Why Dripping Urine Occurs in Dogs
Submissive Urination
Submissive urination usually occurs in young dogs that lack confidence or are fearful. Your dog will exhibit other signs of being submissive such as ears back, head bowed, lack of eye contact and slow, low tail wagging. If your dog is dripping urine as a result of being submissive, do not despair, as increased confidence can help this problem.
Urinary Tract or Bladder Infection
Urinary tract infection and bladder infection are common causes of dripping urine, especially in adult female dogs. Your veterinarian will be able to determine if your dog has an infection by performing a urinalysis and a urine culture.
Excessive Water Intake
Some dogs will drink large quantities of water and their bladders are unable to hold all of the urine that is created. These dogs will drip urine because they simply cannot hold it in until they get outside. A urinalysis will show diluted urine if they excessively drink water. Often times when your dog drinks large amounts of water, there is an underlying cause such as Cushing’s disease, diabetes, bladder infection or kidney failure.
Spinal Cord Injury or Disease
If your dog has suffered a spinal cord injury or disease, they may not be able to feel when their bladder is full. This then causes them to drip urine. This is generally classified as incontinence.
Weak Bladder Sphincter
There are several factors that can contribute to a weak bladder sphincter. The most common cause is related to old age and more often occurs in senior female dogs. Obesity and a reduction in the sensitivity of the neurological receptors in the sphincter can also cause the sphincter to weaken. This is sometimes referred to as spay incontinence and can be caused by low levels of estrogen.
Incontinence
Incontinence encompasses all other conditions that cause your dog to drip urine. It is the general terminology that veterinarians will use when there is no other medical conditions present causing your dog to drip urine.
What to do if your Dog is Dripping Urine
Even if you suspect your dog is dripping urine because they are submissive, it is still a good idea to have them checked out by your veterinarian. Your veterinarian will perform a full physical examination and will order diagnostic tests such as a urinalysis, urine culture, complete blood count and chemistry panel to determine the cause.
Urinary tract infections and bladder infections will be treated with antibiotics. Your veterinarian will discuss with you the best antibiotic for your dog. You should see an improvement in the dripping urine after a few days of antibiotic treatment but you will still need to finish the medication that was prescribed to ensure that the infection is completely cleared.
If your dog is drinking water excessively, your veterinarian will need to diagnose what is causing the excessive thirst. Once they have discovered the cause of the excessive water intake has been diagnosed and treatments started, you may notice a decrease in the amount of dripping urine.
Spinal cord injuries and diseases that are affecting the bladder’s function may require surgery to slow or stop the dripping urine. Your veterinarian may also prescribe medications that will help with the incontinence that is occurring.
Most dogs that are diagnosed with a weak bladder sphincter are older females. Estrogen and alpha-adrenergic agonists can be prescribed to help maintain the neuroreceptors and increase the pressure on the neck of the bladder to hold the urine within the bladder.
In most cases of your dog dripping urine, there is a medical condition that is causing your dog’s bladder to not properly function. Seeking immediate veterinary assistance when you notice your dog dribbling urine is imperative to stopping the incontinence.
Submissive urination can also be problematic, even though it is not a medical condition. Your dog should eventually outgrow the behavior, but there are a few things you can do to help your dog be less submissive. Do not lean over your dog, instead drop down to their level when they approach to keep them from feeling threatened.
Treating your dog that is dripping urine can become pricey depending on the diagnosis that your veterinarian gives. Urinary tract infections can cost between $300 and $1000 depending on the severity of the infection. Treating incontinence issues in your dog can range from $400 to $3000 depending on the treatment that is given.
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How We Figure Out What’s Wrong: Diagnosing Incontinence
Fortunately, in most cases, we can narrow down urinary issues to incontinence pretty quickly, often with some good historical information.
As mentioned, dogs with incontinence characteristically leak urine without realizing it, especially when sleeping. When you bring your pup into your vet with urinary concerns, your vet will ask pointed questions about the nature of the urinary issues, when you’re seeing accidents happen, and how the behavior looks.
I also typically ask a lot of questions for young puppies about how potty training and crate training are going. Puppies have to drink and pee frequently when they’re active and sometimes new pet parents will confuse this behavior with incontinence when we really just need to work on our potty schedule and training.
We always typically rule out other common medical problems like urinary tract infections, by checking a urine sample first. In many cases, we’ll use an ultrasound to guide collection of a sterile urine sample. This also allows a look at the bladder to rule out bladder stones, polyps, and other bladder masses.
Some birth defects of the bladder can be identified with ultrasound, but not often with your regular vet. A specialist in ultrasound, like a veterinary radiologist, can sometimes diagnose ectopic ureters, a patent urachus, and other disorders of the upper urinary tract, as well as visualizing abnormalities in urine flow.
If an abnormality like an ectopic ureter is suspected, contrast study x-rays may be considered, where a special dye is used to highlight the urinary tract, allowing the abnormal path of one or both ureters to be seen.
The lower urinary tract (including the urethra and bladder) can also be directly visualized using an endoscope, which is kind of like a long tube with a camera on the end. Some general veterinary practices have scopes, but endoscopy is more commonly performed with an internal medicine specialist.
Lastly, advanced imaging like a CT scan or MRI may be considered. These methods allow for pictures of little tiny slices of the body to be taken, which makes it easier to highlight and identify the start and end of an anatomic abnormality.
While ultrasound and x-rays can typically be done with pets awake or lightly sedated, scoping and advanced imaging requires general anesthesia.
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When dogs get excited, theyâll likely wag their tail. They might also leave behind a small puddle of pee. Itâs an instinctual, physical response called submissive urination, and itâs normal in young dogs.
Submissive urination typically happens whenever a dog feels excited, shy, anxious, or scared. It also happens when a dog wants to acknowledge anotherâs dominance â like recognizing you as their owner.
Submissive urination is equally common in female and male dogs, especially if theyâre puppies. Dogs tend to outgrow this behavior over time. If your dog is urinating when someone approaches and says hello, when theyâre in trouble or being scolded, when theyâre crouching or showing their belly, or when they hear loud noises, these are signs that your dogâs inappropriate urination is submissive. Â Training them to stop can help speed up the process.Â
If you suspect your dogâs urination is not related to submission, itâs important to rule out other causes before attempting to correct the behavior.Â
What you consider an accident may be a symptom of something your dog canât control. Causes may include:
If your dog is having trouble with inappropriate urination, talk to your vet to see if testing or treatment may be needed to rule out underlying medical causes.