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What's the best grain-free food for a senior dog with urinary issues?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Mixed Breed | Female | spayed | 6 lbs

best food senior dog urinary problems no grain?

2 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Mariya Gugel, DVM

Veterinarian

Published on January 7th, 2018

Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Diet can be used to manage kidney disease and urinary crystals/stones. If Bug has either of these conditions, the diets can be prescribed by her veterinarian. If you are referring to issues with urinating, such as accidents or difficulty emptying her bladder, these conditions are not managed with diet and may require medication. Both Purina and Hill's Science Diet have excellent grain free options for dogs. I hope this helps and am happy to answer any other questions you may have!

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    Answered By Dr. Heidi DVM, CVA, CCRT, CVTP, CVSMT, CVCH

    Veterinarian, Certified Veterinary Acupuncturist, Certified Canine Rehabilitation Practitioner

    Published on February 22nd, 2018

    Unfortunately, I am not aware of any grain free diet for kidney disease. I would recommend discussing with your vet why they recommended a grain free diet and what their recommendation would be at this point. If George needs a grain free diet that is lower protein, you may need to make a homemade diet for him which would need to be formulated by a nutritionist ( http://www.balanceit.com/ ). Good luck! I hope that was helpful. Thanks for using PetCoach.

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my dog has been on a grain free diet per vets orders and recently has been diagnosed with kidney problems due to the medication that he takes for his arthritis. he is 12 years and 7 months old. I am looking for a dry dog food that incooperates both n
Unfortunately, I am not aware of any grain free diet for kidney disease. I would recommend discussing with your vet why they recommended a grain free diet and what their recommendation would be at this point. If George needs a grain free diet that is lower protein, you may need to make a homemade diet for him which would need to be formulated by a nutritionist ( http://www.balanceit.com/ ). Good luck! I hope that was helpful. Thanks for using Boop by Petco.
Updated on September 24th, 2025
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I have an 8 year old female Min Pin / Rat Terrier mix who is about 6 lbs over weight. She’s currently on Hills Science Diet Youthful Vitality, but her vet said she should be on a grain less low calorie food. What do you suggest? I’d like to keep i
Thank you for contacting Boop by Petco with your question about your dog. I think Hill's Science Diet is a great food. I'm not sure why your vet would recommend a grain free food especially since with information coming out about grain free diets and an increase in dilated cardiomyopathy in dogs. The FDA is investigating this link. I never recommend grain free unless the dog have a proven allergy to grains, which is very rare. I personally see no reason to switch to a grain free food but you could feed her a senior dog food for the lower calories. Hill's has an excellent senior dog food. I hope this helps!
Updated on September 24th, 2025
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Purina is nit available in my country what should i do and should i feed her grain free diet or with grain and is the grain dry food helps dogs gain more weight??
Thanks for using Boop by Petco! It is not known at this time if grain free diets are actually better than diets with grain. I usually recommend feeding a high quality diet. Purina is an excellent diet but if you do not have access to this diet, there are others that you could consider that are also excellent such as Hill's Science Diet, Royal canin and Iams foods. Grain does not necessarily make dogs gain weight so I would be more focused on the quality and balance of the diet per se. Good luck and have a great day!
Updated on September 24th, 2025
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I am in need of urinary grain free dog food for my pug,any naturals dog foods that fit that description?
There are no over the counter diets that fit this criteria. You can use this prescription diet by Blue Buffalo but you will need to get your vet to order it for you. ( https://bluebuffalo.com/natural-dog-food/blue-natural-veterinary-diet/wu-dry-food-for-dogs/ )
Updated on September 24th, 2025
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I have a mature Australian shepherd female who is 8 years old and has had excess protein in her urine. Her vet recommended feeding her a dog food with LOWER protein percentage which is SO HARD TO FIND! I found a Blue Buffalo senior dog food that ha
You are correct that it is very hard to find a low protein dog food. Most commercial dog foods are formulated to meet the needs of an average adult dog, so they tend to have a higher amount of protein. You can find some senior diets that have lower protein amounts, but a really low protein diet is generally only available in a prescription diet. Blue Buffalo has had some recalls, but generally tries to do a good job formulating a good food. My top senior diet recommendations are Wellness and Orijen, but Orijen is not low protein. Depending on how much protein Dot is currently eating, Wellness Senior may be a good option even though if has more protein than Blue Buffalo senior. https://www.wellnesspetfood.com/natural-dog-food/product-catalog/complete-health-senior-senior Good luck! I wish I had a simple answer for you, but I hope that was helpful. Thanks for using Boop by Petco.
Updated on September 24th, 2025
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what type of food should i give to my senior doggo with kidney stones? if it is wet food, can i mix it with rice or just how much per a day? can i give calcium supplements just to keep his bones and joints strong and healthy? is that necessary ?
Hello again. It really depends on what type of stones are present, such as are they oxylate or struvite? Some stones are harder to manage with diet than others, & of course, it also depends on what is available in your country. Your veterinarian is the best individual to help with this unless you have some laboratory data that indicates what is going on. Hills & Royal Canin Prescription Diets are very popular here. You can definitely add a little plain white rice, but not so much as to dilute the diets, & please do not add any supplements unless directed to do so by your veterinarian. Adding things like calcium can set Cointhee up for more imbalances & more problems. Thanks for using Boop by Petco.
Updated on September 24th, 2025
Petco Pet Education Center
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My vet has prescribed to may cat Royal canin SO (as he had Urinary disease). However, I read its ingredients, it contains lots of grain and carbs, meat quality and content are also very dubious (probably 4D meats). Are there any alternatives against
These (below) are valid short term options. The most important element is the presence of water, you must privilege it above anything else. Purina One Urinary Health Hill’s c/d – Multicare – Prescription Diet - Feline Purina Pro Plan Adult This blog (scroll down up to the last articles) can give quite useful tips! https://catinfo.org/feline-urinary-tract-diseases/
Updated on September 24th, 2025
Petco Pet Education Center
Health & Wellbeing
My dog is 14 with bad teeth, arthritis and itchy skin and I’m looking for new grain free food that will not hurt her teeth. She is on galiprant and benidryl.
Thanks for using Boop by Petco! Please keep in mind that she may be itchy because of allergies. Grain free food has nothing to do with being hypoallergenic helping with allergies and actually has not been really shown to have any benefit over food that contains grain. There have been reports that have linked grain free foods with heart disease. I would consider feeding her a canned or wet diet which may be easier to eat for her. It really comes down to figuring out what is causing her allergies so that they can be treated or the specific allergen avoided. A secondary infection is likely and also needs to be addressed. You could add joint supplement such as Dasuquin or Cosequin to help with joint health. There are many things that can cause allergies though in most cases they can be broken down into 3 big categories: flea, food and environmental allergies. Allergies are usually worked up in a stepwise fashion starting with flea allergies as this is the easiest and cheapest to take c
Updated on September 24th, 2025
Petco Pet Education Center
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I have a 12-yr. old Jack Russell Terrier who apparently has some digestive issues. Her stomach gurgles loudly at times - not frequently but occasionally. When this happens, she eats grass. I just heard that no grain foods may cause heart disease. Wha
Yes, you are correct that there is concern that no grain foods may potentially linked to heart disease, and the FDA is now investigating that. Personally, I recommend feeding Gypsy Royal Canin, Hill's Science Diet, Purina ProPlan, or Iams. I feed my own dogs Iams and they love it. I hope this helps!
Updated on September 24th, 2025
Petco Pet Education Center
Health & Wellbeing
What is the best type of food for urinary issues in cats? My cats veterinarian recommended a urinary diet but the food in the clinic is mainly corn based. Is feeding a corn based diet healthy for a senior cat to help with urinary issues in long term
Hi and thanks for using Boop by Petco! Sorry to hear that Taffy is having urinary issues. I would have to say that you should trust the nutritional advice given by your veterinarian. There are many urinary diets out there to treat cats with urinary problems. I understand grain is a concern in nutrition but really in cats and dogs, grain problems are very rare. The pet food industry has jumped on the no grain bandwagon as a way to market pet food. Usually if pets have problems with their diet, it is to the protein in the diet. I would not have a problem feeding a urinary diet with corn to one of my own cats. I hope this helps and that Taffy is well on her way to feeling better.
Updated on September 24th, 2025

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