Misbehaving or ill?
Dogs may exhibit behaviors in the house than can clue a veterinarian into certain medical conditions. Owners frequently talk to veterinarians about how their dogs are urinating or defecating inappropriately, chewing on certain objects in the house, damaging the furniture, barking excessively and many other inappropriate behaviors. Owners many times take these behaviors personally felling that the pets are acting spiteful or uncontrollable. When these behaviors are investigated, some are simply a clinical sign of some common medical conditions. This discussion will touch on a few medical problems that cause dogs to act out.
Urinating in the house. Most dogs, once trained to urinate either outside or in designated areas (Wee Wee Pads), should continue that behavior for life. Dogs are creatures of habit and prefer to keep schedules unchanged. When a dog begins urinating inappropriately the first thought a veterinarian has is cystitis. Cystitis is inflammation of the bladder, either caused by bacteria or changes in pH, or even calculi (stone) development. When a dog is suffering from cystitis, the bladder is uncomfortable when it begins to fill. As the bladder stretches, it becomes painful and the dog has a need to urinate. Unfortunately that means they will urinate in the house. Cystitis is diagnosed by performing a urine analysis. The urine will be altered either containing some white or red blood cells, occasionally protein and sometimes bacteria. Cystic calculi are diagnosed by radiographs. Some dogs that are having frequent occurrences of inappropriate urination should have an urine analysis, radiographs and urine culture performed before blaming the dog for a true behavioral problem. Other less frequent causes of inappropriate urination is seizure activity, Diabetes, Cushing's disease, and neurologic problems.
Defecating (pooping) in the house. Most dogs, once trained to defecate outside or in designated areas (WeeWee Pads), should continue that behavior for life. When dogs defecate inappropriately the first thought a veterinarian has is Colitis and Enteritis. Colitis is the inflammation of the colon, which is the last part of the dogs intestinal system. Enteritis is inflammation of the intestines. The colon acts as a holding area where feces is formed and water is extracted from the feces. When the colon is inflamed the stool is not held in this section and it simply continues to move through. This makes the dog uncomfortable and they will need to have frequent bowel movements. Colitis also causes cramping and the dogs feel a rush to go, therefore they may not make it to the door or have time to inform the owner that they need to get outside. Usually when dogs are suffering from colitis the stools tend to have a mushy consistency with either mucous and/or fresh blood. When dogs have enteritis the feces tend to be very watery and the diarrhea can be explosive. Colitis and enteritis have many causes examples are: dietary indiscretion, intestinal parasites (worms and Giardia), toxicities, pancreatitis, inflammatory bowel disease, anxiety disorders and some hormone imbalances. The diagnosis is based on fecal exams and possibly the need for some blood testing and/or radiographs.
Eating inappropriate objects in the house. Young dogs chewing on objects in the house is very common and usually associated with teething. Occasionally the behavior can continue as a learned and excepted behavior. There are some dogs that chew or ingest objects that can cause great harm to them, even creating intestinal obstructions. Some of these problems are truly behavioral but some are caused by something called Pica. Dogs that have pica will lick or chew strange objects in order to calm gastric discomfort. When dogs have gastric discomfort (mild nausea) it is natural for them to ingest something, usually grass in an attempt to cure the discomfort. When dogs are in the house grass is unavailable to them so they can ingest almost anything. Some causes of Pica are gastric reflux disease, and inflammatory bowel disease. The diagnosis of this disease is based on history, blood work, radiograph studies and sometimes endoscopy with biopsies.
My dog recently started growling at the children. Dogs that change their behavior toward family members may be trying to communicate that they do not feel well. A dog that is normally very interactive with the family who now prefers to be along and may even growl when approached is attempting to tell the owner that something is wrong. Veterinarians view that behavior as clinical sign of pain. Most dogs do not vocalize (cry out) when they are in pain they generally withdraw. Small breed dogs will also shake and possible whimper and large breed dogs many times will pant and pace from pain. Unfortunately these are non-specific signs of pain and diagnostic tests need to be done to find the source of the discomfort. Many disorders can cause these behaviors ranging from orthopedic problems (arthritis/sprains/strains/fractures/back problems) to systemic illnesses (Pancreatitis/diabetes/hypothyroidism) to infectious diseases (tick borne diseases/ear infections/tooth infections). These pets need to see the veterinarian to find the cause of their discomfort.
My dog barks all day long and destroys things in the house when I am not home. Dogs that excessively vocalize when owners are not home are generally considered very anxious animals. When they hear noises outside, they over react and alert by barking. Some of these dogs will also proceed to either urinate or defecate in the house or can chew apart furniture, papers, and blankets; just about anything they can get a hold of. These dogs are really exhibiting panic attacks and acting out. Separation anxiety is a physiologic problem and not completely controllable emotion. Most of these dogs need to be medicated in order for the dog to control the anxiety. Training techniques are then used to teach the dog confidence and appropriate reaction to stimuli.
My dog is getting old and has started soiling in the house. As dogs age, some cognitive function can be lost. We start to see this in the very elderly dogs. Dogs are living longer now and cognitive dysfunction is a much more common disorder. Dogs may begin to forget where they are supposed to defecate and urinate. They may not have the ability to hold their urine and feces for the same amount of time. Arthritic conditions may cause the dog to have pain when posturing to urinate or defecate. Some neurologic degenerative conditions also play a role in bed wetting or urine leaking situations. Elderly dogs become anxious when owners leave them alone. Elderly dogs have lost their hearing and have some changes in their vision and can be very anxious at times even when the owners are at home. There are medications available to treat some of these conditions. Controlling discomfort, using medication to help sphincter control, even some anti-anxiety medications can help improve an aging dog's and it's owners quality of life.
Inappropriate behavior can be based on organic disease. Dogs that are urinating or defecating in the house, or are chewing the couch may have organic disease that should be evaluated by a veterinarian. Before owners make the decision that their dog is bad they should speak with their veterinarian. Discuss the dog's behavior, have some testing done to fully evaluate the dog and then a plan can be formulated to give the dog success in correcting the abnormal behavior.
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Dr. Ellen Leonhardt
Animal General
East Norwich
(516) 624-7500
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