The stones usually build up slowly with symptoms similar to a urinary tract infection, and often dogs with bladder stones have a concurrent urinary tract infection.

These symptoms include straining to urinate and urinating many times a day - even as often as every 30 minutes to an hour. The dog may lick around the urinary opening a lot and the urine may be discoloured - usually blood-tinged.

Occasionally the dog may have trouble urinating or it may be painful to urinate as the stone may be blocking the opening of the bladder.

In a dog showing these symptoms, your vet may run various tests starting with a basic urine test which shows if any crystals or infections are present.

This urine may be collected as a free catch - when the dog goes to the toilet, via a catheter into the bladder or via a needle through the abdomen into the bladder, usually with the help of an ultrasound.

Radiographs usually show up a bladder stone clearly. A white stone can be seen inside the bladder, but there are a few bladder stones that do not show up on radiograph and an ultrasound has to be done.

Treatment of bladder stones can either be medical or surgical.

Medical involves getting the infection under control with antibiotics and also diet to dissolve the stones.

Surgery involves removing the stones from the bladder, but even if surgery is undertaken it is recommended to put the dog on a prescription diet afterward to stop bladder stones from reforming.