Urinary Crystals

June 11th, 2010 (11:06AM)

Fact or Fiction?
We often get questions about the urinary problems in both dog and cats.  CJ Puotinen and Mary Straus from The Whole Dog Journal recently wrote a great article on Urinary Stuvite Crystals.  Stuvite stones form when large amounts of crystals are present in the urinary tract in combination with a urinary tract infection.  Here are 4 myths from Puotinen and Straus (2010, p12):

1. "Urinary struvite crystals represent disease and require treatment.”
   This type of crystal can be found in the urine of an estimated 40% of healthy dogs.  “Without an infection, struvite crystals in dogs will not be associated with struvite urolith formation.” The big question is whether your dog or cat has a urinary tract infection.  
2. “Struvite crystals require a change in diet, usually to a prescription diet like c/d, u/d, or s/d.
   This type of crystal does not pose a problem unless there is an infection, and changing your food will not help with these crystals.
3. “Dogs prone to forming struvite stones should be kept on a special diet for life.”
   Benefits of a meat-based diet far outweigh the risks by protein’s ammonia generation.  However, short-term change may help speed the dissolution of stones.
4. “The most important treatment for dogs with a history of struvite stones is a low protein diet.”
   Low protein diets do not prevent stones.  Preventing infections is the most important factor in preventing stones.  Like we mentioned before the low protein diet can help dissolve the stones, but it should not be a long-term solution.  

Prevention:
Maintaining slightly acidic urine helps in prevention of infections.  Acidic urine is aided by meat (Puotinen & Straus, 2010, p.12).  Encourage your dog or cat to drink more water along with more frequent opportunities to relieve themselves during the day.  “Reducing carbohydrates also helps to prevent stuvite urolith” (Puotinen & Straus, 2010, p.12). The full article can be found on Whole Dog Journals website. As always contact your vet with any health questions about your pet.

Puotinen, CJ., Straus, M. (2010) Is your dog stoned?. Whole Dog Journal, 13(4), 11-15.