Min my oldie 14 and 8 months old is having trouble controlling her bowels. She suffers from Collitis but is normally ok to make it out the dog flap. The poo deposit has got nearer and nearer over the last few weeks until a few time over the last week she has done it inside. Just now right in the dog flap and trotten in through out :)

I am not sure I can do anything to help her as I am not sure if there is any meds that can help this as I am sure it is her ability to feel the need to go unless anybody knows any different ? I am everso worried as we start the building work next Monday and she is going with the two youngsters to the farm where the go on holiday and not sure if she is going to cope :( I have no other choice as cannot get anybody to home foster her :(

She is happy in herself and likes to wander round and still loves her food but I know that this is the first sign...:(

Lucy
xx

Hi Lucy,

It's not colitis, it's old age.  This happened to my old GSD, I had dog flaps but most of the time she was not able to get outside and 4 or 5 mornings a week I'd find a deposit all over the floor. It just seem to start out of the blue and then stayed.  Talk to your vet, but I don't think there is anything that will make a difference here.

I don't know the situation at the farm, but are you sure that the people that will be watching over your dogs will be able to cope with an incontinent dog?

Stacey

I know it is old age :(

Fiona at the farm is everso good with the dogs. It is not a working farm as such.It is a farm house on about 20 acres of land which also has its own wood. She treats all the dogs as she does her own. I will just have to make sure she keeps her warm and comfortable by their Aga in the kitchen :)

She has dogs, cats, horses, goats and chickens so I am sure she can cope with an old girl who sometimes accidently poos. She recently had a litter from one of her bitches so she has been used to puppy poo !  She looked after my girls back in October for a few days and she knows all the girls very well now. She made the comment on how well behaved the lot of them were ! :) I am just worrying about Min but there is nothing we can do. We can't put off the building work as the house has been in such a tip since the flood and getting the builder in at this stage has been quite difficult and if we cancelled it would be in August when we could get them in again. We can't live in this state any longer :)

Lucy
xx

Lucy, I would take a trip to the vet because maybe something like Vivitonin could help. Not sure if it could, but it may be worth a try :)

Lindsay
X

Lucy, if they are loose, can you just "tweak" her diet so that they are firmer?   We did this with Purdey, who was very distressed when she had "accidents" and covered her legs - we gave her a (very small) bowl of porridge every morning - the resultant poos were firm & solid & she was more likely to kick them out of the way as she moved, rather than carry it on her feet everywhere.

Margot

When I read the title of this message I thought it said Old Dog Bowls and might be some interesting ideas of what to do with them - sorry! :(

Lucy , I have any suggestions but I can imagine how you are worrying about her . Hugs Pam

Thanks all. I will ring the vet to see what they think about Vivitonin but we shall have to see how she goes.

The poos actually are surprisingly firm for Min and are just on the sloppy sticky side of firm ! :)

Lucy
xx

My old girl does this but tends to lose control of her bladder rather than her bowels - especially if she suddenly has to get up or jumps down from the sofa - she has occassionally pooed as well and gets very distressed when she is 'dirty' in the house. It so sad as in every other way she's enjoying her life/walks/food/washing her daughter's ears ( daughter is 9 !) etc. Her incontinence is just down to old age and not really treatable so I guess we'll just have to live with it for as long as she has a good quality of life   - wish dogs lived as long a we do :(.

Yvonne

What I am going to advise you may well sound really weird to some of you, but here goes..........
you will find that if you stimulate your dog into opening its bowel outside, when YOU choose, that the bowel will be empty and there will be less accidents in the house.
I had an elderly afghan who had this problem and found out by accident that if i took her temperature by rectum, it caused her to empty her bowel. I developed a well timed regime, involving feeding her at specific times,  taking her outside after her meal and taking her temp.....result was that she always emptied herself outside and stopped having accidents in the house. ( similar principles are used in management of such incontinence in humans....clearing out electively avoids unscheduled accidents).
I think it may be worth you giving this a try.

Blimey seems like a quite radical way and also requiring marigolds with Min collitis but well worth a try ! :) Will have to see where my non digital thermometer is as don't think the digital one will work :D

Thanks

Lucy
xx