Incontinent dog at night

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littlebranshill

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www.littlebranshill.co.uk
I am looking after an elderly labrador for a month and every morning she has poo'd herself in her bed. She doesn't know she is doing it and when I am walking her she just poo's when she is walking along oblivious. She is fed twice a day but I just wondered if I fed her just in the mornings would this mean that she would be clean at night? The poo is very hard and easy to clean up but would rather not face it first thing in the morning and to be very crude it is cold so she must have done it in the night despite me walking them round the garden at 10pm. I usually get up at 6.30am and she is asleep when I let the dogs out so its not a question of rushing to let her out in the morning. Any ideas?
 
is she at your place or theirs? Maybe the change in management has exacerbated it, poor thing. I'd be inclined to put some training pads over her bed and not change feeding or anything. Unless you actually walk out her last thing?
 
She is at my place but she knows it very well and has been staying with me for years when they go on holiday so she is definitely not stressed, in fact, she loves it here as I have a huge garden. It's just that she is so old now and obviously can't feel what her rear end is doing. I am going to try to give her a bigger breakfast and lighter dinner and see what happens. I have a rubber backed blanket that I will put on her bed tonight.
 
MotherOfChickens said:
is she at your place or theirs? Maybe the change in management has exacerbated it, poor thing. I'd be inclined to put some training pads over her bed and not change feeding or anything. Unless you actually walk out her last thing?
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P.S.I just walk her and the other dogs round the garden before I go to bed but perhaps it's not long enough.
 
I would not be inclined to changed anything in the management of an elderly dog, I would just clear up each morning, the only thing that I think may be worth trying would be taking her for a longer walk without the other dogs. often older dog release some poo when they are straining to get up, so maybe it happens when she is repostitioning herself to get comfy at night?
 
With incontinence at the advanced level which you describe, and importantly, were the dog mine, I would save the dog its dignity. The dog isn't yours, so all that you can do is manage what you have. I think that her owners are being a little unfair on you.

What I'd do in your shoes, is feed the dog in the mornings ONLY. With luck, and by nightfall her bowel should be empty. The old and senile don't require the food intake of the young and vibrant and if you restrict her food intake to first thing in the morning, you 'should' see an improvement.

Alec.
 
I think I'd be reluctant to change too much for an old dog that isn't mine, not least because if she's spent her whole life getting dinner and suddenly has to go to bed hungry she could stress, and you might be left with diarrhoea to clear up in the morning rather than just 'normal' goings. Agree that walking before bedtime is a good idea (it might be that's what her owners do which is why you're seeing an increase). If that doesn't work you could try feeding 2/3 in the morning and 1/3 at night?
 
A dogs digestive system takes 12 hours from mouth to poo. Therefore maybe you are giving the evening meal too early. Mine get their evening meals between 8-10pm. I can therefore predict they will poo at about 8am. Only make small adjustments to an elderly dog especially if she is not with you for long and is not your dog. Good luck
 
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