Your female dachshound may have a flaccid bladder which does not empty properly by using her bladder muscles since she has urine retention and overflow urine leaking as evidenced by your statement "she will go and then wander around and squat again off and on for about 15 minutes acting like she still needs to go". This is easily remedied.

First, you will need to study the diagram of the exact location of your dog's bladder by observing the diagram in the middle of the following link: http://137.222.110.150/calnet/vetAB5/page2.htm

You see where the bladder is located? Now it is very simple to help your dog to empty her bladder completely "BEFORE" she goes to bed with you at night by performing what is called the "Crede Maneuver". This is a method of emptying the bladder by you applying non-forceful gentle, smooth, even pressure from your dog's umbilicus toward the lowest part of her abdomen. Have your dog lay on her back. Then place your warm hands on her tummy and apply gentle pressure to her tummy with both of your hands only going in a "downward motion" toward her bladder. Repeat this slowly and gently several times so that the pressure from her umbilicus to her abdomen will cause her bladder to empty from the top of her bladder toward her urethra (near her tail). Perform the Crede Maneuver always before she goes to sleep so that she will empty all of the urine from her bladder and she won't have urine left in her bladder so she can't wet the bed at night.

If you find that she still wets the bed during the night, then she will need to be awakened in the middle of the night and have her bladder Crede'd again. This will help to eliminate your dog's incontinence. The benefits of the Crede maneuver are no equipment or urinary products are required, no side effects from medications, and in some female dogs, this helps them to re-learn urinary sphincter control and allows them to empty their bladder completely which prevents urinary tract infections.

DES (diethylstilbestrol) is a nonsteroidal estrogen derivative that closely resembles the natural estrogen, estradiol. Because it is inexpensive and infrequently administered, it is the first choice for treating urinary incontinence in female dogs. It is orally bioavailable and in dogs reaches peak plasma concentrations in 1 hr; it has an elimination half-life of 24 hr due to enterohepatic recirculation. Estrogens sensitize the urethral sphincter to alpha-adrenergic stimulation; therefore DES therapy is synergistic with alpha-adrenergic drugs. DES is given as a daily loading dose for 7-10 days, and then reduced to once weekly dosing, if possible, to avoid toxicity. When used once weekly in spayed female dogs, adverse effects from DES are rare.


Additional helpful information for your dog:

Propalin (Phenylpropanolamine) For urinary incontinence due to decreased urethral sphincter tone, often helpful for household dogs with dribble and accident issues. In chewable tablets or liquid form.
http://www.discountpetmedicines.com/urinary-tract-incontinentcy-b ladder-kidney.htm

http://www.naturalcanine.com/Merchant2/merc hant.mv?Screen=CTGY&Store_Code=TNC&Category_Code=I

http://www .sleepeetime.com/

http://www.petdiapers.com/

Dr. Hanson, DVM, PhD