​Type of Crystal/Stones

Type of crystal / stone is important. Each one has a different cause, so how you change the diet will depend on what is causing the stone. The only way to definitively identify the type of stone is to send it to the lab for analysis, which requires either them passing the stone (and you catching it...ask how long we followed Lola around with a strainer when she peed!) or surgical removal of the stone. If they have history of crystals showing in urinalysis results, often times the stones will be the same type (often but not always). 

​These are examples of urinary crystals which may be precursors to bladder stones. There are several different types of crystals, but they do not necessarily correspond to the type of stone present.

​There are many different types of bladders stones (and some stones are composed of a combination of types). It is possible to have bladder stones without visible crystals in the urine and vice versa. 

Struvite Stones
Struvite stones are one of the most common types of bladder stones in dogs. Struvite is a hard mineral deposit that forms in urine when magnesium and phosphate stick together. Struvite crystals are not unusual in normal urine and their presence alone does not necessarily require treatment. Combine them with certain bacteria, however, and a stone is created.This raises the urine pH, causing the struvite crystals to clump together to form a stone.

Calcium Oxalate Stones While a higher urine pH aids the formation of struvite stones, the pH of your dog's urine has less of an effect on the formation of calcium oxalate stones. Instead, calcium oxalate stones form when urine is supersaturated with calcium and oxalate.