Dog Pees On Rugs

Dog Pees On Rugs

My dog pees in the house at night, only when we're asleep, and only on a rug (but never in our bedroom where there is wall-to-wall carpeting). I have discovered she often does this only an hour or two after we gave her a walk and then went to bed, so it's not likely to be a full bladder.

She is a 2 year old terrier/mix we got last January from a shelter. We closed off the living room at night, but then she peed on the runner rug in the dining room, so we temporarily removed that. Then she peed on the bathroom rug, so we removed that. Any idea what's going on, or how to fix it?

Mark from Alameda, CA

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RE: Dog Pees On Rugs

Crate training. I cannot stress how important this is; it will make all the difference to both you and your pet. Dogs are pack and den animals, when they have their own nook to curl up in at night, it makes them feel more secure. We are a foster home for rescued German Shepherds and this has always worked for us.

Our daughter adopted a Collie from the shelter and didn't listen to me about crate training. Several accidents and chewed up shoes later she decided to give it a try. Her dog is much calmer and we don't have to worry about her ransacking the house at night when we are all asleep. (12/07/2005)

By Irish

RE: Dog Pees On Rugs

You can use disposable diapers as a back up. Simply sew a circle and cut out a hole for the tail and either use the adhesive tabs or sew strips of fabric to tie from the belly to the back side. I have 2 dogs in diapers when I go to work, just for security. Hope this helps. (12/08/2005)

By CEIL

RE: Dog Pees On Rugs

I wonder if your dog thinks the rugs are a kind of puppy pad. Maybe when it was younger it was trained on them and now thinks that is an appropriate place to pee. There are all kinds of deterrent sprays you can try. Just look at a place like PetsMart. Crating is good also, but I had a problem with my terrier. He was a stray, about two years old, and he looked at the crate I tried to put him in like it was an alien. My other two dogs love them though. Maybe try luring him into the crate with food, and try feeding him in there so it's not a punishment place, but a refuge. (12/08/2005)

By Topo Gigio

RE: Dog Pees On Rugs

Maybe you should buy some puppy pads. They really aren't too expensive and it might save your rugs. Just put them on top of the rugs she's been using. (12/08/2005)

By ThriftyFun

RE: Dog Pees On Rugs

Has she been for a complete physical? It might be a bladder infection. I agree with the others. Keep her close to you as much as she wants so she won't feel abandoned as she was before. (12/08/2005)

By Vic

RE: Dog Pees On Rugs

Again, I have to ask, please don't crate train. Even for an adult dog it is stressful. Quite right they are evolved from denning animals. But more important than that they are pack animals. Social animals. They need to be with their pack.

It takes 2 weeks or less of sincere diligence on your part to train a dog not to pee in the house. It would take you longer than that to get the dog used to the crate, if ever. And all the time that she is in a crate is totally wasted training time, wasted dog/human interaction time and as I have said even more stressful for the dogs. All due respect for the rescue person who is making the best of a difficult situation.

For people who say how their dog loves to go in his crate, it's because he feels safest there now. Humans always have the upper hand, because they are bigger, but communication, diligence and mutual trust are a lot more effective in raising a well adjusted socialized dog.

And I am pleased that you ask first "what's going on?", which is a lot more revealing of your inner character than "how do I fix it?". It shows that you actually care about what's going on with the dog rather than just how to mold it into something you want without considering the dog's needs.

It could be that she has been pad trained and is using the small rugs, because they are the closest thing to what she recalls. She has had a life for 2 years that you may know very little about.

Is she sleeping with you, or in the bedroom? You could consider closing the bedroom door at night. Put some attention on house training again, mostly in the area of enormous praise and lovins when she does go potty so that she will choose to hold it just so that she can get that loving praise from you for going outside.

We can't always be sure if a dog's bladder is full or not. Sometimes we feel the urge to go even if we have only been an hour ago. And it might also be a UTI issue.

If the pad training or even small rug training is something that has been pushed on her by a previous owner who wasn't considering the dog's needs, it may be something that you may choose to accept and give her her own rug, considering that it's better than her choosing a wall to wall carpet. (07/13/2007)

By Sheraone