The comments below reflect the personal experiences and opinions of readers and do not represent medical advice or the views of this website. The information shared has not been evaluated by the FDA and is not intended to diagnose, treat, or prevent any disease or health condition. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional for medical concerns.
Iodine
Posted by Whitehawk (West Allis, Wisconsin) on 07/16/2012
★★★★★
We treated our 14 pound dog's urinary tract infection with food grade iodine. We gave him 8 drops of Iosol (Brand Name) iodine in 4 cups of water. UTI cleared up in 2 days. Reduced iodine dosage to 2 drops for maintenance. According to research at Harvard, women should take 15 drops of Iosol every 3 hours in 8 oz of water until the UtI is gone. Usually 2 or 3 days. Excess Iosol is excreted in urine.
Apple Cider Vinegar, Yogurt
Posted by Josie (Chicago, Il) on 06/20/2012
★★★★★
My Terrier Pit Bull Brownie hadn't urinated for 2 days following bouts of thick textured and foul smelling urine. I had been giving her cranberry capsules for 2 weeks and did not see any improvement. She was absolutely miserable. I happened to stumble on this site and followed the advice of giving her the 1tbsp apple cider vinegar coupled with 1 tbsp plain yogurt. I took her for her evening walk 1 hr after the dosage and she still did not urinate. Later that evening, this remedy worked like a charm, although at an inopportune moment and on my polished wood floor. The urine was not thick or smelly. I was so thrilled she had finally peed that no punishment ensued for that infraction. Best remedy ever!!
Test for Diabetes
Posted by Lauren (Mabelvale, Ar) on 03/02/2012
Before trying home remedies, please take your dog to the vet if you think your pet has a UTI or bladder stones. Not only did I miss signs (hindsight is 20/20), but so did the vet. Make sure they check for diabetes. I lost my little doxie to diabetes complications. We didn't know she had it until she was in a crash situation. The vet never mentioned this as a possiblility causing UTIs--her sugar spiked to 530 and she had ketoacidosis. Her kidneys failed and we lost her in 3 days.
Be safe--always check for diabetes!!!
Cranberry Capsules
Posted by Monica (Reseda, California) on 03/01/2012
★★★★★
I tried apple cider vinegar on my 2 1/2 year old male cat, Benzi and it worked for a while but it was a strugle to get him to swallow it and, the moment I stopped giving it to him the infection would come back in a couple days. I found this cranberry capsules that treat UTI's in humans and have been diluting 2 capsules in 1 oz of distilled water and have been giving it to him twice a day for 2 weeks now and no sign of UTI's! Not to mention he doesn't mind the taste of it at all. I highly recommend them. I had taken him to the vet back in January and spent 700.00 dollars on a flush and antibiotics and diet food. A few days later he was sick again, so for those that say take him to the vet right away, unless you can afford 1000.00 dollars every vet visit, try alternative natural remedies, They Work!
Dietary Changes
Posted by Christine (San Jose, Ca) on 11/14/2011
Hi, all. My 20 lb. Cavalier King Charles developed frequent UTI's. Every time I took her in (which stressed her because she knew she'd, once again, be poked and prodded) the vet would charge see her for 2 minutes, diagnose what I already knew (UTI), prescribe the antibiotic, Clavamox (which can cause a host of other issues, the least among them is a yeast infection), and charge me a huge amount of money. She would also insist on sporadic blood tests, withholding the Clavamox until I conceded. I got REAL tired of this CHIRADE, went to Pet Food Express, obtained the advice from one of their clerks who suggested more protein (she was only on dry kibble - not good for dogs to begin with), and I soon began to giver her ~ 2 TBSP of raw hamburger per day. She hasn't had a UTI since. She's happy and loves, loves, loves the hamburger!! :-)
I may also giver her natural, unsweetened yogurt with probiotics too.
P.S. Anyone who opposes natural remedies is clueless. We should only go to a vet as a last resort. Thanks (! ) to the person who began this site, and thanks so much to all of its contributors!!!!
Sea Salt
Posted by Diamond (Salisbury, Usa) on 06/21/2011
★★★★★
I have tried either or apple cider vinegar for certain infections, with my cat I gave her Apple Cider Vinegar in her food, she did great but because of her on going upper respiratory infection is seems like it will be an on going thing. Then my older dog was acting very strange, she likes the kitten but just out of the blue she attacked the kitten & was really tearing into the poor kitty, what I had figured was that the dog may have had an infection as well as my kitten so I put a little bit of sea salt in the dogs dish of water and the same day she seemed a little better an the same water with sea salt was finished the next day, whatever it was she seems to be better, thank god and thanks to this website & Ted for making it possible.
Dietary Changes
Posted by Bex (Riley Twp., Usa) on 02/23/2011
★☆☆☆☆WARNING!
While natural remedies are my first option we all must take a look at what foods we are feeding our pets. The dyes, genetically modified corn, fillers and by products cause many many issues with our beloved friends. The food you feed may very well cause diabetes, uti's tumors etc. Be aware of what you feed...
Dietary Changes
Posted by Mollie (Cambridge, Ma) on 01/23/2011
I just posted a message regarding my male cat with a urinary tract infection. I said that I now give my cats canned cat food twice a day and mix 1/4 cup distilled water in each bowl. I don't generally measure the water and when I checked today, I see that I mix a little less than 1/4 cup water into each bowl of canned cat food.
Apple Cider Vinegar Mixed in Food
Posted by Jim (Covington, Ky) on 01/12/2011
★★★★★
My 2 year old female cat was going outside the box. She didn't show any signs of weakness, bloating or pain, so I assumed the problem was behavioral in nature. For two months I tried to modify the behavior with a spray bottle of water but when I mentioned it my neighbor, she said to take Ruth to the vet "IMMEDIATELY".
Instead, I came here and just a few days after adding the ACV to wet food (and cutting out dry food) Ruth is back to going in the box and is more lively, playful and affectionate as she has ever been.
Multiple Remedies
Posted by Abriete (Leverett, Ma) on 12/27/2010
★★★★★
I am very grateful for all the information. I think my 2 year old bison has a uti and we've given her 11/2 tsp organic acv, 1 tblsp yogurt, homeopathic cantharsis and staphysagria, and 4 drops of gaia herbs usnea and uva ursi and 10 tblsp gaia herbs echinacea, goldenseal, propolis for 3 days and she is doing much better. First had blood tinged urine, then no blood but peeing in the house. Today no more peeing in the house (yay) so I think she is on the mend. I read to give cranberry everyday to prevent so I will do that. Also, don't leave them too long without a pee break-I think that is what caused this in mine. I studied herbs for 11/2 years for humans and it seems what works for humans will work for dogs.
Echinacea, goldenseal and propolis are immune enhancers and natural antibiotics. ACV helps the ph of the urine I think and yogurt promotes good bacteria in the gut. Cranberry helps the bacteria not stick to the walls of the bladder and also helps the ph be inhospitable to bacteria. Also, my dog wouldn't drink at all and drinking is important to flush out the bacteria so I gave her water and chicken broth mixed together and that worked. I also gave her a little orange juice which I read would help, but didn't want to give too much because of the sugar content. Good luck! Abriete
D-Mannose
Posted by Jody (British Columbia, Canada) on 07/04/2010
★★★★★
My 3 year old female St. Bernard has had three UTI's. Getting a urine sample from a St. Bernard is not easy to say the least:) The one before her present one I had tried the ACV and yogurt, unfortunately to no avail and had to resort to a vet visit and antibiotics. Two weeks ago I noticed her frequent urination again and went out and bought D-Mannose, which I had read great reviews about. WOW! In one to two days her urination was back to normal. I've given her one 500mg pill (opened in her food) three times a day since and was just researching when to decrease that dose. I may put her on one pill for maintenance now. It's really worth a try for all the damage antibiotics can do to animals and people (although yes, they do have their place in many instances:)
Cranberry
Posted by Shannon (Portland, Maine) on 12/01/2009
★★★★★
Cranberry and Cantharis for Dog urinary problems
If my Rottweiler mix eats birdseed, he inevitably will get a urinary tract infection. One Sunday, when the vet was closed we decided to try cranberry and cantharis and it was amazing! Worked even faster then the antibiotics prescribed by the vet. Firstly, if your dog likes the taste of cranberry jiuce, as mine does, give several 'doses' of unsweetened cranberry juice along with remedy. If not I am sure it will be effective in just pill form. Cantharis is available in most natural food stores as little blue pills. We gave our 110# dog 5 cantharis pills 3 times a day along with 2 cranberry pills. Cranberry pills come in different strengths so I would follow the directions on the bottle, but I think generally 1 pill for dogs under 75# and 2 pills for dogs over 75# should work. For cantheris, I would use a 1 pill per 20# ratio. We continued this treatment for one week after the first sign of blood in the urine and he had no issues. In fact, after the first dose and drink of juice, he was able to urinate within an hour and had a clear urine within about 3 hours. If your dog does not like cranberry juice, it is still important to encourage lots of fluid with this remedy, as the kidneys will need to be well hydrated for the acidity of the cranberry to flush the urinary tract.
Cranberry
Posted by Jan (W. Ma) on 09/27/2009
★★★★★
Cranberry extract (just a drop or two - it's potent stuff!) clears up urinary tract infections in humans and dogs (probably in cats also, but I've never tried).
Humans: dilute two drops in 8 oz. of water and drink. Use twice a day until gone (usually within 36 hours). Or just drink diluted regular cranberry juice, sugar-free.
Dogs: dilute one or two drops (depending on size of dogs) in water and squirt down throat with a medicine syringe. Use twice a day until gone (usually within 36 hours).
Apple Cider Vinegar Mixed in Food
Posted by Sofie And Mia (New York, Ny) on 08/13/2009
★★★★★
I noticed yesterday that my little yorkie, Mia was urinating more often and hanging out in the bathroom by herself. This is really unusaul for her because she loves to be with me all of the time. I also remembered reading or hearing that when animals are ill, they will often hide. After not seeing her for a couple of hours, I called to her and she finally came out. Her entire backside was wet. I looked in the bathroom to see of there was any leak but there was not. I thought that she may have been licking herself because I noticed earlier that she was licking herself more often than usual. I smelled her, and there was not a foul odor, but it smelled like it could have been urine. I immediately bathed her. Afterward, when she was dry, I put her on my lap and felt something wet. I looked and saw that it looked like she might be leaking urine. I began furiously searching the internet (mind you, this was about 2AM. I found that these could be symptoms of a "UTI." I looked for for something I could do immediately until I could take her to the vet and I found this website. It listed Apple Cider Vinegar and Yogurt, two things that I had on hand as an effective home remedy.
She is a tiny dog, so I mixed 1 teaspoon of Apple Cider Vinegar, with 1 and 1/2 tablespoons of lite vanilla yogurt. She loved it. I kept an eye on her throughout the night (I hardly slept myself. She did not get up to relieve herself, and there seemed to be no leakage.) When we got up for our morning walk, she urinated as usual. It is now 1 pm, and there is still no leakage, and she hasn't had to urinate again.
She is laying in her bed, playing and not hiding in the bathroom anymore, nor has she licked herself. I am keeping an eye on her. I took today and tomorrow off, thinking I was going to the vet, and wanted to keep an eye on her. It looks like I may not need to go to the vet. I will definately keep an eye on her, and I will repeat the treatment again later. But as of right now, she seems much better.
Apple Cider Vinegar Mixed in Food
Posted by Mary Ann (Canton, Ohio) on 08/03/2009
★★★★★
After waking up to a bathroom with several pee puddles on the floor laced with a tiny bit of blood, we quickly realized that our yellow lab Sadie had a problem. She's never had pee issues and simply couldn't stop squatting to pee. Naturally, this happened early on a Sunday, so the vet was unavailable. When I read all of the feedback about apple cider vinegar, I was a skeptic. But, not wanting her to suffer, I decided that I should at least give a couple of rounds of the stuff a try. I mixed two tablespoons of ACV into Sadie's dry food and added a bit of warm water, then stirred thoroughly. Surprisingly, she gobbled down the mixture quickly (of course, what Lab ever refused food?). I repeated this about four hours later and then one more time before we went to bed. During the evening, it was obvious that she started to feel better and the trips outside lessened considerably. She slept through the entire night with no incidents, had another dose this morning, and spent a normal day at home today. I'll continue to give her the mixture for three days since that seems to be what others have done. Thank you everyone for your wisdom on this canine treatment! I am a believer!
Apple Cider Vinegar, Yogurt, Cranberry
Posted by Mary (St. Cloud, Minnesota) on 07/27/2009
★★★★★
As a retired vet assistant and pet owner, I know both sides of the picture when a pet is ill. For urinary problems that recurr, retesting, antibiotics, etc. can become financially limiting especially in areas of the country where veterinary costs are extremely high. I have had great success using ACV, yogurt and cranberry/blueberry extracts to control bladder infections in one of my small dogs who has a recurring problem. My dogs eat a raw diet or no grain dry dog food and no one else has any issues. However, with the first few times of my corgi having a bladder infection, I chose to see my vet to rule out diabetes, bladder or kidney stones, cancer, etc. When it was clear that is was probably a genetic pre-disposition and our unusually hard well water, using the ACV, yogurt and cranberry therapy has been completely successful. Also adding some cottage cheese (1/4 cup every other day) to her diet is very helpful and she loves it! I think it is extremely important to use your head when it comes to caring for your pets. If you think your vet is unusually expensive, look for someone else. However, vets with years of successful experience are worth every penny it may cost. Discuss finances with your vet. A good vet is willing to work with you to find the best treatment options for your pet and your pocketbook. Also, chose a vet that is open to alternative therapies and treatments including accupuncture and chiropractic as these vets seem to continue to learn and do not allow ego to block different care of your pets. It's very unfortunate that veterinary costs have skyrocketed in the past several years. Routine tests and vaccinations now cost as much as treatment of an illness used to cost. Alternative remedies can be much more successful and MUCH easier on the pocket book. Just do your research before treating your pet for anything!
