2-year old still peeing on the floor

[Swean]

Hi everyone,
I'm hoping that I can get some guidance. Our boxer Bailey is right at two years old. She's well behaved, we can take her outside without a leash, she generally listens to us (unless she doesn't feel like it), and we haven't witnessed an accident when we were home in over a year.

That said, when we're gone for over 5 hours or so, sometimes we get home and she's had an accident. We can tell right away when we come in the door because her head is low so we know that she's guilty of something. And the spots we find are small, it's not like she really had to go. It's not in one place all the time either.

For a little background, we've admittedly over-spoiled Bailey. She sleeps with us, we take her in the car all the time, and give her plenty of attention. I personally think that she's acting out in our absence. Does anyone have any tips on how to correct this type of behavior? My wife, carpet, and I thank you in advance.

 

[apollosdad]

first thing to do is to rule out any possible medical problems as the cuase of this sudden behavior. i would suggest that you take your dog to the vet to get her tested for a possible UTI.

depending upon the results, we can then take the necessary steps.

 

[Swean]

not so sudden

I wouldn't call it sudden behavior necessarily. We don't kennel her during the day, and she did well for awhile, but eventually started failing to make it during the day. I would say this has been ongoing since the beginning of the year. We tried the potty pads, but interestingly enough she would move the pads, pee underneath them, and move the pads back over the spot to hide it. We've tried restricting the amount of space she has by confining her to a single room, and eventually an 8ft x 8ft space but that didn't seem to help eihter.

 

[dlcenters]

our 2 1/2 year old does this too...but usually only when she's overly excited (so busy acting crazy she forgets to ask to go out and then it's too late) .....or when she's MAD at us...like if we go outside for a minute and don't take her with us...kind of like a temper tantrum I guess. She hangs her head in shame too because she knows she was a bad girl.

 

[apollosdad]

either way, sudden behavior or not, i would suggest that you take her to the vet in order to have her tested for a UTI. that way you can rule that out as a cause and address the problem as a behavioral one instead of a medical one.

 

[BeckyNC]

Swean,

I understand what you are going through. I adopted Tae when she was 13 mos old. She was never properly crate trained and, after three months of attempting to crate train her, I gave up. She panics in the crate and bends the wires with her mouth. Anyhow, I decided to leave her in my kitchen with baby gates. Every day, I would return home to find she'd gone potty (urinated) on the floor. I was confused b/c she is clearly house broken, as your girl is. I consulted with a behaviorist, who I think very highly of and between her comments and what I'd read on BW, I thought perhaps she had separation anxiety and this is how it manifested itself. Joanne (behaviorist) explained that if the urination occured with in 30 or less of the time I left home, Tae might indeed have SA. My assignment was to leave a video camera running when I left for work. Just my luck that Tae stopped going potty when the camera was set up.

Other thougts about this behavior included general anxiety due to activities in the street or someone coming to my door when I was at work, etc. Another thought was a UTI or a urinary tract problem. Both urinalyses were negative.

As with your girl, it was noted that Tae could last for 5-6 hours. For a number of months, she went potty EVERY day while I was at work, then she'd stop for a month and start again.

We finally concluded that Tae just couldn't hold it. My vet had suggested this, as well. I've mentioned this to people who told me my dog was being spiteful b/c "all dogs can hold it that long." My response to them is to point out not all adults human beings can hold it that long.

I thought about litter training Tae b/c they do sell dog sized litter trays at Petsmart, but, as luck would have it, we moved to a house (had lived in a townhouse before) and with the exception of 2-3 days when we first moved (mid-April), Tae has not gone potty in the house. It's the strangest thing and I almost hate to even write about it, as fear my luck will run out!

Soooo, conclusion to my long email is it's certainly likely your girl just can't hold it. A urinalysis is a good idea to rule out an infection, just as a starting point. Regardless, please know I totally understand how frustrating this can be. I was very tired of cleaning up everytime I got home from work. One thing I did learn, after using potty pads for months, is newspaper works just as well and for some reason it absorbs the smell, while the potty pads did not. Also, dogs like to go potty on textured surfaces, so if you have carpet, she will more likely go on it. If you an keep her in a kitchen and put some newspaper or a towel down, she will probably potty on the paper/towel.

 

[Swean]

Thanks!

Good thoughts, I appreciate everyone's feedback. I will definitely start by checking her for a UTI. The separation anxiety theory does make sense too, although the spots are pretty wet when we get home so it's occuring later than sooner.

I'm inclined to think that the dog is subliminally telling us to get home sooner next time. Makes me wonder if my wife and I are the trainERS or the trainEES.

 

[courtney323]

Swean -

Please post your Introduction. This is something required of all new members, and is stated in the Rules (in addition to the email you received upon registration)

www.boxerworld.com/rules

Thanks

 

[Swean]

Oops...

Sorry about that. It's done now.

 

[iluvmygrlZoe]

Don't feel bad, my girl is 3 1/2 and still does this. I really wanted so much to be able to leave her in the house when i'm gone during the day. Other than this potty problem, shes great, no chewing,etc. The only thing that has worked for me is the crate. Most of the time she will hold it in the crate but I cannot put anything in there with her. Its one of those black wired crates too with the plastic bottom and from being in there alot it makes her little elbos all crusty looking but I have no other choice. I will try sometimes to put a towel or blanket in there with her for comfort and she will pee on it every time. I have recently tried leaving her in one room where she could see outside for a few days and it worked great for a few days but one day I came home and she had peed all over the floor. I 've had her tested before for a UTI and it all came back negative. Other than this little problem, shes the perfect dog. So, dont feel bad, im in the same boat.