Dog Advice,

Hey all just looking for any advice for my dads dog,

She is a German Shepard and its getting old,

She suffers from a urine and kidney infection which she has treated by a vet, Meds every day,

Even though she is on the medication she still has leeks, she dose not even know its happening, sometimes can also take her a while to get a wee out,

Now with humans we can take such things as cranberry juice. is there anything that helps a dogs system like that?

Has anyone had a dog with similar problems? any tips?

I will speak to a good friend of mine (even crazier dog lover than me) and get back to you with any advice given. Just like a lot of us humans when we get old, we lose control of certain functions, this also happens with our pets.



[edit on 25-2-2008 by Kurokage]

How old is the dog? How long has she been on antibiotics? And, how long has she had the problem?

You need an expert in canine homeopathy or rent "Old Yeller" and watch it again.

Here's one site that might help, but they could be selling snake oil.
www.petprohealth.com...

Originally posted by MrPenny
How old is the dog? How long has she been on antibiotics? And, how long has she had the problem?

She is 9,
been on meds for 1 year,
had the problem for just over a year,

reply to post by asala


If it's antibiotics she's been treated with...she has more than an infection. Or her diet/environment/condition is contributing to the illness, making it chronic. Veterinary antibiotics are some strong stuff; it's very odd that an infection would linger this long after a standard course of treatment. I've had a bunch of dogs..two that simply got very old, one that died of cancer, and the current one who's [puppy voice] a big sweety [/puppy voice].

Now....the gross part...make sure her anal glands are being cleared regularly. One of my airedales, Osprey, had recurring urinary infections also...turns out, the glands were impacting and causing the infections. It can be done at home ( although not by me, ugh ). Unbelievably, I watched a female vet, roughly 8 months pregnant do it and I got nauseus.

You have to realize and accept the fact that the German Shepard is considered a "large breed" of dog. They don't have a very long lifespan, and suffer more illnesses as they age. You can only expect about 10 - 12 years of life from that particular breed and what is happening now is a natural progression of the animals life cycle.

The average life span of the North American or European dog is 12.8 years. This is a large increase in life span over the past 100 years and is mostly attributable to better food and better medical care. Within this 12.8 year average for all dogs is a large range of life spans where certain breeds live longer and certain breeds live less long. In general, larger dogs live shorter lives than smaller dogs.
www.pets.ca...

Some small dogs will live for 15 years, but the larger the animal is, the shorter it's life will be. Any dog that reaches 8 - 9 years is like a senior citizen if it was human, but I hate to compare species.
Very large dogs like the Great Dane or Irish Wolfhound may only live between 6 and 9 years.

Sorry to bring bad news asala, but a 9 year old German Sheppard is an old dog and has little hope of ever leading a healthy life much beyond what it has now.

Yep we are pretty much aware that her life span is getting to its end,

Also yes she has her glands done very often, she is also cleaned and groomed daily, her bedding changed more than once a day and her living enviroment kept very clean, she in the house in the warm and is walked 2 times a day,

Her food also in vet recomended so shes fully being treated in all ways,

this is why we are really wondering what the heck is making it stay,
she really is a pampered pooch as to say

they have other German shepareds, full breed and square backed to help prevent leg problems in future,

The other dogs all passed of old age, so its odd that she has this,

The vet say its likely her kidneys are on there way out and dont give her much hope if things dont change, shes a lovley dog and i hate to think her days are numbered which is why i was looking for any extra things that could help,

her meds cost £100 a month $200

and £150 for her tummy draining, which we are fully happy to continue,

just seems to be working less and less as time goes on,

I hate to say it but I have to agree with Anxiety' for the most part.

Dogs and humans are not to disimilar, so what usually works on us will work on dogs, so if she likes cranberry juice, try it.
My dog Ripley (Weimaraner) will be 12 this year and as a mature lady the occasional accident happens when playing with Lewis who is 5 years her younger, its just a small dripple thats only happened a couple of times, which is caused by muscle control.
Could your dog also have similar problems as well as an infection?
I have seen doggie ladies products for when they come into season which you could try if its getting to bad.
If theres anything you need or I can do please let me know.