Normally a dogs urine should be acid. Certain minerals that are responsible for the formation of stones, will dissolve in acidic urine, but not alkaline urine. There are several minerals that are what can cause a stone. Struvite, which is a stone that is formed from chronic infections.They are made up of Magnesium ammonium phosphate. Most commercial diets that are formulated for dogs with stones contain less magnesium phosphate, more salt to encourage drinking. Urate stones form from too much uric acid in the system. Less protein in the diet and low purine can help to discourage the formation of these type of stones. I think alot of the above mentioned type of food is low in proteins and purine...Calcium Oxylate stones are the one exception that they will form in acidc urine..so diet manipulation is usually not very helpful . They are caused by too much circulating calcium in the blood and kidneys.sometimes there are some metabolic things that can be going on that causes them to produce too much calcium...commercial puppy food has quite a bit of calcium ..but the diet change is the best start to trying to prevent new ones from forming...you can add a teaspoon of salt to their drinking water per 4 cups...the more water they will drink it keeps the kidneys flushed so that sediment (minerals) won't have enough time to sit and form a stone....So the question of does too much protein hurt these dogs...the only studies I've read about with too much protein administered was with lab rats and they aren't meat eaters so I consider that study inaccurate of "what too much protein does to animals'...I don't know of any more studies where they used dogs and gave them massive amounts of protein and observed them. It does matter what form the protein comes in for them because they every living thing metabolizes certain forms different ways...I'm sure this has been the longest , most boring, lol...just want to pass on what I have read and learned through years of nursing and loving my fur babies. |