kitchens Posted July 20, 2009 Share Posted July 20, 2009 Hi Guys I have noticed that our 6 year old Cairn Terrier has recently started marking in our house. To be honest I think he has always done it but now its enough to notice and its really getting on my nerves. He is walked. We have a large garden and he spends lots of time out there. He is let out about 6am and last thing at night between 11 and 12. He does not have any urine infections. When out on walks he does tiddle and cock his leg lots, probably too much. Any tips on how I can stop him? Or can I not teach my old dog new tricks? Or is he just a serial tiddler? Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chucky Mama Posted July 20, 2009 Share Posted July 20, 2009 Part of the key is getting completely rid of the smell of the urine, this is the smell that he can smell that you can't. Use an odour remover that is geared specifically for pet urine. Don't use anything pine based or strong smelling as he will feel to need to mark over it, it needs to be a doggie neutral scent. It is habit forming so try to prevent access to the places that he uses by putting something in the way for a few days (he may go up that or find somewhere else but it is worth a try). You could also try DAP spray which is a pheremone spray that gives of a reassuring scent that can prevent the need for territorial marking. Is he uncastrated?......?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kitchens Posted July 20, 2009 Author Share Posted July 20, 2009 Hi Chucky Mama Thanks for your reply. He was castrated as soon as we could have it done. So that happened when he was very young. He tends of wee up anything e.g piles of washing, the dining room curtains, the legs on the sofas and in our computer room. If we have friends round and they put their bag on the floor I discreetly move it to somewhere out of reach, otherwise he would wee up it! Very annoying. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Redwing Posted July 20, 2009 Share Posted July 20, 2009 If its only recent that this has started to happen could you have changed his routine somehow? I ask because our dog started having accidents recently even though he is walked and has access to the garden when we are around and we finally clocked on that it was because we had stopped putting him to bed each night in his crate (we stole it to keep some chicks in and never gave it back to him!) so he was roamiing the house in the night and not sleeping properly We immediately went back to the old routine and everything sorted itself out within 24hrs We used the product Simple Soultion (from pet shops) to get rid of smells Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chucky Mama Posted July 20, 2009 Share Posted July 20, 2009 It may be a case of strict disciplining then, I assume that both testicles were removed and that he didn't have a retained one. Removing the smell is high on the list of priorities - Simple solution is good. When you are ready for the new regime take him for a long walk so get him as 'empty as possilble. Then bring him home and lay in wait for him with something like a water pistol. He also needs to learn that he is not the 'top dog' in the household so make sure that you are not reenforcing his superiority complex - so no sitting on furniture, eating first or going through doors first. Try teaching him that the house isn't actually his territory to mark. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kitchens Posted July 20, 2009 Author Share Posted July 20, 2009 Clucky Mama would you like to come and stay for a while There are two things wrong with our dog. One is that he marks and secondly we can't take him off of the lead. Otherwise he is absolutely bomb proof. He is great with children and has never made a false move. I trust him implicitly. I can let the chickens out in the garden and he never takes any notice of them. Its wierd because with other dogs he is so submissive and yet in the home i'm afraid he is top dog. He spends most of his time on the back of the sofa and does run through doors first. I was even out walking with him and stopped to talk to a fellow dog walker and he even weed up my leg and he doesn't really come in from the garden when I call him. Ever since we got him as a puppy he has always be sooo independent and we are strict with him. He is never jealous and doesn't even get up when we come home from being out. He is a free sprit. Unlike my brother's dog who is completely jealous and does exactly what he is told. I think that Angus has had that 'I want to please' gene removed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bellekatz Posted July 20, 2009 Share Posted July 20, 2009 It may be a case of strict disciplining then, I assume that both testicles were removed and that he didn't have a retained one. Removing the smell is high on the list of priorities - Simple solution is good. When you are ready for the new regime take him for a long walk so get him as 'empty as possilble. Then bring him home and lay in wait for him with something like a water pistol. He also needs to learn that he is not the 'top dog' in the household so make sure that you are not reenforcing his superiority complex - so no sitting on furniture, eating first or going through doors first. Try teaching him that the house isn't actually his territory to mark. We had problems with jack like that a while ago. Then I read an online article by Stan Rawlinson which said that you have to show him you are top dog and he isn't allowed to mark there. It suggested using a mix of 1 part vinegar and 3 parts water and you make him watch you pour it over where he has marked to show that your scent is more important. Amazingly, within a week he had stopped doing it. It was well worth the chip shop smell for a while............. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chucky Mama Posted July 20, 2009 Share Posted July 20, 2009 Clucky Mama would you like to come and stay for a while There are two things wrong with our dog. One is that he marks and secondly we can't take him off of the lead. Otherwise he is absolutely bomb proof. He is great with children and has never made a false move. I trust him implicitly. I can let the chickens out in the garden and he never takes any notice of them. Its wierd because with other dogs he is so submissive and yet in the home i'm afraid he is top dog. He spends most of his time on the back of the sofa and does run through doors first. I was even out walking with him and stopped to talk to a fellow dog walker and he even weed up my leg and he doesn't really come in from the garden when I call him. Ever since we got him as a puppy he has always be sooo independent and we are strict with him. He is never jealous and doesn't even get up when we come home from being out. He is a free sprit. Unlike my brother's dog who is completely jealous and does exactly what he is told. I think that Angus has had that 'I want to please' gene removed. He sounds like a sweetie but you are giving the poor chap very mixed messages. You need to reestablish yourself as top dog. He wont 'mind' he will feel much more secure when he knows where he is. Being allowed on furniture gives him inflated height, eating first makes him think he is the leader of the pack etc. All of these subtle things = top dog status therefore the need to mark to confirm plus more marking when new 'member' arrive. Dogs like this often bite their owners when they try to sit on furniture or take food away others pee! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...