Teaching an old dog new tricks

Question
My husband has a 13 yr old cocker/retriever mix. She has been confined to the kitchen because she will pee and poop on the carpet which had to be replaced. I have had it with this dog. Now she pees on the kitchen floor which isn't as bad because it is lanolium. Is it possible to train her or is this a lost cause. My husband never took the time to care for this dog properly (in my opinion). He loves her, but never walks her, she rarely has regular checkups, and gets little attention now that we are in the house. Before my husband and I were married, she was all his. After we got married, we became an instant family with my son. We now have a daughter and needless to say Samantha (the dog) gets little attention. We had one incident when my husband and I were dating and she bit my son. I am not her biggest fan, however she has not done it since. I am at a loss and I would love some advice on this. I feel like I am just playing a waiting game.

Answer
If the dog has been doing this for 13 years, there is no way you are going to be able to retrain her. If this is a relatively recent development, I would have her examined to make sure she is healthy... no bladder infection, parasites, etc.

If everything checks out okay, then it is time to retrain the people in the house, and to start letting her outside more often. Old dogs don't always have the "holding" ability that they did when they were young.

It could also be that she is starting to become a bit senile and forgotting any manners that she might have had previously. Veterinarians do have medications that can sometimes help with senility.