Dog Peeing/Pooping in the House

Senior Dog Urinating in House

Nov 2010

Our poodle-Pom pooch, 13 years old, has mild epilepsy, kept in check with a therapeutic dose of phenobarbital, but one side effect is to make her thirstier, and as she grows older, it's harder for her to not urinate indoors--same spot, same rug, cleaned up with Nature's Miracle--when we're away for a few hours. (Her vet knows about this, and it's not a UTI or anything.) Since we live right by a public park, we don't leave her in the back yard any length of time.

We can usually get a neighbor to walk her if we're going to be out more than a few hours, but not always. I also tried confining her to the bedroom, with a puddle pad on the bathroom floor, which worked OK, except that I don't want to risk her peeing on the bedroom rug and deciding that it's her new favorite spot. Any suggestions? Melanie

I have a 14 year old dog and the same problem. He just cannot stay inside for very long without an accident. He's not TOO bad so far - pees about once a week when I get home from work (that's not too frequent) but when it becomes more frequent I plan on babygating him in my kitchen. Yes, it is a drag but I don't want my hardwood floors stained. Also found it's easier to keep the floors empty, clean, get stuff off the floors, that sort of thing. You might want to buy those ''puppy pads'', they DO sell them now out of biodegradable materials so we shouldnt' feel so bad about landfill issues. Good Luck. We love our pets and it is hard. pet owner of beloved older dog

When my 17 yo 20 lb dog became incontinent due to canine cognitive dysfunction (dementia), I took him to doggie daycare in the provider's home while I was at work. I also provided more frequent walks or backyard outings with help from friends/neighbors/people I hired. All of us helped him to remember that the bathroom is outdoors.

I also bought used playpens from Darla's Baby Boutique in El Cerrito (the store has a new name) for the petsitter's house and my house. I put down towels/bedding/pads in the playpens. If he had an accident, he could move to another part of the playpen, I could easily clean up, and my house was clean. He was content and safe in the playpen for up to a few hours.

I am a dog lover, have had four long-lived dogs, currently have a 7-year-old small dog, and provide overnight and day care for dogs. Good luck! Auntie Julie

I didn't see the original post about this, but we have a 13-year-old much loved dog who was peeing in the house EVERY time we left her for much time. We were going crazy. Anyway, we went online and found Tinkle Trousers (http://www.tinkletrousers.com/) and they have saved our house and our sanity. Our dog adjusted to them quickly and now we just have to pull out a wet diaper and rinse them out occasionally. It really is such a relief to be able to leave her when we need to without cleaning wood floors and rugs all the time! anon.

I have had three dogs that have lived to 15 or beyond, and two cats. One dog had Cushings later in life, and this led to incontinence. I installed a dog door with a flap for use during the day, and a hatch that completely closed at night (to prevent racoons from entering.) The dog door was installed in a wall in the kitchen, not in the door (this will not likely help renters.) For security, you can also install a tunnel that the dog has to navigate through to get outside. Just two feet length will do. Put a turn in it to prevent small children from entering. This let the dog exit and enter at will during the day when I was working. Of course, you need a well fenced yard. Towards the end, more walks, and eventually limiting water after 7pm, crating at night or keeping the dog in the kitchen area with tiled floor (gates worked.) Our dog was crate trained from puppyhood. We never (or very rarely) had problems with that system and had our dog home until the end. Best of luck! Sottovoce

I didn't have an old dog, but I did have a geriatric cat with kidney failure. It got to the point when he just piddled wherever he was. It was a nightmare to run around the house looking for puddles, but it also made him miserable--cats do so like to be clean. We ended up confining him to the bathroom with a towel that I didn't mind washing every day in the washing machine. I removed everything else in the bathroom that couldn't be washed. It sounds like your dog is not so bad, and that he only has accidents when he is left alone for a few hours. Can you confine him to a bathroom or a kitchen that has no rug? If he really can't hold it you can put down a pee pad, but at least you won't have to keep washing your carpets and rugs. The space will be smaller but I'm sure your dog will not mind being confined just for a few hours (especially if he's older he might sleep all the time), and it will make everyone (including the dog!) happier that there are no accidents, annoyed owners, and rugs to clean. --Don't like cleaning carpets