Struvite

Struvite, in the urinary context, is a type of stone made of magnesium ammonium phosphate that can sometimes be dissolved through targeted dietary management under veterinary follow-up. This dissolvability is the key contrast with [oxalate](/glossary/oxalate) stones, which do not respond to diet and often require surgical removal, and it shapes treatment: a vet-prescribed therapeutic diet that adjusts mineral content and urine pH can dissolve many struvite stones without surgery (veterinary literature). In cats, struvite is a common component of [feline lower urinary tract disease](/glossary/flutd), and in some cases it forms in association with urinary infection, particularly in dogs, where treating the infection is part of management. Prevention leans on promoting dilute urine through hydration and [wet food](/glossary/wet-food), connecting struvite control to [dehydration](/glossary/dehydration) prevention. An interesting dynamic: dietary efforts to reduce struvite risk over recent decades may have contributed to a relative rise in oxalate stones, so balance matters. The marker: struvite is the diet-responsive urinary stone, often dissolvable without surgery under veterinary care, which sets it apart from oxalate and makes mineral and pH management central, as the urinary entries of the [Petipedia glossary](/glossary) explain.

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General documentary information. For an individual animal, a veterinarian's advice takes precedence over any online content.