crystals in dog urine and "prescribed" food from vet
 

My 19 month old female corgi started really licking her private area the other day so I took her to the vet. Upon inspection she had some redness around her vulva which the vet decribed it as a hotspot. He suggested I bring a urine sample to make sure she is free of infection and possible crystals in her urine.
Next morning I collected the urine, and left it in the fridge for about 3 hours before brining it to the vet. When i took the urine out of the fridge, I saw some white stuff at the bottom of the container that I didn't see when the urine was collected.
The next day I got a call from the vet saying that she has an infection and there were lots of crystals in her urine. He gave me antibiotics for the infection and made me buy royal canin Urinary SO food to feed her for few month before examining her urine again.
I saw the ingredients of this food and it is full of fillers like corn, chicken by-product meal, chicken fat and etc. I normally feed my dog Acana or Orijen dry kibble.
My question is, do these "prescribed" food really do anything? on the bag it says it helps to dissolve struvite crystals and stones but I've read online that said crystals can form after the dog urinates. So is it possible the urine sample that i collected could have been without crystals and then they could have formed while the sample sat in the fridge for 3 hours and then sat some more before the vet sent it off to the lab?
I spend about $40 on this so called prescribed food but I don't want to give my dog this food unless it really helps with her crystals. Especially if the crystals in her urine was formed after she passed water.

I'd appreciate any input as I'm a first time dog owner and am pretty anxious about this.

ABsolutintootly crystals could have formed while the urine was refrigerated. If you told your Vet then adjustment could be made for that but it would really be best to get a first thing in the morning sample to the Vet first thing in the morning.

I know that food doesn't look so great but pup is only to be on it for a short time and when I had a cat that needed the feline version it did seem to help. I believe it only works on certain types of crystals, hope someone more knowledgeable about that part chips in.

My dog had crystals in his urine and it was causing him to bleed. I had his treated for the crystals and stop feeding him dog foods that had wheat and yeast in it and Marty been fine now for 5 years. I buy his food at a natural pet store. I don't waste money on prescribed dog food from at vet, my dogs hated the food.

Thanks for the reply, yes i did tell the receptionist that it was sitting in the fridge for few hours since my dog usually goes out to pee at 7am and the vet's office opens at 10am. That same receptionist told me my dog has to be on this prescribed food for few months.. I've been looking online since posting here and people are saying they were told to feed prescribed foods for only a couple of weeks..

[QUOTE=Barkingdog;1074554]My dog had crystals in his urine and it was causing him to bleed. I had his treated for the crystals and stop feeding him dog foods that had wheat and yeast in it and Marty been fine now for 5 years. I buy his food at a natural pet store. I don't waste money on prescribed dog food from at vet, my dogs hated the food.[/QUOTE]


Right, that's why i get my dog Acana or Orijen. They're both from the same company and their food are very well reviewed.. which is why i'm not liking what's in this prescribed food they got me to buy..

Dietary change generally isn't indicated for struvite from my understanding. I wouldn't put any dog on a prescription diet - but this one is raw fed and any dogs I have in the future will be the same.

Dr. Becker, lots of horse sense in this woman.

[url]http://healthypets.mercola.com/sites/healthypets/archive/2009/10/22/These-3-Things-May-Indicate-Your-Pet-has-a-Bladder-Problem.aspx[/url]

Be careful with dog foods - best doesn't mean best for your dog. Feeding a food high in protein and such when your dog doesn't have the lifestyle...