Frequent Urination in Dogs

It is unfortunate that in many cases dogs exhibiting frequent urination are accused of displaying behavioral issues, while more often than not, the root of the problem is correlated to a health problem. Indeed, frequent urination in dogs may be attributed to a variety of disorders affecting the urinary tract in dogs. At the first signs of frequent urination, it is therefore important to have a veterinarian assess the dog in order to rule out or confirm any medical conditions.

  1. Excessive Water Consumption

    • Excessive water consumption will obviously cause a dog to urinate more frequently and can be observed in the summer or after exercise, however, increased thirst (polydipsia) and increased urination (polyuria) may as well be indicative of some underlying health issue. The dog's brain at times may send signals to flush out an excessive substance in the dog's body. For instance, dogs that drink too much may be suffering from diabetes (too much glucose in the blood), Cushing's disease (too much cortisol in the blood) or kidney failure (too many waste products in the blood).

    Urinary Tract Infection

    • Often abbreviated with the acronym UTI, a urinary tract infection is one of the most common causes of frequent urination in dogs. Affected dogs will exhibit distinct symptoms such as frequent urine output often consisting of a few drops, straining to urinate, bloody urine, licking genital area and--in more severe cases--lack of appetite, fever and lethargy.

    Hormonal Changes

    • This condition is often seen in female dogs and it is referred to as ''spay incontinence''. What happens here is that spayed dogs no longer benefit from the effects of the the hormone estrogen. Estrogen, indeed, is responsible for maintaining the urethral sphincter's muscle tone in good shape. Depleted by this hormone, spayed dogs may start urinating frequently and even become incontinent. A similar effect is displayed in neutered male dogs that no longer benefit from the hormone testosterone. These effects are not seen in all spayed or neutered dogs.

    Distended Bladder

    • At times, the bladder may become over-distended because of something blocking the normal passage of urine. Bladder stones, tumors or a stricture may be the cause of the blockage. When this occurs, a little bit of urine may make its way through the blockage, causing the dog to urinate frequently and repeatedly in small amounts.

    Considerations

    • Several causes of frequent urination in dogs exist, and the ones listed above are only some of the most common. The best way to go to the root of the problem is to have a veterinarian properly assess and diagnose the dog. A good way to start is to collect a urine sample so that the vet can test it right away. In order to grant testing accuracy, the sample should be fresh, not older than four hours, preferably refrigerated and placed in a sterile container labeled with the dog's name and time collected.