[April F]

My 12 year old lab mix has just been diagnosed with bladder stones and she needs surgery. The vet put her on royal canin urinary SO but I’m having a bit of trouble. First off the food is very expensive I’ve had her on a grain free fish based diet until now which I would prefer her to stay on a grain free diet she also needs to lose weight she is 66lbs and should be 45-50lbs. I’ve been reading different things about putting her on wet food and that she doesn’t necessarily need to be on a urinary food specifically. Could I mix dry and wet food? I like the dry food because it’s good for her teeth but if she needs the extra water from the wet food…. This is all rather confusing for me. If anyone can give me any help I would really appreciate it. Also a bit off topic I’ve been trying to raise money for the surgery does anyone know a place I can advertise? I’ve sent it out to family and I don’t have many friends. My brother donated what he could and we are very grateful but I can’t seem to find a way to get it out to more people. Thank you again for any help and happy holidays.

[anonymously]

Per the search engine at this site, a lot of information here. I think you will find answers to your questions.
/forums/search/bladder+stones/

Most veterinary clinics have payment plans/credit arrangements you can apply for. If she needs surgery she must be uncomfortable, stones are painful. I wouldn’t postpone. I would get that done first, per recommendation of the vet.

Oh, and dry food doesn’t really do anything for the teeth. Brush the teeth every evening, I use a medium adult brush and Petrodex tooth paste, see YouTube for how to videos.
I have found daily brushing takes about 5 minutes and is very effective, scrub the sides and back and try to get the inside areas where the tartar and plaque tend to build up.

Post surgery: As you can see by using the search engine (bladder stones) and checking the various posts and threads at this site. The most important thing you can do is increase water intake, add water to all meals, 3 or 4 small meals per day instead of 1 or 2.
Offer frequent bathroom breaks, opportunities to urinate, observe for normal flow/amount/stream. Keep the bladder flushed to avoid stagnant conditions conductive to stone formation.
Otherwise I would defer to your vet regarding diet and supplement choices, at least till the dog has been stable for a while….then discuss changes with the vet.
Some types of bladder stones tend to recur, there is a genetic component to consider.

PS: Wysong has a prescription food, ask your vet if it would be appropriate….if you like the ingredients better http://www.wysong.net/veterinarian/

[InkedMarie]

April,
It is a myth that dry food cleans teeth. That would be like granola cleaning ours; it doesn’t. I believe a wet food is better for dogs with stones but I am not positive.

Regarding the surgery, you can apply for Care Credit through your vet. You can also sell anything that would bring in money. Other than that, you could start a Go Fund Me page but don’t be surprised if you don’t get many donations from strangers. Beside it being Christmas & a hard economy, some feel that pet owners are supposed to have something already in place for emergencies, myself included.

I wish you luck.

[crazy4cats]

Hi April-

Sorry about your pup’s condition. I agree with both of the above posters comments. I’ve been in your situation with a previous dog needing surgery on his knees. I used Care Credit. Here is a link to their site:

http://www.carecredit.com/vetmed/

Good luck!

[Jenn H]

Wysong also has a supplement called Biotic pH-. It’s for this kind of problem. With any luck and diet changes maybe you can avoid surgery all together.

[Jenn H]

InkedMarie had some good suggestions for financing your dog’s treatment. I’ve been there despite having a savings acct for the animals. It was depleted quickly. Care Credit was good. Just pay it within 6 months or else the APR goes way up.
When I was in a real bind I literally saved evey coin and cashed them in at the bank. You’ll be surprised how quickly change adds up.
Start selling stuff. Have a yard sale.
Ask the vet if they’ll put you on a payment plan. Often they say services must be paid in full at the time of visit, but many will make exceptions in desperate times.
Or make small payments ahead of the procedure. Prepay for it. Once there’s enough of a credit at your vet then you can do the surgery.
Try looking online for assistance with vet bills. There are some charities that are willing to help with some costs. You usually need to give proof of income and they’ll decide if/how much they can give you.
Other than that all you can do is cut costs everywhere you can come up with. Generic brands, making coffee at home, no going out, planning routes very carefully when doing errands so as not to use more gas than absolutely necessary… every little thing will add up.

[anonymously]

“My 12 year old lab mix has just been diagnosed with bladder stones and she needs surgery”.
Surgery to remove the established stones could be life saving, a veterinarian would not have recommended surgery if it wasn’t indicated.
Post surgery, regarding calcium oxalate bladder stones:
“It is not yet possible to dissolve calcium oxalate uroliths by dietary management”.
“However, compliance with feeding special diets and avoiding use of certain drugs will minimize risk factors known to be associated with calcium oxalate urolith formation”.

PS: I gave up cable and eating out. If you wait, and the surgery needs to be done on an emergency basis, it will cost even more.

[April F]

Thank you everyone so much! Yes, this year has been rather difficult, to put a very long story short I was supposed to be moving last December so I had saved up $2000 for moving and for emergency money until I got a job. In January my 4 year old chihuahua was taken to the vet because he was shaking and wouldn’t move. The next time he was x-rayed and diagnosed with IVDD he’s now on anti inflammatory and pain medicine as he needs it. My oldest girl was taken in because she couldn’t stand up and was diagnosed with arthritis and put on medication for a short time. It’s been like that off and on all year so my $2000 is now down to $118. Rein has already had one infection and was on antibiotics for that. I’ve been selling everything I can and since I was supposed to be moving still I haven’t had a job. Now that I’m looking again I can’t seem to get hired so care credit is off the table I’ve been staying with my mom and she was denied for care credit also. I’ve kept a very close eye on Rein’s urinating she doesn’t seem to strain we have 4 bowls of water through the house and one outside. I’m going to set an alarm over night to get up and take her outside if she will go. She’s always held her pee for abnormal amounts of time until she absolutely has to go and I’ve never been sure why. I’ve started a gofundme page but being around the holidays my brother has been the only one to donate. I’ve just asked everyone else to send the link around and put it on their facebook pages. I was going to put the link in the pets section of Craigslist but apparently that’s banned. I’m waiting for a call back on her latest culture sensitivity test I should get the results today or tomorrow. I’ve informed my vet about my financial situation and they said if I could pay $1000 up front than they would set up a payment plan for the rest. I am in the process of reading through the link and looking at the food and the supplement. I do have a toothbrush that I use for them (she is by far the easiest one to get her teeth brushed) so if switching to a wet food will be better for her than that’s fine with me.

[Jenn H]

I am so sorry for the difficulty. It’s so heartbreaking when our animals aren’t well and we can’t help them. Worst feeling ever.
Wish I had more to offer. I truly hope everything works out well.
Try pleading with vet to do the surgery and make payments. If that vet then keep looking. We have to assume vets are in this business because they truly love animals and want to help them.
I’m near Boston and we have a grear vet school. They have a teaching hospital and are able to be very good about working out the payment side. (I have heard.)
Are there any vet schools near you? Just another idea.

[anonymously]

https://www.aspca.org/about-us/faq

[April F]

Thank you everyone for your help, I wanted to give you an update on rein her culture test showed a anti biotic resistant bacterial infection so she’s on baytril for 20 days and the other day she threw up a Brown muddy diarrhea looking vomit so she is on chicken and rice through Monday and going to start on the moderate calorie urinary food. Once the infection is cleared up we can get the surgery arranged I found a few places that will be low cost if my vet can’t help us out but I’m hoping they can. I’m hoping this next year looks better for us. Happy howlidays!

[anonymously]

Make sure your vet (leave him a message to call you back) knows about the vomiting. Baytril doesn’t agree with some dogs and they have to use a different antibiotic. I would speak to the vet about it, rather than the vet tech. Especially if the vomiting and/or poor appetite continues. The dog could be nauseas.
Thanks for the update.

[Jenn H]

So just, the other day my dog was diagnosed with a UTI. There were crystals in the urine. I don’t know if she has high acid or alkaline. They said they can’t tell until retest. I think I’ll get test strips and try to see if that helps.
Anyway I picked up Solid Gold Berry Balance. It’s supposed to be used for high alkaline crystals. The reviews are great. You don’t need very much.
Just a thought if it’s something that may help your dog until you can get the surgery.

[anonymously]

My dog had both types of stones (struvite and calcium oxalate). I would give no supplements unless approved by the vet that has examined your dog and is treating him.
You could make the situation worse.

It takes weeks (sometimes 2-3 months) to see a change in PH after diet changes and increased water added to the diet, so testing PH at home is not accurate. Just go by what the veterinarian recommends
/forums/search/bladder+stones/.

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