Marking territory or straining
 

My little 11 year old guy has a history of pancreatits and bladder stones. Both have been controlled with diet and medication. He woke me up several times last night to go out and pee. I became concerned and caught some urine in a cup and there was some blood.

I dropped him off at the Vet's this AM. Needless to say it has been a very stressful day. One of my coworkers told me her dog died hours after finding blood in urine. Another told me her dog was diagnoised with cancer. I love him so much this caused me to completely panic!

They found crystals in the urine (not unusual for him). They also did a Xray and did not find any stones. The Vet put him on antiobiotic in case it is infection. I am to take him back to the vet in 3 weeks for urinalysis to see if the blood is completely gone. If it is still there we will need to do an ultrasound.

The vet told me to watch his urine stream. My brain was fired after worrying all day so I did not think to ask all of the questions I should have asked. So, I am hoping someone here may have some ideas. How can I tell if he is just "marking his territory" when we walk vs "straining" to pee. The Vet said the main thing to worry about is that the stone could cause a blockage. However, he did not seem to think Bear is in danger at this point.

Can anyone give me any other signs to watch for?
Thanks

I am confused...does he have a stone or not? You said the xray did not show one, but then said that the vet is concerned the stone will block urine flow.

I would be very concerned about the blood if you can see it with the naked eye. Perhaps a specialist for a second opinion?

Best wishes...I do hope he is ok.

If the stones are very small, xray might not pick it up. My vet always does an xray and puts the ultrasound probe on the dog to look. The blood could be caused from smaller calculi passing out in urine. I think if it were me, and I saw any blood at all, I would take the dog to a specialty hospital (on an emergency basis) for a work up.