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Re: Incontinence - vet says it's not


INU
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I am posting here in case it is behavior or other issues rather than health. Here's my previous post

 

I took both of my dogs to the new vet for Cooper's shots. I tried to get Jazzy's urine sample but I could only get a few drops. The vet said it is probably not Incontinence because of her age (3) and because it happened only 2 times. She said if it was Incontinence, she'd pee during the day as well and it should occur more frequently. I told her she had never had accident like that before and she had all the access to go outside all day. It just doesn't sound right to me...

 

Since her shots are not due till October, she told me to come back in a month and just watch her. She suggested withholding her water after 8pm etc. I would be happy if it was just a temporarily thing as I'd rather not to give her the meds for the rest of her life.

 

Can you think of any other reasons why she peed in her sleep? Do dogs do that once a while?? I am 99% sure it was hers. Oh and when I asked her about bladder infection, she said that Jazzy didn't have the symptoms of the infection (hard time peeing, frequent potty etc)

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Hmmm. Well, that's good news if it's right.

 

Have to say though that my old girl only ever peed like that when she was sound asleep. And it wasn't often - in fact, not often enough for me to bother seeking treatment. She didn't show any signs of it at other times.

 

Still - watch and wait is probably a good strategy for you at this stage. Hope it's just an odd thing.

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Keep in mind that both dogs, and people, can have a bladder infection and no sx.

 

For instance, by the time I started showing sx with my the DR yelled at me because of all the blood.

 

Pepper too, never showed any sx until it got real bad. So we never knew.

 

I'd get her tested anyhow.

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Hi there, I read your previous post and thought what a cruel fate if Jazzy got incontinence because of a spay. I'm sure that would be distressing for her. And I had no idea that it could happen. So I'm glad to hear that it probably isn't that. I agree with Barb and Beth ! If you can bear it, wait and see. If not, get her tested for an infection. ( Personally, I wouldn't withhold water, though.)

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Another reason she could be urinating in her sleep is a UTI. One of my young dogs started urinating in her sleep and it turned out to be a UTI. The vet definitely needs to get a urine sample from her in order to test for it and should be able to do that if you take her in. In my girl's case they gave me one antibiotic to start off with based on what they found at their office, but sent it off to the lab for more detailed testing and we had to get a different antibiotic because of the type of bacteria found.

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I agree witht the others who have suggested that you get her urine tested for a UTI. She could have a low grade infection with few symptoms. I wouldn't wait a month to get the urine checked. Also you mention this is a new vet................hmmmmmm, from the result of the visit, I think I might be looking/seeking a second opinion. I have a young female, housebroken who started, over a weekend, to have "occasional" accidents while I had her in playing with her. I collected a sample of urine on that Monday morning and took it to be tested. She didn't have an infection, per se, but did have white blood cells in her urine. So it was caught early and before she had any "real" symptoms other than the "accidents"

 

Good luck and I hope she feels better soon.

 

WWBC

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I am going through this with my 9-year-old. We were just at the vet yesterday. There have been just a few incidents (that I've seen), but they mainly seem to be when she's sleeping.

 

There is such a thing as dogs developing incontinence after spaying. Jazzy is at the right age for that to happen. Older dogs may develop incontinence just from loss of sphincter muscle tone. I did not think my dog had a UTI, but went ahead and took a urine sample anyway. It came back (it was sent to a pathologist, not just checked in house) "clean as a whistle."

 

So that pretty much leaves incontinence as the likely cause of the accidents. It's not completely unusual for older dogs to develop this problem (whereas with younger dogs, it's sometimes attributed to early neutering). We will start her on PPA and see what happens. The trick for me will be noticing a change at all, since I suspect this has gone on a bit longer than I realized (as in spots could dry without me noticing them).

 

I'd rather not medicate if it's not necessary, but then again, washing the entire bed every day isn't exactly great either and I don't want to crate her while I'm at work because if she does have incontinence I don't want her having to lie in her own urine when she can't help the leakage....

 

Anyway, I agree that it wouldn't hurt to test a urine sample now and then take a wait-and-see approach if the apparent incontinence isn't greatly affecting your or her life for the time being.

 

J.

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My Tyra was spayed at 10 weeks old (stupid CA law!)and she became incontinet around 2 1/2 years old. She is ONLY incontinet in her sleep. First we tried holistic approach, that worked for only one month. Now she is on PPA. We are VERY lucky because an extremely low dose works for her. She gets 25 mg every third or fourth day.

 

Jennifer

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I'm surprised at your vet, frankly. First of all, I would insist on a urinalysis to rule out UTI. If you or he couldn't get a sample, then try again.

 

Also, most incontinence in non-geriatric dogs occurs while they're sleeping, I don't necessarily agree with his comment about "it would happen during the day", so it can't be incontinence.

 

Here's a quote from vetinfo.com:

 

The two most frequently recommended treatments for incontinence in female

dogs are estrogen supplementation and phenylpropanolamine (Propagest TM,

Dexatrim TM).

 

The most successful estrogen supplement was diethylstilbestrol (DES), which

is currently hard to find. Estrogens do not cause side effects with great

frequency but the side effects can be very serious, including suppression

of the bone marrow's ability to produce red blood cells that may not

respond to withdrawal of the medication. We never experienced this side

effect in our practice but it was worrisome enough that we preferred to

attempt treatment with phenylpropanolamine first whenever possible. We have

not had much success with alternative estrogen products that have been

suggested since DES has become harder to find.

 

Phenylpropanolamine is a decongestant and is the active ingredient in

Dexatrim , the product used for appetite suppression in humans. As far

as I can tell there is no appetite suppressive effect in pets. It does not

seem to have serious side effects but it often has to be given three times

a day to be effective and that is a drawback for many pet owners. Sometimes

it works for the majority of incontinence when it is given at bedtime since

many dogs are only incontinent when they are sleeping.

All that said, as I posted in the earlier thread, Lilly has had this happen to her several times over the last year. I wouldn't rush to medicate her, nor would I rush to insist on medicating Jazzy. But, I would consider a trip to another vet, and get her urine tested to be sure.
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  • 7 months later...

I was reading about Inu's peeing problem. Genki had the same problem and she is only 2 years old. The vet guessed it was due to spaying (when she was six months old). Genki NEVER pees in the house when she is awake, but she was leaking in her sleep and it got worse very quickly. One day, she was standing still and actually dripping but she didn't realize she needed to go. I felt so bad for her. I finally took her to the vet (with a urine sample). She had no sign of a UTI and the vet told me we should put her on estrogen because she was much more susceptible to a UTI because she was always licking. The day after we started the pills, she quit having a problem. The vet said to give her two pills a day for a month and then cut back a bit but I already cut back to one a day and she hasn't had a bit of problem. I am worried about side effects but she seemed so miserable and I was more worried about UTIs. So far so good. I hope this might help Inu as well.

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I remember this thread!

 

She had 4-5 accidents in sleep in the past 9 months. The vet suggested not to use the medication since the leaking is occasional. I still think she has incontinence but perhaps not severe (don't know if there are different levels)

I began to think she actually catches herself before it happens. I've seen her jumping up in the middle of night to go pee. I still want to sleep with her on the bed so I water proofed the entire bed - water proof sheet, then extra sheet and doggy training pads between the sheets, then her bed on top the blanket. But it's been dry so far...

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