[LolaPalooza]

Good afternoon all!

This website is a huge source of information!!! Kudos to all who contribute!

I am currently researching a suitable replacement for Hill’s® Prescription Diet c/d® Canine Urinary Tract Health dry dog food. I have a 4.5 year old beagle who is on it due to her tendency to develop crystals in her urine. I tried switching her to the same product my other dogs are eating, Acana Wild Prairie, but she developed issues within a couple months. So far, I’ve learnt that a low phosphorus and low sodium is the main differences and I’m having a problem finding something suitable. The best I have found is the Kirkland’s Senior with a phos level of 0.7 (c/d is 0.59) but no sodium info.

Does anyone have any other recommendations? I hate the ingredients in c/d and I want her to get onto better food than this stuff!

Thanks for your help!!

[Hound Dog Mom]

Hi LolaPalooza –

I’d recommend checking out this article:

whole-dog-journal.com/issues/13_4/features/Detecting-Urinary-Stones-Dogs_16215-1.html

[pugmomsandy]

Could she do a half/half diet of the c/d and Acana Wild Prairie? Two of my dogs have struvites, but no UTI’s or stones, not symptomatic. They still eat a normal diet (well, normal for them) and I give them cranberry/d-mannose and vinegar and up their moisture intake. They were just seen at the vet in May.

[luvmymixedbreeds]

One of my dogs was given a similar diagnosis and prescription. Once I did some research, and stumbled upon the negative information about Hill’s Prescription Diet product you noted, I knew I had to find another way to deal with the issue. I read a comment online that said that the Hill’s product would certainly kill a dog long before the presence of urinary crystals would. Scary.

The article in the link provided by Hound Dog Mom is EXCELLENT! We assume that our vets have all the answers, but I have taken my dog to three vets who all buy into and perpetuate the myths noted in the article. You really need to educate yourself and figure out what works for you and your dog. My dog’s case is not severe, so for us, what works is a combination of vitamin C, apple cider vinegar, and encouraging an overall increase in water intake. It’s easy to monitor urinary pH levels at home in order to get a general sense of what’s going on.

Best of luck to you and your dog!

[InkedMarie]

Lola, what kind of crystals does your dog have?

[LolaPalooza]

Thanks for your replies! I’ve gone through the article suggested and I think for now, my strategy will be to start mixing half and half with Acana, with the addition of some apple cider vinegar and a bit of coconut oil with the goal of very slowly taking her off the food. I’ll have to add a bit of water to her food to make sure she keeps up her water intake.

I can’t remember exactly the type of crystals my vet said, but I’m going to get her retested at the end of summer after my food experiment. Unfortunately, the foods I have found that would be suitable are not available in my area.

[Author]

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