Q: Our dog, Sheba, is 9 years old and a mutt with some Collie in her. We've lived in the same house for the past 5 years and Sheba has been an indoor dog the whole time. We haven't had any problems until this month. Sheba has started urinating on the carpeting whenever my husband or I leave the house. At first it was just in the living room, so after 3 "accidents" we put up a barrier so she can't go out there while we're gone. Today she went in the family room. I guess the next step would be to put her outside whenever we leave? We can't figure out why she started doing this.

A: No, don't put her outside. Take her and a very fresh urine specimen to the veterinarian. You can collect a specimen by taking her outside to urinate on leash, and slipping a clean pie pan or soup ladle under her to catch the urine. Then pour it into a clean jar, and take it promptly to the vet.

There's a good chance she has a urinary tract infection, or a hormonal imbalance that is very common in middle-aged and older female dogs. Both of these problems respond extremely well to medications.

Or she might have some other physical condition happening. When a previously housebroken dog starts having accidents, chances are it is due to a physical cause.

It should not be necessary for you to change her lifestyle, other than providing extra supervision and trips outside until her medical problem is solved. The old spots need to be treated with a bacterial enzyme odor eliminator such as Nature's Miracle, and you can treat any new spots with white vinegar--very liberally--if you find them while still wet.

I hope things go well.