Dog with Struvite Crystals

Question
My dog was just diagnosed with struvite crystals in his urine. My vet said to feed him Royal Canin Urinary SO (yuck!) but I'd like to find a natural, higher quality dry kibble if possible. She said to look for low protein, low magnesium and low phosphorus.  (A lot of foods don't even list the latter two...) Do you have any suggestions of super premium foods that fit these criteria?

Answer
In my experience, we don't always need to take drastic dietary measures in response to the presence of struvite crystals in the urine. If the bacterial infection that is usually present with struvites is cleared up, most of the dogs I've worked with return to normal diets.   If there are crystals present but not stones, the standard approach is to treat the infection, use a prescription or home made diet for a month, then return to nomal levels of protein, phosphorus and magnesium.  I know you're not looking for a home made diet, but in case that changes, there are some guidelines I'd like to point out that may be helpful:

1) DON'T use a diet from the Internet that adds foods like tuna (dangerously high in mercury for dogs) or "vegetable oil" - fatty acids are best provided in the canine diet by animal fat and fish oils. In any case of urolith, a home made diet absolutely MUST be precisely formulated to meet but not exceed the individual dog's requirements. You will never get that from a generic online diet, and many I am seeing use very questionable ingredients as well.

2) DO encourage your dog to drink, if he or she doesn't drink well consider adding a Tbsp or so of defatted beef or chicken stock to the water.

3) Monitor the ph with a strip from the drugstore and do not over acidify.

4) The protein issue is controversial. Many times I have adjusted the urinary ph by reducing dietary carb and increasing protein, especially proteins like eggs that contain a high level of sulfur- amino acids. I'm not convinced your dog requires stringent restriction of anything although I might rein in phosphorus for a while. Magnesium is a dietary necessity and although you don't want to go overboard with it, you need to supply a required level.


These manipulations are best done through a personalized home made diet formulated by an experienced professional. Failing that I would suggest you use a moderate level of protein in the diet,  between 21 and 25% (Dry matter, eg kibble) and monitor the ph at home.  A lot of people with struvite use Vitamin C to acidify the urine and that definitely does work, but the problem is you can swing the ph too far and end up with overly acidic urine - which can contribute to the development of a different crystal, the calcium oxalate variety. In those cases more careful dietary monitoring may be necessary.

So if you read somewhere to use VitaminC, I would suggest a conservative dose of buffered C, and make sure you use a Chem-strip to check ph.

Some foods that might be reasonable include:

http://www.frommfamily.com/products-fs-d-d-whitefish.php
http://www.frommfamily.com/products-fs-d-d-salmon.php

If you compare the analysis here:
http://www.walthamusa.com/Learning%20Center/SO13-dry.html
You will see my reasoning; the ash overall and individual minerals are within good limits on the Fromm, and the higher protein/better ingredients provide superior nutrition and some gentle acidification.

I'm sorry if this is a complicated answer.  You might want to consider staying on the (yuck) S/O until your dog tests clear of UTI/crystals and then gradually introducing one of the Fromm foods. Often what I've done in professional scenarios is to replicate the nutrient levels of the S/O using good quality ingredients, have the dog stay on that for 6-8 weeks and then gradually adjust levels till we're at normal - and then if the owner wants to go to a commercial product we're good to go.

I just want to add, I have no connection to Fromm and am sure there are other foods in the premium range that will also work. I work much more with homemade diet than with kibble, and Fromm is one I have seen excellent results with.

Hope this helps and feel free to check in if you need more info/clarification,
Catherine