Why is my dog suddenly peeing inside?

If your dog is still young peeing inside can be the cause of an innate anatomical defect, behavioural problems or just that the dog is not yet housebroken. If the problem is anatomical sometimes an operation can solve it, however, behavioural problems usually take time, patience and training.

In the older dogs, sudden uncleanliness can be the cause of several different diseases e.g. diabetes or kidney problems, paralysis or weakness of nerves or incontinence as the result of neutralization (only seen in bitches).

No matter the cause, it is usually a problem of great annoyance to you as the owner, but in most cases, there is a solution to the problem. The most important thing in order for the treatment to be successful is to find the cause. For that to happen your vet has to perform several tests to rule out any diseases as the underlying problem. If this is not the case incontinence because of a weakness of the sphincter muscle in the urethra is usually the answer.

Incontinence is the most common cause of uncleanliness in older dogs and is a problem often seen in large breed sterilized bitches, especially if they are also overweight. However, incontinence is also seen in male dogs and non- neutralized females.

There are several forms of treatment, so if your dog has started to pee inside, drip urine when it walks around or leaves a large wet stain after lying down, contacts your vet. Together you can then work out which solution is the best for you and your dog.

By Therese G. Hosbjerg, DVM and Technical manager at Bacterfield GMBH