My male dog's enlarged prostate makes peeing hard. What can I do?

Related Answers from Veterinarians

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  Answered By Dr. B. DVM, DACVIM (Oncology)

  Veterinarian

  Published on April 27th, 2019

  A UTI can cause frequent urination but does not cause a pet to not be able to urinate. They can go frequently and produce urine and then strain but the bladder is usually small due to frequent voiding. If your pet is straining to urinate and not producing any urine then this is a much different scenario where obstruction would be a concern. How was the UTI diagnosed as these are more rare in neutered male dogs? Urinalysis? Urine culture? Other considerations would be stones, a prostatic issue (although your pup is neutered and young), or a urethral issue. Did your vet feel that the bladder was large on palpation? If so this is atypical with a UTI. If you feel that your pet is not urinating a recheck is warranted to rule out obstruction as this can be an emergency if present. I hope this helps and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

  

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  Answered By Jenna Beyer, DVM, MBA, cVMA

  Veterinarian, Certified Veterinary Acupuncturist

  Published on August 23rd, 2017

  I agree, I feel like there is more. UTIs are very uncommon in male dogs due to the length of their urethra. Bacteria would have to travel a looooong way to get from the penis up to the bladder before more urine came down to flush it away. On the flip side, female dogs are very prone to UTI because their urethra is very short from the outside to the inside, and is much closer to their rectum. More common causes of urinary issues in dogs includes urinary bladder stones, prostatitis, kidney infection/pyelonephritis, and sometimes infections of the testicles. I would recommend a thorough physical exam with palpation of the prostate (if possible, sometimes our fingers just aren't long enough!) and x-rays to look for stones. If the prostate is normal and there are no stones, then bloodwork to look at kidney function and/or a urine culture would be indicated. A less common cause for blood in urine would be bladder cancer or bleeding disorders. If you see Bubba straining to urinate, or if he does not have a good stream of urine in 12 hours, this could indicate a urinary blockage and would be a medical emergency worth seeing an emergency vet.

  

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  Answered By Priyanka Thakkar, DVM

  Veterinarian

  Published on April 7th, 2017

  Unneutered dogs can get prostatitis (infection of the prostate) along with prostate enlargement. Sometimes prostate cancers or cancer of the urethra can also occur. A needle sample or biopsy of the prostate can be performed to help diagnose the underlying problem. A long course of antibiotics after a culture can be performed with castration (neutering) is usually required for non-cancerous causes. Not being able to appropriately urinate can be painful and life threatening as electrolytes can build up in the body and can make a dog very sick. Please consider additional follow up soon with your veterinarian.

  

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