Bladder infections can be can be caused by many things:

• hormone changes, particularly in young bitches, hormones set up a situation where the system's pH balance changes and pathogenic bacteria likes flourish.

• dog foods that are carbohydrate/grain based or in too high a ratio of grain to the meat meal used, can be a problem because it changes the pH balance of the bladder. Always use a meat/poultry based dog food, if using a kibble.

• poor quality protein sources in a food, requires use of synthetic amino acid supplements to be added to the food to bring it up to par. These are often not usable by the system, and it can disrupt the pH balance of the urinary system.

• poor quality mineral package used on a food, or when people supplement minerals i.e.: calcium, zinc oxide, this can disrupt the body chemistry causing bladder infections. Only sequestered or chelated minerals should be used on commercial foods. Check the package....no oxides should be used for minerals. these are crude and unusual forms that do more damage than good over the long haul.

• lack of water - dogs who do not consume enough water are prone to bladder infections

• body chemistry......like in humans, there are variations within the breed and some bodies are prone to this, regardless of diet fed, raw or commercial. Just like in humans.
  

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What to do?

Many times on young puppies, you can simply give them 1000 mg of ascorbic acid AM and PM - use Vitamin C , but not the buffered C (Ester C), just plain vitamin C and increase their water and it will alter the pH balance of the urinary tract and stop them from going into an infection.

Put extra water on their food or better yet, use broth, it is has sodium in it and will cause them to drink more. This will help to flush they system. If you don’t see a difference in two days, get them to a vet. Caught in the early stages, you can reverse it without much problem and no antibiotics.

Dogs prone to UTI should remain on Vitamin C, Cranberry Tablets which you can get from the health food store, and stay on the Nzymes- dietary enzyme.

If incontinence is a problem all of the time Natural Canine has a homeopathic remedy that is worth using. http://www.naturalcanine.com/html/incontinence.html