Answer

By Your Horse

Vet Malene Jørgensen replies:

Bladder stones, or urolithiasis, are the main cause of Obstructive Urinary Tract Disease. This is where the urethra, which drains the urine from the bladder during urination, is blocked by the stone, causing the bladder to overfill and ultimately rupture. If untreated it could be fatal.
The cause is unclear but it is known that bladder infections can cause stones to form. Other causes can be:
● Urine retention.
● Low content of Vitamin A in the feed.
● High content of Vitamin D in the feed.
Surgical removalof the stone is the usual treatment.
Alternatively, the vet can try trans-urethral endoscopy, where a small endoscope with forceps attached is passed through the urethra into the bladder. This can only be done if the stone is small enough to pass through the urethra or to be broken into small pieces.
Another technique is lithotripsy – this allows the vet to focus pressure or shock waves on the stones to break them apart. The horse passes much smaller stone particles, avoiding surgery.
The Royal Veterinary College might be able to give you more details, as I don’t believe it is common practice in the UK.
Contact the college on 0207 468 5000 or visit www.rvc.ac.uk