Lack of Bowel Control in Dogs

Updated: February 28, 2024

Lack of bowel control in dogs, also known as fecal incontinence, is the inability of your fur-baby to have full control of his bowel movements. And just like any other illnesses, it is stressful not only to you but mostly to your pet.

Here, we've come up with what lack of bowel control in dogs is really about, causes, symptoms, and efficient ways on how to manage it.

Inability to Control Bowel Movements

Our dogs are similar to us in more ways than we can ever think of. Because like us, our furbabies' muscles, too, get weaker as they age and dog bowel control can diminish. From there, there can be many illnesses that can develop and one is the lack of bowel control. A dog losing control of bowels and bladder isn't idea, but there are things you can do to manage it.

"Symptoms of lack of bowel control include loss of appetite, scooting on the floor, and vomiting."

Symptoms of Lack of Bowel Control in Dogs:

  • Sudden loss of appetite
  • Sudden pooping in inappropriate areas
  • Unable to stop the urge to poop
  • Scooting on the floor (may indicate a condition that affects the anal glands and sacs)
  • Passing poop while sleeping or resting
  • Bloated abdomen
  • Loss of voluntary movement and tone of tail
  • Vomiting (an indication that your dog may have a GI disease or something else but not necessarily a sign of fecal incontinence)

Causes of Fecal Incontinence in Dogs

A number of causes may be the reason behind your dog's lack of bowel control. It can be because of:

  • Diseases or infections that have caused the dog's rectum to malfunction
  • Damaged anal sphincter
  • A muscle injury that causes anal reflex to be totally gone or disabled
  • Intestinal parasites
  • Spinal tumor
  • An improper diet that causes negative effects on the body
  • Medications
  • Viruses like Parvo that causes uncontrollable and bad-smelling diarrhea
  • Chronic lesions in the area around your fur-baby's anus
dog can't control bowels, best dog food for bowel incontinence

Proper Management of Bowel Incontinence

Let your dog poop on demand. Expressing your dog's bowel manually is something that will help you avoid passing poop everywhere and every time.

This also conditions your furbaby for a controlled way of pooping and allows him to "poop on demand".

Controlling when and where your incontinent dog can go down on his own business can take some time but the upside?

No more awful poop surprises in inappropriate areas and moments.

Aim for solid poop. Dealing with a fecal incontinent dog is so much easier when your dog's poop is not too soft or too hard. To aim for solid poop, you may have to adjust your dog's diet. Too much fiber intake and lesser water consumption can lead to constipation. Feeding him with rich or indigestible food like leftovers can cause diarrhea. Instead, provide your furbaby with a diet with balanced protein, probiotics, and carbohydrates.

Scheduled Feedings

Feed your dog losing control of bowels and bladder on a schedule. Following the same feeding schedule every day will help your dog get used to a schedule. With this, you will be able to know about how long after eating will he get down to business. The usual feeding schedule for dogs is twice a day - morning and afternoon/evening.

Find the Best Dog Food

Consult your vet about the best dog food for bowel incontinence. Your dog may require a special formula, prescription dog food, or limited ingredient food. Finding the best dog food for bowel incontinence will help in management of bowel incontinence.

Add Supplements for Dog Bowel Control

Provide supplements. Providing your fur-baby supplement will help him recover faster. Supplements like Probiotic SoftSupps® for dogs that aids in proper digestion for easier poop for your incontinent dog.

You can also give him Multifunctional SoftSupps® and provide your fecal incontinent furbaby with beneficial ingredients that help promote powerful daily health support.

Whether it’s to promote skin & coat health, hip & joint support, immune & intestinal function or to help maintain heart health, these supplements have your furbaby covered.

"Probiotic and Multifunctional SoftSupps® can help pups with proper digestion and daily health support."

Use Dog Diapers for Bowel Incontinence

Diapers and pee pads pair well with probiotic supplements as these help keep your furbaby from bathing in his own poop because of fecal incontinence. You can use dog diapers if your dog can't control his bowels and let him lay down on a pee pad for added support in case of leaks.

Pet Parents® Dog Diapers are washable and reusable. For your dog unable to control bowels, dog diapers will catch the mess and prevent it from leaking onto your floors or furniture. This way dog bowel control is not necessary for your dog to lay on comfortable surfaces and you do not have to worry about what happens if they lose control of bowels while sleeping.

The author

MICKA V.

Author Bio

Micka Virtudazo is a full-time content creator at Pet Parents® who lives with thirteen adorable American Bullies and a Shih Tzu-Maltese mix named Gretel. She especially enjoys writing how-to articles as she feels through this she can connect to other pet parents on a more personal level.

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