Help! Potty trained dog urinating in house.

[Harlygirl]

Hello,

We have a 1 yr and 5th old Rott who is potty trained and has never gone to the bathroom in the house, not since he was a little guy. All of a sudden he has started going to pee in the basement which is unusal. He is let out in the morning and again in the afternoon and then goes out several times when we come home.

I have cleaned up after him several times with cleaning products and he continues to pee in the same spots. I have asked people at the pet store what I could use to make him stop. They said he could be upset because we have changed his surroundings since we moved his food from our kitchen to the basement that he is upset and is marking the territory as his own area.

They suggested buying a cleaning product called simple solution and scrubbing the area and then spraying it with a product called No Go.
I followed these steps yesterday and today he still peed in two of the
areas that I cleaned, I contacted the vet and they suggested checking for
an infection they said changing his eating area shoudn't make a potty trained dog go in the house. So now I have to try and collect a urine sample to bring in for testing.

Does any of this sound familiar our does anyone have any suggestions on how I can stop this behavior.

[Anne]

I go along with the advice given by the vet. He may well have a urinary infection. UTI's are painful so I wouldn't delay the vet visit.

[Harlygirl]

Thanks Anne,

Actually I did take him to the vet and they checked his urine everything looks ok, she said he is perfectly healthy. The vet did say it could be that he is a young teenager and has alot of testosteron built up and feels the need to mark things or he may very well be mad about something. She suggested trying to block him off from the basement to see if he will stop or she suggested having him neutered if it continues.

[dogsbydoug]

Originally Posted by Harlygirl

Thanks Anne,

Actually I did take him to the vet and they checked his urine everything looks ok, she said he is perfectly healthy. The vet did say it could be that he is a young teenager and has alot of testosteron built up and feels the need to mark things or he may very well be mad about something. She suggested trying to block him off from the basement to see if he will stop or she suggested having him neutered if it continues.

Dogs don't feel anger the way humans do. They do react to stress and changes in routine.

If there has been a change in his routine, go back a few steps in housetraining and make sure you can see him at all times. If he appears to be looking for spot to lift his leg, take him out for a pee.

You didn't say why you moved his eating area to the basement from the kitchen. He very well could be marking the space as his own, but it still doesn't make it acceptable.

Neutering may help with the marking issue, but it may not. I would recommend neutering him anyways unless you've got plans to compete in the show ring with him. What does his breeer say about the problem?

[Harlygirl]

Thanks for the advice we figured he may be upset because we moved his food fro the kitchen to the basement because it was easier to clean up after him since he would spill his food and water when he ate or drank. It made for a messy situation and hard to get from under the stove and fridge.

You mentioned change and stress which is perfectly understand since he has always ate and slept in the kitchen since he was a pup. I have also changed jobs and I am not home with him during the day as much as I use to be. He is very attached to me.

We haven't contacted the breeder and Neutering him is also what the vet said if all else fails. We got him for companionship never intended on breeding him or showing him. Thanks for the feedback I will try what you suggested.

[gonetothedogs1970]

You mentioned that you're not home with him as much now. sounds like some anxiety issues - this prob. more the cause than the moved feed dish. Is he free to roam the house while you are gone? Is he doing this while you are gone or when you're home? Sometimes a radio or tv on while you're away can make being alone less stressful.

[Anne]

Harlygirl, you could put a cotton rug under his bowl in the kitchen. I have a cotton rug under the water bowl. You could do the same thing with his food bowl and the rug would catch any spillage.

[Dugganmom]

I put a rug under my dogs food and water dish. I also leave the tv on when we leave i heard that helps...good luck!!

[Harlygirl]

No he does not have free reign of the house he has the kitchen and the entire basement to himself while we are not home. I can try and leave a radio on for him and see how this works out. Thanks for the feedback.

[Harlygirl]

As for his food and water I have tried to put these rubber mats down under his food bowls and he seems to think there play toys he pulls them from under his dishes and plays with them. Leaving a mess of food and water.

Thanks for the idea though.......I am determined and open for any suggestions to break this, wish me luck.

[HerculesMomma]

Here's a thread from a while ago that I started that was something along the lines of what you're dealing with:

http://www.rottweiler.net/forums/tra...-question.html

[Harlygirl]

Thanks I enjoyed reading that it helps to know that I am not the only one dealing with this that others have experienced the same thing before. I guess
it's just knowing how to break the habit or where to start.

It can be frustrating because all of a sudden he starts this behavior out of no where and your like "you should no better" and the way they look at you they know exactly what they have done.

They are a very smart and clever breed indeed. Although I am the boss and I
will prevail..........