My pug has struvite stones. Royal Canin causes diarrhea. Food options?

You could try really gradually introducing the new food, mix it with chicken and rice to see if that keeps the tummy settled and gradually increase the amonut of new food. You can try giving the probiotoc at the same time.

You are correct that Royal Canin is a better food for Darcy, and it's a good you are making the switch to it. It could be that the combination of the Pedigree and Royal Canin is causing the diarrhea, and she's not eating because of an upset stomach. I wouldn't be worried just yet, and I will give you a home remedy to try before having to take her into the vet. Withhold food for 12-24 hours, then feed a bland diet of boiled white meat chicken (no bones) and white rice in small amounts several times a day for a couple of days. Then slowly add back in her normal diet, just the Royal Canin dry only. The diarrhea could also be caused by intestinal parasites, and I would make sure she is up to date on her deworming treatments.

Hi there. My first thought is that Pavi needs checked for internal parasites like coccidia that will change the color of their stool and cause then to strain. Second, feeding a good quality food for digestive health is key if your pup often has an upset tummy. Purina Pro Plan EN is a good one, or Hills Science Diet GI. Both are available in canned and dry foods. Some dogs do best when this is what they are fed exclusively. Another thing would be to have Pavi's anal glands checked so that this is not giving her any pain. Hope this helps!

I would suggest that you ask your veterinarian about using Hill's Science Diet W/D. This is a low fat and high fiber diet that is good for diabetic dogs, but is also known to produce a neutral urine ph and may be adequate in preventing the return of her bladder stones. Depending on her individual situation, this may be a possible solution. If a duet change is done, it would be a great idea to periodically check a urine sample to monitor the ph and look for problems.

The recommendation is to feed your pet a low protein, low sodium diet to help alkalinize the urine and reduce cystine urine excretion. You can achieve this with the Rx brands Hill's U/D or Royal Canin UC Low Purine. Although it is suggested that feeding a canned diet or increasing water intake will help to dilute the urine as well, and therefore reduce cystine urine excretion. Dissolving stones is possible with the diet, but this can take an extended period of time and there is always the risk of stone blockage along the urinary tract. If blockage occurs then your only option for resolution is to have the stones surgically removed. From a medical standpoint, the drug 2-MPG is used to dissolve stones that are currently in the bladder. You will have more success riding stones if you implement both MPG treatment and a urinary diet simultaneously.

It is ok to stay on the Hill's diet long-term if that is all that Orcan needs to prevent diarrhea. If you want him on another diet, you can slowly mix the two over 3-4 weeks. The first week it would be 75% Hills and 25% RC. The next week 50/50, etc. If the diarrhea comes back you can try a different RC diet for sensitive stomachs, continue feeding just the Hill's, or discuss food allergies or other possible causes for diarrhea with your vet.

It depends on which diet you are using in the Hill's brand. The link below is to a school that many vets will send stones to for analysis. On this page you will find a PDF link to treatment/prevention of urate stones. There are several diets listed there. Another option is having a nutritionist make a diet for your pet that you would make at home. Most vet schools offer this service and it could be facilitated through your vet if you don't live near a vet school. Hopefully your pet has also been evaluated for diseases that predispose to urate stones as this is a more rare stone. I hope this helps and thank you for using PetCoach! https://www.vetmed.umn.edu/centers-programs/minnesota-urolith-center/urolith-analysis/treatment-recommendations