Stones / Perscription food

[Lkane0322]

Hi everyone! I have not been on in a while but just wanted to say through the forums and Linda Parks, my Bailey is thriving. He had stones that required surgery years ago and was on Hills Science Diet u/d food. I was told this was my only option so for years he gained weight and ate this yucky food. After much research and studying i finally got him off that food.

Now Bailey eats Fromms reduced activity senior food and a homemade stew to cut the protein and prevent stones. I have his urine tested every few months and he is doing wonderful. My baby will be 9 soon and is doing amazing.

If anyone has had any issues like this, let me know. It's scary but I learned to go with your gut and i knew this was right for his well being. Now my vet agrees

 

[izstigspunks]

Oh what a feel-good post! That's so wonderful to hear! And especially to a senior fur-baby. Thank you so much for sharing!

 

[LisaMarie]

[MENTION=1531]Lkane0322[/MENTION] that is wonderfull!!! 9 years old!! Good for you, you are a great bully parent

 

[Fontanafox]

Congrats! 9 years! I hope my babies live as long and well as Bailey.

 

[bullmama]

Wonderful news!!! Perhaps you could post the stew recipe and how much you give with kibble? That would be so awesome!

 

[RiiSi]

That is great! My Usko had surgery to remove stones almost two months ago. The vet wanted to put him on that Hill's kibble, I declined. I've fed him raw since about 7 months old, because he never liked kibble. He was also tarting to get problems with his skin and his stools were loose all the time.
It is not that much the amount of protein it is the type of protein in the food that counts. I've adjusted his raw diet and there is no more crystals in his urine. His urine must be tested recularly, but he is doing so well with raw food and he loves it too.

 

[Lkane0322]

I started using “Vegas Stew” along side the yucky Hills Science Diet Prescription U/D food. I was able to cut the portion in half that he was fed and supplement with the stew. This fit the purpose of attempting to have him lose weight while eating less of that disgusting food. While I was feeding Bailey this combination of food, I was researching other better quality foods with low protein. That is very hard to find considering Hills had 11% and most other foods have 22-26% (estimating because I do not have my paperwork in front of me.)
What I learned in all my research (in a nut shell) is that in order to prevent the stones he needed good quality but low protein and anything basically that would not be acidic. So I finally (thank you Linda Parks) took the plunge and took him off U/D (this was not advised by my vet. Just warning.)
I chose Fromms Reduced Activity Senior with 23% protein but ALL QUALITY INGREDIANTS. This is so important. The first ingredient in U/D is Brewers Rice. Enough said. I feed Bailey 1 ¾ cups of the dry kibble at breakfast and dinner. Bailey has been overweight because of his old food so it’s a little less than half of what he should have for his weight and I supplement this with a homemade stew that I mix with his dry food. All the fiber keeps him satisfied. Although, he is always looking for more snacks.
The stew I make is the following: I use organic vegetable or chicken broth and than add the same amount of water. I use organic because less chance of yucky stuff making its way in. Than I use half a head of cut up cabbage. Half a head of broccoli. About 4 cut up green, yellow or orange peppers (red does not breakdown in their bellies). A whole bag of chopped up carrots. Lots of chopped up green beans. About 4 cleaned and chopped sweet potatoes. I mix all this in a pot and cook on medium heat for about an hour and than simmer for another 2 hours. Makes the broccoli and cabbage less gassy. This lasts about a week to week and a half. At the fresh food market all the ingredients for 2 whole batches cost anywhere from $16 to $20. The Fromms runs me about $30-$40 for a big bag. His yucky U/D costs $75 for a 30 lb bag.
Trust me, I do not recommend going against a Vets expertise. But I kept him on that food for years because I was afraid the stones would come back and he would not survive another surgery. Now as he is thriving I wish I changed it earlier but at least now he is doing amazing. My Vet commended me on my research and I still keep a close eye and get Bailey’s urine tested for stones just in case every couple months even though my vet says I can wait 6 months!
Hopefully this helps someone who has been thru the same issues! Thanks for reading ….

 

[2BullyMama]

I started using “Vegas Stew” along side the yucky Hills Science Diet Prescription U/D food. I was able to cut the portion in half that he was fed and supplement with the stew. This fit the purpose of attempting to have him lose weight while eating less of that disgusting food. While I was feeding Bailey this combination of food, I was researching other better quality foods with low protein. That is very hard to find considering Hills had 11% and most other foods have 22-26% (estimating because I do not have my paperwork in front of me.)
What I learned in all my research (in a nut shell) is that in order to prevent the stones he needed good quality but low protein and anything basically that would not be acidic. So I finally (thank you Linda Parks) took the plunge and took him off U/D (this was not advised by my vet. Just warning.)
I chose Fromms Reduced Activity Senior with 23% protein but ALL QUALITY INGREDIANTS. This is so important. The first ingredient in U/D is Brewers Rice. Enough said. I feed Bailey 1 ¾ cups of the dry kibble at breakfast and dinner. Bailey has been overweight because of his old food so it’s a little less than half of what he should have for his weight and I supplement this with a homemade stew that I mix with his dry food. All the fiber keeps him satisfied. Although, he is always looking for more snacks.
The stew I make is the following: I use organic vegetable or chicken broth and than add the same amount of water. I use organic because less chance of yucky stuff making its way in. Than I use half a head of cut up cabbage. Half a head of broccoli. About 4 cut up green, yellow or orange peppers (red does not breakdown in their bellies). A whole bag of chopped up carrots. Lots of chopped up green beans. About 4 cleaned and chopped sweet potatoes. I mix all this in a pot and cook on medium heat for about an hour and than simmer for another 2 hours. Makes the broccoli and cabbage less gassy. This lasts about a week to week and a half. At the fresh food market all the ingredients for 2 whole batches cost anywhere from $16 to $20. The Fromms runs me about $30-$40 for a big bag. His yucky U/D costs $75 for a 30 lb bag.
Trust me, I do not recommend going against a Vets expertise. But I kept him on that food for years because I was afraid the stones would come back and he would not survive another surgery. Now as he is thriving I wish I changed it earlier but at least now he is doing amazing. My Vet commended me on my research and I still keep a close eye and get Bailey’s urine tested for stones just in case every couple months even though my vet says I can wait 6 months!
Hopefully this helps someone who has been thru the same issues! Thanks for reading ….

Excellent bully mama!!

 

[pigbaxterboo]

Great to hear, sounds really positive. My George was diagnosed with crystals about 5 months ago, I too was advised Hills u/d was the only option but I refused to accept it. It was really hard to go against what the vets were suggesting but I'm happy so far that I'm doing the best that I feel I can do for him, from researching as much as I could. I need to take a urine sample in next week to see how we're doing, I've not seen any signs of infection and no blocking so I'm hoping we're on the right track. I chose a quality canned food (and they're few and far between in the UK) and add pureed veg in an attempt to reduce the protein and he has rmb's for teeth clean/work out.

I posted on it a few months back.. http://www.englishbulldognews.com/forums/your-bulldogs-health/10462-cystine-crystals.html

 

[RiiSi]

Baking soda is something that makes the urine more alkaline. I give Usko baking soda three times a day all together about a little less than a teaspoon. Any way, most vets get their knowledge about feeding from the dogfood companys, so that's why they say it's the only thing to feed. Usko's urine Ph is almost perfect (I gave just redused the baking soda from a teaspoon) and there was no stones or crystals yesterday when his urine was tested. And I emphasize that he still eats raw. So it can be done without Hill's or RC's *s...t* no matter what the vet says.