Symptoms of Incontinence
It's important to distinguish between poor housetraining and true Dog Incontinence. Watch your dog carefully to determine whether the urination is out of her control. If she seems to be controlling it, you may need to go back a few steps in her housetraining routine and reinforce good potty habits. A sure sign of Dog Incontinence is urinating in her sleep. If she wakes up to a wet bed and seem unhappy about it, you need to try to determine the cause of her incontinence.
One common cause for urine leakage is nervousness or submissiveness. If this is the case with your dog, do not try to eliminate the Dog Incontinence through punishment. This can actually worsen the condition. Instead, offer kindness and gentle training. Try to keep excitement to a minimum while you work through this problem.
Causes
If you're certain that you're dealing with Dog Incontinence, the next course of action is to determine a cause for the problem. The veterinarian will probably want to rule out a urinary tract infection first. If an infection is found, a course of antibiotics should knock it out and her toileting habits should return to normal.
It's not uncommon for female dogs to become incontinent after being spayed. In this case, your veterinarian may want to try phenylpropanolamine (or PPA), a drug that can be very effective in combating this type of incontinence. Alternatively, your veterinarian may recommend hormone replacement therapy.
If PPA or hormone replacement isn't indicated or doesn't work, a complete workup by a specialist may be in order to determine if there's something anatomical amiss or if your dog is suffering from bladder stones or neurological problems. The workup may include urine and blood tests, x-rays, and dye contrast tests.
A Last Resort
If the cause of
Dog Incontinence is still undetermined but is serious enough to cause
nuisance and distress for you and your dog, surgery may be the only option.
There are inherent risks and it can be expensive but if your dog is
like a member of the family and the veterinarian can find no alternative, it
might be your only option.
Note:
Herbal remedies are thought by some people to be effective in treating Dog Incontinence; just remember that just because it's natural doesn't mean its safe, so proceed with caution.
