Prevention of Canine Bladder Infections

Significance

• A canine bladder infection (or urinary tract infection) occurs when there is a build-up of bacteria in the bladder and urethra or when bacteria is spread from your dog's vaginal or prostate region to the urinary tract system. There are many reasons why you should try to prevent a canine bladder infection.The symptoms can be very subtle and are often misunderstood as a behavior problem and overlooked. A bladder infection is not easy to diagnose in your dog because your dog cannot speak to tell you that it is painful to urinate, but if it is not diagnosed, the bladder infection could spread to your dog's other organs and cause serious illness. Another reason to prevent a canine bladder infection is because should one occur you need to get your dog to her veterinarian and not only have her diagnosed but also have her urine tested to determine which antibiotic is best to fight the infection, and these tests can be expensive.

Considerations

• You should always pay attention to the health of your pet and use preventive methods to keep her healthy. However if you have a dog who is already prone to canine bladder infections due to her breed, age or gender, then it is of utmost importance that you do all you can to prevent a bladder infection. Rebecca Shelly of Pet Natural Cures lists the at-risk breeds as: Japanese Akita, Dalmatians, Pugs, Bulldogs, Corgis, Bassett Hounds, Dachshunds, Terriers, and Beagles. Female dogs are more prone than male dogs, and older dogs who have not been neutered are also more susceptible.

Prevention/Solution

• The primary suggestions for preventing a canine bladder infection are to make sure your dog gets the opportunity to urinate every few hours and that she has plenty of clean water to drink throughout the day. In addition to making sure she has access to areas to urinate, you should walk your dog frequently because walking stimulates her bladder and makes her urinate. An empty bladder is less susceptible to infection. Other daily practices that can help prevent canine bladder infection are keeping your dog clean, feeding her several small meals a day, feeding her nutritious foods, getting her to her veterinarian for regular check-ups, and supplementing her meals with citrus juices. If you dog will drink orange or cranberry juice, give her a bowl every morning. If she does not care for the taste, mix it with something else or give her smaller doses throughout the day. Citrus juices raise the acidity level of her urine, which keeps bacteria levels low.

Identification

• Should your dog develop a bladder infection despite your efforts it is important to get her to her veterinarian as soon as possible for treatment. To prevent your dog's bladder infection from becoming worse, learn what symptoms to watch for. Pet-Yard instructs you to watch for blood in the urine, fatigue and lethargy, fever, foul-smelling urine, straining when urinating, tender lower stomach area, and urinating in inappropriate places. If these symptoms occur, immediately give your dog plenty of water and citrus juice to alleviate her discomfort. UTI-in-Dogs also recommends you add a half a teaspoon of apple cider vinegar to her food every day as it will raise the acidity level of her urine much like citrus juice will.

Warning

• An undiagnosed bladder infection or one that gets the wrong antibiotic and progresses could result in renal failure, the need to remove the kidneys, fever, kidney or bladder stones, or a weakened immune system, according to UTI-in-Dogs.
  Christie Keith of Universal Press Syndicate's Pet Connection warns that to prevent a more serious infection, you should always have your dog's urine tested to determine which antibiotic will cure it. If a veterinarian prescribes an antibiotic without doing a urinalysis, your dog could be resistant to the antibiotics prescribed, which will mean she will not recover from the infection and will have to go back for another round of antibiotics as her infection worsens. Then you end up paying more money as well as putting your dog at risk. Christie Keith recommends getting the appropriate tests done the first time and getting your dog on the road to recovery.