Urinary Tract Infection Antibiotics
Are antibiotics necessary for treating a dog urinary infection? Some veteranarians believe that antibiotics are the only line necessary in treating a dog's urinary infection, while other veteranarians believe antibiotics only eliminate the symptoms of urinary tract infections and other remedies are needed to eliminate the cause of the infections.Urinary infections in dogs are quite common, particularly in female dogs because of the shorter urethra leading into the bladder. Once a veteranarian diagnoses a dog as having a urinary tract infection, the first line of defense is the use of antibiiotics. Although dogs of all ages are subject to bacterial infection, older dogs have more problems because tumors and bladder stones predispose them to having weakened immune systems. According to some veteranarians, urinary infections are one-time events cured by antibiotics and will not re-occur.
Symptoms of a urinary infection are frequently urinating small amounts of urine, straining to urinate, bloody or strong-smelling urine and the inability to control urination. When the dog shows obvious signs of discomfort, a visit to the vet is necesssary. At this point, it becomes necessary to ask, are antibiotics necessary for treating a dog urinary infection?
A lower urinary tract infection that does not respond to anti-biotics may be more complicated and further testing of the urine culture and X-rays of the bladder may be needed. Are antiobiotics necessary for treating a dog urinary tract infection? Some veteranarians, practicing homeopathic or holistic medicine, make a case for using berberine, cranberry extract and ester-c, agents to prevent bacteria from attaching to the bladder's wall, minimizing bactrial colonization of the bladder mucosa or making the urine more acidic and inhospitable to bacteria.
In recommending this holistic approach, these veteranarians argue that antibiotics, although effective, only address the symptons rather than the underlying cause of urinary tract infections in dogs. Other homeopathic vets recommend a diet heavily filled with vitamin c, to strengthen the dog's immune system and to change the acid-base content in the dog's stomach, through golden-rod horsetail compounds and other herbal remedies that are mixed as tinctures and dropped in the dog's food daily.