Our older dog has been having some issues and we have a diagnosis of liver problems. One symptom is constant thirst. Does anyone have suggestions regarding keeping him comfortable without letting him gorge on water?
Right now we give him small amounts throughout the day and just make sure he has lots of potty breaks. This gets to be a problem on days when we both have to work and be away for a few hours.
Does your dog possibly have cushings? Just lost my elderly hound dog to this disease. Extreme thirst and hunger, patchy hair loss, pot belly, muscle weakness, and elevated liver enzymes. After an extensive work up we treated with trilostane and the thirst and hunger was much less. My vet said the treatment isn’t known to extend life, but if the symptoms are affecting quality of life treating is indicated
Definitely look into cushings or diabetes. Cushings pets will often have an elevated AlkPhos (ALP) which is a liver enzyme, but a more normal ALT (also liver enzyme). Cushing pets often have extreme thirst. Cushings and diabetes are easy to manage.
DO NOT restrict your pets water intake. If he does indeed have diabetes or cushings, they NEED to balance their electrolytes with water. Depriving them from the amount they require can kill them.
We checked diabetes repeatedly but all sugar was normal. Other issues came up so we did a CBC and chem panel which showed the liver issue. We are discussing the cushings test but he is not the best dog for pulling blood (anxiety issues) and he does not have any other cushings symptoms. Our vet and a friend that is a vet both said ‘he does not look like a cushings dog’. We are not overly restricting his water, just not letting him drink continuously.
There are dog beds for dogs who cant hold their pee. Like this one
http://www.handicappedpets.com/sleepee-time-bed-for-incontinent-pets.html
Having watched humans on restricted water intake(heart issues), I’d never want anyone to suffer from thirst.
Is a doggie door or pee pads an option? If he is feeling compelled to drink it must be quite uncomfortable to not have access to water. Like horses, some dogs only have one symptom of cushings for a long time before other symptoms are present.
You really need to diagnose the problem so you make the best decisions about treatment, management, etc. The generic “liver problem” label isn’t helpful if your vet doesn’t have any idea what the underlying problem is or how to treat it, much less whether the lab values have anything to do with your dog’s current symptoms. What does your vet recommend now?
I’d insist on test for cushing’s disease, whether your vet(s) think he “looks” like a typical cushing’s dog or not. Incessant thirst is the hallmark of this disease and it warrants testing, IMHO, especially since the dog has repeatedly had normal urine glucose and makes diabetes less likely. Your vet can sedate the dog for the blood draw, if necessary. If your vet can’t or won’t help, then go somewhere else.
Constant, unquenchable thirst and the consequential endless urge/need to urinate is exhausting and a very painful condition for a dog. My old girl got this way when she developed Cushing’s disease and her life was dramatically improved with treatment…as did mine when I no longer had to clean up her endless–and unavoidable–accidents in the house.
Is he on prednisone for any of his issues? That will cause thirst and subsequent urination. I had that issue with an older dog. We had to tweak his dosage. It subsided a little after time.
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