Urinary incontinence in dogs
A dog may lose urine either consciously or unconsciously. Incontinence (unconscious urine loss) is different from genuine house-soiling, as seen in puppies, where the puppy deposits feces and/or urine indoors and does not yet understand that this should be done outside.
Urinating indoors (conscious urine loss)
When urinating indoors, a dog assumes the posture for urination before urinating. This may happen, for example, because the dog can no longer hold its urine. This is often the result of an underlying illness that causes the dog to urinate more than usual. A bladder infection is one example. In this case, the dog urinates more frequently than usual, but only small amounts at a time. Bladder crystals or stones can also cause urinary tract problems. If there is no medical cause, the issue may be behavioral.
Incontinence in dogs (unconscious urine loss in dogs)
With unconscious urine loss, you may find wet spots where your dog has been lying, or your loyal companion may lose small amounts of urine while walking. You may also notice that the fur around the back end of the dog starts to discolor and smell. The most common cause of unconscious urine loss is a poorly functioning sphincter muscle in the bladder and urethra. This is often seen in spayed female dogs due to the loss of the hormone estrogen.
Causes of urine loss in dogs
To better understand incontinence in dogs, it is helpful to know that there can be various causes of urine loss. If your dog is incontinent, it is often difficult to identify a clear cause. Many different things may be going on, ranging from a bladder infection to obesity. We have listed the possible causes of incontinence in dogs for you:
- Loss of estrogen in a spayed female dog
- Old age
- Obesity
- Stress and other intense emotions
- Prostate problems
- Problems with the bladder sphincter
- A congenital abnormality
- A tumor around the bladder
- A bladder infection
- Behavioral problems
- Back problems
- Bladder stones
Treatment of incontinence in dogs
If you want to stop your dog’s urine loss, your four-legged friend will naturally need treatment. After determining the cause, the veterinarian can tell you what the appropriate treatment is. This might involve surgery to remove a tumor near the bladder, for example, but medication to improve the function of the sphincter is also an option. However, if your dog’s urine loss is due to behavioral problems, it may be necessary to consult a behavior therapist; together with the behavior specialist, you can identify the cause of the behavior and then correct it. Treatment for incontinence in dogs varies from one animal to another and depends on the cause of the unwanted urine loss.
What should you definitely not do if your dog loses urine?
In most cases, an (adult) dog does not urinate indoors intentionally. Take it from us: incontinence is not pleasant for your dog either. Many dogs are aware that they are losing urine and know that this is not desired indoors. So do not get angry if your dog has urinated in the house. Of course, it is extremely frustrating to have to clean up yet again, but if you get angry, your dog may become afraid of you. Remember that your pet truly cannot help losing urine.
Also make sure your dog has access to drinking water as usual. If you spend day after day scrubbing because your dog has been suffering from urine loss, you may eventually become desperate. However, it is not wise to give your dog less water so that it will not urinate indoors. If your dog is incontinent because of an underlying illness, dehydration caused by insufficient hydration can have very unpleasant consequences for your four-legged friend. This only contributes to the problems instead of solving them.
