cystine stones dog diet homemade
Dog Cystine Stones
If your dog is unfortunate enough to suffer from cystine stones, it is a very unlucky dog indeed. Cystinuria is exceptionally rare in dogs. In fact its said that most vets may go through their entire careers without coming across a dog suffering from cystine stones.
But just what is cystinuria and what are cystine stones?
About cystinuria
Cystinuria is an inherited disease. A metabolic defect which results in excessive cystine excretion in the kidneys. This in turn results in cystine stones, the rarest of all kidney stones, accounting only for around 1% of all dogs who suffer from kidney and bladder stones.
Under normal circumstances, excess cystine is filtered by the kidneys and doesnt even enter the urine. But when it does, it can form crystals and uroliths, although this is not always the case. Many dogs inherit this condition but only a small percentage of those actually go on to develop stones.
Cystine itself is a sulphur-containing amino acid, one of several involved in the development of cystine stones. The other amino acids involved are ornithine, lysine and arginine. In dogs, the condition, the first ever recorded inherited canine metabolic disorder, was first recorded back in 1823.
Two types of cystinuria
In dogs, there are at least two types of cystinuria. Both are more common in males than females, and both are less common in the United States where neutering of male dogs is more common than in Europe. It is believed that castration can resolve or cure the problem in male dogs, which is why the condition is less prevalent in the USA.
The more severe form of the disease tends to affect Newfoundlands. More rarely, it also tends to affect Labrador Retrievers. This form of the condition generally manifests itself at the age of 6 months to a year. Dogs suffering from this form of the condition are more likely to develop further stones following surgery to remove previous stones.
Certain breeds of dog seem more predisposed to developing cystine stones than other breeds. Mastiffs and Labrador Retrievers seem particularly affected, with as many as 10% of male Mastiffs being born with the condition.
Other affected breeds include the English Bulldog, Dachshund, Chihuahua, Staffordshire Bull Terrier, Rottweiler, French Bulldog, Scottish Deerhound and Miniature Pinscher.
While both male and female dogs are likely to be affected, the condition is invariably more problematical for male dogs because of their narrower urethra. One positive is that the severity of cystinuria tends to decline with age. Some dogs even go on to stop producing cystine stones altogether as they grow older.
Symptoms of cystinuria
Symptoms of cystinuria include:
Frequent urination Blood in the urine Frequent urinary tract infections ifficulty in urination Scanty urination Dribbling urination Evidence of pain when urinating A reluctance to urinate Anything about your dogs urinary habits that dont seem totally normal
Healthier Homemade
Integrating Custom Recipes into Medical Programs for Dogs with Cystine Urinary Crystals and Stones:
What We Know about Cystine Urinary Crystals and Stones
It is uncertain why certain breeds of dogs (English Bulldogs, Bull Mastiff, Newfoundland, Dachshund, and other bully breeds) are prone to the accumulation of cystine crystals and stones in their urine.
Dogs with Cystine Urinary Crystals or Stones may experience pain while urinating, blood or pus in the urine, cloudy urine, or increased urgency to urinate.
Which Ingredients Matter
Reduction of total dietary protein, using meats low in cystine and other sulfur-containing amino acids helps prevent the crystal formation that leads to cystine stones in the bladder.
Our dog food recipes for cystine crystals and stones have a Calorie Distribution of - Protein 14%; Fat 38%; Carbohydrates 48% which is considered favorable for Cystine patients. The percentages show that these recipes haveless meat protein than normal diets (which range from 24%-52%). Less protein reduces crystal and stone formation in the urine, helping to reduce the symptoms listed above.
Because of the restricted ingredients, low protein recipes should NOT be fed to normal adult dogs or puppies.
More than Just Diet
Your dogs diet is only one tool for cystine crystal and stone management, it is not a substitute for a comprehensive veterinary treatment plan. Treatment may include a medication called 2-MPG and a urine alkalizer called potassium citrate.
Constant veterinary lab monitoring is essential in a veterinary management plan for cystine patients. It is recommended that urine be monitored every 3 months for the first year on the diet and then every 6 months for the life of the patient.
Bladder x-rays to ensure stones are not being formed should be performed yearly as well. Detection of calcium oxalate or struvite urinary crystals is common on these diets. Veterinarians may recommend urine acidifiers if oxalate counts become too high.
Dont Use this Recipe If
If your dog has other conditions needing conflicting dietary restrictions (inflammatory bowel disease/chronic enteropathy, short bowel syndrome, or cancer) Healthier Homemade recipes for cystine crystals and stones may not be appropriate.
Low protein diets should also be used with caution in male dogs with cystine stones that have not been surgically removed.
The diet may promote the dissolution of cystine stones that could result in stone shrinkage sufficient to cause stones to be passed into the urethra and lodge at the penis bone and block urination. This can be a life-threatening condition and require emergency surgery.
These are among the things we will engage with your veterinarian, before beginning to formulate your recipe.
What You Can Do
Since low protein diets are not a favorite for dogs, Food Fatigue is common in patients on these diets. We recommend the generous use of condiments:
Bacon grease
BBQ sauce
Teriyaki baste
Catsup
Honey
These toppings along with appetite stimulants may help to keep your dog interested in eating.
Is it Balanced and Complete?
Although Healthier Homemade dog food recipes exceed AAFCO and NRC daily nutrient requirements and meet the minimum NRC requirements for protein and the sulfur-containing amino acids (methionine and cystine) to ensure adequate taurine production, we prefer to err on the side of caution.
The Healthier Homemade urate program includes taurine supplementation for this heart-protecting amino acid.
Each Healthier Homemade Starter Kit includes a nutrition data fact sheet, so you and your veterinarian can see that all of the 42 daily essential nutrients are in meals prepared with our recipes when used as directed.
Commercial prescription diets, especially kibble, may be unappealing. Freshly cooked meals make a difference!
Click here to learn about recipe programs that are available for dogs suffering from Cystine Urinary Crystals.
What to Feed a Dog With Bladder Stones
Bladder stones develop when substances that are normally dissolved in urine form crystals that link, and over time combine to form one or more stones. They can become so big that they cant pass through the dogs urethra, which traps them in the bladder.
Different types of bladder stones require different treatments, and unfortunately, once a dog has had bladder stones, theres a good chance they could come back, especially if no preventive measures are in place.
Diet can play a big role in the treatment and prevention of bladder stones. Heres what you need to know about feeding a dog with bladder stones.
Can You Use Food to Treat Dogs With Bladder Stones?
Some bladder stones can be dissolved using a special prescription food or medicine. When you create the right conditions in the urine, the stones gradually dissolve.
Other bladder stones have to be physically removed, either through surgery or techniques like lithotripsy (using sound waves or a laser to break stones into small pieces) or urohydropropulsion (placing a special catheter into the bladder to flush out small stones).
Your veterinarian can recommend the best treatment for your dogs bladder stones based on:
Treatment Plans Based on Type of Bladder Stone
Lets take a look at the options for getting rid of different bladder stones.
Struvite
Struvite stones (also called magnesium ammonium phosphate) are quite common in dogs and can usually be dissolved with food or medicine. Antibiotics are also necessary, because struvite stones in dogs are almost always associated with bacterial infections in the bladder.
Dissolving stones takes anywhere from a few weeks to several months, depending on their size and other factors. Surgery and other methods of physical removal can be considered if necessary.
Diets used to dissolve struvite stones have the following characteristics:
Reduced levels of protein, magnesium, and phosphorus
Increased levels of salt
Creates acidic urine (urine with a lower pH than normal)
Good options include:
Calcium oxalate
Calcium oxalate is another common type of bladder stone in dogs. Unfortunately, there is no way to dissolve calcium oxalate stones, so they have to be removed via surgery, lithotripsy, or urohydropropulsion.
Cystine
Cystine stones are not as common in dogs as struvite and calcium oxalate stones. They can usually be dissolved with the right kind of food. Appropriate diets have the following characteristics:
Reduced levels of protein
Low sodium
Low levels of the amino acids cystine and methionine, which the body converts to cystine
Create alkaline urine (urine with a higher pH than normal)
Veterinarians usually prescribe these diets to dissolve cystine stones:
Purine
Purine stones can be made of urate or xanthine. Urate stones can be dissolved with food. This is also true for some, but not all, xanthine stones. If food and medicine fail to dissolve the stone, it will need to be removed. Diets used to dissolve purine stones have the following characteristics:
Reduced levels of proteinspecifically proteins that contain a lot of purine, like fish and organ meats
Low sodium
Creates alkaline urine (urine with a higher pH than normal)
Good dog foods to dissolve purine stones include:
Calcium phosphate
Bladder stones made of calcium phosphate are not very common in dogs. Surgical removal of the stones is usually necessary.
Silica
Silica bladder stones are rare in dogs and cannot be dissolved. They must be removed by surgery, lithotripsy, or urohydropropulsion.
How Special Diets Can Prevent Bladder Stones in Dogs
Dogs that develop bladder stones once are at risk for getting them again, but preventive measures are available. Changing dog food is one of the most effective ways of preventing bladder stones. This is because to a large degree, a dogs diet determines what ends up in their urine. By feeding a special food, pet parents can reduce the building blocks needed to create bladder stones.
Struvite
Struvite stones are a partial exception to the rule because they are almost always caused by bacterial infections. Therefore, the best way to prevent the return of struvite stones is to focus on preventing bladder infections.
A long-term diet change is not always necessary, but ensuring that the urine remains dilute and slightly acidic can help. A veterinarian may recommend these foods to help prevent the return of struvite stones:
Calcium oxalate
While changing a dogs diet wont get rid of calcium oxalate stones, therapeutic foods can help prevent their return. An appropriate nutrient profile for calcium oxalate stone prevention:
Diets that meet these criteria include:
Cystine
The dietary parameters used to dissolve cystine stoneslow protein (especially those that contain a lot of cystine and methionine), low sodium, and promoting alkaline urinecan also be used for prevention. These are both good options:
Purine
Diets used to dissolve purine stones can also help prevent their return. They should be low in protein; be made without ingredients high in purines (like fish and organ meats); be low in sodium; and produce alkaline urine.
These are common diets for purine stones:
Calcium phosphate
No ideal diet for the prevention of calcium phosphate bladder stones has been identified, but keeping urine dilute and slightly more alkaline than normal can help. For this reason, veterinarians may recommend diets that are typically used to prevent calcium oxalate stones, such as:
Silica
A diet that is high in animal protein and avoids plant-based ingredients that could be high in silica, like corn gluten, is commonly recommended to prevent silica stones. Its also important to increase water consumption to dilute urine and to keep your dogs urine pH slightly alkaline.
The best diet will depend on the specific dogs case, but Hill's Prescription Diet Derm Complete or high-quality, grain-free canned dog foods (with a little extra water added) are often good options. Its also important to prevent dogs from eating soil or drinking water that may be high in silica, which may be associated with volcanic areas.
Homemade Dog Food for Bladder Stones
No discussion about what to feed dogs is complete without talking about home-cooked foods.
It is difficult enough to put together a nutritionally complete and balanced, homemade dog food that is safe to feed long-term to a healthy dog. Adding bladder stones to the mix makes it even harder, since you need to achieve specific parameters in the urine.
If youre interested in feeding home-cooked food for bladder stones, work with a veterinary nutritionist who is familiar with your dogs case. Feeding the wrong homemade dog food could make your dogs condition worse.
How Much Water Should Dogs Prone to Bladder Stones Drink?
When it comes to bladder stones, keeping dogs well-hydrated (or even slightly overhydrated) is important. Dehydration makes a dogs urine very concentrated, increasing the risk that crystals and stones will form. Conversely, bladder stones are less likely to form in very dilute urine (urine with a lot of water in it) because the substances that form them will stay dissolved.
The best way to keep your dogs urine dilute is to feed wet dog food, add a little extra water to it, and make sure your dog always has access to bowls of fresh, clean water. It is possible to add water to dry food, but you would have to add a lot, often several cups, to reach the levels found in canned food. This can make it hard for some dogs to eat enough to meet their other nutritional needs.
Measuring a dogs water intake is difficult, and their needs will vary depending on their activity level, the outside temperature, and other factors. An easier way to check if your dog is taking in enough water is to regularly monitor their urine specific gravity (USG).
A dogs USG goes up when they are dehydrated. Trying to keep your dogs USG under 1.020 is a good goal for preventing bladder stones. Your veterinarian can recommend a refractometer to measure your dogs USG at home, or they can run a quick and inexpensive USG check if you drop off a urine sample.
Featured Image: iStock.com/ti-ja
WRITTEN BY
Jennifer Coates, DVMVeterinarian
Dr. Jennifer Coates is an accomplished veterinarian, writer, editor, and consultant with years of experience in the fields of veterinary...
