I need help with my dog

[larussel03]

I''m at a complete loss as to what to do--ever since I heard that my grandmother passed away, my dog has been having accidents...they started Monday, then Fi stayed home with her until Friday when he met me for the wake/funeral and we had a dog sitter come watch her. Then we came back and she had one (#1 accident on the floor). Finally we had to start crating her during the work day b/c she would have accidents in the apartment. This last time, she had an accident in the crate and I had to put her in the tub, wash the crate and the bed and blanket. We had to run out tongiht after work (we usually stay in after coming home) and we''d crated her for a couple hours longer than normal.

I don''t know what to do...the vet says she''s healthy and gets enough exercise and that maybe my being upset is whats causing this.......

 

[E B]

If they''re #1 accidents, you might want to take her to the vet to be checked for a UTI. When dogs have UTIs, they pee in places they normally don''t. We knew Sally (in icon) had one recently when she peed in our bed.

 

[larussel03]

Date: 11/30/2006 10:56:20 PM
Author: EBree
If they''re #1 accidents, you might want to take her to the vet to be checked for a UTI. When dogs have UTIs, they pee in places they normally don''t. We knew Sally (in icon) had one recently when she peed in our bed.

Yeah, it''s mostly #2 accidents...we took her to the vet to check for worms or anything and they said she''s fine... she''s only #1''ed 2 times but #2''ed a bunch the last week...this time was frustrating b/c she went in her crate and I had to pick her up, put her in the tub and wash her b/c it was all over her. I''m just so frustrated and stressed in general this week and I don''t know what to do.

 

[E B]

Date: 11/30/2006 11:02:33 PM
Author: *~Sweetpea~*

Date: 11/30/2006 10:56:20 PM

Author: EBree

If they're #1 accidents, you might want to take her to the vet to be checked for a UTI. When dogs have UTIs, they pee in places they normally don't. We knew Sally (in icon) had one recently when she peed in our bed.

Yeah, it's mostly #2 accidents...we took her to the vet to check for worms or anything and they said she's fine... she's only #1'ed 2 times but #2'ed a bunch the last week...this time was frustrating b/c she went in her crate and I had to pick her up, put her in the tub and wash her b/c it was all over her. I'm just so frustrated and stressed in general this week and I don't know what to do.

I completely forgot to say that I'm so sorry about your grandmother.

The only other thing I could guess is a possible schedule change. Has your grandmother's death changed your dog's schedule (when you walk her) at all? When we moved to a new apartment, Sally completely forgot all she'd learned and I had to re-train her. If you haven't tried it already, try giving her treats every time she goes outside. I did this, and Sally has since re-learned that going outside = treat so she waits until I take her out. You never know, it might work with your little girl! Good luck with everything.

 

[goldenstar]

When she has a #2 accident, does it look abnormal? Maybe she ate something that made her ill? Every now and then my dog get his paws on some human food and it makes his tummy all crazy. This results in #2 accidents in the crate. If its an upset stomach, you can give your dog a little bit of liquid kaopectate.

 

[ello]

Hi Sweetpea - I''m sorry to hear about your doggy...it must be hard on both of you. Our doggy had major surgery a few months ago…he also had similar symptoms which was totally out of his character. After many vet visits I finally told them that I was not leaving until they took X-rays and an ultrasound…sure enough they discovered that he had bladder stones that were stuck in his urethra tubes so they could not flush it. The stones were only visible on the X-rays. I was so sad for him! Poor guy!
now this does not mean that your pooch will have the same problem but I just wanted to mention it because our doggy suffered for almost 4 months and I was annoyed because we paid so much money for his vet visits before they took the X-trays. I wish you well and hope that things will get better soon! Poor doggy!

 

[Kaleigh]

Date: 12/1/2006 1:27:05 AM
Author: Ries
Hi Sweetpea - I''m sorry to hear about your doggy...it must be hard on both of you. Our doggy had major surgery a few months ago…he also had similar symptoms which was totally out of his character. After many vet visits I finally told them that I was not leaving until they took X-rays and an ultrasound…sure enough they discovered that he had bladder stones that were stuck in his urethra tubes so they could not flush it. The stones were only visible on the X-rays. I was so sad for him! Poor guy!
now this does not mean that your pooch will have the same problem but I just wanted to mention it because our doggy suffered for almost 4 months and I was annoyed because we paid so much money for his vet visits before they took the X-trays. I wish you well and hope that things will get better soon! Poor doggy!

Bladder stones are no fun. Distilled water and a perscription diet helped my Callie. Sweetpea, I feel for you and hope you find out what is wrong with your doggie. It could be that he or she is feeling the stress of what has gone on with you. But good thing you are getting everything checked out. When my Nanny died, I was a mess. So my heart goes out to you. Funny thing was, my doggies were really good during that time, bless their hearts. Guess they knew it was the wrong time to act up?? But have made up for it since.

 

[monarch64]

So sorry to hear of your grandmother''s passing, Sweatpea! My condolences...

Separation anxiety comes to mind when reading this thread--have you looked into this ailment?

 

[ljmorgan]

Dogs are very sensitive. You mentioned it started at the time you found out that your grandmother had passed away. Your dog can likely sense your unhappiness and has become anxious in the house. When anxious, dogs can have problems holding their bowels. Just another idea! Spend some quality time with your dog and try to put the dog at ease. Get back on your normal schedule, now is not the time to leave the dog at home more than you usually do.

 

[fire&ice]

Try doing some upbeat fun obedience training. Contrary to our thought, it is a bonding experience & giving the dog a "job" to do. Any change in schedule or even your mood can take a toll on a dogs. They are quite sensitive souls.

 

[firebirdgold]

Date: 12/1/2006 10:57:35 AM
Author: fire&ice
Try doing some upbeat fun obedience training. Contrary to our thought, it is a bonding experience & giving the dog a ''job'' to do. Any change in schedule or even your mood can take a toll on a dogs. They are quite sensitive souls.

I agree, obedience training would help if it''s a behavior thing. So would extra time at the park.

I also no longer believe that Vets are to be trusted without question. When my dog was a puppy he kept acting like his front shoulder hurt, and I kept taking him to the vet. Everytime the vet said it was growing pains. After many months I finally took him to a different vet who felt his elbows, xrayed him, and told me he had bone chips and needed surgery right away. (genetic flaw from the lab part) Because of the long delay, my dog already has arthritis and joint damage.

We''re the ones responsible for our pets health... of course I recently peeked at his chart and it actually says I''m an over-anxious dog mom.

Good luck, and my condolences on the death of your grandmother.

 

[gailrmv]

How old is your dog now? Mine went through a rebellious teenage stage around 6 months old and regressed from her housetraining. Also, you adopted her pretty recently, right? Could it just be adjustment still - especially now that she is alone more?

 

[larussel03]

Thank you everyone for the replies! She''s ok with the crating, I think we just left her for way too long in there yesterday. So far she''s been fine today, we''re crating her when we leave but FI and I made a deal that she cannot stay in the crate for more than 8 hours max and if she was in there all day then only one of us can go out if there''s something going on at night. At least until she can be trusted outside it, I guess. She was doing wonderfully until last week, I think it''s stress and anxiety caused by my stress....plus when I was upset I didn''t give her enough attention probably, so I''m making sure to give her much more.

 

[larussel03]

BTW, our dog is 2 and we adopted her in September from the humane society, so she still is fairly new to us.

 

[monarch64]

Sweetpea, is it at all possible that you are leaving her in her crate/confined too long? 8 hrs. max even seems a verrrrry long time to me to leave a dog by herself...do you have a kitchen or tiled area in your apt. in which you could place a baby gate and then place her crate in as a place of refuge for her?

 

[larussel03]

Date: 12/2/2006 4:45:52 AM
Author: monarch64
Sweetpea, is it at all possible that you are leaving her in her crate/confined too long? 8 hrs. max even seems a verrrrry long time to me to leave a dog by herself...do you have a kitchen or tiled area in your apt. in which you could place a baby gate and then place her crate in as a place of refuge for her?

hi Monarch!
That is a good point, although we started crating her this week b/c of the behavior, so when this all started we did not crate her. We started crating her this week to try and keep our apartmetn from getting covered in poop, and I thought maybe she''s anxious being left out for some reason. She did so well being left home alone up till the monday before last...

 

[FacetFire]

Sorry that you are going through all this! A few ideas that helped my boys in anxiety prone situations: This may sound funny, but wearing a snug t-shirt can help comfort a dog. I also make sure I leave the TV or radio on when I leave. And, I don''t know if you''ve heard of something called a DAP diffuser, but a number of my friends swear by them. Here''s a link: http://www.healthypets.com/dapdogappher.html

I echo the ideas of everyone else too...start training again as if from Day 1.

Good luck, I hope everything gets better soon!

 

[larussel03]

Date: 12/2/2006 10:47:57 AM
Author: FacetFire
Sorry that you are going through all this! A few ideas that helped my boys in anxiety prone situations: This may sound funny, but wearing a snug t-shirt can help comfort a dog. I also make sure I leave the TV or radio on when I leave. And, I don''t know if you''ve heard of something called a DAP diffuser, but a number of my friends swear by them. Here''s a link: http://www.healthypets.com/dapdogappher.html

I echo the ideas of everyone else too...start training again as if from Day 1.

Good luck, I hope everything gets better soon!

Hi FF! That dap thing seems like a good idea maybe we''ll try it!