What does litmus reading of 8.0 mean

[Chickenlegs]

I occasionally test Scooter's pee. Usually it's 7.0. This morning it was 8.0. My chemistry was maaaaaaaaaany moons ago and I don't remember what that means. OK so I can look it up on the internet but what could that mean for Scooter. He's incontenant and I'm always worried about UTIs.

[TubeDriver]

Pat,

The higher the number, the more basic is is. The lower the number, the more acidic it is.

Urine ph ranges depending on recent diet so I would repeat that test 2-3 times to get an idea if this is consistent. A high ph like 8 or above could indicate kidney issues or a UTI or a diet with lots of fruit and vegetables. A single reading going from 7 to 8 would probably not worry me much in the absence of any clinical symptoms, but consistenly higher readings indicates a problem.



I occasionally test Scooter's pee. Usually it's 7.0. This morning it was 8.0. My chemistry was maaaaaaaaaany moons ago and I don't remember what that means. OK so I can look it up on the internet but what could that mean for Scooter. He's incontenant and I'm always worried about UTIs.

[Chickenlegs]

Thanks Pete. I tested maybe 3 weeks ago and it was right in the middle--7.0. I always worry about the Scootman.

[Squirreleesi]

An 8 would be a Weak base.

(for future references:
- A pH scale reading of less than 7 indicates an acidic medium.
- A pH scale reading of more than 7 indicates a basic medium.
- A pH scale reading equal to 7 indicates a neutral medium or solution (pure distilled water).
- A pH scale reading of 2 indicates a strong acid.
- A pH scale reading of 13 indicates a strong base.
- A pH scale reading of 6 indicates a weak acid.
- A pH scale reading of 8 indicates a weak base.)

[Diggie's Friend]

The first article lays out information on what urine pH is all about; and though it focuses on the human urine pH, that is neutral (7.0) this is not the known mean urine pH for small mammals or tree squirrels. Veterinary science cites (6.5) as the norm for urinary pH of small mammals; and the study of wild gray squirrels done in Florida notes (6.4) as the mean urine pH found in the study of that species.

Helpful links:

http://www.redurine.com/urinary_tract/urine_ph.html

http://ratguide.com/health/urinary_renal/urinary_tract_infections_lower.php


A significantly lower or higher mean urine pH that either appears suddenly and or persists over time, is a red flag pointing to a possible problem with an imbalance in the diet, dehydration, the presence a bacterial, or other kind of infection, or other serious disorders like diabetes, MBD, or kidney stones, just to name a few.

In rat and squirrel research, in order to get an very accurate reading for the pH of urine, it is removed directly from the bladder of anesthetized rats, just as it was for the squirrel study. The closest, safest and most accurate way of doing this outside the body, is to test the urine pH immediately upon the urine being deposited, so it doesn't have a chance to cool down. For once the temperature of the sample begins to cool the bacteria it contains increases, which produces a higher pH in the sample as a direct result. It is this problem that can compromise the veracity of the readings taken, and so the accuracy of the final value for the mean urine pH found from those tests.

With 3 readings spread out over the day after meals, and one taken before meals from the first urination of the day, add the readings up together, and divide the sum by the number of readings in order to get the mean value for the urine pH for the day. That is if three readings, total and divide by (3) ; and four readings, total and divide by (4).

The mean urine pH can be used as a pre-diagnostic indicator if the diet has been found to lie close to the known mean urine pH with consistency. For though small variations in the mean urine pH are common, once the mean pH rises above 7.0, or drops below 6.0, it is no longer considered a healthly mean urine pH for small mammals and tree squirrels. If it is out of range then a Veterinarian should be consulted, who can run serum blood panel, and take x-rays if warranted towards identifying the cause, and address the issue, so that hopefully a tipping point leading to a health crisis can be averted.