Causes of Blood in Dog Urine – A Veterinarian’s Guide

It is always a discomforting feeling when you find that your furry friend is leaking blood in his pee. The best resort for dog owners in such a situation is rushing to their veterinarian who diagnoses the doggie after finding the real cause of the blood to rush out of the urine. Even if the doggie needs to be treated for something it is better to take quick action so that the recovery time can be shorter.

Before looking at the various causes of blood in your dog’s pee, let us try to find out exactly what does the blood in the doggie’s urine look like. Blood that is intermingled with urine often has a tinted pinkish colour. If you see bright red colour, then it signifies that the blood is not coming from the urinary tract but from vaginal or rectal area. Due to this complication, it is your duty as a dog owner to detect whether the blood is coming out with the urine or from some other source.

Let us now look at some of the causes and treatments of blood in a dog’s urine:

Urinary tract infections

The symptoms are blood in the urine accompanied by repeated urination, painful urination, licking the genitals, straining, and fever. Antibiotics will be prescribed by the veterinarian for urinary tract infections depending on the dog’s history with antibiotics and the site of infection.

Bladder stones

There are two types of bladder stones found in dogs: struvite stones and calcium oxalate stones. The symptoms are: painful urination, bloody urine and straining. The treatment includes giving diet low in phosphorous, magnesium, and protein. It should also promote acidic urine combined with increased water intake. In certain severe cases, removal of the stones through surgical or nonsurgical means may be required.

Prostate

Even a prostatic disease can cause blood in the dog’s urine. There are 7 types of prostatic diseases: bacterial infection, benign prostatic hyperplasia, cystic hyperplasia, paraprostatic cysts, prostatic abscess, prostatic cancer and squamous metaplasia. Your pooch will show other symptoms like decreased urine stream, difficulty passing bowel movements, and laboured urination. For primary or secondary bacterial infections, your veterinarian will prescribe aggressive antibiotic therapy. But if it is due to benign prostatic hyperplasia, cystic metaplasia, testicular tumours, or cystic hyperplasia then neutering is the best option to get rid of the disease. Paraprostatic cysts and prostatic abscesses need to be surgically removed.

Tumours

Cancerous and non-cancerous tumours may cause blood in the dog’s urine. The treatment is contingent on the site and diagnosis. The veterinarian will refer an oncologist for a specialized treatment and diagnosis.

Poisoning

Symptoms include: bloody urine combined with lethargy, exercise intolerance, coughing, difficulty breathing and swollen abdomen. Treatment is contingent on the substance ingested. If your dog has ingested rodenticide he will be given IV until the calcium, electrolyte, and phosphorous levels are stabilized.

Tick borne diseases

The symptoms are blood urine among others. The veterinarian will prescribe you tick preventative treatments.

Once the veterinarian has started the diagnosis, he/she will recommend a nutritional or vitamin supplement in your dog’s diet.

Note:  Always have fresh, clean water available to your dog all the time so that he remains hydrated.

The cost of treating blood in dog’s urine can range approximately from $ 350 to $ 6,000 that is totally contingent on the severity of the blood in the dog’s urine. On an average, it has been observed that it costs around $ 3,500 to treat the disorder.