[Stones] tap water

[Katie Garlic]

Hi,
  I've only had one piggies that had one stone.  While waiting for surgery, 
I feed him mostly cucumbers (twice a day) and leaf lettuce once a day, 
changed him to Oxbow timothy pellets, and had my husband bring home from 
work city tap water. (He use to get veggies only once a day.) We live way 
out in the country and have well water which we also have a house water 
softner unit.  Our well water is heavy with minerals!

  The day of Spike's surgery I asked the vet to take one more xray because 
after all the changes to his diet I notice he did not act like he was trying 
to pass a large stone.  The vet was surprised as somehow he had passed the 
large stone!

  I also had to take him out of his regular cage as he was fighting with his 
cage mate.  I moved him to one of our rooms that is warmer than the room he 
was in.  He started to drink a lot of water compared to his other living 
arangements.

  I'm not sure why he has never had another stone, but I'm hoping by 
changing his diet and adding all the extra watery veggies it has helped.  I 
now have to changed his cage shavings more, but I think it is well worth it 
if he never gets another stone.  Kate


>Meanwhile, I wonder if anyone has anything on water and stone formation.  
>Dr.
>Sitinas looked at the x-ray and said "what's in your water?" because one of
>my previous piggies, Byron, was a chronic stone former, and Dr. S doesn't 
>see
>many piggies with bladder stones even though he's a superb "exotics" vet.  
>My
>water, as it happens, is very soft, low in minerals, and I run it through a
>Brita filter before giving it to my pigs.  It does have fluoride.  Any data 
>on
>that?  I can give them Poland Spring or something but bottled water is high 
>in
>minerals, isn't it?  And distilled water doesn't seem like a good idea.