We have a West Highland Terrier,...

Question
We have a West Highland Terrier, she just turned a year old. She has been
treated with antiboitics for a UTI eight times in the past year. The last
two treatments were for 20 days each instead of the usual 10 day dosage.

My question is, Where do we go from here? Zoe averages a UTI every 6
weeks. What causes this and is this normal for Westies? Zoe has been
spayed at 6 months. If she continues on this path, what will happen to her
bladder or kidneys?

What, can we do as far as the next step to finding why she is so
susceptable to getting UTI's


Answer
I would consider taking her to a specialist as it could be likely that she has a birth defect such as ectopic ureters that are causing the problems (x-rays and a dye study are needed to determine this).  Has her urine been cultured?  If not, it should be culutured to indeed diagnose the infection and what bacteria is growing as maybe she is not being given the appropriate antibiotic.

Chronic UTI's certainly can travel up to the kidneys and cause kidney infection and subsequent kidney damage.  Chronic use of antibiotics is not really that great for the immune system and they can develop resistance.

The other thing is to give her Cranberry capsules twice daily to help reduce some of the infections.  And you could try her on a different dog food that is more natural and has extra anti-oxidants and no meat-by products to see if that helps to strengthen her immune system.