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Alternatives to surgery?

3dognight
January 15th, 2008, 06:59 PM
My 5 yr old Jack Russell, Dolby, had been on two different antibiotics to try to clear up blood in his urine. He had red & white blood cells, and epithelial cells in it, and it was acidic. There were no crystals in his urine (three separate urine samples in the last 45 days). He had not changed in behavior - in fact he's very energetic and happy.
After neither worked, the vet (I don't call him MY vet because the Dr we saw left the practice in August & he is the remaining practitioner there - not sure of my opinion of him yet) had Dolby in for an x-ray and there is a single stone visible in his bladder.
The vet recommended surgery, which we scheduled for next Thursday. The vet tech estimated $500. I think I can do that, especially because they'll allow me to pay half down & make payments. But it is a lot of money, so I was wondering if anyone knows of any non-surgical alternatives to get that stone, and if they'd be less expensive.

Love4himies
January 16th, 2008, 07:18 AM
In cats, my vet has told me that surgery is the only option when it comes to stones. I would get it removed ASAP as this can cause a blockage and death.

SnowDancer
January 16th, 2008, 12:00 PM
My previous dog had 4 bladder stones removed the same week that I had a kidney stone removed - so yes, I would most definitely have the stones removed and then put on the special food for vet recommended period of time to see if further crystals develop that could develop into stones. You won't like the food but for my guy it worked and no further stones developed.