My senior dog has bloody urine. Should I give Metrogyl before vet?

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! It becomes concerning when an older dog develops blood urine that is non-responsive to antibiotics. Having blood in the urine with out bacteria can mean a bladder stone or a bladder tumor. Tests I would consider next would be a urine culture, one belly X-ray to look for a bladder stone and full blood work. If the culture is negative and the X-ray doesn't show a stone then I would worry about a bladder tumor. An ultrasound of her bladder would help diagnose if she has a bladder tumor. Another option before doing more testing is to try a more powerful antibiotic for 3 weeks. But if the blood is still present with out the presence of bacteria then I would go forward. I hope this helps!

Oh no, poor Casey! If she appears otherwise healthy and happy, eats and drinks plenty, you can wait until tomorrow morning if the vet is closed for the night. If she appears lethargic, ill or distressed, or if the urine appears very bloody, then she should be seen by a vet ASAP. Feed her wet/canned food, add water to it, and make sure she drinks a lot of water to help flush the bladder.

She likely has a urinary tract infection or possibly bladder stones. If you can't get her in any sooner than Monday and can't call them to ask for advice or to move up the appointment and she still seems otherwise okay, get her seen Monday. If she does start feeling sick or has trouble urinating, take her to an emergency clinic, just understand that at any vet right now the wait may be long unless she is an emergency and in very bad shape. I don't know of any products you can buy over the counter that will help, and using OTC products could actually mask symptoms that could help lead to a faster diagnosis when she does get to her appointment.

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Chocolate Bar. 18.5 years of age-what an amazingly long life you have given him! The recurrent blood in the urine is concerning though. There is a chance that he has developed bladder cancer. I would recommend having an abdominal ultrasound to visualize his entire urinary tract to look for any abnormalities. If there is a suspicious growth, then the radiologist can collect a sample for testing. In the meantime, continue his medications as directed. Good luck!

UTI's can cause your dog pain, that's for sure. If you've ever had one yourself you might know that the burning sensation and pain in the lower abdomen are quite uncomfortable. The pain isn't terrible, for sure, but there's no doubt that Bella isn't feeling well. In addition, in a diabetic dog, UTI's can indicate that she is poorly regulated (i.e. there is routinely glucose in her urine) and having one signals that it's a good idea to check blood glucose as well, to determine if an adjustment might be considered in insulin dosage. Checking a quick urine dipstick can also ease your mind that she is not tipping over into diabetic ketoacidosis as well, which is a very serious condition. It's also worth noting that even though the same antibiotic is prescribed each time, when UTI's occur frequently the bacteria that cause them can become stronger, and more resistant to the normally-used antibiotics - this is why urine culture is so valuable in these cases, in order to make sure that the appropriate antibiotic is used. I would recommend that you get her in today, since it's another 36 hours since your regular vet opens, and that's a long time for her to be uncomfortable.

If you are not seeing symptoms of frequent urination or straining to urinate, then you could always culture the urine to see if there is actually a urinary tract infection before you start antibiotics. You might also discuss a cranberry supplement with your veterinarian to help improve urinary tract health, however with very sensitive dogs, anything has the potential to throw off the balance in the GI tract. https://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=21560

Antibiotics typically improve UTI signs within 1-2 days so Bakka could have something else like a stone in his urinary tract or even an issue like a prostate gland infection or rarely cancer. As the antibiotics are not working and a stone could cause him to be unable to urinate and have kidney damage, Bakka should be seen by a veterinarian.