he needed emergency surgery to remove stones (both types).
It was a life threatening condition (blocked urethra). Often the veterinary clinics have payment plans, or accept credit cards.

The supplements and special diets are for prevention, they won’t help an existing condition or cure a blockage or infection.

They are available online, example http://www.entirelypets.com/k-plus-potassium-citrate-plus-cranberry-300-tabs.html?cmp=nextag&mr:referralID=2b34b4bd-6c95-11e2-b779-001b2166c62d Once your dog has received the appropriate treatment and is stable, ask your vet if these are options.

[karen k]

Thanks for the info. My dog, Doc, had every test they had to offer, urinalysis, blood work, ultrasound, xray, catheter under anesthesia. Nothing showed up. He has done better with the Royal Canine SO, with these episodes less often. I would not hesitate to have him go through all the testing again if our vet thinks it would find anything this time. He is okay now, sleeping it off, like with the other episodes. Likely there is a stone or crystal that cannot be found through the testing, and it may eventually come to surgery I suppose.

On a kind of separate note, we have the most excellent vet here, as with medical care for humans, very affordable, modern with caring providers. We just have fewer or more expensive access to certain things that have to be imported, like special diet food. I cannot order any medication whether human or animal, or supplement . Mexico immigration as well as most countries will not allow.

[Anonymous]

Maybe he has developed a urinary tract infection? Check with your vet, if so, he’ll need antibiotics. Dogs that have crystals in their urine are vulnerable……
Make sure he is getting plenty of water, keep the bladder flushed.

[karen k]

I agree, I think it could not hurt to test him again for an infection. The first two episodes Doc had, I was certain he had a urinary trac infection due to those behaviors. He went on antibiotics twice. Before going on the special diet food, our vet also mentioned using a herbal approach, with the down side that there is a lot of guessing regarding dosage. I think we should take Doc in and ask to give that a try, try and increase the water consumption. The Royal CanineSO has helped him with that.

Thanks so much for your support, it just breaks my heart to see him like that, like he needs help and I wont do anything for him.

[Anonymous]

I give my 13-15 pound dog 4 of those potassium citrate tabs (link provided previous post) a day with his 4 small meals….water added to 3.
My vet said it was okay, that was over 3 years ago, he seems to be comfortable.
However I have not taken him back for routine testing after the first few times, he will be 15 in a couple of months.
Of course if he shows any signs of distress, I’ll take him in.

[karen k]

I will talk with our vet about these tabs, thanks so much for the link. If he does not know how to get them, I can order and get a friend to bring them, lots of expats here going back and forth. I believe I read not to use the special diet food and the supplements at the same time, that way I could try some home made food and the supplements, and track the frequency of the episodes as I have been doing.

[Anonymous]

I never heard that, about the potassium supplements. The recommended amount, 1 or two tabs a day didn’t lower the ph in his urine enough, so the vet gave me the green light to increase the dose. I have never noted any side effects.
My dog was on the prescription food too, but he didn’t like it, he likes Wysong senior (soaked in water overnight) with a little cooked chicken or lean meat.

homemade diet: http://www.homeovet.net/dynamic/php/downloads/dog-c8470f2c75dbe4b683205c3919ee2310/dog_diet_complete.pdf

[crazy4cats]

Hi Karen-
I believe you are absolutely right. Do not supplement your pup while on prescription food. You might lower the pH too much and cause the other type of stones. Do you feed your pup any wet food at all? Moisture is a huge factor in keeping the urinary tract healthy.

[karen k]

I am new to all this, but now will be adding water and broth to all feedings. All commercial dog food and treats are very expensive here in Mexico, as it is all imported, so I have not used canned food. I know some folks that feed their dogs meat, as it is less expensive than bagged food. I also think the water we use is very alkaline and may be a factor. It is well water but we have a reverse osmosis system for our and the doggies drinking, so it is purified but still may be very alkaline, as it is all limestone here. Distilled water is about $1 a liter, not good.

[Anonymous]

I give my guy tap water, in the beginning I was lugging big jugs of spring water back and forth from the market. That got old, real quick.
Do the best you can, a lot of these conditions have a genetic base anyway.

There is a lot of chemical junk in dog food, so if you can find a simple way to do homemade, he may be better off.
I get my dogs chicken and meat from the reduced price section at the market, sometimes I freeze it. I cook it up and add a little to their kibble.

If you are concerned about his teeth with all the soft food, brush his teeth once a day, if you are not doing so already, it helps.

PS: regarding the broth, homemade, I hope. The canned and packaged stuff has msg, etc.

[Anonymous]

Sometimes I buy the beef marrow bones. You can boil one bone for 3-4 hours and have about a gallon of beef broth, just skim the fat off of it the next day after it’s been in the fridg overnight. Then freeze it in smaller containers. I add the fatty cooked marrow to their food….it’s high in calories, but it’s an occasional treat.

I still let them chew on a frozen raw beef marrow bone about once a week, they love it, but be careful. They can break a tooth, and my poodle mix had stomach upset, had trouble digesting the ground up bone. They have to be supervised.

[karen k]

All such good suggestions! I have been making their treats for some time, I may as well do some of the food as well. Even the “good” food only has about 17% protein, and it should be higher for these urinary issues.

I feel blessed to have found this forum, great folks and wisdom. But that is how us dog and kitty owners are!

[Author]

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