Dog’s Urinary Tract Infection Causes And Treatment
A common cause for a dog’s urinary tract infection is a bacterial infection. Urinary tract infections often cause pain during urination and difficulty urinating.
Urinary tract infections are much more common in cats than dogs. Male dogs are less likely to get urinary tract infections than female dogs because their urethras are longer which means bacteria has to travel farther to infect the bladder.
The bacterial infection that causes a urinary tract infection is usually present in the bladder. Bacteria in the bladder may have gotten there through the dog’s urethra. The the small passageway for the urine to be expelled from the bladder during urination is the urethra.
Urinary tract infections in dogs can cause blood, crystals, or pus to be present in the urine. An increased need to urinate, lower back pain, increased thirst, and increased volume in urination can also be caused by a urinary tract infection. A previously housebroken dog may have accidental urination in the house if it has a urinary tract infection.
When diagnosing a urinary tract infection in dogs, the veterinarian may do a rectal exam. This allows the veterinarian to feel the dog’s urethra. The veterinarian is likely to press on the dog’s abdomen to feel the bladder and take a urine sample for analysis.
A urinary tract infection in dogs can be a lower urinary tract infection or an upper urinary tract infection. An upper urinary tract infection can impair kidney functioning. If the urinary tract infection is a lower urinary tract infection, the kidneys are not usually affected.
A dog’s urinary tract infection is commonly treated with antibiotics. The analysis of the urine sample helps the veterinarian choose the best antibiotic to fight the infection.
If the dog does not receive the proper amount and duration of the antibiotics, it can cause the antibiotic to be an effective in eliminating the infection. The antibiotics may also be unsuccessful if there is an underlying condition that has caused the urinary tract infection.
Diabetes mellitus and Cushing’s disease are examples of diseases that can make a dog susceptible to developing urinary tract infections. If the dog is on medication for another condition or has a abnormality of its anatomy, the dog can be prone to urinary tract infections.
Other dog diseases may be responsible for causing the symptoms. The symptoms of a urinary tract infection could because by bladder cancer or bladder stones. Bladder cancer and bladder stones can make the dog prone to urinary tract infections.
