Incontinent doodle

[Rebecca bratter]

Not sure if I should post this to any specific group so posting here.  My 1 year 9 month old aussiedoodle Madiba has been experiencing what I guess you what call incontinence.  It's very confusing to us.  When she was a baby and fell into a deep sleep she would occasionally pee on herself while sleeping even though she was house trained.  She didn't even know she did it. Then we had months with no issues.  When we moved to Miami about 7 months ago she started swimming in the ocean.  We noticed that when she played very hard and exhausted herself, especially if she had been in the water, she would "leak." mostly while sleeping.  Lately we've noticed that she leaks while napping or even just laying around, always after play, whether she goes in the water or not.  She'll lay down and nap and wake up and have leaked onto her leg and start licking herself to clean up.  She was on a med for incontinence for a while, that helped.  She doesn't have a UTI, or at least she didn't, maybe she has one now?  

The other night she was just leaking everywhere.  I just went to clean her bed and found little circles of pee.  We did change up her food.  She was on Acana wild prairie, we cycled in some other flavors, but she doesn't love acana, we switched to Wilderness Complete health which is definitely likes better.  She has also gained weight.  We were adding a raw food into her diet that we got from a speciality vet here but since we arrived in Miami she's gone from 31 to 34 pounds.  She supposed to be a mini AD.  She may now in fact have developed a UTI, she seems to want to pee all the time, but prior to this, she has this constant leaking issue.  

Does anyone have any thoughts or ideas on what might be causing it and what we can do? 

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I'm sorry to hear this. I don't have any ideas as to what could be causing this, but I'm pretty sure that food has nothing to do with it. 

In honesty, I would take her to the vet. You really do need to have her checked for a UTI or other condition, especially since she has a history of urinary issues. All that anybody here could do is guess at the cause, and that isn't going to help Mandiba. 

[F, Calla & Luca]

I agree. Right now she may have a UTI but she may also have an anatomical issue.

[Carrie king]

Because she is so young, I am not sure that this would be helpful. However, we have a 10 yr old poodle with the same issue. She started "leaking" when she turned 9. Hers was due to a weakened bladder sphincter because she is spayed. so we put her on a very small dose of hormone & she has not had a problem since. side note: ive noticed when our doodle swims he ingests a bunch of extra water & he will come home and pee many, many times! I would have the vet check for hormone issues and possible anatomical defects that could be causing it.

[Rebecca bratter]

The vet mentioned something about a weak bladder sphincter but my problem is we are at Banfield on an insurance plan and whenever we go in they just want to run mounds of tests and they scare the crap out of us, "could be a serious issue, could be a tumor, etc. " She doesn't leak all the time, but she has some really bad weeks where she leaks 2 or 3 days in a row, and then no more. I've got to do something about it.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I think in this case, some testing is needed. 

And when you can get out of the insurance plan, I would switch to one that doesn't force you to use Banfield. But for now, she does need to be seen. 

[F, Calla & Luca]

I don't think the best vets are at Banfield. I also think continuity of care is vital and I doubt you get that at Banfield. Testing is needed to help make an accurate diagnosis though.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Has her water consumption increased? All that ocean salt water coupled with sun and lots of exercise can be very dehydrating.

[Rebecca bratter]

Yes very increased water consumption, salt water about once a week and a lot of water from the heat, this is when she leaks most.

[Rebecca bratter]

Karen, I was wondering if you think there is a connection between food ingredients and the leaking. She's been on Orijen as a puppy and now Acana, we just cycled her over to Wellness. Is there a particular ingredient or formulation that could irritate her bladder the way that spices and certain foods irritate the human bladder?

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I would put food out of your mind. You have enough other factors that are much more likely, including the previous history, the salt water and increased water consumption, with which you see a clear connection. 

I really think that food (especially a high quality food) being the cause is extremely unlikely. However, hopefully you didn't switch her to a Wellness formula that contains grains, because higher grain content would not be a benefit for her at all. 

I really think you need to take her to the vet. I don't want to alarm you, but some of these things can be symptoms of serious illness. Again, guessing at the cause won't help her. 

[Linda, Charlie Brown and Beau]

Hi Rebecca ~ Sorry Madiba is having this issue.  My only suggestion we be take her to a good veterinarian.  I do have a possible suggestion to make cleanup easier - when our standard poodle was taking prednisone, he was unable to hold it through the night.   I went to Target and bought a pad that fight perfectly inside the cover of his bed.  It is similar to a rubber sheet with a flannel covering and very light weight but protects the bed from being soiled.  You can then just wash the outer cover of the bed when needed. Hope to see an update on what your vet says.

[Karen and Bridget]

So sorry to hear this.  We have just started to experience something similar with our lab and the vet did some tests that indicated the inability to concentrate the urine.  This leads to accidental peeing from an otherwise house trained dog.  There is a medicine to concentrate the urine and stop the leaking.