Hey guys, I got a few questions relating to my little man Arnie again. So he has settled in nicely, plays and is a pretty happy looking little man. Sleeps a lot, and when he's not sleeping, tries to eat everything he can fit in his mouth, including me. So, last night, and the night before, he was sleeping on the tiles on the balcony, where he likes to be before he goes in his crate for the night. The cold tiles is his sleeping spot of choice when he's not crated. When it was bed time, I picked him up and I noticed that he had pee'd himself while he was sleeping, or dozing. So I had to wash him. So my question here is: Can this happen and is it something to worry about? I mean, do they, at his age (9 weeks) have so little control over their bladders that they can just wet themselves with no warning, almost without waking up? Another question I have is in relation to his eating habits. I feed him three times a day, same amount as what the breeder gave him, same food. This morning, I got his kibble ready, and he seemed excited, bouncing up n down and looking at me and being happy. I put the bowl down and he kinda stuck his nose in, turned and walked away. I almost have to beg him to eat his meals. He eats it when I put him in front of it, but not with the labrador appetite I was expecting. Just kinda nibbles at it. It seems like I am describing some serious issues with my puppy here, spontaneous urination and lacklustre eating habits, but generally, he seems happy and wants to play and learn and train and interact. I am not sure if I am just worrying over non-issues here, and thats why I am asking the questions. Anyway, let me know what you guys think.
One urination while sleeping wouldn't bother me, but if it happens again it'd be worth giving the vet a call, just in case it's a urinary tract infection. It's probably nothing - he might've woken up briefly, pee'd and then fallen asleep right away. They do have minimal bladder control at that age. With the food.... It is possible that he was just not hungry and he doesn't need quite that amount of food. Out of what you give him, how much does he actually eat in a 24 hour period? Many people here will say to continue to serve up the same thing, that he won't starve himself and that you shouldn't pander to him but that you could go the extra mile of adding some warm water to the food to make it more appetising. There is really nothing wrong with that advice. If it was me, though, I'd consider that he just doesn't like the food and I would try to find something he does like better (and that is good for him of course). Or I'd add something very tasty (like some sardines) to make it more interesting. I'm the 'pandering' kind I bet if you gave him something raw meat or cooked chicken he'd gobble it up.
Thank you very much for your advice. He has done it a few times, the whole wetting himself business, but I am not convinced its a UTI, because he doesn't whimper when he pees. I was just not sure.I am taking him to the vet on Tuesday for his second vaccination, so I will ask them then. We went to see my parents, who has a miniature daschund and is fed a mixture of raw and kibble. I asked dad if we could have a small sample of Khloe's food and Arnie destroyed it!! He ate like he was possessed. So I am guessing I will have to add some chicken strips or sardines like you suggested, just to make the food more interesting. Poor little fella, he wet himself when we were at my parents. He just crawled under the table, fell asleep for about 10 minutes and when I looked over at him he looked all embarrassed and was covered in pee. I think it might be because he just can't control himself when he goes to sleep after lots of play and when he is very tired. The sausage dog doesn't leave him alone much
I would definitely mention the weeing when asleep to the vet and it might be a good idea to take a sample with you. The vet can do a simple urine test which will tell them if there are any problems and then you will know one way or the other. My two male labs both had bladder infections when they were just a bit older than Arnie. They never whimpered when they had a wee, they never looked uncomfortable either. They weed a lot although never in their sleep. They also drank a lot which is another symptom. It's difficult to tell if a pup is weeing a lot because that's what they do but do you think arnie is weeing more than he used to and is he drinking a lot ? Whether or not he is Id still take a sample with me the vet will probably ask for one if you don't.
It's not normal for a puppy to pee while it's asleep, I'd say that's something for the vet to look at for sure if it's happened a few times. On the food, noting @Oberon's slightly different view I'd try to find a food that the puppy/dog wanted to eat, for sure, but if I wanted or needed a dog to eat kibble I wouldn't start adding things to it. I started adding sardines etc to my puppy's kibble - kibble which he was perfectly happy to eat, I just thought it would be a nice thing to do - and I rapidly had a puppy that wouldn't eat kibble without sardines. Which is fine if I wanted to feed sardines, but not if I wanted to feed kibble.
I do add a tablespoonful of good tinned dog food to my dogs' kibble and they eat everything, dishes are squeaky clean!
