Crystals / natural food possible?
Submitted by Hanx on October 15, 2011 - 7:43amHi
My 2 year old bully seems to be genetically prone to developing crystals which in turn can bring about bacterial infections and stone formatios if not kept on a strict low purine vet diet. His recent urine test result shows that there is no blood and bacteria anymore, but still various types of crystals are present.
Since there is more than one type of crystal, the vet wants to stick to a strict diet "for life", basically Royal Canine UC (dry food) which sometimes I mix with Hills UD. The poor dog is not happy at all and I wish to find something natural which is safe for his condition. I asked the vet, but does not want to risk telling me anyhting since she said that one type of food would be fine for one type of crystal, but not ok for another!
Does anybody know of some natural food which is safe for my bully? Thanks!
their are two i would look into
honest kitchen is great they have foods designes just for your problem...its an all natural diet.....then their is a new brand i recommend its called tikki i...then their is a new food canine caviar which is an alkaline grain free food.....take a second and look at these foods......becasue scienece diet is crap and your dog will have more health problems....vets sell it as they get kick backs for selling it.....
also their is a bulldog health forum...that you can go on and their are alot of bulldog owners that have alot of health ideas...
Thanks for your suggestions.
Thanks for your suggestions. I am curently living in Germany and may be a bit difficult to find such brands, though I could possibly have them shipped. In any case what I am particularly after is some food which is safe for my dog. For example are eggs safe? Rice? etc. I found a lot of info on the web but the vet is not convinced due to the variety of crystals shown in the test result.
wilson was having troule with crystals....
his problem was the lack of drinking water....i had to buy a fountain and he like the running water...and its clean and fresh.....i am a raw feeder....forget the vet he wants to sell his science diet.....once i increased wilson water intake i have not had any problems...but i will ask about food and see what pops up from other people.....
egg shells are used for calicium....so i am not sure about those....
Do you know the cause?
Before my boy was neutered, he kept getting prostatitis which caused a UTI and resulted in his urine pH going thru the roof. With the high urine pH, he would form struvite crystals. Once I had him neutered, the problem went away.
But, before neutering, I gave him stuff to decrease the urine pH. He got Vit C tabs and cranberry capsules. I also put him on methioform tabs. I think there are natural sources of methioform (you would have to google). See if your vet knows the cause of the crystals. Mine was a pH issue. If it's a mineral issue (since, you say there are more than one type of crystal), that could get tricky.
When my vet recommended a Science Diet (and, I agree with Judy - it's a crap food!), I asked what, specifically, was in the Science Diet that was so good. Or, what was omitted in the food that was beneficial for my dog? Then, I went and either gave a supplement (with a good food), or researched a premium food that avoided the ingredient(s) the vet didn't want.
Olivia
I get the urine test results
I get the urine test results in German so a bit tricky to understand all the stuff, but PH value is within range. Struvit is one of the types of crystal found, but also other types. The vet thinks it could be inherited.
The first sign was visible blood in the urine and a test showed the crystal problem, plus bacteria and the blood. So we started the vet diet as well antibiotics to cure the infection. However I also researched the internet re problems with crystal/stones and looked up low purine natural foods. On the should be 'safe' list found eggs, pasta, rice, carrots, potatoe, ricotta cheese, chicken, and banana. For about 3 months I used to boil a small piece of chicken, one potatoe, a carrot and some pasta (or rice). Every now and then added an egg or ricotta cheese. I used to mix this with the vet diet food. He loved it! Gave him banana as a treat.
At one point I decided to make another urine test just to get the confirmation the problem was over (he looked great, no visible blood in urine), but the test showed 'worse' results! The infection was back, blood and crystals detected. Once more antibiotics had to be administered, and this time I just followed the diet very strictly. Last week (about 5 weeks since last test), I had the urine checked again. The vet called me and said that this time no blood or bacteria was detected, but still crystals showed up. The vet told me to continue with the diet. I have now asked if I should give the dog some vitamin supplements but the vet had to check what is safe to give. I have to go to the clinic coming week to collect the test result and also check if the vet found some vitamin suppliment to recommend.
As you can imagine I am scared to ignore the vet and move on with a different diet. The issue seems to be somewhat contained with this Royal Canin UC food, and makes the dog drink more (before did not drink as much). However it is sad that I cannot give him any treats or add something to his food to change a bit. At the same time I cannot accept that there isnt anything out there which is completely safe! I mean something which you buy from a regular store like cheese, fruit, etc.
Some holistic suggestions
I have the same problem with my three yar old female bulldog who suffers from many UTI infections. I went to a holistic pet store in NYC and they are really helpful. I give her cranberry powder from the holistic store (I can get you the brand if you want). I also give her about 1-2 tablespoons of fresh parsely to chew on which is supposed to help with the urine PH and reduce crystals. I have also tried in the past crystals away which I also got from the holistic pet food store this seemed to help. They suggested getting off dry food completely to get rid of the crystals which I have yet to do and think that the brand Abbady has a special blend to help with urinary issues. These are my next steps to try in the war with crystals. Let me know if yous try any of these and if they help. Good luck.
Thank you for your post and
Thank you for your post and suggestions.
Yes please, let me know the brand of the cranberry powder. I actually heard that cranberry seems to help, though dogs may not like the taste. Did your bully like it?
As to the parsley, this is news. Did your vet say that? I will check about this and try it out.
I am also curious about 'crystals away'. This is also new to me and would like more info if possible.
As regards to the Abbady brand, I dont know it and possibly its not sold in Europe. However in our case we may be better off feeding what the vet says, but very much wish to mix the vet-food with something natural. Im trying one boiled egg a week and eventually will make a urine test to see if it is having any negative effects. If it works, then will try something else. Until now saw no post recommending any natural food (except for your 'parsely' :) ). Still hoping somebody drops a post in this regards!
Cheers and all the best for your bully!
Some more info
Some more info... I hope this helps as I have learned alot on my journey with my Bully:)
The brand I use it Wholistic Wholecrane intense. It is expensive but last a very long time. My last jar lasted over a year. Casey doesn't mind the cranberry and I mix it with her food. I would also recommend putting spring or distilled water into the food to promote bladder flushing and making sure the Bully gets enough water and it slows down their eating if your dog scarfs their food like mine does.
The vet suggested parsley and I use Italian flat leaf and my Bully didn't like the curly kind. I was mixing it in with her food but she would spit it out so now I feed her leaves like a treat and she enjoys it. The vet said it will help with crystals and urine PH. I am also told it helps with their breath.
I got the crystals away from a place called Whiskers in New York City and my vet recommended this. I believe they ship just not sure whether they ship to Europe. If you do a websearch their website will pop up and they have other cranberry brands and urinary aids (all holistic) as well. My vet also recommended purchasing an immune support herbal aid form the same place and I used it for a time and it worked.
Also, on the urine stuff my vet told me it depends on what kindof protein you are feeding and sometimes you need to change it until you find one that doesn't form crystals.
Thanks a lot for the info. It
Thanks a lot for the info. It gives some direction to my research on the subject! :)
Cheers