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Pee'ing in the house

1K views 7 replies 3 participants last post by  Mary Beth 
#1 ·
Last week we adopted an 18 month old GS. He is housebroken....however, he seems to want to pee in every room of the house. He pee'd in the living room and dinning room the first day, hasn't done it since.

He KNOWS he's not allowed upstairs. We didn't even introduce him to upstairs when we brought him home. He doesn't show any interest in going up, even when he follows us around the house and we go up. He'll sit and wait at the bottom until we return.

The moment we leave the house, or go to the basement is a different story. He will sneak up the stairs and pee, even after an hour long walk.

How do we stop this? We've put up a barricade for now at the top of the stairs so he can't access it, but this is only a temporary solution.

Help!
 
#2 ·
I would start from the beginning with the housetraining since he does need a review. Everything is new and strange to him and he could be holding it too long even during his walks. I would also take him to the vet to rule out any bladder infection. I think the best way is to keep him with you - tie his leash to your belt and when you can't watch him -put him in his crate. When you take him out of his crate - take him outside immediately and give him enough time to go. Also be sure to clean up the areas he has peed in with an enzyme cleaner so he doesn't go back to the same spots.
 
#3 ·
Just a couple of more suggestions. It could be that he is shy or fear related if when he was a puppy he was treated harshly when he had an accident, so he is afraid to pee when you can see him. If you have a secure fenced in backyard, let him out there alone first and also after returning from the walk. Some dogs also don't like to pee when they are on a leash or tied.
 
#4 ·
Thanks for the tips.

I don't think he has a fear of pee'ing while I'm watching him, he does totally fine on the leash, pee's on almost anything he can sniff.

He just pee'd in the living room again this morning, even after peeing outside. Ugh, so frustrating!
 
#6 ·
All of my dogs have been acquired between the ages of 18 months and 4 years of age and they all have disavowed any knowledge of being housebroken and peed in the house for awhile. I've found that you have to go thru the housebreaking procedure just like you would for a puppy. Marking (and you can tell the difference) has to be treated as unacceptable behavior and can be harder to break in an older dog that you adopt, depending on his background.
 
#7 ·
We've started from the beginning again, with regards to house training. Lots of praise when he goes outside. :) Hopefully it won't take him long to catch on again to what he already knows.

How can I tell the difference between marking and simply pee'ing?
 
#8 ·
I guess in the quantity. No matter which one it is, I agree with Soundguy, it is behavior not to be tolerated. Fortunately he isn't fearful. Praise is fine but he also needs to hear NO when he pees in the house. So, what I would do is when he does it - I would grab his collar say "No" and haul him outside and say "go Here " and praise him if he does. He does remind me of a friend's gsd (also an intact male)- who when they came to visit - went and promptly peed on the cat's scratching post. I told him sharply "No" - grabbed him by his collar - and since I lived in an apt. had him sit He didn't do it again. I would recommend the book The Evans Guide to Housetraining Your Dog by Job Michael Evans.
 
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