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John and Carol Mork are busy people, but they knew the love a dog would bring to their home would outweigh the added responsibility. Within months of contacting Old Oak Kennels, they received the call: three yellow Labrador puppies were available. John and Carol rushed to the kennel, and, moments later, little Riley stepped up to place his paws on John’s chest. Riley was home.
Riley quickly became the son John and Carol never had. He brought his fun-loving personality and curiosity with him on each adventure he experienced with John and Carol. But Riley’s curiosity got him into a bit of trouble. After digging in the wet sand along a lakeshore, Riley began coughing. The Morks immediately took Riley to see a vet, but the medication that was given to Riley did not work, and his condition worsened. Desperate to find treatment, John and Carol sought the expertise of Rachel Smith, VMD, who was then a resident at the University of Minnesota Veterinary Medical Center (VMC). Smith utilized a number of different treatments and, in time, Riley was back to his usual self. But it was not long before Riley was back at the VMC.
One day, Carol noticed a bright-yellow spot on the carpet under a window. Riley had urinated in the house, which was out of character for him. Another visit to the VMC led to an X-ray uncovering a quarter-sized, irregularly shaped stone in Riley’s urinary bladder.
The U’s Minnesota Urolith Center analyzes around 88,000 stones each year. Their services are free of charge and, since 2004, their introduction of lithotripsy—a non-invasive treatment that delivers laser energy to fragment stones—has helped the VMC reduce bladder surgeries. Jody Lulich, DVM, PhD, DACVIM, professor in the Department of Veterinary and Clinical Sciences and director of the Urolith Center, attempted to fragment the stone in Riley’s bladder using lithotripsy. However, due to the stone’s size, surgery was ultimately needed to remove the stone. Lulich found that the stone in Riley’s bladder was a cystine stone, a rare type of stone that forms because of a genetic mutation in the kidneys.
“The [Urolith] Center is committed to the development of non-invasive methods that will consistently and safely prevent and cure urinary tract diseases,” Lulich says. “It is all about compassion and being less invasive.”
Riley has fully recovered from the cystotomy, and thanks to Lulich’s diet recommendations, he has not experienced another stone. He is monitored every six months, so if another stone develops, the Urolith Center’s lithotripsy treatment should be successful.