120lb dog pee killing grass

Bishop · 06-16-2008, 07:38 PM

I grew up with dogs and watched them pee and poop all my early life and none of the dogs pee killed that much grass.
I'm retired and bought a beautiful white German Shepard. She has been a perfect pet and protector for 6 years.
Early this year she started having bladder problems and peeing while asleep. She was allowed to come inside the house when the weather was bad, or really cold, or really hot, and she never pee'd in the house, intil last month, and she has been banned for entering the house now.
But I have noticed the places she has pee'd in the grass outside has died almost instantly, and turns brown. Her urine must be so acidy to kill grass that fast.
Could her strong urine acid be causing her bladder control problems?

Durbkat · 06-16-2008, 07:47 PM

We aren't vets, if you suspect that your dog is incontent or has uti then she needs to be seen by a vet, not banned outside because her owner won't take her to the vet. That must be one horrible life that dog lives.

Bishop · 06-16-2008, 08:01 PM

She is an outside dog 99% of the time and very happy, only since her bladder problem has she been staying outside all the time, so 1% is not being mean to her. She 120lbs and when she pee's it's not just a spot, it covered an area 18" by 24". She has a big bladder.

She is a loving dog and I want her to be healthy and happy, that's why I joined this forum today, to get help from other who has the same problems.

My dogs yearly vet visit is next week, and I wanted unbiasis (?) help from you before the vet see's her.

Kotone · 06-16-2008, 08:03 PM

She could have a UTI. I would take her to the vet just in case. Also, it's not very nice to make her stay outside all the time. We don't do that to senior citizens when they can't hold their bladders. :P Perhaps she needs a potty training refresher course? Once you rule out medical problems for the bladder control, that's the only thing you can do.

As for the grass, I believe there is something you can give your dog, or put on the grass to make it not die so quickly. Not sure what it's called though.

JustTess · 06-16-2008, 08:14 PM

My husky stained the vet's linoleum when he marked. I was sooooo embarrased

I agree with Kotone. She's probably smart and could use a refresher course on how to behave indoors.

Dakota Spirit · 06-16-2008, 08:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Durbkat

We aren't vets, if you suspect that your dog is incontent or has uti then she needs to be seen by a vet, not banned outside because her owner won't take her to the vet. That must be one horrible life that dog lives.

Durb - you really need to read more carefully before making such brazen statements. Not only is it stated in the OP that the dog was already primarily an outside dog, but to assume the reasoning has to do with not wanting to care for the dog just makes you look ignorant.

Anyway, I agree with the others. Check and see the vet says and then perhaps some retraining will do the trick. If she does turn out to be incontinent though, I believe they do make special pads for dogs that prevent accidents from staining anything in the house. Then at least, she'll continue to be able to enjoy her inside time.

Bishop · 06-16-2008, 09:00 PM

She doesn't knowingly pee inside the house, she would come in lay down, tap a nap, and pee while she's asleep. When she would wake up, she's embarrested and gets up, goes to the door and wants to go outside.
She doesn't squat and pee inside, we got her at 6 weeks old, she stayed on the screen porch for three more weeks, and she learned on her own to pee outside, and she's had house privilages when the weather got bad, freezing cold or super hot for six years now.
She is part of our family.

By the way, she has 8 acres fenced to play in, she poops as far away from the house near the entrance gates to tell other dogs stay away

mylittlebecky · 06-16-2008, 10:40 PM

after she gets checked out for the UTI... i would suggest some natural bladder support like this... there are several different types and even if she stays outside she can still get urine scald (where the urine stays in contact with the skin and causes a rash) if she's urinating in her sleep.

ps does it seems like this pee is all i think about?

JenTN · 06-16-2008, 11:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dakota Spirit

Durb - you really need to read more carefully before making such brazen statements. Not only is it stated in the OP that the dog was already primarily an outside dog, but to assume the reasoning has to do with not wanting to care for the dog just makes you look ignorant.

Anyway, I agree with the others. Check and see the vet says and then perhaps some retraining will do the trick. If she does turn out to be incontinent though, I believe they do make special pads for dogs that prevent accidents from staining anything in the house. Then at least, she'll continue to be able to enjoy her inside time.

Ditto.... Amazing how much wisdom there is when you're 17

Kotone · 06-16-2008, 11:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bishop

She doesn't knowingly pee inside the house, she would come in lay down, tap a nap, and pee while she's asleep. When she would wake up, she's embarrested and gets up, goes to the door and wants to go outside.
She doesn't squat and pee inside, we got her at 6 weeks old, she stayed on the screen porch for three more weeks, and she learned on her own to pee outside, and she's had house privilages when the weather got bad, freezing cold or super hot for six years now.
She is part of our family.

By the way, she has 8 acres fenced to play in, she poops as far away from the house near the entrance gates to tell other dogs stay away

Aww, poor girl... Again, I would get her checked by a vet. Not being able to control your bladder could be old age or it could be a UTI. If she does just have a UTI you can get it treated and she & you both can go back to enjoying her time inside again.

Irishgirl123 · 06-17-2008, 07:18 AM

I think this may be different but I read one time that the female has the HCG hormone that cause the grass to turn.

InverseLogic · 06-17-2008, 10:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Irishgirl123

I think this may be different but I read one time that the female has the HCG hormone that cause the grass to turn.

In all my experience with female dogs, I've noticed this too.
The female's pee will burn the grass more quickly than the male's.

Bishop · 06-17-2008, 10:22 AM

I was trying to link the dead grass, with a super strong ammonia pee, to see if my 6 year old dog has internal problems, which is causing her bladder control problems. I don't think I got it thru to many readers.

Her yearly vet visit is two days away. The vet checks her for everything, and he use to have a solid white german shepard like our dog. Pure white and pedigree.
We were told her white color came from white wolves 100 years ago bred with black and tan german shepards.
We have also heard that Pure white German Shepards are banned from dog shows, as a cross breed, but I think after you see how smart they are and the pure white color the judges would be pulled too often to give the white german Shepard top awards and other breed owners are afraid of that.

spinach · 06-17-2008, 12:23 PM

On the topic of dog pee killing grass - I thought that it was fairly typical for dog urine to have a negative effect on grass? (They make plenty of products for it and carry them at petsmart...although I'm beginning to not trust anything other than the toys at that place...)

On another more sensitive and personal note - this is the first time I've checked this board in months. This is the first post I read, and it confirmed my attitude toward this site. There are so many people on here who are ready to attack the owners of pets for "neglect" or "ignorance" when all they're doing is asking simple questions. Those of you who stick up for the people answering the questions are to be commended, but it shouldn't have to happen. Why are so many people on this site so rude? I've found another forum site that is much more receptive and kind...It's just such a shame that people have to be judgemental and rude...

(I'm not much help, just wanted to throw that in. My 3.3lb Maltese kills the grass too and he's a boy and only 7 months old. We have a vet appointment today for other things but I'll be asking too!)

Dakota Spirit · 06-17-2008, 12:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bishop

I was trying to link the dead grass, with a super strong ammonia pee, to see if my 6 year old dog has internal problems, which is causing her bladder control problems. I don't think I got it thru to many readers.

Perhaps not, but none of us are going to be able to tell you if it's all linked or not. That is really something the vet needs to check out.

Though if I were taking a guess, I wouldn't say a higher level of ammonia could cause incontinence.

Quote:

Her yearly vet visit is two days away. The vet checks her for everything, and he use to have a solid white german shepard like our dog. Pure white and pedigree.
We were told her white color came from white wolves 100 years ago bred with black and tan german shepards.
We have also heard that Pure white German Shepards are banned from dog shows, as a cross breed, but I think after you see how smart they are and the pure white color the judges would be pulled too often to give the white german Shepard top awards and other breed owners are afraid of that.

Lol, this really isn't true at all. White GSDs are not shown in the breed because it is a mis-mark to have a completely white coat. It has to do with how smart they are they are, as the dogs themselves are no smarter then your traditional colored GSD would be.

I don't know about the whole wolf aspect as GSDs are not my breed - but it would definitely be something interesting to research.

Quote:

Originally Posted by spinach

On another more sensitive and personal note - this is the first time I've checked this board in months. This is the first post I read, and it confirmed my attitude toward this site. There are so many people on here who are ready to attack the owners of pets for "neglect" or "ignorance" when all they're doing is asking simple questions. Those of you who stick up for the people answering the questions are to be commended, but it shouldn't have to happen. Why are so many people on this site so rude? I've found another forum site that is much more receptive and kind...It's just such a shame that people have to be judgemental and rude...

While there are times when members can be a bit snippy, I really have never seen these large groups of people that are supposedly always attacking new members. I think it's to be expected on a large internet forum that things will occasionally be handled in the wrong manner but over all, this is one of the best forums that I personally have ever come across. There are no little circles of people and everyone who participates in the conversations is generally warm welcomed. To each their own though, sometimes a site just isn't for you - as many of the others I tried before DF weren't for me.

ACampbell · 06-17-2008, 01:18 PM

I would have her checked for a UTI...sometimes when you get one of those it causes the urine to be extremely acidic...which I can imagine would kill grass. There's definetely a problem if your girl is peeing herself in her sleep.
You didn't mention whether or not she has been spayed...sometimes spayed bitches can be incontinent.
My suggestion is to bring this up to your vet, it's not normal for a dog to urinate on themselves while sleeping and the vet can probably perscribe an incontinence medication (once UTI or bladder problems are ruled out) so your girl can have her house priviledges restored.
I'd kind of make a mental note of the color and or smell of her urine for the vet as well. Cloudy or foul smelling urine can be a sign of a UTI, so the more information you have for your vet the better.
Hope this was helpful

Lorina · 06-18-2008, 10:09 AM

Call your vet ahead of time, and ask if they'd like you to bring a urine sample with you.

Many vets will accept a sample brought from the owner (keep it in the fridge overnight if you get it the day before, but make sure it's from no more than 24 hours before the appointment). Other vets collect the sample themselves at the appointment, either by squeezing the bladder or by needle.

If it were me, I'd also ask if I could bring in a urine sample today, because having had a UTI myself, they can be very painful, and it's not something I'd want to put up with an extra two minutes, let alone two days.

I cringe thinking about how much it hurt.

The best way to collect a sample from a female is to use something shallow that you can get under her while she's peeing. A clean frisbee or clean disposable pie pan works great, then poor it off into a clean container.

JessieBear · 07-19-2008, 07:58 PM

Poor girl must be feeling pretty badly to be having accidents in the house like that. Sometimes labs have incontence problems when they get older. Hopefully she only had a UTI becuase that is easily fixed with medication. About the grass turning yellow and dying. I have the same problem with my 2 dogs. They are both males, one is a black lab and the other a shelty. They sell lawn repair patches at petco and also these special treats that you give the dog 1 a day that balances the PH levels in their yearn, to prevent the grass from dying. It worked for me and the dogs love them, you should give it a try. Good luck with your dog, I hope she feels better soon. I also agree with one of the users that said that some people can be very snippy with their responces when all you are doing is asking for help not criticsm. People should be a little more conciderate!