KrisK Posted April 8, 2015 Report Share Posted April 8, 2015 Flint had a UTI in mid winter and it seemed to have cleared up. He was on 2 rounds of antibiotics, a special diet and had an ultrasound on his bladder. However, over the past month, he's been urinating in the house again even after being outside. I was concerned about his weight being down in the winter so I upped the amount of food he is getting. He is absolutely voracious - even at 3 cups a day, he is still hungry - so much so that I've caught him eating dog poop outside - something he's NEVER done. Today, I used 1/2 roll of paper towel to clean up the urine in the dog room . I monitored the water he had today - he literally drank nothing. He's thin but his coat seems good. I'm taking him to the vet tomorrow - I'm concerned that he might be diabetic even though he's young (3 years old on April 15th) Could it be a mal absorption issue? I'll bring a urine sample and ask for bloodwork. He's never had an issue with housetraining and after almost 3 years, I can only assume that it's a medical issue rather than a training issue. Does anyone have any ideas as to what I might be facing? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ttiffany20191 Posted April 9, 2015 Report Share Posted April 9, 2015 That was my first thought..diabetes. Is he losing weight while his consumption has increased? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sue R Posted April 9, 2015 Report Share Posted April 9, 2015 Diabetes is a possibility. I would do some blood tests that would test for diabetes and also for kidney function. A urinalysis might also be helpful. For the urinalysis, get a first-pee-of-the-day catch which you would need to do yourself before he has any other chance to urinate in the morning. You might also want to have him fasting for having his blood draw as fasting versus non-fasting can give somewhat different values for certain components. I hope this turns out to be some simple or readily dealt with. Very best wishes! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gideon's girl Posted April 9, 2015 Report Share Posted April 9, 2015 Usually with diabetes, you see them drinking very frequently. High blood sugar triggers thirst which triggers excessive urination, all to bring down the blood sugar. I would want kidney function checked. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GentleLake Posted April 9, 2015 Report Share Posted April 9, 2015 That was my first thought..diabetes. Is he losing weight while his consumption has increased? Increased thirst and urination will occur before ketoacidosis, which is what's happening when weight loss occurs despite often (but not always) increased caloric intake. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KrisK Posted April 9, 2015 Author Report Share Posted April 9, 2015 His weight is definitely down but I thought it was from the fact that I was measuring his intake - he had been overfed and need to lose a bit of weight. He weighed 18 kg (45 lbs) in February. He's a tall, lanky dog so that weight is actually good for him. I'll find out tomorrow if he's lost any more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liz P Posted April 9, 2015 Report Share Posted April 9, 2015 Please do get him in to see the vet tomorrow. Border Collies are one of the breeds that can get diabetes, but of course there are many other possibilities. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KrisK Posted April 9, 2015 Author Report Share Posted April 9, 2015 His appointment is at 4 today. I've already got a urine sample - next is the stool sample. I'm staying home so I can keep an eye on things. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sue R Posted April 9, 2015 Report Share Posted April 9, 2015 Keep your urine sample refrigerated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KrisK Posted April 9, 2015 Author Report Share Posted April 9, 2015 the urine sample and stool sample are in the fridge ....good thing I'm home alone because the containers are bagged inside a yogurt container...now that would be a terrible surprise Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gideon's girl Posted April 9, 2015 Report Share Posted April 9, 2015 My family members get surprised like that frequently, the cost of owning animals. Good luck today. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sue R Posted April 9, 2015 Report Share Posted April 9, 2015 Samples and vaccines in fridge - it's what's not for dinner! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gideon's girl Posted April 10, 2015 Report Share Posted April 10, 2015 And antibiotics! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KrisK Posted April 10, 2015 Author Report Share Posted April 10, 2015 So, Flint has crystals in his urine again. He is back on the special diet - Royal Canin SO for the next 2 weeks. I'm not overly thrilled with the ingredients but he did improve when he was on it in February. His bloodwork was normal, glucose was normal and his weight was unchanged from February. So this is all good news. I have him on a high quality, grain free diet - GO, Fit and Free, made in Canada which is why I chose it in the first place. Now I need to research other diets that I can give him instead of this. I have to bring another urine sample into the vet in 2 weeks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aschlemm Posted April 10, 2015 Report Share Posted April 10, 2015 Glad it wasn't diabetes! Both my Border Collies have had crystals. The younger one had them from puppyhood. I kept trying different foods but she'd still have crystals. Finally, I broke down and started feeding Prescription food full time. I started out with Hills C/D. We both hated it! She gained weight, was always hungry and had a terrible haircoat and skin infections. Switched to Royal Canin's Waltham S/O. While the ingredients don't look great at all she's done very well on it. Weight is good, coat looks good, no crystals, and eats it well. When my older dog started having urinary issues and crystals I just put him on it also. He has also done well on it. Give distilled water if it is at all possible. That may be all that he needs. It's a pain in the butt but sometimes the mineral content in your water seems to be what causes the problem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sue R Posted April 10, 2015 Report Share Posted April 10, 2015 Crystals trump disease! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KrisK Posted April 10, 2015 Author Report Share Posted April 10, 2015 I never thought about the water, but we do have a lot of mineral content in our well water. I'm going to try some cranberry capsules as well...can't hurt from what I've read. I'll try the distilled water, although I've heard it's not good to solely use it (now WHERE, I heard that, I can't recall) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KrisK Posted April 10, 2015 Author Report Share Posted April 10, 2015 Yes, crystals are far better than diabetes or some other horrible disease From what I've been reading and there is A LOT of contradictory information - change diets, don't change diets, etc. etc. I think I'll see what the next urinalysis shows and go from there. In the meantime, I'm open to hearing from other folks who have dealt with this issue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SaraHaira Posted April 10, 2015 Report Share Posted April 10, 2015 My family's dachshund was recently diagnosed with Cushing's disease. She was urinating in the house and was NEVER full, also started eating poop. She did have the classic distended "potbelly", that can be associated with disease and started losing patches of hair. Though she probably had the disease for quite awhile undiagnosed. If your Flint continues with those symptoms, it's something to check for. I don't believe it shows in a general blood test. Hopefully it's not, but thought I'd throw it out there in case:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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