Advice on my old dog please..

I have a black lab mix, Holly, who's going to be 12 this month. (Sweetest dog ever!). She seems to be in great health, no issues other than being a little slower getting up and down. Well, actually one issue. For instance, she'll be laying in the kitchen with us, and when she gets up, there will be a puddle. Now this morning I found her laying on her blanket, in a puddle. It's not every day, but I'm just not sure what this is. My brother in law has a golden who's also 12, and she does it too. He said they don't know they're doing it. I know it's tough to get old, even for dogs. :( Has anyone else gone through this with theirs? Thanks for any info, Holly thanks you too! :dog:

I did with my dog and it could mean a couple of different things. Without going to the vet you might not know for sure- for my dog it was her kidneys getting weaker- but it could also mean their bladder is weaker. I know it's very very hard to watch your dog get older mainly because they can't tell you when something is wrong. Good luck.

My sheltie growing up did that, incontinence. It is so hard to see them get older. My dog Murphy is my love, she is ten now and very stiff, but still loves to herd. Maybe the vet can offer some assistance. I had cats that did that, too, they went into kidney failure.

Thank you both, my boys have had her pretty much their entire lives, she is their baby. Oh, I don't even want to think about what's to come. I know it's part of life, but that doesn't make it easy. I guess if this is all that we're dealing with for her age, then we are blessed. I just might have to make a trip to the vet...

Old pups do sometimes develop an incontinence problem, for the same reasons that older humans do--the muscles controlling the bladder just get weaker. And if the dog has some arthritis, they may not feel like getting up as frequently as they did when they were younger. Is your lab also drinking more? If so, to be on the safe side you might want to get her checked out for diabetes or kidney failure, the incidence of which goes up as a dog ages. In the meantime, there are absorbent pads out there that you can put in her favorite spots to help minimize the mess.

I have a soft spot in my heart for black lab mixes, having had two myself. We lost our big guy Louie last October due to bone cancer of his leg, but he also lived with diabetes for the last two year of his life. He was the sweetest most patient soul, dealing with twice daily insulin injections and being tested frequently for his blood glucose levels. I still miss him. :dog:

Hope this makes you feel better.

Years ago, my old Springer had the very same thing and we were able to medicate her for it. It wasn't diabetes or her kidneys.. she was just old and leaky. I can't remember but it may have been hormonal. The medication stopped it completely.

Definitely ask your vet before you jump to conclusions. If it is incontinence, they may very well have a medication for it. Generally, if there is a prescription that helps humans, there is a similar one for animals. I hope you are able to help him. I know how difficult it is to watch your animals age. I lost my two Corgis within one year. They have been gone for about 3 years now. My DS is 7 and still cries about it. It's so difficult, but goes along with the responsibility of pet ownership.

A lot of older, spayed female dogs start to leak urine when they're asleep...and sometimes when they're awake. The sprincter that holds urine is dependent on certain hormones. I had two older dogs that had this problem. It was just a matter of giving them a pill every day and it stopped the pee!

I currently have two older dogs that have the same problem. It is common in all breeds of dogs as they get older. As mentioned in a previous post, sometimes a vet can perscribe meds, but to be honest, they are not very successful. My dogs don't do it all the time, and I just try to get them outside a little more often than they are used to and that helps, and also I limit their water late at night so they have no accidents during the night.

Just wanted to send some hugs. It's so hard to see our dear animal-family get older. We have 2 Brittany's, and our Rory will be 13 this summer. He has aged dramatically this winter, and is having the odd accident (he never had accidents as a puppy even). He gets so confused about whether he's gone out or done his business or what not.... but he is still a lovely boy...
:hug:

Dogs do sometimes lose control of their bladder, it could be nothing but you should get it checked by the vet. They do make pads for dogs to wear for bladder control issues. That way they aren't peeing all over themselves or the house. We had to go through the same thing with 1 of our labs, and it was heartbreaking. She didn't even know she was doing it. Good luck.

I actually work at a Vet Hospital. It is indeed common as many above stated.

However, I would take her in for a visit along with a urine sample. They can assure that everything is ok. They can also do some general lab work that will rule out kidney issues.

Ruling out all of that, there are medications to help with the incontinence.

Our Border Collie developed this problem late in life while sleeping. I would buy pee-pads to lay under her blank so nothing leaked onto the flooring. It's a lot easier to wash a small blanket/sheet/towel than their entire bed or your floor.

Good luck.

Thank you so much everyone, I will definitely show my husband these posts tonight. I will bring her in to the vet, and get her checked. I'm so paranoid now of accidents, I let her out a lot! I will feel better knowing exactly what's going on. Gosh, it's just not fun getting old!

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Originally Posted by PolyGirl40

Our Border Collie developed this problem late in life while sleeping. I would buy pee-pads to lay under her blank so nothing leaked onto the flooring. It's a lot easier to wash a small blanket/sheet/towel than their entire bed or your floor.

Good luck.

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Carol, how old was your border collie when they did this? I will have to watch Murphy. I already have a hard time thinking of my little friend not being here in a few years.

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Originally Posted by murphy1

Carol, how old was your border collie when they did this?

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14 or 15. It was the last few years of her life. Plus it was only at night when she would go into a really deep sleep. She was never soaked. Just damp.