Dogs eliminate waste substances through urine, thanks to the filtering work carried out by the kidneys. If our dog cannot urinate we will assume that he has a problem that affects some point of the urinary system, as we will explain in this article on our site.
The accumulation of toxins has negative consequences for the body, hence the importance of correct urine elimination and the need to go to the vetas soon as we are aware that our dog does not urinate. Below we will review the most common causes:
The dog cannot urinate due to urinary problems
Sometimes a dog cannot urinate due to a problem with the urinary system. A urine infection or cystitis can make the dog not able to urinate and cry, feeling pain and itching in the area. In these cases it is normal for the dog to try to urinate and make efforts.
Sometimes the dog cannot urinate or defecate and is annoyed, walks with its legs spread, hunched over and we can even notice the swollen abdomen with pain on palpation. A picture like the one described requires veterinary attention since, if it is an infection, it can ascend from the bladder to the kidneys, aggravating the picture and possibly causing kidney damage.
The formation of stones and their deposit in the urinary system can be the cause of difficulties in urination and obstructions, partial or total of the flow of urine. Of course, they will require veterinary assistance for what we have already mentioned, in addition to the pain they cause for the dog.
There are other causes that can stop urine output, such as tumors. It will be the veterinarian who arrives at the diagnosis, for which he can use tests such as urinary analysis, ultrasound or x-ray.
Dog cannot urinate due to kidney problems
Dogs' kidneys can fail in an acute or chronic way In the former case, the dog will present symptoms abruptly, while, in the second, we will notice that the dog drinks more water, urinates more, vomits, loses weight, etc. If we find a dog that cannot urinate and vomits, we will be facing an emergency situation.
Vomiting may be due to gastric damage caused by toxins that accumulate because they are not eliminated through the urine, Therefore, veterinary management should focus on emptying the bladder, managing vomiting and hydration, in addition to assessing for kidney damage.
Kidney failure is classified into four stages, of greater or lesser severity, and treatment will be prescribed depending on which stage the dog is in. Dogs with acute kidney disease can recover completely or become chronically ill, which are treated with specific diet and different drugs in order to control symptoms, since it is an incurable pathology. Of course, it is very important to maintain correct hydration based on the balance between fluid intake and output.
When the bladder is not functional
In a minority of cases the dog cannot urinate because his bladder is not working. This is usually due to some neurological injury such as can be caused by a hit or run over. In these dogs, urine forms normally but remains accumulated in the bladder, unable to go outside.
Depending on the nature of the damage caused, it may or may not be possible to recover functionality but, in any case, we will have to empty the bladder so that the animal can stay alive because if a dog hasn't urinated for a day we are facing a life-threatening situation.
How to manually empty a dog's bladder?
In cases such as the one described in the previous section in which a dog cannot urinate due to a lack of bladder function and as long as the bladder does not recover, if possible, the vet will teach us how to empty it manually With him we will learn to locate the bladder in the abdomen and gently press on it to make the urine come out.
It is essential for the life of the animal but we can only do it by veterinary prescription and only in these cases since, in which we have previously explained, emptying the bladder would be contraindicated.
In this video you can see how they empty a dog's bladder at El Hogar:
