My senior dog drinks, pees, licks, has accidents. What's wrong?

Poor Kobe! From your description, I would be very concerned that he has a medical problem causing him to drink and urinate more than normal. In an 11-year-old dog, the most common causes of this problem along with the weight loss you have noticed would be diabetes or Cushing's disease, but liver or kidney problems would also be possible. There is nothing you can do to fix the problem until you get a definite diagnosis, so I would recommend taking Kobe to the vet as soon as you are able to. He/she can do some blood work and a urinalysis to help diagnose the problem, and will get him started on appropriate medication to treat it depending on what is found. In the meantime, please make sure that Kobe has free access to water at all times, even if he is having accidents in the house. Dogs with these problems can very easily become dehydrated without access to water, as you have noticed, so it isn't safe to restrict their water intake.

These signs are usually related either to urinary tract infection, or to kidney problem (failure) or to urinary incontinence. A blood test and urine analysis can rule out kidney failure and urinary tract infection. Urinary incontinence usually derived from a weak urinary sphincter (quite common in old age females). A clinical examination at your local veterinarian is essential to confirm these clinical suspicions and treat appropriately. Hope this answer was helpful, but please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further. Please find the time to give us a feedback about the consultation as that will be used to improve our service.

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Poor Cruz! I recommend a Vet exam, full blood work and have his urine tested. As dogs age sometimes they develop dementia and that can cause new abnormal behaviors. Though I am more concerned for a metabolic problem for him licking up the urine. Something like a UTI or diabetes. I hope this helps and I wish Cruz the best!

I'm sorry to hear about these changes for Shadow. Increased water intake and urine output is always concerning, especially in an older dog like Shadow. I would recommend a visit with your veterinarian, for a thorough physical exam and some blood work. A number of diseases/conditions can result in increased water intake and urination including diabetes, cushings disease, kidney failure and even a severe urinary tract infection. Your vet can run some bloodwork and may look at a urine sample to help determine the nature of Shadow's condition, and then they can discuss treatments and options.

I would have Molly seen by a vet as soon as possible. It sounds like she has a few things going on at the moment that need to be diagnosed and treated medically . The problems using her back legs could be due to arthritis, or problems with her hips, spine, and/or joints. Drinking a lot more and peeing a lot more can be due to diabetes or kidney disease. That would also cause weight loss. The bad breath could be caused by diabetes and dental disease. Finally, peeing her in sleep could be caused by incontinence. She needs a physical exam, geriatric blood panel, and urinalysis to diagnose what is causing all of her symptoms. Once a cause is found, the vet can discuss treatment options with you.

It could be that her insulin needs adjusting, and the diabetes is causing her to drink more and then pee in her bed. It could also be she has another medical issue, such as kidney disease, causing her to drink more and urinated in her bed. I would recommend taking her into the vet first thing in the morning for a geriatric blood panel and urinalysis to see what is causing her to drink, eat, and pee more.

It sounds like Lucky is sick. Losing teeth indicates serious dental disease and this can lead to several other disease processes. Dental disease is often painful and could also be a reason he is not eating well in general although not eating is also a sign of many disease conditions. Additionally, drinking lots of water is concerning for something like kidney disease, diabetes, endocrine disease or an infection. Urinating in the house can also be related to kidney disease, a bladder infection, diabetes or Cushing's Disease. Lucky needs to see his veterinarian very soon (ideally within the next few days) and the doctor will likely need to run bloodwork and a urinalysis to check for signs of disease or infection. The doctor can also discuss a dental cleaning and extractions of diseased teeth. It's always better to be safe than sorry. I hope this helps and please feel free to post any additional questions!