# orange pee



## havaTaffy (Dec 13, 2007)

I've noticed that Taffy's pee is kinda dark orangish color--is this normal or should I be worried? I was expecting her pee to be clear colored or at least light colored, but then what do I know since she's my very first doggie. I thought to seek out your expertise...


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## Moko (Dec 11, 2007)

After having read the extensive poo Thread, I realized that I'm probably a bad Molly-mom since I hadn't paid much attention to that stuff...

I'm going to have to be more observant, because that IS a good thing. The pee thing will be easy today with the snow!


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## SMARTY (Apr 19, 2007)

Ami, orange pee is not normal unless Taffy is on some type of vitamins or medication. Please check with your vet to see what is going on. Some time urine is darker yellow when they have held it for a long period of time or first thing in the morning.

I know from experience that the urine can have a reddish color if the dog has had a muscle tear or some type of injury. Again, check with your vet. Let us know this Forum is a great learning place for all of us.


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## maryam187 (Jul 18, 2007)

Ami, as Sandi said: go see the Vet. Orange/reddish urine could mean there's some blood mixed in it, which is called Macrohematuria if you can see the urine being tinged reddish. The muscle tear Sandi mentioned leads to a Myoglobinuria. Just so you've heard these terms. Either way, pay the Vet a visit and let us know what he thinks so we can all learn more.


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## casperkeep (May 16, 2007)

I hope all is well..please let us know!!!!


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## pjewel (Apr 11, 2007)

Ami,

Please have it checked out. I'm concerned. Unless there's the possibility of something in a food coloring that might affect Taffy's urine. Let us know how she's doing.


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## littlebuddy (May 30, 2007)

she could also be dehydrated. i know when my dog suffered from dehydration last summer, his pee was very orange. i had to take him to the vet, they gave him a camel back, its water (kind of like an i.v. but not) that's released goes under their skin and their body absorbes it throughout the day. check her gums. if they are sticky, she's dehydrated, call the vet either way.


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## Laurief (Nov 7, 2006)

Amy, Lily had orange pee when she had crystals in her bladder causing blood. Catch some pee and just bring it to the vets. I never pay for a visit when I want to have them check the urine. There is nothing they can do till the culture is done so why pay for a visit. I would Def. have it checked, and if it is clear, then at least you know her normal urine color.


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## MaddiesMom (Apr 1, 2007)

Ami- I'd take a sample of Taffy's urine into the vet ASAP. Orange urine can be bilirubin spilled into the urine. That was one of the things I noticed about my first Havanese who had liver disease. Her urine was very orange, but clear. It can be blood of course, but that should not be in the urine either. Taffy may have an infection, crystals, or liver problems. I'd have her checked by a vet.


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## mugsy & me (Feb 3, 2008)

just to clarify, you guys are not talking about yellow urine are you?


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## maryam187 (Jul 18, 2007)

Ami, do you have any news yet?


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## MaddiesMom (Apr 1, 2007)

mugsy said:


> just to clarify, you guys are not talking about yellow urine are you?


No, yellow urine is normal. If the dog is drinking alot of water, it can be almost like water. If its dehydrated, it tends to be a very dark gold.


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## mugsy & me (Feb 3, 2008)

MaddiesMom said:


> No, yellow urine is normal. If the dog is drinking alot of water, it can be almost like water. If its dehydrated, it tends to be a very dark gold.


thanks.
i'm never too sure about my colours.
joe


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## Laurief (Nov 7, 2006)

Ami, checking back for any updates.


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## havaTaffy (Dec 13, 2007)

Thanks for the advise--it all sounds scary/serious. I haven't been to the vet yet. I posted this at right before going to bed and it's 7:00am now (HK time). I'll definitely contact the vet today. 

umm, any ideas on how to get a dog's urine sample?


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## Havtahava (Aug 20, 2006)

When she squats to pee, put something under here that is a bit wider than her normal urine stream. You can use a paper cup, a small pie tin, an old butter tub or something else that is creative. Just wait until she starts to squat and slip it under her from behind.


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## casperkeep (May 16, 2007)

just wondering if there is any news yet!!!


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## MaddiesMom (Apr 1, 2007)

havaTaffy said:


> Thanks for the advise--it all sounds scary/serious. I haven't been to the vet yet. I posted this at right before going to bed and it's 7:00am now (HK time). I'll definitely contact the vet today.
> 
> umm, any ideas on how to get a dog's urine sample?


Ami- Try not to freak out. Its just always good to check things out. Sometimes its hard to see the real color of urine until you see a full sample. Plus, she may just have a bladder infection which is easily treated. Is she drinking alot of water? To get a sample, I used to put a small clean paper plate under my dog when she squatted. I kind of snuck up behind her and did it quickly without her noticing much. Let us know what you find out.


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## Laurief (Nov 7, 2006)

I too just slipped a little tupperware container (low and not too wide) under her butt as she squatted. She never even seemed to know it was even there! 
Good luck and let us know how you make out.


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## havaTaffy (Dec 13, 2007)

Jeanne, thanks for the comforting words. Taffy doesn't seem to drink that much. I have both a water bowl and a water bottle available for her. I guess I better monitor her drinking too. How much water should they be drinking each day? (She's 9 lbs. at 7 months)



Havtahava said:


> When she squats to pee, put something under here that is a bit wider than her normal urine stream. You can use a paper cup, a small pie tin, an old butter tub or something else that is creative. Just wait until she starts to squat and slip it under her from behind.


Thanks for that creative idea! I better get that paper cup (better yet, a paper bowl) out. The thing is she is so fast--she squats and her whole bladder is emptied before I say "wait for me!". I'll have to follow her everywhere with a bowl on my hand--oh the funny things we do for our havs. :biggrin1:


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## Laurief (Nov 7, 2006)

Haha - true true Ami, when I need to get a sample, I usually put them on short leash when I know they need to pee, and just sneak up on her before she even squats.


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## Havtahava (Aug 20, 2006)

Over at my vet's office, they have a long handled cup holder. They walk the dogs out on a grassy area and as soon as she squats, they slip that in under her. Then again, they do this quite a bit, so they are good at it, but the dogs never jump up with a stranger reaching down under them that way.


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## MaddiesMom (Apr 1, 2007)

havaTaffy said:


> Jeanne, thanks for the comforting words. Taffy doesn't seem to drink that much. I have both a water bowl and a water bottle available for her. I guess I better monitor her drinking too. How much water should they be drinking each day? (She's 9 lbs. at 7 months)


Well, actually her NOT drinking alot is a good sign as far as liver disease goes. My Hav with the liver disease drank tons of water (that's why I initially took her to the vet). I learned that can be a sign of liver disease (or diabetes, Cushings, etc.). She had that symptom before she got the orange urine. Maybe Taffy just needs to drink more water. As far as how much they should drink, it depends. If the dog eats completely dry food, they drink more water. Dogs fed wet food drink less. Maddie weighs about 13 lbs, eats dry food and usually drinks between 3/4 cup and 2 cups of water a day depending on activity level, weather, etc. My dog with liver disease drank at least 3 times that much and always had to pee which is a sign something is wrong.

When the vet runs a urinalysis on Taffy, he can rule out bladder infection, spilling bilirubin, spilling protein (kidney problems), and other things. We'll all keep positive thoughts that everything is clear, and there is no need to worry.

P.S. If you get a sample, try to put it in a sterile container (a thoroughly cleaned out container) in case the vet does a culture. If you have a glass container, you can boil it for a few minutes.


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## Cosmosmom (Jan 12, 2007)

you can run the tupperware or plastic container through the dishwasher . Just make sure the water is nice and hot ..
DO not touch the rim of the container or inside - ret and keep it as Clean as possible .. ..
Usually most vets want to colllect theor own sample .but it is great to bring one just in case they cannot get one .
Hope all goes well ..


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## Cheryl (Mar 17, 2007)

When Roxie went to UC Davis, they cathed her for a specimen. It didn't seem to bother her at all and only took a moment.


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## maryam187 (Jul 18, 2007)

Ami, any news yet?!?


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## Laurief (Nov 7, 2006)

When my vets needed a sterile sample, they aspirated it with a needle. It was hard to see as I held her, but she didnt seem to care at all!!


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## havaTaffy (Dec 13, 2007)

Thanks, everyone, for your suggestions. I followed Taffy around the whole time with a plastic cup and also encouraged her to drink more water. I think she ended up drinking double the amount of water that she normally drinks each day. So when I finally got some urine collected, the color of her pee is around light to medium yellow. This is a good sign, right? I'm going to take her to the vet tomorrow (it's sunday today) and we'll see what happens. Thanks again for all your help and encouragement!


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## littlebuddy (May 30, 2007)

just a tip for everyone, my django is a low rider so it is very difficult to get a sample of pee, i use a soup ladel. (its cleaned and stored and used only for that purpose) but as soon as he pees, i stick it under to get a sample and then transfer that to a cup. much easier than running around with a cup trying to get a sample.


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## MaddiesMom (Apr 1, 2007)

havaTaffy said:


> Thanks, everyone, for your suggestions. I followed Taffy around the whole time with a plastic cup and also encouraged her to drink more water. I think she ended up drinking double the amount of water that she normally drinks each day. So when I finally got some urine collected, the color of her pee is around light to medium yellow. This is a good sign, right? I'm going to take her to the vet tomorrow (it's sunday today) and we'll see what happens. Thanks again for all your help and encouragement!


If her urine is light to medium yellow, then that sounds perfect. Maybe Taffy was just dehydrated and her darker pee looked orange to you. Like I said, its really hard to tell unless you see a full sample. My liver dog's pee was definitely orange. Taffy is probably just fine, but running a urinalysis will alleviate any worry you might have had. We constantly worry about our babies, don't we?


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## Cosmosmom (Jan 12, 2007)

Usually the am or first voiding of the day is more concentrated as they have not had acess to water when they are sleeping ..
Ahnold does not drink as much as Cosmo so his urine is always more concentrated .. We are working on getting him to drink more so I make sure they always have acess to water .. Cosmo likes his water and he usually lets me know if the water dish is empty


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## havaTaffy (Dec 13, 2007)

MaddiesMom said:


> If her urine is light to medium yellow, then that sounds perfect. Maybe Taffy was just dehydrated and her darker pee looked orange to you. Like I said, its really hard to tell unless you see a full sample. My liver dog's pee was definitely orange. Taffy is probably just fine, but running a urinalysis will alleviate any worry you might have had. We constantly worry about our babies, don't we?


The vet's quite busy the next few days. I got an appointment on Thursday morning. Now that Taffy's pee is not so dark, I'm no longer in panic-mode. But you're right Jeanne, it'll be good to get her checked for my peace of mind. They'll be needing a fresh sample, so here we go again. ~sigh~


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## Cyndy (Feb 13, 2008)

*KIDNEY INFECTION / COCONUT*

Hi everyone. I was posting a little on another thread about my Coconut's kidney infection. I think I spoke too soon that he was better after his 1st dose of meds...... He was peeing on the floor behind the dining room table while I was at work and I just didn't see it at first. They are laminate, so that's ok, but.....
I do think he is doing better but he is still waking me to go out a little early instead of waiting for me to get up in the mornings. He's into his second week of meds now and due to go back to the doc on Saturday. They will probably do an xray (any idea how much that costs? not that it matters - I will pay whatever it costs). It scares me as everything I read on the internet said 'crystals' are a lot worse for boys. I don't understand how it got to this point; as soon as I noticed he was peeing in the house and there must be some problem, I followed you guys advice and took him to the vet. It's the 1st time I ever heard of 'crystals', but this is my first dog. I have started putting a little apple cider vinegar in his food and giving him one cranberry supplement a day. I don't even know what I'm doing, just trying to make him better and sure hope to God I'm not doing anything wrong. I hope he doesn't have to have surgery & it would kill me if anything happened to him. Lina sure made me feel better last week, that it was nothing to worry about, but now I'm worrying again....I guess I'm just a worrier. He doesn't seem to drink much water, but he's always been this way & I never knew before that might cause a problem, so I'm coaxing him to drink more - is there anything I can add to it to make him want to drink more? 
APPREICATE YOU ALL AND YOU ADVICE! THANK YOU!
Cyndy


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## MaddiesMom (Apr 1, 2007)

Cyndy- My previous Hav had crystals in her urine. We never treated it, since she had a more serious ailment than that at the time which was more important. However, I do remember the vet telling me that there are different types of crystals....struvites and calcium oxylates (and maybe others....I can't remember). Some require a more acid environment, others a more alkaline. The diet treatment depended on what type of crystal it was. Anyway, I'd verify with the vet what type of crystal and what type of diet he recommends. Maybe feeding Coconut a canned prescription diet would add more water to his diet. Your vet should be able to help you with the right treatment. Ask him when you see him on Saturday.


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## Cyndy (Feb 13, 2008)

Thanks for your reply. Your puppy is so cute - love the colors!
Well, he did recommend Hill's C/D, but I heard it is not a very good food and I am sceptical about it. I think I'm going to try putting a little water in his dry dog food, what do you think?
I'll talk to him some more on Saturday. Somestimes reading the net is not such a good thing, it gets too confusing! It's not the 1st time I've scared myself (even with my own health).

I sure am thankful for everyone on this board!


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## MaddiesMom (Apr 1, 2007)

I think I've seen special Royal Canin and IVD diets in the high end dog food store that are for bladder crystals. I have no idea if they are better quality than Science Diet, but you could check on the web for ingredients. Maybe someone else knows of alternatives.


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## Laurief (Nov 7, 2006)

Cyndy, My guys have been on the Royal Canin diet for years, as my Lily had struvite crystals in her bladder, twice & one that turned into a staph infection. since she and her siblings have been on the diet, there have been no more bladder issues. They told us that if we had not treated her, and put her on the food, her infections would have moved up to the kidney and possibly caused kidney stones. I honestly have found no problem what so ever with the Royal Canin food. My guys do not get any extra treats, and they are all healthy - almost fat pups!! I think I would glady live with dry hair, or a few more mats, to know that they do not have to go thru the crystals and infections. I wish you luck on finding the "right" answer for your pup!!
Def talk to your vet about the special diets. I found I could not get my guys to drink more, but they didnt need to worry about it once the antibiotics cleared the infection, and the food kicked in, they were fine.


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## Lina (Apr 26, 2007)

Cyndy, I'm sorry that Coconut is not feeling better! Crystals, like everyone has already mentioned, can be easily dealt with using diet changes. I don't think it's something you need to worry about at all! I have personally met Lily (Laurie's dog that she mentions above) and she is a wonderful happy Hav and has absolutely no symptoms of anything wrong. Just talk to your vet about a good diet for Coconut and he will be just fine. Good luck and keep us updated! :hug:


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## Cyndy (Feb 13, 2008)

MaddiesMom, LaurieF, Lina - THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH FOR YOUR ADVICE!
I was away from a computer yesterday (Had to take myself to the Dr. and found out I have completely inactive thyroid and my bones are in bad shape too - but something can be done about both problems - so I'm ok) More concerned about Coconut. Now, I looked on the internet about the Royal Canin, but that was one of the foods that was recalled it seems. It is probably ok now though. It seems I should have switched his diet, as two weeks of antibiotics are not doing it; but oh well, he has a follow up tomorrow and I guess I'll go ahead with an xray just to be sure and then maybe from there we can fill his prescription for diet food. I hope he doesn't have to be on it forever, that must get expensive! But mostly I hope he doesn't need surgery or anything like that.
I'll try to remember to ask more questions tomorrow and I'll definitly let you all know how it turns out - Keep my baby in your prayers!! THANK YOU.
However, I want you to know, he is as happy and lively and rambunctious as always, it's not getting him down, thank goodness.


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## Laurief (Nov 7, 2006)

Cyndy - I am sorry that you yourself are sick -it always makes it a little harder to handle when the babies are sick too. The ultrasound is a good idea, if there are crystals in the bladder and/or kidney they could try to dissolve them with the food (which is what they did with Lily) or he might have to have the surgery. I have to say that thru the whole food issue, none of the Royal Canin foods from the vet were ever on the list. Yes it is expensive for the food, but a lot less than constant vet bills to get them better. Good luck and keep us up to date with the test results. Kisses and hugs to Coconut!!


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## Cyndy (Feb 13, 2008)

*COCONUT*

GOOD NEWS! Coconut is OK. Went to Dr. Saturday and urine test showed NO sediment. I don't have to change his diet, just have him tested in two months to be sure everything is still ok. I'm very relieved! He slept with me the last three nights and did not wake me at all, no more accidents (knock on wood).
Thanks to you all for your advice and concern; it really helped!


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## Lina (Apr 26, 2007)

Cyndy, that is great news! I'm so happy that Coconut is all better.


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## mintchip (Apr 19, 2007)

Yeah!!!:whoo:Glad to hear the good news!:whoo:


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## MaddiesMom (Apr 1, 2007)

Yay! I'm so glad to hear Coconut is just fine. Great news!


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