What Could Cause Leaky Pee?

[Batmom]

Culture is when they put some of the urine on a petri dish and let it grow at dog body temp for a couple days, to see what emerges . This can be useful if the urine sample has only a few bacterial cells ... Your vet should be looking at the sediment under a microscope, not just doing a dipstick test. Whether they did that at the outside lab or not depends on what test(s) your vet ordered. I will note -- if a vet tells you a few white cells or a few bacterial cells in the sample you submit are normal, give vet a sharp smack up 'side the head with a rolled-up newspaper. I will also note that some people (including vets) are better at spotting icky things in a pee sample than others are.

[Guest UESBrindle]

Ok, I'll call and ask them to send me the lab report to actually see what they tested and what was found. He did a stick test at the office and said it didn't turn up anything, so that's why he sent it to the lab.

 

He told me over the phone that there wasn't any trace of bacteria, and that it could still be a sheath infection and the urine just didn't touch the area outside of the ureathra.

[Guest UESBrindle]

I called and asked for a copy of the report. She said they only culture if there is anything of signifigance. Everything except one looked fine:

 

Color: Straw

Clarity: Cloudy

Specific Gravity: 1.018

Glucose: Negative

Bilirubin: 1+ (Reference range: negative)

Keytones: Negative

Blood: Negative

PH: 6.0

Protein: Negative

WBC: 0-2 (reference range: 0-5)

RBC: 0-2 (reference range: 0-5)

Bacteria: none seen

Epi cell: none seen

Mucus: none seen

Casts: none seen

Crystals: none seen

Urobilinogen: normal

 

When I googled bilirubin, it looks to be an issue with the liver or if a bile duct is blocked. I'm not sure what the scale usually is, if 1+ is still low, or if anything above "negative" would be a concern... has anyone had any experience with bilirubin levels??

[tbhounds]

Don't worry about the bili--it's a GH thing. I would recheck the urine specific gravity--1.018 is dilute--try submitting the first a.m. urine to see it becomes more concentrated---would like to see it up around or above 1.030

[Guest UESBrindle]

Don't worry about the bili--it's a GH thing. I would recheck the urine specific gravity--1.018 is dilute--try submitting the first a.m. urine to see it becomes more concentrated---would like to see it up around or above 1.030

 

The sample we brought in was his first pee of the day... And when we brought it in the nurse commented that it looked very dark... does the color have any relation to the specific gravity? What does the specific gravity indicate?

[tbhounds]

The color was mostly do to the bili---the USG checks for the urine concentration--helps to determine kidney function.

Is he drinking a lot?? Did you run a blood chemistry??

[Guest UESBrindle]

The color was mostly do to the bili---the USG checks for the urine concentration--helps to determine kidney function.

Is he drinking a lot?? Did you run a blood chemistry??

 

 

I don't *think* he's drinking more than he used to-- he has always been a big drinker- before and after every walk, in the middle of the night...

 

No, they didn't take any blood.

[tbhounds]

With a dilute urine result blood work should be run to check kidney values

[joejoesmom]

With a dilute urine result blood work should be run to check kidney values

 

I could be wrong but I believe that cloudy urine along with dilute urine could also be a sign of an infection. Often, protein is high though.

 

The best way to tell is to do a culture and sensitivity. Some vets also prefer to do a cystocentesis to ensure a clean sample. Cystocentesis is when the vet inserts a long needle (with the aid of an ultrasound) into the dogs bladder and withdraws urine. It is easiest to do if the dog has a fullish bladder. As previously said, a culture grows any bacteria that might be present in the urine (a sterile collection via cysto helps prevent non-native bacteria from entering the urine). Assuming bacteria grow in the sample, they will do a sensitivity. This will determine which antibiotic is most effective against the particular bacteria that are present.

 

Although the typical antibiotics that are prescribed kill most of the types of bacteria, you could be dealing with one that needs a specific antibiotic.

 

All that being said, a low specific gravity could very well mean that some kidney disease is present. I would think that a 6 year old dog would be a bit young to have chronic renal failure due to old age. (Don't worry too much about the term chronic renal failure -- my 14 year old whippet mix has gotten along fine with this for several years).

 

Proin (phenylpropylalanine) is often used in older dogs with urinary incontinence. It can have some very nasty side effects (very small percentage). I have chosen not to do the Proin yet and to cover my mattress with a waterproof pad. I also place a piece of upholstery vinyl, topped with a comfy (washable) blanket, on my bed where my dog prefers to sleep. This reduces the number of times I have to wash all of the bed linens.

 

If it continues to be a problem and a kidney panel (bloodwork) doesn't shed any light, you can always have an ultrasound done. I good (high resolution) ultrasound can find mild changes in the kidneys and other abdominal structures.

[tbhounds]

I think infection (UTI) is low on the radar screen--no red cells, no white cells, no crystals and no bacteria noted on the u/a-not to say it's not possible but, there are no red flags to indicate infection.

[Guest UESBrindle]

Can you help me read into his bloodwork now?

 

Most things came back normal but a few were high.

 

Creatinine His: 2.2 Normal: .5-1.6

Hemoglobin His: 21.3 Normal: 12.1-20.3

Hematocrit His: 61.9 Normal: 36-60

 

Also I'm waiting to get the radiology report. The vet said at first glance there was something pressing against his colon but she couldn't tell what it was and wanted to see what the report came back with.

 

Thanks in advance!

[greysmom]

Can you help me read into his bloodwork now?

 

Most things came back normal but a few were high.

 

Creatinine His: 2.2 Normal: .5-1.6

Hemoglobin His: 21.3 Normal: 12.1-20.3

Hematocrit His: 61.9 Normal: 36-60

 

Also I'm waiting to get the radiology report. The vet said at first glance there was something pressing against his colon but she couldn't tell what it was and wanted to see what the report came back with.

 

Thanks in advance!

 

 

High creatinine indicates kidney issues. Hemoglobin/hematocrit I think is normally high for greys so these don't seem bad to me. Hopefully someone else will see them soon. How is he otherwise? He should be done with his antibiotics now?

[Guest UESBrindle]

He finished with the antibiotics last Monday, so they wanted to wait a little longer to do a culture, but now she's saying they need to do another urinalysis to catch the first pee of the day (Which is what I told her the last analysis was of) and also a sample they'll take at the office.

 

She also suggested an ultrasound of his prostate. Her exam wasn't "indepth" enough, and the x-ray showed that it's pressing up against his colon so she wants to rule out cancer or infection.

 

I saw 2 more small pee spots on the carpet this morning, but it's now the least of my worries

[LBass]

FWIW, Piper's creatinine is about that high and has been consistently for the 6 years I've had him. He gets a really thorough lab work up looking for kidney and liver issues and anything else we can think of about every six months. Higher than usual creatinine seems to be Piper's "normal".

 

For the rest of it--try not to panic until the tests results are in. I hope that the vet can do all this soon so that you don't have to worry and fret with uncertainty for very long.

 

--Lucy

[Guest UESBrindle]

For the rest of it--try not to panic until the tests results are in. I hope that the vet can do all this soon so that you don't have to worry and fret with uncertainty for very long.

 

 

We have an appointment for 9am next Tuesday morning (the only day this internal medicine doc is in) and made sure to not do a drop-off... I can't go but Rob will stay with him and I told him to ask to go in with them for it.

 

I'm glad I asked in my other post about going back with them for procedures. I think he'll be more comfortable and we'll feel better knowing exactly what's going on.

[Guest UESBrindle]

Just as an update, if anyone else ever has a similar problem:

 

We took him to the vet again this past Tuesday for his ultrasound and urine culture. Ultrasound showed nothing concerning, and the culture will be back in about a week I guess. They put him on 25 mg of Proin 2x per day, so we started him on it Tuesday morning, and I don't know if the medicine really does work that fast, but William didn't wake me up at 5am to pee! He slept in until our alarm woke us up!

 

I'm glad Rob was able to go with him back to the room where they did the ultrasound. He said he could see how it might have been traumatic for him if it was the same thing for x-rays-- poor guy was flipped on his back with things on the side to hold him up (Rob said it was like kind of like a hot dog bun, and William was the hot dog being cradled in it) , someone holding his head/front feet (where Rob stood) and someone holding his rear legs.

 

They wouldn't let him go back when they captured "clean urine"-- they said some doctors don't like having the pet parents back there incase they start to freak out. I think they stuck a needle into his bladder to extract it, poor guy because I saw what looked like a needle mark and bruising just to the side of his penis

 

In all, I'm not pleased with how they wouldn't let us stay with him every step of the way (next time I'm there, I will insist and see what they say) but they did seem to find something that worked to help the leaky pee, so that's the good news

[ShantisMom]

Nala started leaking badly on us last week. She was horrified by it! I felt so bad for her. We did the tests, ultrasound and all. Clean. Started her on Proin too. Not a problem since. Her dose is technically 50mg 2x a day. I started with one a day and took her down to 1/2 (25mg) a day and she has not leaked. Asti was on it for a while. I pulled her off and she seems to be fine for now. We will see as her activity in the pool increases.

 

Glad you found a solution.

[Magdalyn58]

Wow, that is really great news!

[Guest Energy11]

Glad the Proin is helping. RE: not being back there ... NOPE! If I am not allowed to be with mine, I'd walk and find another vet... that is just me.

 

Hope William continues doing well!

[winnie]

Two of our greys are on Proin. Darcy gets one 25mg tablet once a day. Bonny gets two 25mg tablets once a day. It works well for them. I know a lot of folks here are anti-Proin, but it works for our greys and neither have had any negative reactions to it.

[Guest Spencers_Greyt]

I'm glad the Proin is working for you! I give Spencer 1/2 a tablet twice a day. I used to give him 2 whole tablets but he was getting weird symptoms like panting too much so I cut it back. It helps some but Spencer's issues are related to his compressed discs so nothing is going to work 100%.

 

Oops wanted to add something about being with them during tests. A lot of dogs will freak out more if the owner is with them. It's like how kids will get a boo-boo and if you pay too much attention to it then they start crying and making a big deal about it whereas if you ignore it they move on.

Edited July 9, 2010 by Spencers_Greyt

[Guest PiagetsMom]

 

 

Oops wanted to add something about being with them during tests. A lot of dogs will freak out more if the owner is with them. It's like how kids will get a boo-boo and if you pay too much attention to it then they start crying and making a big deal about it whereas if you ignore it they move on.

 

I can vouch for that.....my last girl did much better and was much calmer when I wasn't in the exam room for certain proceedures. As long as I was there, all she wanted was for me to "save her", and it made the job much quicker and easier all the way around for me to leave the room.

 

Glad the Proin's working for William