peeing on table

[emilyr]

Hey everyone -
I am hoping someone can help me with this problem. I had posted awhile back about my boxer, Babe who likes to pee in the house on the carpet. I tried the enzyme cleaners and they didn't work, I tried the crate, that didn't work. She peed all over her self. Now her latest thing is getting on the kitchen table and peeing on that while I am gone! :( I am really at my wits end with her, it's driving me insane! If I leave the house for 5 minutes to change the laundry downstairs, she pees! I feel like I can't leave since I know she will pee or poop somewhere in the house. Help me!!!!
-Emily

 

[Nifftea]

How old is Babe? Sounds like she may be pouting and getting back at you. I really don't know and don't pretend to be an expert. Some days things go well around here, other days are pure hell and I wonder what imp was in my brain and convinced me I wanted another dog....

Mine peed everywhere until just recently. They both sleep in beds with us and never pee on the floor or want out until morning. Jazz has even slept til 10 AM once!

I had been told around 5 months they would suddenly figure it out and they have. Knock on wood. With these two I am never sure of anything.

 

[Krikkit]

Hi Emily, she may need a vet check to rule out a UTI or similar. It is very hard to tell what is going on. Is she still going on the carpet too? What have you tried re housetraining so far? How does she get on the table? This must be frustrating for sure - if you could give some more info I'm sure someone will be able to help

Sharon

 

[emilyr]

Thanks for the advice so far - here's more info on Babe to see if we can narrow down the problem! She's @ 8 mos old, she's a rescue dog so I am not sure of the exact birthdate but when looking at her size it seems she's not quite a year. She seems to be a little nervous and hates it when I leave her in the house to go out. She loves to stand on the table and watch for the car to drive up (that was annoying) but now she has started to pee on the table! Ugh! I know she can hold it, she does all night so I don't think that's the problem. She could be trying to get back at me but she other than the potty in the house, she's a very sweet talk and has never been aggressive with Ian (my son) or I. Please let me know if anyone needs or would like more information.
-Emily

 

[Krikkit]

Emily, please don't worry that Babe is 'getting back at you' - dogs are far nice than humans I'm wondering if some of her problems with housetraining go back to before you had her :( It may be that she has some mixed ideas of where it is safe to potty and where it is unsafe to potty - poor girl. Some of this might be submissive urination or excitement urnination as well, though it is hard to tell without actually knowing Babe.

It may be worth going right back to basics as if she were an 8 week old puppy - simply forget that she knows anything at all about where it is appropriate to potty. The 'hourly' schedule is effective for dogs who take a little while to housetrain, but it does need persevering with and will take a good 3 - 4 weeks of the same routine (as does everything else really):

This is copied from the book 'Dog Training - The Gentle Modern Method' by David Weston):

1/ Set your watch or alarm clock to ring in one hour. When tis time is up, walk your puppy outside to 'the spot' and stay there for 5 minutes or so. If it 'wees' or 'pooh's', praise it and give it a piece of food,then take it inside and set your alarm for another hour, and so on. If your puppy does not oblige during the five minute period, take it inside but go out ten minutes later and keep doing this until you patience is rewarded. You will quickly work out your little puppy's own rhythm.
2/ Also take the puppy out as soon as it wakens from sleep, after eating or drinking and when it has been chewing on a toy or after prolonged play.
3/ Watch its body language careful for any signs which may indicate a need to go out. Circling and sniffing are often signs it wants to go to the toilet.

Here are some links on submissive / excitement urination - by reading these you may be able to narrow down what is going on with Babe.

http://www.dogdaysusa.com/behaviorcenter_urination.asp

http://www.golden-retriever.com/housebrk.html

http://www.ddfl.org/behavior/submissive.htm

http://www.clickandtreat.com/webart105.htm

These articles on housetraining an older dog might help as well:

http://www.webtrail.com/petbehavior/feb97.html

http://www.perfectpaws.com/htra.html

It may also be worth trying umbical cording with Babe as in some cases this works extrememly well if you are having housebreaking problems - these sites have info:

http://www.shirleychong.com/keepers/archives/umbilical.txt

http://fergus.fogg.net/puppy_training_umbilical.htm

http://www.ddc.com/petplace/dogtraining/control.html

If you can think of anything else to post about Babe's situation, please do so. Many board members have had similar problems and may have info to pass on to you.

Sharon

 

[Brigs_Mommy]

I know how you feel. Brig is rescued too and she was badly abused, staved and locked in a closet for a whole week. It took me over a year to potty train her. Sometimes I thought I was going to lose it. It started that she would not go outside no matter how long I walked her. She would wait and as soon as we got back in there she would go, staring right at me. It is hard not to think they are doing it to be mean to you sometimes. We had a real big battle and I tried a lot of things. After a while and a lot of consistency she finally decided she should not go in the house. I wish you luck.

Oh yeah and she went through a phase where she would pee on my side of the bed.... GRRRR That didn't make me to happy

 

[JULIE KERRIGAN]

I AM HAVING THE SAME PROBLEMS WITH MY 3 1/2 YEAR OLD MALE. HE IS CRATE TRAINED AND SLEEPS IN THE BED WITH US, BUT AS SOON AS WE TURN OUR BACKS HE IS GOING ALL OVER THE HOUSE, THE BED ESPECIALLY! HE GETS TO GO OUTSIDE AS MUCH AS HE WANTS WHENEVER HE WANTS, WE PLAY THE IN AND OUT GAME CONSTANTLY. WE DO NOT HAVE A PROBLEM WITH OUR FEMALE AT ALL....... I JUST DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO.

 

[Nifftea]

My husband and Michael spent yesterday afternoon cleaning carpet. Mac pees anywhere he decides to! He thinks nothing of it, will pee in front of anyone and even splash on your leg! He walks away as he is peeing, leaving a zig zag pattern on the carpet. He does NOT pee in the kitchen floor, only on carpet! Guess it feels more like grass to him. He sometimes goes to the back door and whines to be let out. I ask him ten times an hour if he wants out. I walk to the door and open it and ask, if he wants out he goes, if he doesn't he lays back down. He can be crated all night or sleep on the bed with Michael and has no problem holding it all night, so I know it isn't a medical problem. He just pees in the floor during the day.

Jazz peed in the floor a couple of times when she had the bladder infection but not since.

Mac's latest desruction: Michael was in the back yard mowing and Mac couldn't get to him so he tore up the mini blinds on the door. Damn Dog!!!!! My sheers in the living room are almost in shreds because he has to look out the window all the time.

Jazz is so much better behaved than Mac. She is quieter, more loving, MUCH less messy, doesn't chew up everything, is more polite, and less vocal. Mac sasses all the time just like a kid. He has to get in the last word! If Mac can't go in the room he wants to be in, he whines like a 3 year old child. I was talking to my sister on the phone when Mac started whining and she couldn't believe it was him, she thought it was a child! He acts like a spoiled brat too!

Are most females better behaved than males? Since they are litter mates I would think they would be more alike.......

 

[CRE72]

I feel for you because I too can relate. My 8 month old male boxer has gotten out of control. He is crate trained and can stay in the crate all night or all day without ever going. He sleeps on a bed in our bedroom and up until Sunday night he would hold it all night. Even until 10am one morning. I thought he wouldn't go in our room becuase it is where we all sleep. Well, monday morning I got up and he began to go........He zigzagged all throughout our room even lifting his leg on both corners of our bed. I thought I might lose my mind. The past few weeks he has been going all over our house. He was getting sooo good about it and can't understand why this behavior has started. Out of sight for a minutes he pees wherever he wants. A week ago Friday we left him in the kitchen/family room behind a puppy gate and he not only pooped on the floor (and ate most of it) but he peed on our couch. I think he was standing up there watching us drive up and peed just like your girl. I think I'll investigate a bladder infection and I'll read up on re-training. Let us know how things go for you.....