Our dog Dash's Excessive Peeing: Causes and Managing with Diapers!

If you have a dog who has aged and has become incontinent, there are several reasons why they may be drinking a lot of water and peeing excessively. There are also things you can do to keep them comfortable and keep your house pee-free. We're working through these things with  Dash, our 17 1/2 year old Chihuahua-Dachshund mix and did with our senior Weimaraner, Dolly in 2020. Dash has a lot of life in him. I don't believe a dog should be euthanized because of this - if that's the case , EVERY HUMAN over 40 who gets up to pee at night should be. So, Take these steps to help your dog! That's today's blog!

(Photo: Dash wears his washable dog diaper) 

STEP 1: DETERMINE THE REASON: Sometimes whenever a dog starts peeing in the house there are things that need to be checked. Check for a urinary tract infection (UTI). That's often a cause for frequent urination. If not that, get your dog assessed for kidney faillure, Cushing's disease and diabetes. **BEHAVIOR NOTE: If you have another dog in the house, as we do, Cody - sometimes they also pee in the house as a marking thing, and because they smell the other dog's accidents. So, Cody is also in a diaper and is being re-trained with treats to pee outside.

(Photo: a washable diaper with a paper towel liner, and a woman's pad on top for maximum absorption)

1. URINARY TRACT INFECTION - Will pee a lot, but it's usually frequent, small urinations, accompanied by straining, whining, accidents in the house, licking the genital area, or even bloody/smelly urine, indicating an urgent need to go but difficulty emptying the bladder. This frequent urination happens because the infection irritates the bladder, making your dog feel the constant urge to pee, even when it's not full.  
2. KIDNEY FAILURE - Dogs with kidney disease often pee a lot (and drink a lot) because their damaged kidneys can't concentrate urine, leading to dilute urine and increased thirst, creating a cycle of frequent urination and fluid loss, though in severe cases, they might urinate less as kidneys fail. ***DASH's Urine tested with HIGH PROTEIN, thus, he needs to drink more..***
   


3. DIABETES- Dogs with diabetes pee a lot (polyuria) because high blood sugar spills into the urine, pulling extra water with it, making them drink more (polydipsia) and need to go outside more often, sometimes having accidents. This increased urination and thirst are hallmark signs of diabetes, along with increased appetite, weight loss, and lethargy.)
4. CUSHING'S DISEASE - In this hormonal disease, excess cortisol interferes with the kidneys' ability to concentrate urine, leading to increased urine production. As they lose more water through urination, dogs become extremely thirsty to compensate, leading to more drinking. 
5. 

(Photo: Our Weimaraner, Dolly in April 2020 with her washable diaper. We put a dog diaper and maxi-pad inside and just changed them out). 

MANAGING WITH EXCESSIVE PEEING  - DIAPERS AND PADS

WASHABLE DIAPERS -  Chewy.com sells several brands of Washable diapers for small and medium sized dogs. There are Male and Female Versions of the diapers. 

1. Pet Parents Washable Belly Band Male Dog Diapers, Dog Wraps & Extendrs, Gentlemen, Medium: 16 to 20-in waist, 3 count

2. For Larger dogs- Get one with suspenders- Like "Paw Inspired" brand. -  Paw Inspired: Known for ultra-protection, DrySpeed Tech, and options for "diaper Houdinis" with suspenders.    (CLICK FOR STORY OF HOW WE MANAGED WITH OUR 75 POUND WEIMARANER, DOLLY in 2020) 

OTHER BRANDS: 

• Barkertime: Offers escape-proof overalls for unique body types.
• Four Paws (Wee-Wee): Features Foam-Fit Tail Holes and wetness indicators.
• Simple Solution: Offers various sizes for different needs. 

HOW TO BEST USE THEM - **Put in absorbent Pads! 

With our Dachshund mixes, we put in 2 small folded paper towels against the diaper, and on TOP we use a woman's maxi-pad.  We bought a package of 24 for about $5.00. 

(There are Absorbant pads that are sold - but they're about 3 times more expensive- Like Paw Inspired Brand "Booster Pads" are $14.99) 

(Right: Maxi pads tend to be much less expensive than the dog-specific pads (left)  by about 66%)

Best reusable Dog Diapers and How to Make it BETTER!

Back in November, I published a blog about the best reusable dog diaper for dogs. Today, I'll share some additional insight about how to not have to wash it every day.
   Our girl Dolly, a Weimaraner (70 lbs). who turned 15 years old this past Nov. 29th became incontinent and dribbles whenever she lays down. Since washing her bed daily wasn't an easy thing to do, I looked into disposable diapers. They always slipped off and didn't fit right.

FOUND THE BEST, COMFORTABLE HARNESS - Our canine acupuncturist, Marcie Baer told me about a velcro and cloth diaper that also affixes around the dog's chest/neck area. The diaper/harness is called Stay Put Unisex dog Diaper (cloth) ("#D165020) from "In Company of Dogs" and it is amazing. It was $57 with shipping. ALSO, buy 2 of them, because if you forget to change the pad and it soaks through, you can quickly put on the second diaper (and insert an absorbent pad) and wash the second one.

The harness is easy to affix because of the velcro straps around the neck and around the diaper part. Dolly doesn't mind it at all - and sleeps with it on. This is the best ever if your Weimaraner or small to medium sized-dog is incontinent.

THE TRICK - ADD AN ABSORBENT PAD TO IT! As a gay guy, I don't know anything about absorbent pads for women, so I had to try out a few different types in Dolly's diaper. The one that works the best are the Poise pads. They have a gel in them and absorb a lot more urine without soaking through to the cloth diaper. I highly recommend putting one of these in the diaper with the top of the pad JUST below the tail hole of the diaper. This works so well. When one part gets full, turn it around and use the other side.


AT NIGHT- because she also does #2 in her sleep- I put a disposable boys diaper on her (Twilight brand from Target, Size L/XL, but have to cut out a hole for her tail.). Around the tail hole I put duct tape to prevent the little white absorbent particles from flaking out on the floor.

TRIED THE PEE PADS - I tried the pee pads but it was continual washing, and sometimes when she lay down, she'd spin around and move the pee pads, peeing on the actual bed. That meant taking the bed apart and washing the cover and the pee pads! I also tried putting towels and blankets over the pee pads to keep them steady, but those were also moved and peed on.

Disposable kid's diaper for the overnight to prevent #2 accidents

ADDITIONAL DIAPER AT NIGHT - If your dog also does number 2 in their sleep, you can also use a regular human children's diaper.  Since Dolly is 70 lbs, she uses the L/XL brand of Target "Twilite" diapers.  I cut a tail hole in the back part, and put her tail through, then WRAP the cloth diaper harness and put her tail through the back, so her tail holds up the diaper.
   Once on, slide the cloth harness back straps through the disposable diaper and velcro them to the top of the diaper, keeping it secure over night.