A Look At Indoor Potty Products

Indoor dog bathrooms come in a variety of styles including: real grass, artificial grass, pee pads, other absorbent materials, and plastic units. Our preference is for boxes that use some type of natural substrate, but here are some examples of each:

• Doggie Lawn: At the top of our list because it uses real grass (grass sits in a plastic tray), reducing confusion for dogs who are expected to eliminate outdoors as well as indoors. It comes in multiple sizes, from Standard (24 x 15.5 inches) to XL (24 x 48 inches) to accommodate a variety of different-sized dogs. Price ranges from $34 to $103 depending on size; you also order a subscription for their “soil-less” hydroponically grown grass for easy, compostable cleanup and replacement. Downsides: Real grass requires more maintenance than artificial, and isn’t good for dogs who have grass allergies.

• Bark Potty: Shredded and absorbent tree bark in a cardboard frame with an inner plastic tray. We like this one because it’s a natural material your dog can find outside for bathroom purposes. Netting over the surface prevents your dog from scattering the bark. Available in two sizes: Standard (16 x 20; $37) and Large (20 x 31; $58). Downsides: Some dogs may chew the box and the bark. Also although marketed to last a month, urine smell may become noticeable after three weeks.
• Petmaker Artificial Grass Puppy Pad: A four-layer unit consisting of an artificial grass mat, which sits atop an odor-resistant cloth mat, which covers a plastic drainage insert, which sits inside a durable plastic collection tray. Three sizes, from Small (16 x 20) to Large (20 x 30) from $25 to $45. Downside: Grass pads may wear out quickly.
• Doggy Bathroom Dog Litter Box: A plastic box with tall sides! Ideal for dogs who lift their legs to pee; absorbent pee pads attach to the sides of the box. Recommended for small dogs (up to 20 inches) – comes in two sizes: Mini ($189) and Regular ($209). Downsides: Cost and size limitation.
• BrilliantPad Original Indoor Dog Potty: The dog steps onto a low platform that has absorbent material stretched across it; the material is contained in rolls that are encased in plastic tubes on either side of the platform. After the dog eliminates on the pad, you can advance the pad to expose a clean section; the soiled section is contained until the entire roll (which contains 21 full pad advances) is soiled and discarded. A high-tech version (BrilliantPad Smart) allows you to advance the pad using an app on your phone. Downsides: Expensive ($230 – $250, plus rolls for $50 each) – and only for dogs 25 pounds or less. Motion activation could be aversive to some dogs.

Disposable Pee Pads: Lots of brands to choose from, so it can come down to personal preference; you may want to do a deeper dive into your own research and testing. Two we found that look promising are:

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• Bulldogology Carbon Tech – Top rated from numerous sources and reported to be super-absorbent. These pads don’t easily wrinkle, flip, or move. The 24- x 24-inch pads have six layers, including an odor neutralizer (carbon); layer of tissue, absorbent gel polymer, and a waterproof liner to prevent leaks. $57 for 100 pads.
• Kirkland Extra-Large Absorbent Pads – Costco sells these affordable, extra size for larger dogs (23 x 30 inches), with four layers including absorbent cloth, layer of tissue, absorbent gel polymer, and plastic liner to prevent leaks. $21 for 100 pads.

Washable/Reusable Pee Pads: Again, there are multiple brands to choose from; here are two that are highly rated:

• Green Lifestyle Reusable Dog Pee Pads – These thick and highly absorbent, eco-friendly, machine washable pads have reinforced seams that last for many washes. A waterproof backing prevents leakage. They come in two sizes – 30 x 34 inches and 34 x 36 inches and in a pack of four or six. $29 to $44 at Chewy.com.
• Max and Neo Washable Reusable Dog Pee Pads – These pads are quick-drying but extra-thick (four layers, with an inner layer that locks in liquid), and an inviting, quilted top layer. They come in one size (30 x 36 inches). $20 for two.

How to teach a dog to use an indoor potty

Some dogs catch onto indoor potty use very quickly, others take more effort, especially if they’ve been scrupulous about their housetraining habits in the past. Here are some tips:

• Place your dog’s bathroom in a quiet location that is easily accessible for her, on an easy-to-clean surface with good ventilation to minimize odor.
• Introduce your dog to the potty; show her where the indoor dog potty is and encourage her to check it out on her own so she can get comfortable with it. Do not put treats on it to get her to walk on it; dogs tend not to eliminate where they get food!
• Collect a urine and stool sample to place on the potty surface to give her the idea.
• Use positive reinforcement. When she uses the indoor dog potty, mark, praise, and give her a treat (away from the potty!). This associates using the potty with good things, making her more likely to use it in the future.
• As with any housetraining, consistency is vital. Take your dog to the indoor dog potty regularly, especially after meals, naps, and playtime.
• Give your dog time. Remember, it may take time for her to learn to use the indoor potty. Don’t get discouraged if your dog has accidents at first. Stick to your routine and reinforce good behavior. If you’re struggling, try taking your indoor potty outdoors to your dog’s normal bathroom spot, get her to use it there several times, then take it back indoors. Be patient!
• Teach a bathroom cue. Use a specific cue (such as “Potty!” or “Go pee!”) when taking your dog to the indoor dog potty. If you already use one for outdoor elimination, use the same one indoors.
• Be sure to clean up any accidents thoroughly and use an odor neutralizer on any elimination “mistakes,” to help clarify where your dog should and should not be eliminating.
• And one final tip for dogs who lift their leg to pee: Put a sturdy, absorbent-covered or washable post in the middle of the pad or box. If you can, collect a little of your dog’s or another dog’s urine (even a few drops!) and drip or spray the post with it; this will help show your dog where to lift a leg!

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Increased urinary accidents in the house can point to a health issue and should not be ignored. It could be something as treatable as a simple urinary tract infection or it could be more serious. When you notice that your dog is urinating more, it is important to observe what is happening so that a veterinarian can help you sort out the cause.

With that said, how many times a day should a dog urinate? The truth is, it varies. Large breed dogs may only go every 6-8 hours, while a smaller dog may need to pee more often. As a general rule, every 4-8 hours is normal. Most dogs can hold urine overnight.

What Causes Frequent Urination in Dogs?

To gain more information, watch your dog closely when outside on walks. Many of us let our dogs outside in a fenced yard without direct supervision. Walk with your dog and scrutinize urinary behavior. Is your dog squatting often but only passing a small amount of urine, or is it large puddles each time? Is your dog straining during urination? Is there blood? This information is very helpful in determining the cause.

After a few walks, it’s time to call the veterinarian. During an examination, several things will happen. Your veterinarian should take a thorough history on your pet that includes vaccination status, previous illnesses including urinary tract infections, any medications your dog takes (this DOES include over-the-counter supplements and non-prescription medications such as Benadryl), diet, and possible exposures to any toxins. After this, a head-to-toe examination is in order.

If the symptoms your dog exhibits are straining to urinate, frequent, small accidents or repeated, small puddles when going outdoors, a likely cause is a lower urinary tract issue such as a bladder infection, bladder stones, or cystitis (bladder inflammation). Diagnostics will include a urine sample, urine culture, and possibly x-rays of the bladder. Some breeds such as Schnauzers are more prone to certain lower urinary tract issues like bladder stones.

If the symptoms are large puddles of urine frequently with increased drinking, this is referred to as polyuria/polydipsia or “PU/PD.” These symptoms require a much more thorough diagnostic approach. Your veterinarian will likely recommend bloodwork, urinalysis, and abdominal xrays to start. PU/PD has a host of causes ranging from metabolic diseases like kidney failure or Cushing’s disease to toxin exposure and elevated blood calcium levels.

Read more on frequent urination here.

Can Spaying Caused Urinary Incontinence?

This isn’t an easy question to answer unfortunately. It does appear that there is a relationship between spaying (called an OHE) and the development of urinary incontinence. It tends to happen within about 3 years after the spay is done and in dogs > 45 lbs. (though any size dog can be affected). The exact cause is unknown. Age of the dog at OHE may play a role, but this is controversial. When deciding a time to spay your female, it is best to have a frank discussion with your veterinarian and weigh the benefits and risks of timing.

Is My Dog Urine Marking?

In some cases, urination in the house can be a marking behavior. This tends to be in unaltered animals, particularly males. It would be unusual for a neutered male or female to suddenly start marking territory, although it does happen – often with the introduction of new pets into the household.

Summary

A sudden change in a dog’s urinary habits is always a cause for further investigation. Monitor your dog’s bathroom breaks, then schedule an appointment. Your veterinarian will help determine the cause through a history and physical exam, as well as diagnostic testing. What may seem like a “wee” problem could be something serious, so speak with your veterinarian if you have any concerns.

The post Is Frequent Urination in Dogs Normal? appeared first on Whole Dog Journal.

Potty-training situations are of three types: (1) dogs who have never learned the appropriate place “to go,” (2) dogs who were once housetrained but are having a training regression, and (3) dogs who are pottying involuntarily – that is, they have no control over their urination or defecation. It just happens without any intent and often without the dog even realizing it is happening at all. Let’s look at these in order.

Housetraining For the Never-Housetrained Dog

Perhaps you have a brand new pup or a newly adopted teen or older dog. One thing that is vitally important to building a happy interspecies household is that your new dog becomes housetrained as quickly and reliably as possible. You should be equipped and ready to start housetraining your new dog from the moment that you bring him home.

Housetraining involves more than just learning where to potty; dogs and puppies must also learn to “hold it” until they get to an appropriate potty location and how to notify you to get them there. To help dogs build these skills and to help keep us on track with our housetraining responsibilities, I encourage people to think of housetraining in terms of C.R.A.P. Each letter of the acronym stands for an important part of the housetraining program: Confinement, Routine, Attention, Platinum rewards.

How to House-Train A Dog

Confinement

Preventing your dog from pottying in the wrong place is the first and most important housetraining task. Since most of us cannot keep our eyes on our dogs every minute, having a safe, comfortable confinement area is key to housetraining success. Most dogs naturally avoid going potty in their sleeping areas, so confining your dog in a small enough area that is more bed-like than room-like not only prevents unwanted accidents but also will help him develop bowel and bladder control.

What are appropriate confinement areas? I am a huge fan of crates, used appropriately, once dogs are comfortable with them. An area that is fenced off with a portable exercise pen or a smaller room (such as a bathroom or laundry room with a baby gate across the door) can also serve as a confinement area.

The key is that any confinement area should be small and cozy enough for your dog that he will choose “holding it” over pottying in it. When confinement is in place and used appropriately, there will be a decrease in potty accidents and an increase in bowel and bladder control.

As your dog enjoys continued success at pottying outdoors appropriately and not pottying indoors, you can increase the size of the area where he is confined when not being supervised. Don’t go too far, giving him whole-house freedom after he hasn’t had an accident for a few days. Instead, use an exercise pen to expand his confinement area by, say, 50 to 100 square feet more per week of success.

Routine

Both dogs and humans benefit from a predictable, consistent housetraining routine. This routine should account for confinement time, potty breaks, meal times, play time, training time, walks, and all the other enriching activities that are part of your dog’s daily life.

I recommend my clients create a written routine that includes potty breaks a minimum of every hour or two, depending on the age and situation of the dog. The general rule for “holding it” in a crate or pen is that dogs should have the ability to hold their bowels and bladder, in hours, the number of months they are plus one. So, a three-month-old pup ought to be able to hold his urine and poop for four hours. However, there are so many exceptions to this rule; most notably, that activity often makes a pup have to “go.” The best routines, then, are based on a solid understanding of your dog.

Some important notes about potty breaks:

1. You must go with your dog to the potty area so you can reward the deed when it occurs. By delivering an immediate reward, your dog quickly comes to understand that “Oh my gosh, going pee or poop in this location is nothing short of brilliant!”

2. It can be very useful to teach your dog a cue for pottying behavior. Some people use the simple phrase, “Go potty!” Others use a euphemism such as “Get busy!” Whatever phrase you use, say it once just before he starts to potty (don’t say it over and over again), and then reward and praise him mightily when he’s done. Soon, he will understand that the phrase is a cue – an opportunity to earn rewards for doing what he now knows it means: going potty. This will help him understand what you want when you take him to go potty in a new environment, or under distracting conditions he has not yet experienced.

3. If you expect your dog to potty on- and off-leash, your potty outings with your dog should sometimes be on-leash and sometimes off-leash. Why? From a dog’s point of view, pottying while on- versus off-leash can be a very different experience. Familiarizing him with both will pay off in the future.

4. While it might seem convenient to have a dog who will potty only in your yard (I call these private pottyers), it’s important that your dog learns to potty in other outdoor places, too. Indeed, I want dogs to be public pottyers (with responsible guardians who will clean up after them) so that day and even overnight outings are comfortable for all. I pity the poor dog who has learned to potty only in the privacy of his home when his family decides to bring him on a long vacation!

5. Also in the interest of adaptability to new environments, dogs should be exposed to different surfaces as part of housetraining. Dogs can develop “substrate preference,” the willingness to potty only on specific surfaces, such as grass or concrete.

While your dog’s inclination to develop a preference for pottying on certain substrates can be helpful in creating a defined toilet space in your yard, it can also limit your dog’s adaptability to new environments if he is not allowed the option to potty on different substrates.

6. Potty outings should be mission-driven. if your dog tends to fiddle and frolic prior to pottying, restrict your dog’s access to play until the deed is done. Fiddling and frolicking can then become part of the reward.

7. If you are away from your home for extended periods of time during the day, you must have a plan for getting your dog to his potty spot in your absence. Sometimes it takes a village to housetrain a dog, with friends, family, and neighbors, perhaps assisted by professional pet sitters, dog walkers, or trainers helping with the potty outing shifts.

Attention

The first question I ask when a client asks me a question about a difficulty with their dog’s housetraining is: “Are you catching your dog in the act of pottying inappropriately or just finding the evidence after the fact?” More often than not, people sheepishly confess that they usually find the mess after the fact – and this always means their attention needs to be improved.

There are two huge benefits to maintaining a laser focus on your dog when he is not confined. First, you can start to recognize and reward your dog’s “gotta go” signals. When your dog begins to pace, circle, and sniff, you can applaud his signaling (“Awesome doggie! Let’s go, go, GO!”) and rush him to his potty place. Rewarding “gotta go” signals will encourage your dog to become more demonstrative when he feels the urge – communication that is as helpful to us as it is to our dogs.

Second, when we catch him in the act we can provide immediate feedback. A simple “Hey, hey!” while hustling him to his potty spot will make the point that there’s a difference between the spot where he started and that special place you want him to go.

Platinum Rewards!

When housetraining a new dog (puppy or adult) I make sure I know what my dog considers “platinum level rewards.” Housetraining is a big deal, and it requires that we acknowledge our dog’s success with a fitting outcome for his or her achievement. High-value food rewards should be stored on a shelf or table by the door so you can grab them on the way out with your dog. And the rewards of praise and play should be abundantly part of the potty party that celebrates your dog’s success at pottying in the proper place.

Housetraining Regression

It is distressing when you believe housetraining has been achieved, only to find improperly located puddles or poops. Here are some reasons your dog’s housetraining might unravel:

Urinary tract infections or other medical concerns can result in potty accidents. If your fully housetrained dog begins to potty in the house, your first stop should be your veterinarian. Physical problems must be ruled out before assuming the problem is a behavioral one. Prior to your visit, assess your dog’s water and food intake so you can report any changes that might be part of the picture.

Recognize that a dog’s housetraining may not transfer to new environments. I have had many clients whose dogs’ housetraining fell apart when visiting the home of a friend, after a move, or even in a public place (how embarrassing!).

Just because a dog is housetrained in one environment does not mean he is housetrained in all environments. When you change environments, assume your dog is not housetrained until you have helped your dog understand that the habits learned in one place can also apply to the new setting. To do this, take your dog back to Housetraining 101.

Seasonal challenges. Just as your dog may need to relearn housetraining in a new environment, so may he need to relearn housetraining in different seasons. I have had many clients discover that their summer puppy’s housetraining unraveled at the first fall rain or winter snow.

I always advise clients to be proactive weather-watchers. If your dog’s potty place is outdoors, consider that potty habits can and might change with the season, and you may have to consider creative and proactive ways to keep your dog’s potty habits strong. For dogs who detest rain, the erection of a portable canopy might just ease the pain. A snow shovel goes a long way in helping small dogs deal with deep snow. Some indoor-outdoor carpet can buffer the heat of summer pavement.

Differentiate between relieving oneself and marking. Marking behavior can develop in dogs after their housetraining is concluded, as dogs mature and hormonal levels change. Marking is a natural behavior of both male and female dogs, though more pronounced in male dogs.

I approach marking like all housetraining problems, taking dogs back to Housetraining 101, with the emphasis on keen attention, since it is important to interrupt the urge to mark before actual house-soiling occurs. For dogs who are chronic markers, a belly band that prevents house-soiling may be a helpful management tool.

Consider the possibility of fear or anxiety being a contributing factor. One of my clients was dismayed when her Newfoundland started pottying in the house. As it turned out, the dog was pottying inside because he had become frightened of venturing into his yard following a neighbor’s home being re-roofed. The barrage of blasts from the nail gun had so traumatized the poor dog that he became housebound, leaving him no choice but to potty in the house, causing further anxiety.

In this case, we established an indoor potty area that was used while we worked on rebuilding positive associations with his backyard environment.

Potty Problems that are NOT Housetraining Problems

Involuntary urination and defecation can occur for a number of reasons with the common denominator to all being that the dog simply has no control over it. Here are some common reasons for involuntary pottying:

Excitement urination. Some dogs, especially young dogs, will involuntarily produce a puddle during happy homecomings and other joyful situations. Since most trigger situations can be predicted, the best way to reduce excitement urination is to downplay greetings and other emotionally charged situations by ignoring or only casually greeting your dog.

It also sometimes helps to give your dog something else to do in the moments when he is excited. For example, you might enter your home with one of your dog’s toys in hand, toss it away from you, walk past your dog while he retrieves it, then greet your dog several minutes later once the initial excitement worn off.

Because the trigger for excitement urination is a really big deal to the dog, it’s helpful to set up and practice mock greetings repeatedly so the trigger becomes less exciting – perhaps even a little boring.

Submissive urination. This form of involuntary urination is about social signals. It occurs when your dog’s emotional reaction to a trigger (e.g., a stranger or a family member) is one of appeasement, perhaps even fear. Submissive urination can be distressing to friends and family members who trigger it; they may think it suggests they have been threatening or unkind toward the dog, even when they have not. More often than not, the dog may be responding to the human’s body posture and size, voice volume and tone, or other characteristics that trigger an innate submissive response.

Submissive urination problems can be often be resolved by downplaying greetings, counter-conditioning the presence of the individual (building a positive emotional association with the trigger), coaching individuals who trigger the submissive urination to avoid provocative body language (such as direct eye contact with the dog, looming over or reaching for him, direct frontal approaches, and loud body language and voices).

I have also found that teaching the dog a cue that means someone is about to approach (such as, “Hello, I’m Here!”) can reduce submissive urination by removing the element of surprise from the interactions.

Incontinence. Age and illness can produce urinary and/or fecal incontinence in our dogs. Ill or elderly dogs may leak urine or expel feces while sleeping or may experience sudden urges to potty and be unable to make it out the door. Female dogs with hormonal changes may leak urine, too.

While many people accept incontinence as an inevitable part of their dogs’ health or aging, both western and eastern medicine offer remedies, so a visit to your veterinarian is a must. The use of belly bands, doggie panties, and potty pads in sleeping areas may help lessen the burdens of clean-up.

Essential Tools for Housetraining

It makes the whole housetraining task a million times easier if you are prepared in advance of your new dog or puppy’s arrival with all the things you will need to manage his whereabouts and support his progress. Here are the essentials:

• A crate, portable exercise pen, or small room equipped with a baby gate, so you can create an appropriate confinement area for your dog. This will prevent unwanted accidents from occurring. Preventing unwanted accidents ensures our dogs don’t rehearse pottying in inappropriate places and keeps the non-potty places from becoming infused with those potty scents that can trigger a dog into making a mistake.
• Some good clean-up products to eliminate potty smells from your home should an accident happen (as it might, since we’re only human and we do make mistakes). While there are many on the market and recipes for potty clean-up concoctions can be found online, my personal favorite is unscented Anti-Icky Poo by Mister Max (available in some pet supply stores and online). It contains enzymes that help destroy the odor-causing compounds in urine.
• A ready supply of high-level (as defined by the dog) rewards to dole out to your dog when he or she gets it right. Appropriate pottying is not a minimum wage activity; consider it a canine act of genius when your new dog gets pottying right and reward with the stuff (food treats, toys, and play) that your dog really values.
• In some cases, potty pads may be helpful, though I personally prefer to exclude them from my housetraining protocols (it’s one less step to fade out to get to the final goal of the dog pottying in a specific spot).
• For some, it’s helpful to create an indoor toilet area – a litter box for dogs, so to speak. If an indoor toilet area for your dog would be helpful for you, the “litterbox” should be available as a potty destination from the get-go.
• In cases involving urine marking, belly bands can be a very helpful tool. They don’t prevent marking but they do prevent house soiling, and many dogs seem to refrain from marking when the belly band is on. Belly bands are available in various sizes from pet supply stores and online.

Potty Pads for House Training?

I am not a fan of introducing potty pads as part of a housetraining regime. If the goal of housetraining is for your dog to potty outside, then potty pads create a middle step that must eventually be phased out as part of the overall housetraining plan. I would rather start focusing a dog’s attention immediately on the final destination. Why create an extra step if we don’t have to?

Some people, however, plan for their dogs to have an indoor toileting spot, with potty pads as part of their dogs’ lifelong scenario. This can be convenient, so you don’t have to make that trip outside, by giving a dog a legal potty place indoors. However, they don’t magically attract dogs to eliminate on them; dogs need to be taught to use them, just like they need to be taught to go outdoors. Either task can be accomplished by following the rules of house training 101.

People sometimes decide to use potty pads because they have to leave their dogs alone indoors for longer periods of time than their dogs can hold it. If this is the case with your dog, make sure you leave her in a larger long-term confinement area than the aforementioned crates or cozy confinement area. Make an area for sleeping and hanging out, and a separate space for eliminating on the potty pads.

Dog Doors: Yay or Nay?

As the proud guardian of both a brand new Aussie puppy and a “sudden urge” Greyhound senior, I am grateful for my dog door. My dogs go in and out at will, never needing to call on me to use my opposable thumb to turn the handle to open that door. At my house, there’s no need to find the attendant to get the restroom key; the bathroom door is always unlocked. My dogs go out, my dogs come in. There’s nary a potty accident or worry.

(Note: Some people worry about things that can happen to their dogs outside in their yards if the dog is unattended. The yard that is available to my dogs through my dog door is super dog-proofed and double-fenced. That said, there are more dangers to an unattended dog outdoors than indoors, but this is a risk I have taken with my dogs for many years without a problem. You may make a different choice.)

Without a doubt, my new pup has learned to go outside to potty and I am thrilled that she has learned to use the dog door. When nature calls she hops through and out. There hasn’t been an accident in weeks and I’m off the hook as door attendant. But is my new puppy fully housetrained? The answer is…no!

Besides learning where to potty, our dogs need to learn to “hold it” when they can’t get access to the potty place. And they need to learn how to inform us that they need our help to get from here to there. Without these lessons, housetraining is incomplete and potty mishaps are bound to occur when dog doors aren’t available – perhaps when the dog door is inadvertently left closed or when we’re visiting the home of a dog-door-deficient friend.

My new pup will be traveling with me soon and I don’t think the dog-friendly hotel has a dog door (that’s a bit too friendly). I’d better get going with Housetraining 101, rather than letting my dog door allow me take the lazy way out. And, as an adjunct to the basic training, I’ll be teaching my new pup to ring a “Hey, I gotta go!” bell. It’s pretty simple to train a dog to ring a bell (I think of this as a call for room service) and in terms of my learned response (jump up and attend to her), I’m a pretty quick study. (For instructions on teaching a dog to ring a bell on the door, see “Target-Train Your Dog to Ring A Doorbell“.)

Proper House Training is A Great Investment of Time

This might all sound like a ton of work; it isn’t necessarily so. If you observe the CRAP guidelines (Confinement, Routine, Attention, and Platinum rewards) from the very first day with your new dog or pup, he should quickly figure out when and where to “go” (perhaps on cue!), and how to “hold it” at all other times. His success at these tasks may make or break your happiness at living together, so give it your very best!

How to House-Train A Puppy: Problem-Solving

Amber was a darling Golden Retriever pup who had graduated from my Puppy Kindergarten with honors. She had a strong foundation in socialization and training, which had resulted in her having a happy and positive worldview and good puppy manners. Most importantly, Amber had mastered housetraining. At the time of her graduation, her parents proudly noted that Amber had not pottied in the house in weeks, and when she had to go, she let her parents know by whining at the door.

I next heard from Amber’s mom when Amber was a little over six months old. Completely unexpectedly, Amber had started peeing in the house! While the peeing was problem number one, a second problem was that Amber had started to ignore her owners and seemed generally more “out of control.” The appearance of these two behaviors together led her dad to one conclusion: Amber’s inappropriate peeing, along with her inattentiveness and unruliness, all coming at this teenage moment, was proof positive that she wanted to exert her dominance on her family. Oh, boy.

I had another thought that I shared with Amber’s mom: When a fully housetrained dog starts urinating and/or defecating in the house, one must get thee and thine dog to a veterinarian to rule out a medical cause! Urinary tract infections are a very common reason that a formerly housetrained dog might start urinating in the house; the painful condition causes an urgency that few dogs can resist.

Sure enough, Amber’s medical work-up showed just that. After a course of antibiotics – and her owners’ renewed training practice sessions – Amber’s “dominance problem” fully disappeared.

Sarah Richardson, PhD, CPDT-KA, CDBC, CSAT, is the owner of The Canine Connection, a boarding, training, and daycare facility in Chico, California. Over the past 12 years, she and some of her assistant trainers have often modeled for photos that illustrate articles in WDJ, but this is the first article that Richardson has written for WDJ!

The post How to Potty Train A Dog appeared first on Whole Dog Journal.

There is one benefit to crate training a new dog or puppy which may not be obvious, but for many dog guardians becomes the only reason: crates are instrumental in house training (potty training) dogs.

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Crate training your dog comes with ample benefits for the both of you, so let’s review the several varieties of dog crates on the market, and what each crate is best suited for!

5 Types of Dog Crates:

1. Plastic Portable Dog Carriers

Plastic dog crates like these are generally used for small to medium-sized dogs. They are typically made entirely of thick plastic, have a front-facing swinging door and a carrying handle on the top. This type of crate is helpful for dogs who are on the go with their owners. Portable and sturdy, these crates are good for car and plane travel. If you’re flying with your dog and you know he’ll need to go in the cargo hold, a strong-walled crate like this will offer the most protection.

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2. Folding Wire Dog Crates

Here is the ubiquitous dog kennel – the wire crate. Most are folding, so you can easily move them around the house or into the car. The upsides of these crates are that they come in all sizes, your dog has unrestricted view of the house from within, and they are easily cleaned. Putting a cushion or thick blanket down on the metal bottom tray makes it comfortable for your dog. A common issue with these crates is often they are too big for the dogs that use them. A roomy crate might just be big enough for your dog to eliminate on one end and curl up for bed on the other, foiling your housetraining initiatives.

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3. Soft-Sided Dog Crates

This type of dog kennel isn’t for every dog. They are usually made of canvas or nylon, and are therefore more destructible than wire or plastic crates. Dogs who like to scratch or chew at their confines are not good candidates for a soft crate; in general, WDJ doesn’t recommend soft crates for initial crate training. For already crate-trained or exceptionally calm dogs, a soft kennel is a comfortable, lightweight travel option for dogs of any size. WDJ reviewed the best soft-sided dog crates on the market– check it out to see if they’re right for your dog.

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4. Heavy-Duty Dog Crates

Whole Dog Journal does not see an immediate purpose for a “heavy duty” dog kennel, unless of course you need to crate the Hulk. This type of crate is commonly marketed for giant breed dogs, dogs who destroy their crates, or for master kennel escape artists. If this is the only kind of crate you’ve found that is large enough for your enormous dog, fine. If you think a heavy-duty crate is the right solution for a dog with crate anxiety – a dog who relentlessly chews the crate and tries to escape, who can’t hunker down and relax in confinement no matter what – you need to take a few steps back. Remember: the point of a crate is not to be a prison, but a havenfor your dog. If you need maximum security just to keep your dog inside a crate, your dog is not reaping the training benefits a crate is supposed to provide. Instead, some negative behaviors like house soiling may even worsen as the dog’s stress compounds.

Amazon.com/BestPet Professional

5. Furniture Dog Crates (sometimes called Fashion Crates)

This kind of crate is exactly what it sounds like: a dog kennel that doubles as home furniture. The most typical example of this crate is in the form of an end table or credenza. WDJ does not recommend these crates for dog training. They are not portable or easily cleanable, but they are quite expensive.  Yes, they look nice in the living room, but unless your dog is accustomed to sleeping in cabinets, we don’t recognize this type of dog kennel as an effective training tool.

Hayneedle.com/Boomer & George Trenton

Do Dogs Like Kennels? Why Should You Crate Train?

The age-old theory is that dogs, having evolved to be “den” animals who seek the security of small, enclosed spaces to sleep and hide, will avoid pooping or peeing inside the crate because that would defy an instinct to keep their den clean. Dogs find comfort in having a crate of their own – when they have a positive association with the crate, it becomes a place to retreat when the house environment gets overwhelming, or when they want to sleep unbothered by housemates. Naturally, dogs are motivated not to eliminate in their own space. For this reason, you can avoid accidents in the house overnight by crate training your dog.

Dog crates are NOT supposed to be used as punishment! Dragging the dog into his crate whenever he misbehaves will not only encourage your dog to consider the crate as a prison and explore ways to escape it, but will also ruin your dog’s chances of using the crate in its intended way: as a place to relax.

It’s true: some dogs hate the crate. Encouraging guardians to crate a dog who is clearly stressed by it would be irresponsible on WDJ’s part. There are alternatives you can try if your dog dislikes being crated. You can also probably rebuild a more positive association with the crate through careful, calculated conditioning. Even for grown dogs who’ve had a long-time aversion to the crate can be reconditioned to tolerate it.

In summary, the best kind of crate to use to train your dog depends on your lifestyle and intentions. Do you need a dog crate that pops up and breaks down easily for relocation, or something sturdy for frequent car rides? Invest in a properly sized wire crate. Need a carrier for your small dog that he can feel extra safe in? The hard-sided plastic crates are your best bet.

The post Best Types of Crates for Dog Training appeared first on Whole Dog Journal.

1. Employ alert, active supervision of your dog. Any time you are not watching him, use a management tool (such as a crate, gate, exercise pen, or belly band) to prevent him or her from marking.

2. Consider what might be adding to your dog’s stress. Menace from another dog? A lack of structure? A smoke alarm chirp, incessantly warning of a low battery? Remove any stressors you can.

3. Use an enzymatic cleaner on every location that has been “marked.” Your dog’s nose is far stronger than yours, and even the tiniest whiff of urine may serve as a prompt for him to mark again. Use a black light to make sure you haven’t missed any spots that need to be cleaned.

Tinkle, tinkle, little Pug, must you mark upon my rug? Or the side of the couch? Or the leg of the coffee table?

Many dog owners are familiar with a dog’s unwanted usage of “pee mail,” more accurately known as “urine marking.” While this leg lifting is a perfectly normal behavior, “normal” does not mean “acceptable” when it comes to the peaceful cohabitation of humans and canines.

Marking is different from urination; a dog urinates to relieve his bladder of the sensation of feeling full. In contrast, marking does not involve full evacuation of the bladder; instead, the dog releases a small amount of urine as a communication strategy. Urine contains pheromones, chemicals that provide critical information regarding a dog’s age, gender, health, and reproductive status – all very interesting and important olfactory reading if you’re a dog. This is why dogs are so intent on smelling where other dogs have fully eliminated or marked.

Marking is most common in, but not limited to, male dogs, and typically begins at puberty. Depending on the breed (small breeds mature faster than large breeds), this usually happens around six to nine months of age. As male dogs begin to sexually mature, the increased presence of testosterone encourages the signaling of sexual ability and territory marking. Dogs who are neutered around six months of age are less likely to urine mark, or mark less often, compared to intact dogs or dogs who are neutered later. That’s not to say all unaltered dogs mark. As with many things, training goes a long way toward preventing marking among all dogs.

Acceptable Urine Marking

When out in the world, urine marking is like social media. Watch your dog while on a walk. Each time he stops and sniffs, he’s “reading” the canine equivalent of a Twitter feed. Think of your own social media habits. Some posts you quickly read and move on to the next interesting tidbit. Some posts you “like.” Some posts inspire you to post a reply or comment of your own! Well, your dog makes similar choices. So long as he’s using his urine-based social media responsibly, we see no problem with this behavior, as it gives your dog, and those who happen by at a later time, valuable information.

When Urine Marking Becomes a Problem

Marking inside the house is another story. When dealing with an indoor marker, it’s wise to first make sure you don’t actually have a basic housetraining problem. When young dogs, especially young toy- and small-breed dogs (whose bladders are smaller, resulting in less output, and, often, a need to relieve themselves more frequently), are given too much freedom too soon, they may develop the habit of urinating in the house. This is frequently done out of the owner’s sight, causing the owner to believe the dog is house-trained. When the owner finally catches the dog in the act, the dog is labeled a “marker.” In reality, the dog was never properly house-trained.

As a general rule of thumb, until your new dog or puppy has been accident-free for at least a month (and perhaps as long as three full months!), he should not be allowed to roam the house unsupervised. Adhering to this lengthy benchmark goes a long way toward making sure your dog fully understands the “house rules” of toileting habits.

Marking in Multi-Dog Households

Marking is predominantly a stress- and anxiety-related behavior. Indoor marking is more common in multi-dog households because dogs compete for resources: bones, toys, prime lounging spots, access to humans, etc. This competition can be very subtle, and often goes unnoticed by humans. For example, a pointed glance or sudden stillness by another dog in the household – perhaps guarding a toy or a coveted spot – may seem mild to us, but to an anxious dog, might feel like a much more serious situation (perhaps like the difference between someone directing a mild expletive our way versus flashing a switchblade at us at the ATM). Most confident, well-adjusted dogs handle these normal interactions with ease – both in terms of giving and receiving information. Anxious or insecure dogs can struggle, and, as a result, are more prone to marking as an outlet for that stress.

Other Common Urine Marking Triggers

A sudden change in routine, moving to a new home, short- and long-term houseguests, visiting animals, death of a housemate, worrisome noises outside, unexpected encounters on walks, illness, and even re-arranging the furniture are all things our canine friends might find stressful.

Newly adopted dogs often mark in an attempt to create a sense of familiarity in an otherwise completely foreign environment. A dog you’ve had for a while might mark during or following a visiting animal’s stay in the home, or even mark human guests’ belongings when left out, for similar reasons. “This doesn’t smell familiar . . . . Here, let me take care of that.” Marking becomes an attempt to create a sense of normalcy. It’s like putting your favorite family photo on your desk during your first day on a brand-new job. “See! I do belong here. My stuff is here!”

Like people, our dogs get used to things being a certain way, and, just like people, some dogs handle change better than others. Owners frequently report their dogs started marking out of “spite” following a life change.

But spite and vindictiveness are uniquely human emotions. Dogs just aren’t wired that way. Plus, remember that, to dogs, urine (and feces) is a source of extremely useful information. A puddle of urine or pile of poo is like a page one New York Times article; it’s A-1 reading material! Why would your dog leave you such a gift if he was trying to “get back at you” for something? If you had the powerful nose of your canine companion, you’d look to the scent of your dog’s urine to enlighten you about his emotional state. I think we can all agree we’re glad we aren’t dogs when it comes to this habit. Trust your trainer when she says it’s not spite, it’s stress!

Even stressful run-ins away from home can lead to incidents of marking at home, just as a stressful day at work might cause us to reach for a glass of wine as soon as we head through the door.

For example, if your dog is fearful and finds walks stressful, he might not mark during the walk (since doing so would further announce his presence, and fearful dogs largely prefer to blend in, not stand out), but the residual effects of the stress-inducing event might cause him to mark as a coping mechanism once he returns home.

Medical Reasons for Indoor Peeing

Any time there’s a sudden change in your dog’s behavior, it’s wise to rule out underlying medical reasons for the behavior. No amount of behavior modification will overcome a medical condition. If you can’t easily identify the possible stress-related reason for your dog’s behavior change, we recommend a vet visit. A dog with a urinary tract infection (UTI) can experience an almost constant need to “go,” and will often expel small amounts of urine frequently throughout the day.

How to Stop Your Dog’s Urine Marking

Individually and in combination, the following strategies can help stop the marking:

1. Employ management. The first step in correcting a marking issue involves diligent management in an effort to stop the rehearsal of unwanted behavior. Keep a close eye on your dog – no unsupervised time! – so you’re able to immediately interrupt all attempts to mark and redirect his efforts to “go” outside.

When you can’t supervise, consider confining your dog to an x-pen or crate, or use baby gates to create an area small enough to deter soiling. If marking is limited to a specific room, restrict access to the area for at least a month (the same benchmark as housetraining). Some clients report success moving their dogs’ food and water to the problem area, as most dogs won’t mess where they eat. Often, employing diligent management to prevent the behavior is enough to offer long-term improvement.

2. Reduce stress. Identify events in your dog’s life that might create stress. Some stressors can be tricky. For example, many owners think showering their dogs with endless treats while requiring little in terms of basic obedience is a wonderful way to convey love. Unfortunately, a lack of basic structure often contributes to anxiety, especially in multiple-dog households. While I’m not a fan of rigid “leadership” protocols, I believe dogs do best when taught a basic skillset designed to create a working partnership with their humans, whose job it is to ensure the well being of everyone in the household.

If marking mostly happens when you aren’t home, your dog might be anxious being alone. Be sure to keep departures and arrivals low-key to reduce the tension of an already emotional event for your dog. Teaching your dog to accept time away from you – even when you’re home – can also help reduce anxiety when you leave. (See “Separation Anxiety in Dogs: Symptoms and How to Modify the Behavior,” (October 2016), for more information about separation anxiety and isolation distress.)

Also, be mindful of potentially scary noises that might be causing anxiety – for example, the ear-piercing back-up beep of the garbage truck on trash day. Often, once you’ve identified the trigger, you can successfully counter-condition your dog’s emotional response.

Anxiety can be a tricky issue to overcome. Some dogs respond well to homeopathic remedies or flower essence blends designed to reduce anxiety. Another option is Adaptil, a pheromone-based product available as a plug-in diffuser or a collar. Adaptil products release pheromones involved in the attachment process between a nursing dog and her offspring, offering an olfactory message of comfort and security. In some cases, pharmaceutical intervention might be necessary.

3. Clean soiled areas. Use an enzymatic cleaner such as Nature’s Miracle to thoroughly clean urine spots in the home. Avoid ammonia-based cleaners. Urine contains ammonia, and such products can encourage further marking. If moving into a new home formerly occupied by dogs, consider professionally cleaning or replacing the carpet to reduce your dog’s desire to mark over existing animal scent. If this isn’t possible, use a black light to search for potential problem areas.

4. Consider neutering. While not a guaranteed fix, neutering your dog, especially before he reaches full sexual maturity (12 to 15 months), is likely to reduce or eliminate his tendency to mark by stopping the influence of hormones.

5. Discourage all marking, even outdoors. In some cases, the act of marking becomes a well-practiced habit that remains even after removing environmental stressors or choosing to neuter (especially among dogs neutered later in life). In such cases, I recommend drawing a hard line when it comes to marking, even outdoors. When on a walk, give your dog an opportunity to fully void his bladder, then quickly but casually interrupt all subsequent attempts to leave his calling card throughout the neighborhood. It need not be a dramatic interruption; simply keep walking as your dog attempts to mark, almost like you hadn’t noticed.

(Note: An opposing view holds that thwarting this behavior outside can increase a dog’s stress, especially among anxious dogs. You may have to experiment to learn which approach improves the situation with your dog.)

6. Try a belly band. If you can’t directly supervise or appropriately confine your dog to minimize his marking, a fabric belly band might be helpful. A belly band fits like a tube-top around your dog’s waist, covering his penis. The band often discourages any amount of urination while the garment is on, or, at a minimum, absorbs the urine and protects your home and furniture.

7. Most importantly, don’t punish! Remember that inappropriate marking is a stress response. Calmly interrupting a dog as he’s marking is one thing. Reprimanding him after the fact will make things worse. Unless you intervene as it’s happening, your dog won’t connect your displeasure with his marking. He might look guilty as you reprimand him, but that look is an attempt to appease you in that moment – not because he realizes his marking, which took place however long ago, is unwanted.

Similarly, avoid stern admonishments in situations where he’s likely to mark. “No marking while I’m gone!” or “You leave Grandma’s stuff alone!” will serve only to increase your dog’s anxiety, since he can’t understand your words, but recognizes a harsh, unhappy tone.

Stephanie Colman is a writer and dog trainer in Southern California.

The post Stop Urine Marking in the House appeared first on Whole Dog Journal.

I can still remember the day, more than a decade ago, when I first realized with horror that our Scottish Terrier, Dubhy (pronounced “Duffy”), was marking in the house. We were trying to sell our Tennessee home at the time, which made the indoor leg-lifting behavior doubly disturbing. Homes with urine stains and odors don’t show particularly well. Dubhy was young, just over a year old. I wrote off the amber-colored stains I found on the heater vent to not-quite-finished housetraining, redoubled my management efforts, and stepped up the “potty outside” routine. It didn’t help. I began to question my professional dog-trainer credentials. Personally faced with persistent indoor marking, one of the more frustrating challenges dog owners encounter, I was not succeeding at resolving it.

Leg-lifting is a natural, normal behavior for dogs, especially (although not exclusively) for males. Of course, like lots of other natural, normal dog behaviors, it’s unacceptable to most owners. Fortunately, most male dogs learn pretty quickly that humans, for some unfathomable reason, don’t appreciate their efforts to tell the world that the house, and all items within in it, are the property of the dog and his family. “Keep your paws off!” he is saying to the world.

Indoor marking is also often a function of stress. Dogs who are anxious about their environment are more likely to mark indoors than those who are relaxed and calm. Stress-related marking is harder to modify than the simple “This is my stuff” leg-lifting. Dubhy was a calm, easygoing, laid-back dude. The idea of stress-induced marking didn’t even enter my mind.

Only after several years had passed did I realize that Dubhy’s indoor marking coincided precisely with the start of his dog-reactive behavior. The dog reactivity emerged as the result of a pair of roaming Labradors Retrievers (who lived a mile away) who repeatedly breached their underground shock fence, visited our yard, and fought through our fence with our indomitable Scottie. I eventually realized well after the fact that the two behaviors were connected. Duh. The stress of the two intruding Labradors set off Dubhy’s marking.

Neutering Usually Stops Urine Marking

In Dubhy’s case, my initial analysis of incomplete housetraining, although incorrect, was not entirely off base. Indoor marking often begins in adolescent males because it is a natural behavior. Those “easy” cases often respond well to standard housetraining protocols: increasing the dog’s management to reduce his opportunity to mark, taking him outdoors to potty far more frequently, reinforcing appropriate elimination outside, and interrupting any leg lifts you happen to see with a reminder: “Oops! Outside!”
Of course, housetraining and/or behavior-modification efforts need to be accompanied by a good clean-up program using an enzymatic cleaner, to eliminate any lingering odor of urine (which invites the dog to mark again). It’s also important to rule out or treat any urinary-tract infections as possible contributors to inappropriate elimination. And don’t forget neutering!

According to Dr. Nicholas Dodman, veterinary behaviorist at Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University, about 60 percent of intact male dogs will stop urine-marking within weeks or months if they are neutered. Other sources claim as high as a 90 percent success rate post-neutering.

Suffice it to say that neutering is a good first step if your dog reverts back to peeing in the house. This is at least in part because intact male dogs will mark everything in response to the scent of a female in season somewhere in the area, and in part because testosterone in general contributes to the motivation to make a “this is mine” statement. Marking by female dogs will also usually resolve with spaying. Of course, the older the dog and the longer your dog has been practicing the marking behavior, the less likely it is that sterilization alone will fix the problem.

Dubhy, however, was neutered some five months before he started marking. That clearly wasn’t the answer to our dilemma. Nor did our return to a basic housetraining protocol stop his behavior.

Stress Generally Causes Dogs to Mark the House

The 10 to 40 percent of dogs who don’t stop their marking after neutering and remedial housetraining efforts are probably, like Dubhy, marking because of stress. In some cases, identifying stressors and removing them can eliminate marking. There are a variety of different strategies for removing stressors. The more stress you can remove, the more likely it is the marking will cease. Other than his reactive aggression toward other dogs, however, Dubhy was a pretty laid-back, mellow guy. We had talked to the neighbors on several occasions about keeping their wandering Labrador Retrievers at home, but Dubhy really didn’t seem to have a whole lot of additional stress in his life.

Exercise is an excellent stress reducer that can help your indoor-marker feel less compelled to lift his leg in your living room. Vigorous off-leash aerobic outings can work wonders with a variety of behavioral issues, as can force-free training routines that require a dog to think, and that tire him mentally. Products such as Adaptil (plug-in pheromone diffuser) can also be effective in decreasing stress levels for some dogs, as can calming massage, aromatherapy, and musical products from Through a Dog’s Ear (see “5 Things to Do if Your Dog Needs Cage Rest,” (August 2014).

How to Manage Urine Marking Indoors

Dr. Dodman suggests that dogs who persistently mark indoors and don’t respond to neutering and housetraining protocols almost always need anti-anxiety medication to resolve the problem. Indeed, pharmaceutical intervention can be quite successful, especially when combined with an ongoing behavior modification program.
Many dog owners prefer to avoid medication if possible, and choose, instead, to use a belly band for their indoor male markers (diapers are necessary for females). This is a reasonable solution to a vexing problem, if the dog accepts the device easily. If the dog can routinely Houdini his way out of the band, or is clearly distressed by wearing it, then it’s not a viable option and medication is a better choice.

We opted for management with Dubhy. He happily accepted his belly band, lined with a sanitary pad, and stood quietly when I told him it was time to put his pants on. Delivering a treat after applying the belly band helped keep him happy about the procedure. He would still mark into the band, so I had to change it as needed to prevent urine burns on his sensitive, bare abdomen.

Our earlier housetraining effort had at least succeeded in convincing Dubhy not to mark in our presence, so he could go pants-free when the family relaxed together evenings in the living room, and for sleep-time overnight in our bedroom. We used baby gates and closed doors to keep him in view. It was only for his unsupervised house-time that the band was required. Sure, I occasionally grumbled internally about the inconvenience of replacing pads and laundering belly bands, and groused out loud when he occasionally managed to pee out from under the band and I had to do clean-up duty, but it allowed us to have a peaceful life with our boy who might otherwise have been the source of much angst over the years.

We lost our beloved Dubhy a few months ago to lymphoma – a nasty and aggressive cancer. We miss him a lot. I’d give anything to have the privilege of putting belly bands on him again.

Ways to Approach Your Dog’s Pee-Inducing Stressors

I utilize five strategies for dealing with stressors. When I’m working with a client whose dog has stress-related behavior issues such as marking, aggression, or generalized anxiety, we list as many stressors as we can think of, assign one or more strategies to each stressor, and agree on which ones we will actively work on. Removing stressors doesn’t necessarily make the unwanted behavior go away, but it does make your behavior-modification efforts much more likely to be successful.

Here are the strategies:

1. Get rid of it

Get rid of anything aversive that causes unnecessary pain or stress, including shock collars, choke chains, and prong collars, and penny cans or throw chains. Even head halters, considered by some trainers to be positive training tools, are aversive to many dogs.

2. Manage your dog’s exposure to the stressors

If your dog isn’t fond of small children and there are none in your life (and he doesn’t encounter them regularly in your neighborhood), you can manage him (as I did) the one time each year your sister comes to visit with your young niece and nephew, by keeping him in another part of the house when the kids are awake and about.

3. Change his association to the stressors

Convince him that something that stresses him is actually very wonderful by pairing it consistently with something else wonderful. If your dog is stressed by men with beards, you can convince him that men with beards always make chicken happen by having a bearded man appear, and feeding your dog bits of chicken, over and over and over again, until he wants furry-faced men to appear so he can have more chicken. The key to successful counter-conditioning, as this process is called, is to always keep the dog below threshold; you want him a little aware of and worried about the aversive stimulus, but not quaking in fear or barking and lunging. (See “Counter-Conditioning,” below.)

4. Teach him a new behavior around the stressors

Perhaps your dog becomes highly aroused by visitors coming to the door. He’s not fearful or aggressive, but the high arousal is a stressor. You can teach him that the doorbell is his cue to run and get in his crate, where he’ll receive a stuffed Kong or other doggie delectable (see “Unwanted Barking at the Front Door,” February 2010). Or you can teach him that visitors will toss toys for him to chase if he sits politely when the door opens.

5. Live with the stressors

You don’t have to actively do something about every stressor in your dog’s world; every dog can tolerate some level of stress and a few stressors. Just try to do something about the ones that are easy to manage or remove from his environment, and be conscious that when he’s being exposed to the ones that you can’t do much about (say, sounds of construction coming from the building project next door), he may be more likely to exhibit urine-marking or other stress-related behaviors at that time.

Counter-Conditioning Urine Marking

Counter-conditioning involves changing your dog’s association with a scary or arousing stimulus from negative to positive. The easiest way to give most dogs a positive association is with very high-value, really yummy treats. I like to use white meat from chicken – canned, baked, or boiled, since most dogs love chicken and it’s a low-fat food.

Here’s how the process works:

1. Determine the distance at which your dog can be in the presence of the stimulus and be alert or wary but not extremely fearful or aroused. This is called the threshold distance.

2. With you holding your dog on leash, have a helper present the stimulus at threshold distance X. The instant your dog sees the stimulus, start feeding him bits of chicken, non-stop.

3. After several seconds, have the helper remove the stimulus, and stop feeding chicken.

4. Keep repeating steps 1-3 until the presentation of the stimulus at that distance consistently causes your dog to look at you with a happy smile and a “Yay! Where’s my chicken?” expression. This is a conditioned emotional response (CER) – your dog’s association with the stimulus at threshold distance X is now positive instead of negative.

5. Now you need to increase the intensity of the stimulus. You can do that by decreasing distance to X minus Y; by increasing movement of the stimulus at distance X (a child walking, skipping, or swinging her arms); by increasing number of stimuli (two or three children, instead of one); increasing the visual “threat” (a tall man instead of a short one, or a man with a beard instead of a clean-shaven one); or by increasing volume (if it’s a stimulus that makes noise, such as a vacuum cleaner). I’d suggest decreasing distance first in small increments by moving the dog closer to the location where the stimulus will appear, achieving his new CER at each new distance, until he is happy to be very near to the non-moving stimulus, perhaps even sniffing or targeting to it.

6. Return to distance X and increase the intensity of your stimulus (move the vacuum a little; have two children instead of one; have the man put on a hat, or a backpack), gradually decreasing distance and attaining CERs along the way, until your dog is delighted to have the moderately intense stimulus in close proximity.

7. Now, back to distance X, increase intensity again, by having your helper turn the vacuum on briefly, feed treats the instant it’s on, then turn it off, and stop the treats. (Or turn up the volume, or add more children, etc.)

8. Repeat until you have the CER, then gradually increase the length of time you have your dog in the presence of the increased-intensity stimulus, until he’s happy (but not aroused) to have it present continuously.

9. Begin decreasing distance in small increments, moving the dog closer to the stimulus, obtaining his new CER consistently at each new distance.

10. When your dog is happy to have the higher-intensity stimulus close to him, you’re ready for the final phase. Return to distance X and obtain his new CER there, with a full-intensity stimulus – a running, moving vacuum; multiple children laughing and playing; a tall man with a beard wearing a hat, sunglasses, and a backpack. Then gradually decrease distance until your dog is happy to be in the presence of your full-intensity stimulus. He now thinks the stimulus is a very good thing, as a reliable predictor of very yummy treats. In the case of a human stimulus, you can gradually work up to actual interaction with the human(s) at this stage, by having the person(s) drop treats as they walk by, then letting him take treats from their fingers – without direct eye contact, and eventually working up to normal interaction.

Pat Miller, CBCC-KA, CPDT-KA, is WDJ’s Training Editor. She lives in Fairplay, Maryland, site of her Peaceable Paws training center, where she offers dog-training classes and courses for trainers.

The post Ways to Combat Your Dog’s Indoor Urine-Marking appeared first on Whole Dog Journal.

It’s very disconcerting when your well-housetrained dog suddenly starts having accidents in the house. It may be human nature to think he’s doing it to spite you, but that’s not the case – a well-trained dog doesn’t just start soiling indoors on a whim. There’s a legitimate reason it’s happening, and you owe it to your dog to find out why.

Here’s what you need to do:

1. Explore possible medical causes of your dog’s accidents.

Something as simple as a urinary-tract infection or as complex as diabetes (causes increased thirst and water consumption, which causes increased urination) can be the cause of your dog’s indoor puddles. There are many common medical causes of increased urination. Gastrointestinal distress, which causes anything from slightly loose stools to liquid diarrhea, can prompt your dog to defecate indoors as well. Any dog can have an accident, but if yours has uncharacteristically started house soiling regularly, get thee to thy veterinarian as soon as possible for a complete workup.

2. Check if medications are causing your dog to soil the house.

A number of canine medications used to treat common health conditions can also cause increased water consumption followed by increased urination. Prednisone, used to treat a variety of ailments, is a prime example. Other medicines can cause gastrointestinal distress, which can also result in house soiling. If your dog is on any medications, ask your veterinarian whether that could be the cause of his break in training.

3. Look for possible stressors for your dog.

Urination and defecation can be a dog’s response to stress. Check your environment to see if there’s something going on that might provoke this stress response in your dog. Construction next door with loud machinery? Neighborhood kids who have discovered it’s fun to bang on your door to tease the dog? A watch alarm beeping in a drawer? Set up your laptop camera or nanny cam and see if you can make a correlation between stimuli, stress, and soiling. If you can’t find a specific trigger, then evaluate your dog’s total stress load and see if removing as many stressors as possible can help him return to his prior fastidious habits.

4. Evaluate your routine.

Are you working overtime a lot? Stopping on the way home at a local pub for some face time with your new honey? Perhaps your dog was just barely holding it with legs tightly crossed before, and the extra time it’s taking you to get home now is just more than he can handle.
If so, and if you can’t return to your prior schedule, then make arrangements with a neighbor or family member to let your dog out at midday or late afternoon, or hire a good petsitting service to do it.

5. Revisit basic housetraining lessons.

It’s worth putting serious energy into discerning the cause of your dog’s house soiling. If you discover and remove the cause of his problem, your dog may immediately return to his former pristine ways.

Or he may not. If that’s the case, or if you simply can’t find a reason, it’s time to go back to basic housetraining. You probably won’t have to implement the puppy “every hour on the hour” routine, but you do need to make sure he gets outside more often than he has to go. If you work all day, this might mean putting him back in a crate or exercise pen until he is successfully retrained, and hiring a professional petsitter (or arranging with a friend or neighbor) to let him out for a potty break at least once, preferably two or even three times during the day.

Just keep in mind that there’s a reason your housetrained dog might eliminate indoors – and neither spite, anger, jealousy, nor any other human emotion we might blame has anything to do with it. It’s up to you to find the reason and help him return to spotless living.

The post 5 Ways to Prevent Your Housetrained Dog from Soiling the House appeared first on Whole Dog Journal.

The basics of house training are simple: take your dog outside more often than she has to go, and in between trips, supervise her well so she doesn’t have the opportunity to go where she should not! Sometimes it is that easy. Sometimes it’ isn’t. Despite the simplicity of the basic housetraining formula, there’s much that can go awry.

You can prevent some of the house training missteps by going out with your dog, at least until she is trained. Take her out on-leash to her designated bathroom spot, wait until she has emptied, and then play with her before taking her back inside. This will accomplish some important things:

– Your pup will learn to potty first, so she can then play. If you let her play first and take her in as soon as she goes, she may learn to hold it as long as possible in order to prolong play. If she has to go first to make play happen, she will develop the habit of eliminating as soon as you take her outdoors. This will serve you well throughout her life, especially when you are in a hurry, or during inclement weather. If you go out with her, you will know whether or not she has emptied. If she doesn’t go, especially during the training phase, you’ll know to bring her back in and either re-crate her or at least keep her under direct supervision, until the next bathroom break.

– Consistently taking her directly to her designated bathroom spot will not only encourage her to go right away, but also teach her where to go, which facilitates future clean-up and decreases accidental step-in-poo incidents.

– By teaching her to go to the bathroom on-leash early in your relationship together, you may prevent the challenge of the dog who will go to the bathroom only when off-leash.

What’s the Frequency?

Assuming (for now) that your dog or pup has no medical or behavioral problems, how often does she have to go out? One oft-quoted rule of thumb for puppies is that they can generally hold it for up to one hour longer than their age in months. So a two-month-old pup could/should be able to refrain from eliminating for up to three hours, a three-month-old pup up to four hours, and so on. Unless she just ate, drank water, played, or woke up from a nap, in which case she’s likely to have to go any minute. And since pups are almost always eating, drinking, playing, or sleeping, they are almost always ready to “go.”

So the “one-hour-longer” guideline really applies only to enforced inactivity, such as when a pup is crated overnight or while her owner is at work. A better rule for young puppies is “every hour on the hour, and anytime they have just eaten, drunk, played, or awakened from a nap.”

Most adult dogs, once trained, are capable of routinely holding it for six to eight hours. While some dogs can go as long as 10 hours or more between bathroom breaks, they really shouldn’t have to. Professional petsitters are a good option for midday breaks if you don’t have a neighbor, friend, or family member you can trust to provide a potty opportunity.

Most humans sleep longer than four to five hours overnight, so clearly you can expect at least one oh-dark-hundred wake-up call per night during the first few weeks of your pup’s new life with you. Make sure your baby dog is crated near enough to you that you can hear her when she wakes up and cries to go out – and make sure you do get up and take her out – or you risk one of the behavioral problems discussed below.

Nighttime bathroom trips should be all business. On leash, go out, eliminate, come back in, and go to bed. If you include play or cuddling, you may teach your pup to wake you up for wee-hour fun even when she no longer has to empty her bowels and bladder overnight.

The good news is that many pups beat the rule and can sleep through the night by the time they are four months old – in part because they are not eating, drinking, playing, or waking up. You may get that longed-for night of uninterrupted sleep sooner than you think!

Getting Through the Early Days

These days, a majority of dog owners work outside the home for a full eight hours plus commute. If you are a stay-at-home mom or dad, work from a home office, or have other housemates who work different shifts and can share puppy training duty, you can skip this next part. If your pup must be left alone for long hours, read on. There aren’t many (any?) young pups who can go 6 to 10 hours without eliminating – nor should they have to. If you adopt a puppy and work outside the home you have several options:

– Take her to work with you. You can only do this, of course, if you have a workplace that allows it, and a workload that can accommodate a puppy’s needs.

– Hire a petsitter to come in as many times as needed during the day to make sure all your pup’s waste ends up outdoors where it belongs. For a young pup, this is at least two, perhaps three visits during a workday. Depending on where you live, this could cost anywhere from $15 to $40 per visit.

– Leave her with someone responsible that you trust to look after her, take her out often, supervise her activities, and reinforce the positive dog-human relationship that you are building with her. (Doggy daycare is not an appropriate place for a young puppy unless they have a completely separate puppies-only group and monitor the interactions very closely to ensure that all puppies are having a happy time.)

– Leave her at home indoors in an exercise pen large enough for her to have a designated potty corner and still keep the rest of her bedroom clean. (Lay a tarp on the floor, cover it with newspapers, and put your puppy pen on top.) Note: You should be aware that this option may make it more challenging to eventually convince her to only eliminate out-of-doors.

– Set up a very secure, weather-proof outdoor kennel area where she can stay during the day. (This is my least favorite option. I don’t believe dogs should be outdoors all day when their owners aren’t home, you risk annoying neighbors with her barking – and possible retribution such as theft or poisoning – and your dog still lacks the opportunity to learn not to soil her living area.)

If you are able to take your dog out more often than she has to go, your training efforts should pay off in a reasonable time with clean carpets, uninterrupted sleep, and a dog who knows her bathroom is outside.  If you are unable to do the above, you need to seriously rethink your dog/puppy-owning plan.

A Canine Litter Box

As a suburban or rural dweller for most of my life, I’ve always had the luxury of a backyard for my dogs. City dwellers often must alter house-training procedures to accommodate urban living. If you live on the 23rd floor of an apartment, there’s no way you’ll get your pup down the elevator and out the door before she has to empty her bladder.

If this describes your living situation, consider a litter box for your dog. You can use real sod, fake grass (Astro-turf), or even litter box material made for dogs. If you have a balcony, you can put your canine litter box there, and housetrain just as you would if you were taking your dog outside. Absent a balcony, set your litter box up in the chosen room of your apartment and housetrain there just as you would in a backyard. (If you have a male dog, you can put a secure post in your potty-box upon which he can lift his leg and still keep the urine within the confines of the box. Install a splash shield behind the post if necessary.)

Signals

A “gotta go” signal can facilitate housetraining. When your dog knows she can tell you she has to go out, there is less responsibility on you to make sure you take her out more often than she has to go; she will let you know when it’s time. Here are two methods for teaching your dog to communicate her bathroom needs to you.

Get Happy

This is my preferred method. It’s simple, and dogs learn it almost by osmosis. Every time I take my dog out for a bathroom break I get excited and say, “Want to go out?!” She gets excited and dances around in response to my excitement, and in fairly short order will offer the bathroom dance when she needs to go out. If you want your dog to bark to tell you she needs out, increase the excitement level until she barks, then take her out. I like this method because my dog will come and find me in order to deliver the signal.

Ring a Bell

Some owners like to teach their dogs to ring a bell hung on the doorknob when they need to go out. To do this, teach your dog to ring a bell on a string by either nose or paw targeting, then hang the bell on the preferred doorknob and ask your dog to ring it every time you take her out for a potty break. One downside to this method, especially if you live in a large house, is that you need to be close enough to the potty door to hear the bell when it rings. If your house is too large for this and you want to use this method, you will need to install an electronic bell or buzzer and have speakers installed throughout the house.

Complications

Of course, if housetraining were always as simple as it sounds, we wouldn’t need articles written about it. There are a number of things that can go wrong, even if you do all the things described above. Such as:

Medical Issues

Anything that upsets your dog’s normal patterns of elimination can complicate house training. These might include urinary tract infections, gastrointestinal upset or illness that causes diarrhea, mobility issues that make it difficult for your dog to get outside quickly, dietary or schedule changes, and consumption of some medications (such as prednisone) that cause increased water intake and subsequent increase in urinary output. Any time there is an unexplained house-training lapse in an adult otherwise house-trained dog, consider and explore whether there may be a medical issue.

Stress

Anxiety or stress can create an increased need for elimination. Dogs who suffer from separation or isolation stress often urinate and/or defecate during a stress episode. While owners sometimes perceive this dog as being “spiteful,” he is not. He can’t help it. He’s stressed.

Prior History

Some dogs have a prior history of house- or crate-soiling. The worst of these are dogs from puppy mill or hoarder environments, where dogs live for months (or years) in tiny cages and have had no choice but to eliminate where they live. Their inhibitions against soiling their own living quarters are damaged, and it can be very challenging to repair. It sometimes requires a very strong commitment to help these dogs learn new, appropriate bathroom habits.

Submissive and/or Excitement Urination

“Submissive urination” is a social signal. The dog who offers this behavior usually has an appeasing personality, and pees when she is approached, spoken to, or perhaps patted on the head, as her way of saying, “I am not challenging you.”

In contrast, “excitement urination” is more likely a function of a weak bladder sphincter – a dog who gets so excited she just “pees her pants.” You can talk to your vet about this one, but a good remedy for both of these is to 1) not punish for the behavior, as they are both beyond the dog’s deliberate control; and 2) take the dog out to empty her bladder before greeting her (or allowing others to greet her), and/or greeting her outdoors so the pee ends up where it belongs.

Don’t Skimp on This

There really is no excuse for failing to house-train your dog. Dogs who soil their homes are likely to lose them. The “moving, can’t keep” reason for giving up a dog to a shelter or rescue is often a screen for, “Moving, don’t want the carpets in our new home soiled the way the old ones were.” If you want your dog to go with you on all your future moves, make sure she always knows where the bathrooms are, and how to “hold it” until she gets there.

Midge, the Pet Store Puppy

Midge was a pet store puppy who, unfortunately, languished in her sales cage until the age of five months, when the Parker family took pity on her and purchased her. They knew the risks of buying a pup from a pet store, but they couldn’t bear to watch the adorable Midge growing up in a cage.

When they made an appointment to come see me for a private consult, it was for other behavioral issues – primarily the fear-related behaviors that resulted from a now two-year-old Midge’s lack of socialization in the puppy mill where she was born, and the pet store where she had grown up. They noted her house-soiling issues in the behavior intake form I asked them to complete, but were less concerned about that than the fear-based behavior that was escalating into biting. Recognizing that house soiling also put her at risk for losing her forever home, I convinced the Parkers that we needed to address both issues.

Reverse Crate Training

You can’t use a crate in the normal way to house train a dog who has learned to soil her bed. Normally, a dog – even a puppy – will try very hard not to soil the crate, so you confine them to prevent them from eliminating. Not so with Midge – in her mind she was supposed to eliminate in her crate. So we did the opposite: the Parkers started putting Midge in her crate only when they knew she had eliminated recently. At first they crated her for a maximum of 10 to 15 minutes, and then gave her supervised house freedom until her next bathroom break. Then she was back in the crate for a short spell. Gradually they lengthened her time in the crate, always removing her before she felt the need to eliminate, so she wouldn’t be tempted. If they had to leave her alone they left her in the bathroom, where she had a “legal” potty corner. The goal was to rebuild her natural inhibitions against soiling her bed.

I initially saw Midge some six months ago. It’s taking some time to resove her fear issues, but she’s made very happy progress in housetraining. She is now able to be crated for up to four hours during the day while her humans are away, and is immediately taken to eliminate outside when family or the pet sitter arrives at the home. She can be crated overnight in the Parker’s bedroom without a halftime potty break. She has been accident-free for the past four months, and is no longer supervised closely when loose in the house with her owners at home. The Parkers are delighted with her new house-training skills, and continue to work diligently to modify her fearfulness.

Teach Your Dog to Ring a Bell!

Some owners like to teach their dog to ring a bell as their bathroom signal. You can do this by teaching your dog to target her nose or paw to a bell suspended on a string from the doorknob, or to a button that causes a buzzer to go off.

Nose:

This one is usually pretty easy, since dogs are likely to sniff a novel object that we present to them. Hold the bell in your hand and offer it to your dog. When she sniffs it (or sniffs near it) click your clicker (or use a verbal marker such as the word “Yes!”) and feed her a treat. Repeat until she is eagerly nudging the bell with her nose in order to get you to mark-and-treat. Add your “Want to go out?” cue just before you offer the bell for her to nudge. Now lower the bell an inch on its string, and click and treat for nudging. As you let the string get longer and longer, start only clicking nudges that are hard enough to make the bell jingle.

When she’ll consistently make it jingle at full string length, hang it on the doorknob and continue the lessons. When she can easily jingle the hanging bell on cue, start cueing it right before you take her out to potty. Gradually increase the distance you are from the door when you give the cue, and before long she’ll be offering the behavior on her own when she needs to go out.

Paw:

If your dog already knows a cue for “Shake hands,” ask her to “Shake” while holding the bell in the palm of your hand. After a few of these, precede the “Shake” cue with your new “potty bell” cue, whatever you want that to be. In short order, she will tap the bell in your hand with her paw on the bathroom cue, and you can drop the “Shake” cue, reserving that for when you really want her to shake. Gradually lengthen the string and follow the directions above to teach her to paw the bell as her bathroom cue to you.

If your dog doesn’t already know a cue for “Shake hands,” you can prompt her to paw at your hand by holding a treat in your closed fist (click and treat!) until she offers the behavior easily, then transfer it to the bathroom bell. Or you can shape the behavior by clicking her for any paw movement at first, gradually clicking only for paw movements that come closer to ringing the bell, and eventually only for those that ring the bell.

Squeak:

Dogs who enjoy playing with squeaky toys may take to this alternative to bells. Use the shaping process described above to cue your dog to grab and squeak the toy, and then move the game to the door to your yard. With a zip-tie or string, fasten the squeaky toy to the door handle, at a height where it’s easy for your dog to reach and mouth it, but not low enough to make it easy to chew.

Pat Miller, CBCC-KA, CPDT-KA, CDBC, is WDJ’s Training Editor. She lives in Fairplay, Maryland, site of her Peaceable Paws training center, where she offers dog training classes and courses for trainers.

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When questioned later, Pebbles’ 19-year-old owner explained that he had put his dog on her “punishment rope” because she had peed in the house, and he had forgotten to release her before he left for work. The surgery had been needed to repair a broken leg, inflicted on a prior occasion, when the owner claimed to have shoved the dog off the porch for peeing in the house. You must, he asserted with confidence, punish your dog for peeing in the house or she would never be housebroken. His method of punishment-based training clearly wasn’t working, since at the age of 10 months, poor Pebbles was still peeing in the house.

What the young Dalmatian’s owner didn’t realize was that not only is punishment a relatively ineffective means of housetraining a puppy, but his dog didn’t even have a housetraining problem. Instead, Pebbles was urinating submissively to try to appease her angry, violent owner, and all of the punishment her owner subjected her to was only making the problem worse.

Pebbles’ owner was charged with animal cruelty. He pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor violation and, to Pebbles’ everlasting good fortune, forfeited ownership of his dog. She was adopted to a more understanding owner who successfully implemented a proper training program, and in just a few short months Pebbles’ submissive urination was no longer a problem.

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Nasty, cold, blowing, snowing, sleeting, rainy day out and your dog won’t go out to potty? I can relate; I don’t much like to go out in bad weather either – even if I don’t have to poop and pee out there. Help is on the way. Here are five things you can do to help improve your dog’s winter “eliminate outside” outlook:

1. Go out with her.

She may be much more willing to brave the elements if her beloved human is with her. If you go with her you can keep her mind on her business, use her potty cue, get her to eliminate more quickly, and you will know if she’s empty or not. Don’t whine; if she has to go out, you can go out too!

2. Condition her to wear a coat and boots.

Watch this excellent video of Jean Donaldson conditioning her Chow, Buffy, to wear a head halter. Then use the same procedure with your dog’s coat and boots.

If she’s a short-coated, easily frozen kind of dog (think Chihuahua), you can hardly blame her for not wanting to go out on those wet, windy, or freezing days. When she’s happy to wear a coat, select the appropriate one for her from her ample wardrobe – a sweater for cool, blustery, fall days; a raincoat for wet ones; and a comfy down vest over the sweater for the days with real hypothermia potential.

3. Carry a large umbrella.

A big golf umbrella can completely protect a small-to-medium-sized dog from rain and snow, and partially protect a large one. While your thick-coated Great Pyrenees and water-resistant Labradors ought to be able to tolerate a little inclement weather, your thin-coated Great Dane might object. Remember to condition your dog to love your umbrella before you actually use it for weather purposes.

4. Build a covered potty area outside, and shovel a path to it.

Your dog will be happier to do her stuff outside if she has a spot that’s sheltered from wind and blowing snow or rain. Make it as close to the house as possible, so she doesn’t have to go far to get to it, and you don’t have to shovel as much snow. Be sure to build the shelter tall enough that you can stand under it, too!

5. Teach her to use an indoor litter box.

See “Indoor and Patio Litter Boxes for Home-Alone Dogs,” for directions on teaching your dog to use a litter box. Or at least put a litter box in your garage, or on your covered porch. The cold-aversive part of me thinks this is the best solution of all. If your dog has been really well trained not to go indoors you may need to start with teaching her to use her litter box outside, and when she’ll use it there, bring it indoors. At least you can do the training on warm sunny days, and use one or more of the other options to protect her outside on nasty days, until you’re ready to move the box indoors.

Purina makes small litter boxes and “secondnature,” a litter especially for dogs (although many dog owners use cat litter in their dog litter boxes). Some pet owners find puppy “pee pads” to be an adequate replacement for a litter box. But there are also a number of products on the market that simulate a bit of lawn for your dog’s indoor elimination. The “Porch Potty” is a box that accommodates the use of either real or artificial grass turf and contain any liquid runoff. The Ugodog is a similar system that employs the use of a mesh grating instead of a grass or grass-like surface for the dog to eliminate on. These products are fairly expensive, but may be just the thing for your fair-weather dog. Happy winter. Stay warm!

Pat Miller, CPDT, is Whole Dog Journal‘s Training Editor. Miller lives in Fairplay, Maryland, site of her Peaceable Paws training center. Pat is also author of The Power of Positive Dog Training; Positive Perspectives: Love Your Dog, Train Your Dog; Positive Perspectives II: Know Your Dog, Train Your Dog; and Play with Your Dog.

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1.)Manage your dog’s behavior with closed doors, baby gates, leashes, crates, and exercise pens so he doesn’t have the opportunity to mark in another room undetected. If you catch him “in the act,” interrupt him with a cheerful “Oops!” and take him outside. While marking is not the same as housetraining, you can still send him the message that he’s allowed to mark outdoors, but not indoors.

2.)Reduce his stress levels. Identify and remove as many stressors as possible. This includes eliminating the use of aversives in training or behavior modification and removing known stressors from his environment, as well as counter-conditioning and desensitization to stimuli that trigger fear, anxiety, arousal, or aggression responses in your dog. Hence the importance of not using verbal or physical punishment or trying to frighten him if you catch him in the act; you’ll be adding stress, and could actually increase the marking behavior as a result.

Other useful tools for stress reduction include calming massage; aromatherapy; Comfort Zone (DAP, a synthetic substance that mimics the calming pheromones emitted by a mother dog when she’s nursing puppies); and Through a Dog’s Ear – a CD of classical music specifically selected for its calming effects on dogs.

3.)Thoroughly clean any soiled spots with an enzymatic product designed to clean up animal waste. Use a black light to find untreated spots. This will help you find undetected soiled spots from your own dog as well as dogs who may have lived in your home before you and your dog moved in – a common trigger for marking. Do not use ammonia-based products to clean! Urine contains ammonia and the ammonia in the cleaning products may actually inspire your dog to urinate on the spot where the ammonia-based product was used.

4.)Get him neutered. While this doesn’t always reduce or eliminate marking, it can help, especially if done sooner rather than later. Testosterone can be a significant stressor, particularly if there are females in season and/or other male dogs in the neighborhood.

5.)Use a belly band. This is a soft band of cloth with a Velcro fasterner, which you can wrap around your dog’s abdomen. For some dogs, the band inhibits marking behavior entirely. Others will happily soil the belly band, (you can attach a self-adhesive absorbent feminine pad to the inside the band to absorb the urine) but at least it protects your home environment from urine stains and odors. Change the pad as needed.

Note:Veterinary behaviorist Dr. Nick Dodman of Tufts University suggests that well-practiced marking behaviors can often only be resolved with the use of behavior modification drugs. If you are not successful in your efforts to modify and manage your dog’s marking, make an appointment with a behavior-savvy veterinarian to discuss the possibility of using anti-anxiety medication.

Your vet can also consult with a veterinary behaviorist elsewhere in the country by phone. You can find contact information for veterinary behaviorists at dacvb.org or avsabonline.org.

Pat Miller, CPDT, is Whole Dog Journal’s Training Editor and author of many books on positive dog training. See page 24 for book purchase and contact information.

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1) If you discover your dog in flagrante, cheerfully interrupt him with an “Oops! Outside!” and hustle him out to his legal potty spot. Do not punish him. If you do, you’ll just teach him to pick a more secluded spot next time where you’re less likely to catch him in the act.

2) Thoroughly clean any soiled spots with an enzymatic product designed to clean up animal waste. Use a black light to find untreated spots. Do not use ammonia-based products to clean! Urine contains ammonia and the ammonia in the cleaning products may actually inspire your dog to urinate on the spot where the ammonia-based product was used.

3) Take your dog out more frequently so he has more opportunity to do it right; every hour on the hour (during the day), at first, for young pups or older dogs who need remedial housetraining, then gradually lengthen the time between bathroom breaks.

Go out with him; don’t just send him out to the yard on his own. When he goes potty where he is supposed to, calmly praise him as he’s going (you don’t want to interrupt him!), then mark the desired behavior with a “Yes!” or other verbal marker when he’s finished, and give him a tasty treat.

Keep a potty journal, so you know when his last accident was and to keep track of his housetraining progress. When he’s gone a week with no accidents, increase the time between bathroom breaks by 30 minutes.

4) Give him periods of house freedom when you know he’s empty, but confine him to a crate or other small area (exercise pen) when you can’t supervise, or when you have to leave him alone for an extended period (or overnight). Be sure he doesn’t tank up on water just before bed. Don’t crate him longer than he can hold it; if you have to be gone for a long time, have a friend, family member, or pet-sitter take him out for a potty break.

5) Make sure there are no medical issues that might be interfering with his ability to “hold it.” If he has several lapses in housetraining, make an appointment for a thorough health examination with your vet. Diarrhea almost guarantees accidents, and things like urinary tract infections, and kidney and bladder stones will also cause housesoiling.

By the way, I don’t consider a dog reliably housetrained until he’s at least a year old. My own Bonnie was more than two years old before she could be trusted for long periods in the house.

One last thing: That old rolled up newspaper? You can use it to smack yourself in the head every time your dog has an accident, for allowing your management program to slip. If it’s not caused by a medical problem, an indoor potty incident is always a management lapse. Urine “marking” – a different behavior from housesoiling – is another story, and one for a future column.

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