Little Dogs, Big Bladder Stones

What makes little dogs think they are bigger and badder than the big dogs? You always see them barking as though they are the toughest dog on the block when we know full well that any bigger dog could pick them up and then toss them aside. However, when it comes to bladder stones, the little dogs always seem to have the big dogs beat! In fact, the biggest have always come out of the smallest dogs.

When we x-rayed the bladder of 9.6 lb chihuahua, it clearly showed two well-separated stones. Once we removed them, we observed that every surface was smooth. We suspect that these two stones may have been one giant stone that split in half and then continued to rub together until they were smooth all around.

Some breeds are more susceptible to having bladder stones than others. We saw two females yorkies that were from the same litter a few years back. When we felt the bladder, it felt as though one solid stone was inside. As it turned out, what we thought was one stone was actually over 300 fragments. Her sister had just under 300 stones.

With an appropriate diet, dogs will be less susceptible to bladder stones. If your pet happens to be a breed that is prone to bladder stones, it would be wise to do your research and be careful what you feed them!

Greyhounds, as a breed, typically do not have bladder stones.