A small pug dog brought into the Narooma Veterinary Hospital has ended up producing some of the biggest bladder stones ever seen by local veterinarian Kym Sutherland.
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The owner brought little 9-year-old Giddie in for treatment after the little pug had been urinating frequently but only small amounts over the last six months. She would have been experiencing considerable discomfort, Dr Sutherland said.
The largest of the two stones removed was 4.5cm by 3cm by 1.5cm, approaching the size of a flattened golf ball.
“I’ve only seen bladder stones this big about five times in my 30 years of practicing,” Dr Sutherland said.
Bladder stones in humans, also called vesical calculus, or cystoliths, are caused by a buildup of minerals. They can occur if the bladder is not completely emptied after urination. Eventually, the leftover urine becomes concentrated and minerals within the liquid turn into crystals.
Most bladder stones in dogs meanwhile are made from struvite, calcium oxalate, urate, or cystine crystals. If struvite is the diagnosis, a veterinarian will treat the underlying cause, for example antibiotics for urinary tract infections, and may recommend a therapeutic diet that will dissolve the stones and crystals.
But in the case of this pug, the stones were so massive that Dr Sutherland had to operate immediately.
He first conducted an ultrasound picking up the obstructions clearly before moving onto X-rays that even more clearly showed the two stones in the bladder of the pug.
The operation went well and the pug is well on its way to a full recovery and is no doubt feeling better having had these internal obstructions removed.