BehavioRx
Case of the Month
for May 2007
Housetraining - The Veterinary Connection
The client, Peggy,
complained about her 9 month-old, spayed (at 6 months) Corgi suddenly
started urinating around the house during the evening hours and even in her
crate at night. The problem had started about two weeks before contacting us
through our web site. We had her fill out the Diagnostics Program Enrollment
form, which showed that the Corgi had not seen her veterinary since the
surgical follow-up the spaying.
"Sparky" (the Corgi) had not been crated
since the age of 3 months, but Peggy resorted to the crate in an effort to
control the problem. I hadn't worked, which it usually doesn't. She was
feeding a dry food and not soaking it prior to mealtime in order to break
down the sealants in the food and usually causes increased water consumption
and, hence, increased urinary output. This was verified when we asked if
Sparky was urinating during her toilet trips after meals and before bedtime.
Peggy said she was still urinating about the same quantity outdoors. Sparky
had been neutered prior to her first heat cycle. She has also reached
the end of her growth-spurt period, but had continued to eat her
pre-surgery quantity of daily food. Her stools were "ropy"... not formed
and firm, which is the ideal. In any "differential" diagnosis all of the
possible "causes" for behavior problems must be addressed before a
remedial program can be ethically formulated. e had one suspicion.
Rather than suggest it to Peggy, we asked her to have her veterinarian
do a complete medical examination, and to take along a sample of
Sparky's urine after picking up the proper container. This would require
a week's delay in our program, but Peggy said she could retain her
sanity in the meantime. We did have her start rehydrating the dry food
immediately and to initiate our basic BehavioRx Program for
Housetaining... Puppies and adult dogs.
Two weeks went by with no
word from Peggy, so we telephoned her. She said, "Oh, I'm so happy! The
doctor found that Sparky had somehow contracted cystitis and that it causes
over-urination in most dogs. Four days after starting the medication and
your instructions, she quit peeing in the house. We're all delighted, and
she's out of the crate, too!"
We cautioned her to continue the
medication as prescribed and to call back after Sparky's follow-up
veterinary examination. She did call, this time. Sparky was back in the good
graces of the entire family of five!
The lesson here? Always have your
veterinarian check your dog's health when a behavior problem crops up.
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