My dog can't control bladder/bowel after spinal injury. Help!

Ouch, poor Maisie. Depending on how old the fracture is, she could still be healing and not have complete control over the nerves and muscles in that area. It is best to have her reexamined by your vet to check for neurologic or muscular issues that could be causing the loss of bowel control. If the causes isn't mechanical, looking toward other supplements such as a fiber supplement or probiotics may help firm up stools. It may also be that bowel control doesn't completely return due to the injury, and something such as a diaper may be needed to help prevent accidents. Talking with your vet and having a complete recheck of the area is best to see what direction to go in.

Hello again. As I mentioned before Hannu needs rest. This means in a cage where he cannot move around much. You will need to express his bladder about 4-6 times per day. I hope the vet gave you medicine, so continue to give that as prescribed. If he improves it will take weeks to months to get better. His best chance for quicker recovery is surgery. If you have more questions a consult with us would be best. Good luck and kisses to Hannu!

The problem with Camelia's back is likely affecting the nerves leading to his bladder and bowels, causing him to be incontinent. Depending on how bad this disc is, he may need surgery to fix this problem. I'd talk his vet about it.

My practice does rehab for animals like yours that are recovering from paralysis. I find doing laser like you are doing in the photo helps, also acupuncture. For my acupuncture treatments I start with three treatments several days to a week apart then every 2-4 weeks. This can help the nerves start functioning again. The incontinence may improve with time also, I generally continue to see improvement over the first 4-6 months after the paralysis. Make sure you are fully expressing his bladder and repeating a course of antibiotics to cure a low grade urinary infection may help also. To manage the fecal incontinence you can learn to stimulate him to poop twice daily which helps control accidents in the house. Check Dodger's List for other ideas on how to manage him. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you get answers to your veterinary questions.

I'm very sorry Sammy had to have surgery for a traumatic accident. Depending on the severity of her injury, it make take longer than usual for her to fully recover. Typically after spinal surgery, full recovery can take four to six months, but I'm guessing her injury may have been pretty severe. You have to be prepared that she may never regain bowel or bladder control. I'd speak to the vet who did her surgery to find out more information on her prognosis. I hope this helps Robert.

Hi there and thank you for your post! In regards to Paco, fecal incontinence cannot be treated per se due to aging. IF there is a primary problem that is causing it such as intestinal parasites or diarrhea, than that can certainly be treated. Due to age, however, it is difficult to stop this. You can try omega 3 fish oil and melatonin to help with cognition and maybe help with the fecal incontinence but this will likely not help much with the defecation. Most of the time, I have clients buying disposable diapers to managing the condition that way.

Fecal incontinence is usually neurological as long as it is not diarrhea which can be due to food allergies, intestinal parasites, inflammatory bowel disease, or chronic stress colitis. Royal Canin GI dry and canned food may help decrease the volume of stool and is likely the best option for the fecal incontinence which is usually not treatable. Peeing all the time can be caused by renal disease, diabetes, cushings’s disease /hyperadrenocorticism or a UTI. Having a full CBC/Chem/Fructosamine bloodwork panel run + a Urinalysis and Urine Protein Creatinine ratio at another vet’s is an option to rule out these causes of the polyuria which can be managed with medications. Best of luck!