Aged GSD losing control

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Adina

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Shelley is 16yrs old and I had her as a rescue 15 years ago. Although she is arthritic and on painkillers, she is an alert happy dog. Over the last 3 months she has had more "accidents" - not diarrhea, just not outside. Now it seems to happen most days unless I see her tail raise and can push her out quick. It doesn't happen at a particular time of day and doesn't matter how many times she has been out in the garden. Sometimes she will walk in from the garden and poo just inside the door. I know she is on borrowed time, but she is happy and I love her to bits. Any suggestions as to how I can help her?
 
Try and not make a fuss as that will upset the poor girl.


You could try the instant back out for five minutes but it sounds more like a forgetting issue & got to go now.
Make sure the area she goes is easy to clean and accept that time is limited and make the most of it.
 
Generally, and sadly, the loss of bowel control is an indication that an animal is approaching the stage where the winding down process is starting to accelerate. Preparing ourselves for the inevitable, where we save our companions from further humiliation, is part of the process.

Difficult days, for you.

Alec.
 
Assuming you are sure there is no underlying condition giving her an upset tum I would think it is just a bit of old age forgetfulness :( I agree with the previous poster, if you can accept that she will have accidents in the house and neither she or you are getting upset about it, just enjoy the time you have left with her and dont let it become an issue. I dont know how your house is set up but are you able to confine her to a tiled/wooden area with just an old rug to stop her slipping over but not matter if it becomes soiled, maybe do this whilst you cant watch her. Bless her, old age creeps up so quickly !!
 
It may be a sign of a problem with her nervous system - our old lab had this, and he just couldn't tell when he needed to go in time to get out, the poor lad. Our house was set up so he could be mostly in the kitchen (hard floor) and his bed had a removable, washable cover, just in case (although he very rarely soiled it - just couldn't make it to the door).

Is she having any trouble with her back legs - stumbling or scuffing her back paws, at all?
 
Hello everyone :)

I joined specifically to reply to this thread (normally just happy lurking) because it's a subject very close to my heart.

9 months ago, OH and I picked up an old GSD from the RSPCA. He's got a reasonable amount of degeneration in his back legs and hasn't had full control of his bowels since we had him.

What seems to happen with him is that he doesn't get much warning between when he realises he needs to go and when it actually comes out. He has a look of surprise on his face that is quite endearing :o.

Things that I've found/noticed:
- It gets far worse when he is stressed. He is quite a nervous dog anyway and the stress of new situations generally brings on an 'episode' so we try to avoid those.

- There is absolutely no point getting cross about it. He can't help it, and he just gets upset if we're stressed.

- Baby wipes are your best friend. On the subject of best friends, it's safe to take an 'emergency pack' whenever you go visiting (see 'new situations' point above!).

- If he makes a mess and lies in it is best to clear off asap otherwise the skin can get sore. Babywipes are absolutely useless at getting poo off fur, showers or shaving the immediate area are far quicker and easier.

- Make sure you have some decent antibac handwash for after you've been cleaning the dog/whatever surface he's messed on.

- It's worth experimenting with different foods to see if that makes any difference - Storm is best on Wafcol salmon and potato. At the moment he's on some crazy high fibre food from the vets after a protracted bout of diarrhoea and it's made things far harder to deal with in terms of frequency.

Although I agree it is another symptom of the decline into old age that you really don't want to see; we've managed Storm successfully for 9 months now and know that he hasn't been fully in control of himself since the RSPCA picked him up several months before that. It's got a little worse since we've had him, but still not so much that it affects his quality of life at all - it's just a part of 'him' that we're used to and he's a bright, happy dog.
 
Shelley gets a surprised look on her face too - as if she was saying :where did that come from, not mine. Fortunately its not messy, so fairly easy to clear up. She has number of rugs and duvets strategically placed about the house, just in case, all easy to wash and dry. She only goes once a day, so at least after one accident, there wont be another until tomorrow. She isn't a stressy dog, very chilled in fact. Except for one thing, my husband always goes skiing for a week with friends sometime after Xmas. This time he ended up in hospital in France with pneumonia instead and was away longer.
 
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