When
a male dog is unable to
control his bladder, it may seem
as
though there are only two choices: Live with
the stains and smells of urine in the house or euthanize. There
is another option!
Bullet's
Diaper Holder
This
is a very simple
design
that I made for Bullet when he was on a high dose of lasix for his
heart condition and was leaking urine constantly. The ready-made
diaper holders I was able to find all required that I pull Bullet's
tail through a hole in the garment. I knew even without trying that
this
was not going to work for us!
If
you have a
sewing machine, you will find this garment very simple to make. If not,
you can choose fabric, do the measuring and cutting and then print out
the plan below to bring to a friend who has a machine, or a tailor at
your local dry cleaner. Make two or three so that you can
wash and dry one while the other is being worn.
*
Warning *
Constant
use of the diaper holder prevents the dog from being able to
clean himself and "air out" the furred area that is covered by the
diaper. Urinary tract infections can arise. Be sure to provide periods
of time outdoors or on a porch when the diaper is not worn.
Bullet
wearing his diaper holder.
He
never minded it or fussed with it at all.
WAISTBAND
- Measure
around your dog's waist, at the bottom of his
ribcage, for the waistband. Depending on the elasticity of the
waistband and the size of your dog, subtract an inch or two so that the
waistband
will be snug and stay in place, but not tight enough to be
uncomfortable. This is A.
- Cut
two
patches of velcro and sew one to each end of the
waistband. Face them in the right directions so that
they will meet each other on top of your dog's back.
HOLDER
- Cut
a triangle from a piece of washable fabric, using measurements B and C.
Divide A
by 3 and add 2
inches: This is B.
Measure
(on
your dog's belly) the distance from his "waist"
(at the
bottom of his ribcage), to the
area between his penis and his anus. Add 2 inches. This
is C.- Fold
over
one inch of fabric on each of
the 3 sides of the triangle, sew into place.
- Sew
short leg of the triangle onto the middle of the waistband.
STRIPS
- Hold
the
triangle in place and measure from the end point,
up
around his butt (around the tail) and over the back to his waist, where
the waistband
ends will meet. This is DCut a
doubled strip (binding tape or
other) and sew one end onto point of triangle.Sew strips
together where they meet (on
his back) after going around either side of his tail and then sew a
velcro (or snap or button) onto the end of the strip.
- Depending
on selection in previous step,
sew velcro or a snap or a button onto center of waistband.
- Now
all you
need to
do is buy diapers (I used the swaddler
or year-one size) and insert one into the holder. Remove the diaper at
the door, before your dog goes outside because once
outside, he will lift his leg. Replace wet diapers with new dry ones
and put the holder back on when he comes inside.
You
and your
dog will both get used to the process. After a short time, I found that
I could whip the holder on and off of Bullet so fast that he didn't
even
have to stop to wait at the door!
Haute
coutoure diaper-holder design for dogs
by Laurie Kaplan
