At some point, you may be asked by your veterinarian to collect a urine sample from your dog. This may be necessary to assess kidney function, look for any sign of inflammation, infection, crystals, glucose or as a part of an overall wellness health check. Initially, this may seem like a daunting task; however, here are a few tips that will hopefully make the process as easy as possible.

It is helpful to know when your dog needs to urinate. Reliable times to collect urine are usually first thing in the morning or after waking from a nap. Exercise and walks can also help encourage urination. Select a clean, shallow container or a soup ladle as your collection tool. Always leash your dog (it is best not to use a retractable leash) so that you are close by when the urge strikes and your dog begins to urinate. Stay calm and slowly slide your container into the stream to collect what you need. If your dog is shy and reluctant to urinate with you present, you can try keeping your dog indoors for a longer period of time so the amount of urine voided will be larger, allowing you a longer time to position your collection container.

Some dogs may be hesitant and stop urinating when you get close to them.  To maintain a certain distance, you can tape the container to the end of a broom handle or pole.  While keeping your distance, slowly slide the container under your dog while they are urinating to collect a sample.

Once the sample has been collected, place a lid on it or transfer the urine into a clean container with a lid. Ideally, depending what the doctor is testing, the sample should be brought to the hospital within 2 hours. If you are unable to bring the sample to the hospital right away, store the urine in the refrigerator (maximum of 8 hours) and bring it to the hospital as soon as possible.

It is best to contact the hospital ahead of time to ensure that the urine is collected at the ideal time of day so that your veterinarian can maximize the information gathered from the sample. Please do not hesitate to speak to the staff at Centrepointe Animal Hospital for more information about collecting a urine sample from your dog.