[vat]

Well I let Max out this morning and when he came in he made a beeline to the livingroom. I figured he was gonna steal his favorite ornament off the tree so I followed. Nope he hiked his leg and peed on the tree Needless to say I let him know how ticked off I was at him! I am hoping that since he got caught and scolded he will not do it again but I dunno.

For those of you this has happened to was your male intact or not or does that matter?

 

[gypsyrose]

just when you think you have e'm house broke huh Gypsy did the same thing in my gym but i dont scold much i just put her out right away and did not let her back in till the next day and took her back in the gym and kept her there untilll she squated and again took her out right away and that was the last time. she got the message. I hope...

 

[vat]

Well he is housebroke as he is almost 1 year old. But this is his first tree in the house and it is not even a real one! He knows he did wrong, I would never scold like that when housebreaking but he is way past that.

 

[gypsyrose]

gypsy was nearly a year old as well and at the time had'nt messed up in the house in a very long time... i thought at the time she may have thought she was in an out door like area or maybe she was excited that i allowed her in a new room in the house or the smell of a sweaty gym i just know as soon as she learned she wasent alowed to pee in my gym it has no longer been a problem.

 

[vat]

Ahhh I see what you mean. Yes I am hoping that since he was told no that he will not do it again.

 

[Kelly's Buddy]

Well he is housebroke as he is almost 1 year old. But this is his first tree in the house and it is not even a real one! He knows he did wrong, I would never scold like that when housebreaking but he is way past that.

He does know you're ticked off with him, he might know why if you actually caught him in the act.

If you're sure it isn't a medical problem, by hiking a leg like that he's marking that object (strange at that) as his. Males will do that to claim an area or object as theirs and as a sign of sexual maturity. There is more to it, look up "scent marking behavior."

 

[gypsyrose]

i love this place i learn new cool stuff every day now and it all mostly works. thank you all...

 

[Kelly's Buddy]

Well, there are many reasons why he decided to mark, but what stands out right now is the tree. It's new and it's in his perceived territory. A young intact male who is coming into maturity will sometimes test the leadership. Understand the behavior and you stand a chance in curbing it with your response, or neuter the dude which some people say will minimize it if it hasn't set in completely.

 

[vat]

He will be neutered this spring. My husband wondered if the tree skirt smelled like our 2 other dogs that are now gone. Could be, well now it has been washed. He was very good this morning after the incident. Laid by my feet where he is usually is playing and trying to wrestle with his sister. He has never been called a bad boy until this morning.

I am sure it is not medical, I am very familiar with UTI's.

 

[KZoppa]

Riley has never hiked his leg on our tree but our tree isnt real so i'm not sure if he would do it with a real tree. not gonna test it though. He knows he'd get in a world of trouble if he did it. he's fixed too. We DID have a male intact friends dog staying with us one weekend last xmas along with their altered male and both of them tried to hike their legs on our tree. So i dont think it really matters fixed or not. I think it would have been worse with a real tree. Just depends on the dog. Some dogs dont care if the tree is real or not and will just hike their leg, others wont. I think cause its your dogs first xmas the tree in the house whether its fake or not is possibly confusing.

 

[Lilie]

My daughter is here visiting from Louisiana. She brought her ill mannered beagle. He doesn't get along with Hondo so they have to be apart 24/7. He goes out, Hondo has to be in, etc. Yesterday I let the Beagle out while hubby held Hondo. When he let Hondo go, Hondo walked into the middle of the living room and peed! WTF! That is exactly what I said and snatched him up and went to put him outside and he looked at me like, "Well, you know the rules, let me go out and eat that rude little dog!" He hasn't had an accident since he was a little pup! All I could to was put him in his kennel. Anything else would have been a reward. Smart, sneaky little booger.

 

[VChurch]

:rofl:


When Sobacca was about a year old we got a real tree (typically we use a fake one) and I thought for sure he was going to hike a leg on it. But, he never tried to!

But Minna definitely messes with the tree. We have 3 or 4 bells around the bottom of the tree so that we can hear when she goes up to it. And her new trick is going up, walking under the lowest branches, and then grabbing a bell. Needless to say there's a lot of "Minna, No! Don't touch that!" going on right now. Glad to hear she's not the only one that has a fascination with the christmas tree and ornaments. I'm waiting for her to try to steal a candy cane....

 

[Kelly's Buddy]

Ahhh I see what you mean. Yes I am hoping that since he was told no that he will not do it again.

It's likely since you busted him, he understands that doesn't please you and it sends a message that you are the leader. But I wouldn't go to say he won't test you again. After all, it's part of who he is, as a creature.

Dogs are not people, and people are not dogs. They don't do things to tick you off. LOL

I said the tree may have been the trigger, but I also mentioned there are many other things that will.

Scent marking is silent communication at work, saying this is my territory and I'm able to defend it. So he's talking not only to outsiders, but insiders as well.

Look up: pheromones, scent marking

Neutering will not stop it if it become an ingrained behavior. So it's best to discourage it early on.

Some people say, (depending on the situation) that it can be a sign of trouble in the relationship with his owners. Maybe they're acting way too softly, getting lax, and Fido sees it as a opportunity to move up social hierarchy. Dog's don't necessarily fight to move up, they do it subtly and subtle ways that challenge for the lead, which is a whole new subject. Check yourself, are you providing solid leadership?

If I notice it, I discourage it, strongly if in the house. If I'm out walking them, I generally keep them in heel, but as a reward for a "good walk" I let them, "read the pee-mail" and respond in kind.

 

[Bridget]

I'm laughing at that; it made my day! We were always afraid our male lab would do that, but he never did.

 

[Zisso]

I don't trust my boy to not pee on a tree indoors so am grateful I have a tiny house and no space for a tree.

The last tree I had, a few years ago....my son brought his intact chihuahua over and he tried to pee on my tree, but missed and peed on presents ... Gross!

 

[paulag1955]

Oh, no! We don't have a tree up yet, but Shasta squatted in the kitchen and peed on the floor right in front of us the other day while my husband was playing with her. I guess she was having so much fun, did didn't want to take a break to go outside.