My dog has kidney stones. What calcium-free glucosamine can he take?

Hello again. It really depends on what type of stones are present, such as are they oxylate or struvite? Some stones are harder to manage with diet than others, & of course, it also depends on what is available in your country. Your veterinarian is the best individual to help with this unless you have some laboratory data that indicates what is going on. Hills & Royal Canin Prescription Diets are very popular here. You can definitely add a little plain white rice, but not so much as to dilute the diets, & please do not add any supplements unless directed to do so by your veterinarian. Adding things like calcium can set Cointhee up for more imbalances & more problems. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Poor Leo! If he has a history of bladder or kidney stones, then I strongly recommend for him to stay on the urinary food. This food is designed to lower the risk of future stones. It does not prevent them 100% of the time but it definitely decreases the risk. Other foods are not specifically designed for this problem and therefore will increase his risk of having stones again in the future. I hope this helps!

Hi Annette! Managing arthritis can be tricky since Joe's kidneys did not seem to tolerate some of the more traditional non-steroidal anti-inflammatories (NSAIDs) like Metacam. I'm glad to hear that Joe is taking a glucosamine and chondroitin supplement, like YuMOVE, as this can protect his joint cartilage against further damage. Make sure that you are keeping him at a healthy body weight, as overweight dogs have more stress placed on their joints. Other strategies for managing arthritis include talking to your vet about a trial with Adequan injections for further cartilage protection or new classes of NSAIDs (such as Galliprant) that are much more sparing of the liver and kidneys. Acupuncture and water therapy can also be beneficial for some dogs with arthritis. I hope this helps!

The answer partially depends on the type of bladder stones that Boo had. I am attaching handouts on the 2 most common types below. http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=460 http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=662 If Boo had struvite stones, those can often be managed without a prescription diet. If Boo had calcium oxalate stones, then diet will be a very important part of preventing him from forming stones again in the future. Unfortunately, the prescription diets tend to have both by-products and corn. The best option I have found for dogs with calcium oxalate stones are to make a homemade diet for their dogs. A diet can be created by a board certified nutritionist or with the help of Balance It. https://secure.balanceit.com/ Good luck! I hope that was helpful and answered your questions. Thanks for using PetCoach.

Hello. You do want to keep to this diet for the majority of his calories. Acceptable treats should make up less than 10% of his overall calories per day & include low fat yogurt ( 2-3 tbsp. 2-3 x weekly ), 1/4 of an apple, white rice, rye bread, 2-3 non-salted saltine crackers, 2-3 baby carrots per day, & small amounts of cooked beef, chicken & eggs. Avoid lots of meats & any high protein treats & no vitamin or mineral supplements. The daily Dasaquin is fine to use. Try to keep to the prescribed diet as much as possible. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

It would not increase his chances of getting Ca Oxalates, but not known to help prevent them either. If you are giving it for a certain condition, then make sure you are giving it as prescribed by a veterinarian. Giving too much can be a concern for other conditions, so it's always best to make sure you are giving the correct amount.

The appropriate diet here would be the urinary diet either Urinary S/O or Hill's C/D, and then placing your pet on a liver protectant medication to address the liver issues. The liver protectant medication is called Denamarin, and has to be prescribed by your vet. I would then consider getting your pet an abdominal ultrasound to better define what is specifically going on with the liver, so that we know what mode of therapy would be best to manage things going forward, because these values (ALKP, CHOL) can be changed by not just the liver, but also the gallbladder and adrenal glands. I hope that your pet Ceca is able to manage both of her conditions well moving forward. Best wishes and take care. : )