Similar to their human friends, dogs too are not free from different infectious agents that cause various diseases. Dogs can be considered as accident prone animals. A dog owner’s ability to administer first aid would be a very useful asset that will alleviate the pain associated with the injuries and also save the pet’s life.

Urinary blockage is one of these emergency situations that would need immediate treatment. Urinary blockage is a dangerous condition as aside from causing electrolyte imbalance, the dog’s inability to pass urine will impair the normal functioning of the body. A bladder that is not emptied can rupture so that urine will leak into the abdominal cavity and give rise to a life threatening condition known as chemical peritonitis.

Straining to urinate is one of the symptoms of urinary blockage. The hunched pet would whine trying to pass urine but may not be able to so do or would only pass a few drops of urine. The urine may appear cloudy or tinged with blood. The dog’s inability to pass urine will result to abdominal pains. The pet may dribble urine so that the owner may think that the dog has developed an unwanted behavior or has forgotten its housebreaking training.

The dog’s inability to empty the bladder can be a sign that the dog has a urinary disease. Because of a shorter urethra, urinary tract infection can be the reason why a female dog cannot urinate and a male dog’s urinating difficulty can be due to a prostate problem. The blockage in the urinary tract can be caused by crystals or stones formed from the accumulation of minerals in the urinary tract. Scar tissues, tumors and lesions can be the reasons why the urinary tract is blocked.

Urinary blockage is one health concern that does not have a first aid treatment especially of the condition of the pet is already acute. A pet with urinary blockage needs immediate medical attention thus it has to be rushed to the hospital. To remove the blockage to the urethra, the stones creating the blockage can be pushed back to the bladder with a catheter or a urethral massage can be done to the pet. For 24 hours, the condition of the dog will be observed while the catheter is left in place. If the unblocking of the urethra is unsuccessful, an emergency surgical procedure will be done to remove the stones. After the surgical procedure, IV fluids are administered and antibiotics are given to prevent infection.

Learn more about dog first aid and urinary blockage at Sarah’s Dogs.

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