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Taber, Albertahi, I just talked to a lady at the vet about Dakota's spaying and everything went well 
however they found crystals in her urine. I have read that spaying can contribute to the problem and yet that's how they found them oh no! will it make it worse now? She'll be on antibiotics again for it, and if any of you remember me saying when I first got her that she had bladder infection, could that of been the cause of all the bladder infections? Anyway, I won't know more until I can talk to the vet later this afternoon.
Does anyone here have a dog with this problem of crystals? Sorry, i don't mean TT to become a dog site 
Crystals can cause UTIs. A common problem in cats, I think it was attributed to diet. I haven't worked for a vet for years so I'm not sure of the current thought and if it's the same for dogs.
Jellybelly Bears
Poor you, our dear fluffy kiddies seem to have so many problems! I know that there are risks involved in spaying, bladder control etc, but the risk outweighs the benefits...I think TT is a part doggie forum anyway 
lol, but maybe google to get a list of pros and cons to get a better idea on what you're letting yourself in for. I've had two girls and two boys done and they are all fine, except weight gain lol Never had any problems with crystals or infections..
I wonder if cranberry juice would help her with the bladder probs? I have heard on a vet show we have here that if their wee is too concentrated to get them to drink more water, and to not give them so much dry food...I'm not sure what you're feeding her... big hugs...I hope everything works out :hug: :hug:
Taber, AlbertaThanks sarah 
She's on an adolescent formula for big puppies to slow down her growth so it's easier on the joints, won't affect her full growth at the end. They said she's too young yet for a dog food that balances the ph in the urine so she's on another antibiotic for the third time. They took a culture? and sent it away to the "experts" to see what the best treatment would be for her since her body is resisting the other meds so far. when we brought her home we found out she had bladder infection and has never been free of it and we have had her almost 5 months already! 
puca bearsOh - poor you, Brenda......... it is a worry, isn't it? Our only experience with this sort of problem was with a middle-aged Wolfie girl...........she seemed to be peeing very frequently, and xrays revealed a bladder full of stones.
She had to be operated on - some of the stones were a couple of cm in diameter! She spent the rest of her life on a special (expensive. of course) diet............but hopefully, the vets will come up with some clues as to why your baby has had all these problems...........and HOPEFULLY, sort her out!
huggies
Maria
Back Road BearsTucker has had crystals many times in the past... sometimes with an accompanying UTI, other times not. It was diet related. We changed his diet a year ago and no problems since. The vet will run pre-op blood and urine tests to be sure your dog is healthy enough for an op and that's likely how the crystals were found. If you hadn't noticed anything unusual in her potty behavior then it could be minor. Your vet will answer all your questions when you talk to them later today! They should tell you how these crystals produce, what causes them and how to treat, what to expect, etc.
Taber, AlbertaWhen she was first with us of course she was ALWAYS peeing in the house and now that she's potty trained I never really noticed much, eccept that she wants in and out all the time, but that could be just her, and what I seen of her urine was normal and never any blood. She's always acted healthy and very active. I brought her home today thinking maybe she would be a little mellow from being sore...... no way! She walks around with the cone on her head still rolling in the snow and her feet get sore from the dew claw removal and she don't care I think the cone bothers her the most. She cost us $488.00 today!! 
I hope after this she stays healthy for quite awhile! I think I may have to look into pet insurance
Angela's Bear GardenHave you ever looked into a raw food diet? There has been a healthy movement around for some years now to feed pet dogs and cats the BARF diet (bones and raw food). It's what wild animals eat, and they don't get the diseases that domestic or captive animals get. There is a manufacturer of an excellent raw frozen food here in Ontario called the ultimate diet. It has a great balance of natural stuff, check out their website ... http://www.theultimatediet.com/ ....lots of info here. My standard poodle mostly gets this food and he loves it! The breeder that I got him from feeds this food and they have excellent results. They have healthy, award winning dogs! Maybe there is a similar food available in Alberta for you... or maybe you could get a local supplier to get it in for you. You could prevent years of expensive vet bills!
There is a book out that is written by a vet called "Natural health for dogs and cats". The authors name is Dr. Pitcairn. It is an excellent book for any dog and cat owner to have. It outlines diet, diseases, and answers numerous questions from health to accidents and how to say goodbye to your pet. A must have reference tool!
Back Road BearsRaw food diets are great! You just want to be sure you are not feeding a protein the dog is allergic to first! How do you know.. try one protein source at a time for a week or two... to see if the dog presents any symptoms. It's a time and money commitment. The prob with raw food diets is that domestic dogs have been bred long enough now and fed processed foods that trying to convert them back to ancestral diets doesn't work for most dogs. Their digestive tracts are no longer designed to break down those raw foods. Especially in over bred breeds. Find a breeder with multiple generations on a raw food diet and chances are good that the youngest generation can still handle raw foods just fine!
Allergies are a huge issue now....and some of the foods dogs are most allergic to are the ones they've been fed for so long in an effort to mimic those ancestral diets... lamb and beef are two very common proteins that cause allergic reactions in dogs. Rice, oatmeal and corn are common carb sources that cause allergies too. All of these ingredients are the most common ones in dog foods today. It can get very frustrating to find a food that doesn't cause a problem.
We spent 3 years trying to find food our dogs could eat and be healthy on.... I've done a TON of reserach on all this and worked with 3 different vets and a holistic vet. THousands of dollars later we've found what works for our guys... but that doesn't mean it's right for someone else's dogs.
(Edited to add that we are NOT doing a raw diet.. availability of ingredients and concern of providing ALL the nutrition they need prevented us from going that route. It's also time consuming, expensive and unpleasant to prepare if you have a weak stomach!!)
Taber, AlbertaI am definately going to look into a raw diet. On one dog forum though there was this lady that feeds her dog raw and a bone punctured his intestine I do give her knuckle bones, soup bones etc.. from the butcher for treats and she sure loves those! I'm not used to having a puppy with problems already, my first dog could eat whatever and was healthy until about 10 yrs.old arthritis set in but she lived to be almost 13 and she was just the cutest shepard x farm pup 
