09/17/2026
The UKVDL is announcing the addition of Urine Culture Quantification to our test offerings. This allows for a more targeted approach for identifying the presence of potential pathogens.
Understanding Companion Animal Urine Culture Quantification
The guidelines for what constitute a “positive urine culture” have changed over the years, but this month the International Society for Companion Animal Infectious Diseases (ISCAID- a society group whose members include general practitioners, internal medicine clinicians, microbiologists, pharmacologists and clinical pathologists) officially published their new consensus definitions. The Bacteriology section uses them as a baseline to ensure common terminology.
In these definitions, a “positive urine culture” is defined as isolation of a potentially pathogenic species at pure growth or with no more than two different organisms at clinically relevant levels. These guidelines define clinically relevant levels at >1,000 CFU/mL from cystocentesis samples, >10,000 CFU/mL from catheterized and >100,000 CFU/mL from voided samples.
To get the most accurate data from your cultures you can:
Submit a tube of urine rather than a swab to allow for quantification
Tell us the route of collection
Tell us if clinical signs are present
Tell us if you suspect pyelonephritis (this is critical to ensure correct MIC breakpoints are used)
There is recognition that the exact diagnostic sensitivity of these cut-offs is not currently known, and there may be times when you plan to treat based on clinical signs regardless of CFU cut off. Letting us know this can ensure you receive accurate results. We are happy to discuss any questions or concerns about a particular case and can be reached at (859) 257-8283.
More information on ISCAID definitions and the development process can be found at:
