Diet when dealing with bladder stones/urolithiasis

[Ttt]

Hi

I have a rat who has what the vet believe may be bladder stones. He was treated with Clavamox in May which cleared it but now symptoms are back.

Does anyone know a specific diet for rats dealing with bladder stones to help dissolve them or to prevent more from forming? Or does anyone have any tips about foods to feed and foods not to. Any supplements, herbals, etc.

 

[SQ]

Clavamox was given to clear up an infection

If the symptoms have returned, he needs to go back to the vet asap
as he likely has another infection and needs to go back on antibiotics (likely for 6 weeks)

Here is some info on bladder stones and what you can do http://ratguide.com/health/urinary_renal/urolithiasis.php

Please take him back to the vet now, he is likely in pain

 

[Ttt]

Oh I should have written that, he is already back on Clavamox since friday evening. He is not showing signs of pain when peeing anymore but so far I still see him lick a lot down there and I feel he is a bit more irritable with his cage mates. In May he was on Clavamox for 10 days and my vet has prescribed the same this time around. He is on a quarter of a 50 mg (40/10) twice daily and he's 777 grams.

I worry the Clavamox won't dissolve the stones and it'll just keep getting worse that's why I'm looking for diet tips to prevent it from developing further as best I can.

I've had a rat with recurring UTIs/urolithiasis before and it ended with him having to be pts because he had developed so many stones that antibiotics couldn't clear it anymore.

I know there are specific diets for cats and dogs with bladder stones but I can't find anything on rats or rodents really.

 

[Luna&Ralph]

From what I’m reading, without knowing exactly what type of stones they are, the most important thing is to add water to the diet to dilute the urine.
I would do this by feeding a liquid diet. You can do this by soaking his food, giving him baby food mixed with baby cereal,with or without added water or milk, or giving him any other balanced food that contains liquid. Also make sure any treats he’s getting have high water content (squash, lettuce, etc.).
If this doesn’t seem to be working, it might be worth going to the vet to see if it’s possible to get his urine tested or try to find another way to see if his stones are caused by his urine being too acidic or alkaline. If you can figure this out, you will be able to modify his diet to balance out his urine so hopefully the crystals will stop forming.

 

[Ttt]

Thank you so much Luna&Ralph! That is very helpful! I just dropped off a urine sample at the vet's and I'll call her in about an hour to see what she has found out. I've asked to find out which stones if possible and urine pH. And I'll up his water intake by soaking foods and providing foods with naturally high water contents.

 

[Ttt]

So my vet says his urine contained blood but not crystals. She said there could still be stones in his bladder so if his symptoms don't clear completely within the 10 days of clavamox she'd suggest getting an x-ray done. We had an x-ray done in May which showed a small "dot" in his bladder which the vet said could be a stone.

His urine pH was 8. I thought this would be a bit too alkaline and my vet actually said it was as well but according to the Ratguide it's within the normal pH of rat urine (the ratfanclub says pH 5-7 is normal though?). Is there a way to know which type of stone if pH is within the normal range and stones don't show up in a urine sample?

My vet said to supplement with vitamin C.

 

[Luna&Ralph]

The ratguide says that there is a stone that is found in neutral to acidic urine, but before changing the pH of the diet without knowing what type of crystals they are for sure, it would probably be best to start on a liquid diet for a while first to see if there’s any improvement of symptoms. Also extra vitamin C won’t hurt, so I would try that as well.

 

[SQ]

I have no idea re the vit C, but just so you are aware male rats can not be given "citrus juice" - ie orange juice etc
See the forbidden foods list