Pets cannot tell us when something doesn’t feel right. This is why your Veterinarian may recommend a urinalysis (along with bloodwork, x-rays, etc.) These tests tell your Veterinarian the story of how your pet is doing on the inside. We know it can be confusing when your Veterinarian wants to run a urinalysis on your pet, even though your pet is not always displaying any symptoms of troubles with their bladder.
We want to go over why running a urinalysis on your pet is so important to your Veterinarian:
- It gives a picture on how the kidneys are doing.
- The kidneys are responsible for concentrating urine; Finding out the USG (urine specific gravity) shows how well the kidneys are concentrating and how hard they are working.
- The presence of protein in dilute urine can tell your Veterinarian that your pet may be battling kidney disease.
- It can show indications of diabetes.
- When glucose shows up in a pet’s urine, this is a good indication that your pet may be diabetic or have kidney disease.
- The color and clarity of the urine can tell a story in itself.
- Colorless urine can indicate kidney problems.
- Orange urine can indicate liver problems.
- Brown urine can indicate muscle damage.
- Red urine can indicate inflammation of the bladder and blood in the urine.
- Very cloudy urine can indicate extra cells in the urine which can mean an infection.
- The pH of urine can indicate disease or infection.
- Pets will have slightly acidic/alkaline urine (Between 5-7) so a pH of extreme acidity or alkalinity can indicate something is not right.
- The presence of ketones in the urine
- indicates the body breaking down excessive amounts of fat for energy (not normal) Normally seen in diabetic patients or prolonged fasting.
- A urinalysis can indicate if your pet has a bladder infection or an inflamed bladder (Cystitis)
- by the presence of bacteria, white blood cells, and red blood cells. Knowing the difference between the two will determine to your Veterinarian if there is a need for antibiotics and/or pain medication.
- Your Veterinarian will be able to determine if there is crystal formation in the urine
- which can be caused by infection or lead to painful stones in the bladder.
- A urinalysis can show that there could be problems with the liver
- with an excessive presence of Bilirubin in the urine. Bile duct problems can be shown with the presence of urobilinogen.
- Blood in the urine can indicate a number of things
- such as infection, inflammation, stones, and tumors within the bladder. Sometimes there can be blood cells in the urine without the urine being red in color.
- The presence of abnormal cells
- in the urine can be a sign of a bladder tumor which could be cancerous.
We hope the above points show how important examining your pet’s urine is to your Veterinarian! Urine really can tell a story about how your pet’s organs are doing. If you have any questions regarding a health care plan for your pet or if your pet is having urinating woes, please do not hesitate to give our team a call!