Dog owners: One of my dogs marks in the house...grrrrrr

[BusynMember]

We're moving this weekend , but I'm wondering what to do about my favorite dog. He's the one in my avator and his name is Prince (it should be Pauper). He's a really sweet dog, but whenever he goes to a new place he marks his territory. Worse, if I let him in the same room as his male brother Rufus (both are neutered too) he marks his territory INSIDE. We have him in the part of our current house that has no rug. In our new place, he'll still be confined to the rugless part of the house, but I feel badly for him because his brother and sister can go all over the house. I have a few bellybands, but he still pees, it just doesn't squirt. Any suggestions from a desperate doggy mom on how to stop him from marking in the new house? Once he does, we're all toast. On the other hand, Princey is six years old, and has always done this. I am thinking I am just going to have to keep confining this pup because he won't stop.
I let these dogs out a lot. Sometimes I open the door for the dogs to go out and Prince will pee before he goes out, even seeing the open door, just because Rufus is walking by. His sister doesn't make him mark, just his brother.
You know what? He needs a doggy psychiatrist. I think he has ODD

 

[Hound dog]

I don't have a solution, sorry.

But I do know that marking and peeing aren't related. He can have just emptied his bladder, but if he wants to mark....he'll still mark with the residual urine left in the bladder. And trust me, you'd rather not experience what happens after they run out of urine. Rowdy makes a specticle out of himself during walks. lol

 

[klmno]

I think there is a spray you can buy that is supposed to curb this, but I can't vouch for it. I would ask a vet and see what they say. My dogs have quirks, too, that I've just learned to tolerate. I can't have any throw rugs or area rugs in the house.

 

[donna723]

I won't be much help ... mine are all girls. I haven't had a male dog in years. But Lisa is right. It's not a housebreaking problem, it's a behavioral problem, a dominance issue. He's marking his territory and he's telling your other dogs that those places are all his! There are lots and lots of good dog training books out there that would have good ideas to try to stop the marking.

He's not peeing more than he usually does, is he? Or drinking a lot more water than he did before? If he is, the vet needs to check him because those are signs of diabetes and it can do a lot of damage if it's not treated soon enough.

 

[WhymeMom?]

The only thing I know of (after you have had him checked by the vet) is to "kennel" him when you can not watch him like a hawk...... he needs to learn that this is YOUR territory , take dirty clothes and place all around with your scent on them? If he wants out he needs to figure out that marking is not allowed by YOU, the pack leader.....

 

[BusynMember]

Yes, I'm quite the respected Pack Leader (ahem) . I think it's too late because he IS marking. He's not drinking too much or anything like that and the vet says nothing is wrong with him and he only marks when his brother is near him. He has no interest in marking for his sister, although she's the Alpha, the Queen, the Head of the Pack, so to speak. DOGS!

I tried crating and he marked as soon as I let him out to go do his business. He'd lift his leg before I could rush him out the door...lol.
I guess we will keep him in the rugless part of the house again. Luckily, half this house is without rugs.

After this little pack has crossed the rainbow bridge, hub and I are buying ONE dog--a big, smart dog--a female.
I will continue to make Prince wear his doggy diapers in the house. But he'll try to mark anyway and I only have two so I it's hard to keep him dry. I can't afford those Pampers for dogs!

 

[Marguerite]

I think I saw this handled on a British TV program. Even an older dog can learn that YOU are the head of the pack, nnot one of the other dogs. It did take some period of intense watching to catch the culprit in the act and deal with it, but they did succeed in re-training the piddler.

From what I recall, the owner had to shout/growl at the dog in the act, "Stop!" and clap hands loudly. They had to watch and even set it up so when they left the room they could catch the dog in the act and stop it. The dog was then immediately put outside - because OUTSIDE is where you go to piddle, not indoors to spray.

There were other factors too, to ensure that owner dominance was thoroughly established. I think they also gave the dogs positive attention to make it clear that there are other things in life to think about, than who's the boss.

You'd have to go digging but I'm sure there is a lot you can do, yourself, to re-train him to not respond in this way, and to not see a need to establish dominance over the other dog. It's a security thing, too - he feels he needs to.

What kind of neutering was done? And when? Also, some females will do this, it's not just a male thing. But it could be related to testosterone levels, you might be able to talk to the vet about something there.

Marg

 

[BusynMember]

Oh, Marg, I'm cracking up. I can see me watching Prince on a videocamera from another room jumping out, clapping and growling. I think my kids would lock me away.

I'm just not always home to see if he piddles.

I'm just going to have to TRY to retrain him, but, until or unless I can, Prince will have the rugless part of the house. He doesn't mark often when his bro isn't near him so I'll make sure bro stays in the other part of the house. The two of them do like to play, but they can play together when they're outside where they can mark to their little doggy heart's content.

As for giving this pooch attention, Prince is spoiled rotten. They all are. But alas this dog is a difficult child.

 

[donna723]

One thing I've heard of people doing (it works but you won't like it) is to literally attach the dog to you so they are never out of your sight and then you can catch them right in the act. Put them on a leash and attach the leash to your belt loop. They won't appreciate this if they want to take a nap and you want to do something else! It's a pain but you don't have to do it for very long before they catch on. If they're not attached to you where you can watch them, they're crated. I've more heard of people doing this with young puppies that are a problem to housebreak, but it could work for marking problems too.

 

[BusynMember]

I feel bad crating my dogs but I will have to in the new house at first

 

[donna723]

Mine take turns being crated, and both the little ones are crated while I'm at work. Then as soon as they get out, they go right on the leash and go straight outside to potty. Of course, marking is not a 'peeing' thing, it's a 'territorial' thing, even if they can only come up with a few drops.

Going in to the crate should never be seen as a punishment. It's their own personal little safe spot, where they can keep their favorite 'stuff'. It's their 'room'. I got mine used to going in to the crate by giving them their breakfast in there before I go to work, so they don't mind going in. They each have two big thick fluffy folded bath towels instead of a mattress - they chew mattresses up, and they each have their own soft blanket in their crate. They crawl in their crates to nap sometimes and Katy prefers to sleep in her crate at night instead of with me like Ragan does. They are so territorial about their crates and so respectful of each others 'turf', they wouldn't dream of even sticking their nose into the other ones crate!

 

[artana]

MWM,
The problem is that if he's marking your house, he's not seeing you and hubby as the packleaders. He is seeing his brother as competitive with him for dominance. You have to assert dominance.

I found this:
http://www.dogchatforum.com/dog-marking-inside.htm
http://www.hsus.org/pets/pet_care/o...ehavior_tip_sheets/urinemarking_behavior.html

The humane society link says cats, but it's a link from the dog page, so it should be relevant for either.

Good luck!