Can cystinuria be controlled by diet, supplements, or medications?
Although a reduced-protein diet is usually prescribed for this condition, the actual experiences of people who have attempted to prevent stone formation with diet have not been positive. And while it is hard for cystine stones to form in alkaline urine (dog urine is normally acidic), maintaining a constant alkaline urine with diet or supplements is difficult, and can lead to the formation of other types of stone. Furthermore, since cystine stones do not dissolve in alkaline urine, if the urine goes into acidity even briefly, stones can form and will not dissolve just because alakaline urine is achieved shortly thereafter. Most of us with dogs with cystinuria have had bad experiences and poor outcomes from relying on diet and supplementation to prevent stone formation in our stone-forming dogs. The use of medications has been more successful. The drug Thiola is effective in preventing stone formation in many dogs, with few reported side effects.
