How to stop my neutered dog marking inside when I'm gone?

This can be a frustrating problem in intact males! The first thing I would do right away is have Junior neutered - many times, this will decrease the marking behavior dramatically even if it's already been going on for several years. After this is done, you will likely still need to work with him a bit on housetraining. Treat him like a young puppy who has no idea where to potty - take him out frequently, praise and reward for peeing outside, and supervise constantly indoors to prevent accidents. If you see him starting to lift his leg, clap your hands and say "ah-ah!" or "no!" - he will soon learn that this is not acceptable in the house, if you are consistent. Don't relax your supervision until he has had at least two weeks with no accidents at all, then increase his freedom in the house very slowly. This will take time and patience, but it can definitely be done.

Hello, sorry to hear about Buddy. It sounds like he is indeed marking his territory when you're not home. I think the crate is a great idea, but if you need some time to get him used to this, a small room such as a bathroom or bedroom would also limit the areas where he marks in the house. Additionally, taking him out to go to the bathroom before you leave will also decrease the amount of urine he has to mark with. A dog urinating on objects, usually vertical, is a normal, instinctive social behavior. Dogs mark their territory by urinating on certain objects within their territory. The dog returns to these spots on occasion to renew this olfactory mark. Usually the amount of urine produced is a smaller amount than when the dog relieves himself. Marking often occurs in areas where other dogs have urine marked or left there odor. Although more commonly seen in intact males, neutered males and females also mark. What is inappropriate marking? Inappropriate marking is when an otherwise healthy, housetrained dog marks objects in an area that is not acceptable to the owner, such as inside a home. Why is my dog inappropriately marking? Causes of inappropriate urine marking can be hormonal or social. Social factors include situations that cause anxiety or territorial stimuli, such as other animals entering their “territory,” or the introduction of something new, such as grocery bags, people, or furniture. Dogs with other anxieties, such as separation anxiety or noise phobia, can also mark. What can I do to prevent inappropriate marking? • If your dog is intact, neuter your dog. One study found that 40% of male dogs castrated for marking drastically decreased their marking, regardless of age of castration. • Neuter all animals in household. Hormonal changes in other animals, like female dogs in heat, may trigger marking. • It is important to rule out underlying medical problems that may cause inappropriate urine marking. The stress of medical problems can be a contributing factor to marking. • Clean up residual odors of the urine with enzymatic cleaners. • Block or eliminate provoking stimuli, such as cover windows where your dog can see other dogs walking by, block access to room where dog may hear other dogs walking by. • Have a conversation with your veterinarian about separation anxiety or other anxieties to determine if this is the cause of inappropriate urine marking. Treat these underlying causes. • Do not place new objects on floor until your dog has gotten used to having them in the house. • During training, when your dog cannot be supervised, he should be confined to a smaller area so that he does not practice inappropriate urine marking when the owner is not home. He may subsequently learn that it is acceptable to mark when the owner is away. • Establish conspicuous objects outside the house where marking is acceptable, and reward for acceptable marking. • Change the emotional state of your dog around target areas to pleasurable areas of play or eating • In dogs with extreme anxiety, anti-anxiety medications may be beneficial. • Establish leadership from the owner and routine in the dog’s life by implementing non-confrontational leadership exercises.

The short answer is: maybe. Urine marking can develop into a set habit of behavior, and it can be difficult to get them to stop completely if they weren't neutered at an early age. However, in trying to minimize the behavior, the very first thing you should do IS to neuter your dog, so you're already on the right track. Here are a couple of great articles that you may find helpful in terms of curbing this behavior. https://www.spca.org/document.doc?id=116 https://www.petcoach.co/article/7-rules-for-effective-housetraining/ I hope that helps you! Thank you for asking PetCoach!

The first thing I would do is neuter him. An unneutered male can’t help but want to mark his territory. Unfortunately, he is 4 years old so this may have become a learned behavior meaning he may continue to do it after he is neuter. There is no guarantee he will stop. If I were you I would neuter him and while he is at the vet I would steam clean and deodorize every where he likes to mark. This is the best chance to help him stop this behavior. I hope this helps!

Sounds like Pugsley may still be exhibiting marking behavior! If you have other dogs in the house or aren't properly removing the urine scent from the house, it may be compelling him to continue marking. If you catch him in the act, stop him immediately and take him outside to finish going. In the house you can use baby gates to limit access to certain areas of the house where he attempts to mark to help stop the habit. Keeping him in a kitchen or other easy to clean area can help. For removing any marked areas, an enzymatic cleaner is best as it will break down the urine particles that may be attracting him to lift his leg there again and can help stop the habit.

He probably started marking when his hormones increased. Now that he’s neutered these levels will go down over the next four to six weeks. Please clean all of the area he’s marked with lemon or vinegar cleaner to remove the scent. I recommend going back to crate training for housebreaking, or using a male belly band when you aren’t able to monitor him. Please take him outside or to the pee pad frequently so he has a chance to urinate there. Marking behavior can become a habit so working to stop this right away is best. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care Toby.

I doubt that the behavior will stop on its own if you can't figure out what has started it. The first thing I would recommend would be to have your vet examine George and perform a urinalysis to make sure that there isn't a medical cause that has started this. If your vet can't find a medical cause then I would recommend figuring out a way to stop the behavior temporarily. I would use a Belly Band (https://www.k9ofmine.com/best-belly-bands-for-dogs/), so he does not have the opportunity to mark and ideally use baby gates, a crate or supervision to prevent him from having the opportunity to mark. 2 weeks after the last time he has marked (or attempted to mark if he has the belly band on), you can allow him more unsupervised time without the belly band on. Hopefully that will be enough to break this habit. Good luck! I hope that was helpful. Thanks for using PetCoach.