Bladder stone, surgery scheduled

My 2 year old male was diagnosed today with a large bladder stone. He is scheduled for surgery next Monday (Nov 28th). We knew he had some struvite stones and had been placed on C/D Stress formula for a couple of months now. Unfortunately over the last week+ he has been peeing frequently and in small amounts with visible blood present. He was given antibiotics for a week to see if it was an infection. It did not improve so we went in today for an X-ray which confirmed a large stone in the bladder. He will be having surgery on Monday to remove the stone. I attached a picture that I edited the color of so the stone could be seen easier.

Does anyone have experience with surgery to remove stones? Did they return and if so, how soon after surgery?

If he's on the right food afterwards, and drinks plenty of water, and stays "stress free", perhaps they won't return.  I'm guessing you'll need to monitor his PH (in his urine) to make sure he's on the right track, but hopefully they won't return.

I believe he needs to eat food that's lower in magnesium, phosphorus, ash and carbs.  Wet food is best. 

Here's a thread on a cat that had the surgery:  http://www.thecatsite.com/t/259093/calvin-had-his-bladder-stones-removed

mrsgreenjeens said:

If he's on the right food afterwards, and drinks plenty of water, and stays "stress free", perhaps they won't return.  I'm guessing you'll need to monitor his PH (in his urine) to make sure he's on the right track, but hopefully they won't return.

I believe he needs to eat food that's lower in magnesium, phosphorus, ash and carbs.  Wet food is best. 

Here's a thread on a cat that had the surgery:  http://www.thecatsite.com/t/259093/calvin-had-his-bladder-stones-removed

Click to expand...

Thanks for your reply! He has been on Hill's C/D Stress formula for a couple of months now. When we started him in that his pH was 7 which the doctor said was perfect. And he had a ton of struvite crystals then. pH was tested again at the beginning of October and it was 6. Where the doc originally said he wanted it to be. We won't know until the stone is out and tested to know what kind it is. But I worry if he's already been on a Rx diet and still has stones that now require surgery, what else can we do? I want him on wet food only but he refuses anything (even treats) that are not his (dry) food. I have cooked fresh fish, fresh chicken. Nothing. He is usually a good drinker at least.

Some cats simply want kibble and nothing else, and with cats prone to stones, it's possible the stress of trying to switch him over to wet food might cause more stones...hard to know.  BUT, there other brands of prescription wet foods out there, and there are other wet foods out there that fit the bill...have you tried any of those?  Has he always been addicted to just kibble?

In any case, lets see what kind of stone it is before trying to figure out how to handle it.  Struvite is as I listed above, with plenty of water no matter how he takes it.  Calcium Oxalate, on the other hand, from what I understand, is almost the opposite, diet wise, than struvite      As I said, let's just wait and see first what we're dealing with.  I'm sure you Vet will have input as well. 

Let us know how the surgery goes. 

Yeah he has always been difficult to feed. He has no interest in anything other than his food. I have purchased literally every brand and type of wet food available. Special order and everything. Nothing. He won't even bother to taste it. Sniffs it and walks away.

We aren't changing anything up yet until we know what the stone is, then will go from there. I appreciate the input!