Survey of veterinary practitioners about their experiences with urinary disorders in dogs and cats

Selected veterinarians were surveyed about their recalled experiences of ur inary disorders, especially renal conditions, in current practice. When con tacted by phone, 114 veterinarians in four states agreed to participate and 100 of them returned completed questionnaires. The three conditions of mos t concern nominated by 114 practitioners related to skin, endocrine and gas trointestinal systems (mentioned by 65, 35 and 32%, respectively), followed by urinary, cardiac and respiratory disorders (23, 20, 17%). From the ques tionnaire, the two body systems most often noted as abnormal in unwell dogs and cats were skin/eyes/ears and alimentary; urinary was third in cats and fifth in dogs. The urinary disorders reported as mast common were bacteria l cystitis in dogs and nonobstructed haematuria/dysuria in cats. The freque ncy of diagnosing renal failure in dogs and cats was mostly "one case per t wo weeks" (43%), with "one or more per week" (28%) or "one per month" (22%) the main alternatives. Methods used to diagnose or investigate renal disea se were generally blood biochemical tests, haematology and urinalysis, but imaging techniques were also popular. Most favoured treatments for chronic renal failure were intravenous fluids, multivitamins, anabolic steroids, an d commercial. renal diets. Antimicrobials were often used, but phosphate bi nders, vitamin D analogues and erythropoietin were rarely employed.