My friends dog has been prescribed hills food sutable for dogs with kidney problems( she develops crystals in her urine) and vet says this is the only food she can have,funnily enough its the one that they sell..she isnt that keen on it and is getting quite thin now,surely there must be other foods she can try..its a very low protein food she is in..any suggestions will be great..thanks x

I consulted a dietician and did a lot of research when my puppy was recovering for kidney failure. His was an acute kidney issue, so this may not be the same as for your dog with kidney stones.

He was given canned kidney food, but wouldn't eat that. Apparently it is notoriously unpalateable.

The upshot was large quantities of carbs (to make up 80% of the diet), smaller quantities of good quality protien. Then extras to meet nutritional needs.
Along with Samylin, then milk thistle, he had:

White rice
sweet potato
boiled chicken breast (keep the water and add to meal)
white fish
egg whites
broccoli
red pepper
other mixed veg
ground egg shell

Gundogs, how did he do on that diet?

Fortunately fantasically well!
Research would indicate that diet is massively important for kidney issues.

What sort of crystals? The different types of crystals need differen treatments, and what helps with one type will make another type worse. So before making any changes to the diet it's VITAL to know what sort of crystals they are (the vet should be able to check a sample under the microscope, but if not the University of Minnesota will check them for free).

A lot of vets are sponsored or owned by big companys like hills. You're best off looking around and doing what works for you, or consult an independent vet. My dog used to be fussy but I switched to pure petfood and that's really helped, I saw on their site when doing some research that they do other ailments including urine crystals. So you might want to take a look at them

Hmm.... first post an advertisement for Pure Dog food.
It’s far too high in both protein and phosphorus for a dog with most kidney complaints so possibly not as suitable as you suggest.

It's not an ad, i'm just trying to help and share what worked for me. Use something else, i don't care

The nutritional changes that need to be made depending on the severity of the kidney disease, but in general, pets with kidney disease should be fed diets reduced in phosphorus, protein, and sodium and supplemented with omega-3 fatty acids from fish oil. The most important of these nutrients for most dogs and cats is phosphorus. It is important to feed a low phosphorus diet to keep the pet’s blood phosphorus low, which is thought to slow the progression of kidney disease and improve survival.

This is the situation I have found myself in this week with my 12 year old Lab. She has been diagnosed with chronic renal failure, so diet is paramount. She is having the Hill's canned and dried food, but I'm having an awful job getting her to eat it. I am researching foods that are low in phosphates, potassium and sodium to mix in with it but there aren't many around! So far I have given her boiled turnip, white pasta with a teaspoon of soured cream and mix them in with it, and she does eventually eat it but only when she realises it's that or nothing. Already in a week though, I have seen a huge improvement in her, so it's well worth the effort. If anyone has any other ideas of what she can have, I should be pleased to hear them.

Nutriment do 2 raw foods suitable for dogs with kidney failure, both green tripe based. There are also some good quality renal diet tinned foods available on Zooplus.
It's not necessarily about low protein with kidney problems but the right type of protein.
I wouldn't feed Royal Canin or Hills to a healthy dog so I certainly wouldn't feed it to one who is ill.

Do you have the time to devote to the research and preparations of a home cooked diet?

Hi, yes I do, and I have been cooking a couple of palatable foodstuffs to mix with the diet, but I can't find much that she can have. Had a look on Zooplus, but they only seem to have Hill's and Royal Canin.

Rocco Renal, Integra Protect Renal, Concept For Life Renal - all kidney diet tinned foods available on Zooplus and better quality than Hills/Royal Canin.
Or look at Nutriment raw - either the Kidney Support or Low Purine.

> Had a look on Zooplus, but they only seem to have Hill's and Royal Canin.

https://www.zooplus.co.uk/shop/veterinary_food/dog_vet_food/kidney_heart

If this helps?   I did have such a home-made diet from a friend with a Bloodhound who went down with this disease - I'd have to see if I can dig it out.

https://www.zooplus.co.uk/esearch.htm#q=Rocco%2520renel

I don't know much about this but would guess that low protein diets possibly lack the olfactory wow factor that make dogs want to consume something. I wonder if adding tiny amounts of something really smelly (fish skin flakes or dabs of achivy oil) might help?