There’s little more aggravating than assuming you have your furry friend trained only to find them turning around and peeing in the living room, right in front of you. While this is pretty common and can happen frequently when you’re trying to train a new puppy, you might become frustrated and a bit overwhelmed if it continues into adulthood. Some pet owners even think their dogs are peeing in front of them because they’re angry with something they’ve done!
There are a few reasons for this to be happening, including disease, illness, fear, and even just that they’re young and not fully trained yet. In this article, we’ll give you a few of the different reasons we’ve come across for why your dog may be urinating in the house in front of you. Once you’ve figured out the cause of the problem, it’ll be much easier to fix it!
The 9 Reasons Why Your Dog Might Pee in the House
1. Dog Not Being Walked Enough
Often, when your furry friend pees inside, it’s because they aren’t getting enough opportunities to go outside and use the bathroom. In most cases, you’ll need to take your dog outside or for walks an average of three times a day. If you have an older pet, then five times a day may be required instead.
While walking your pup and taking them outside so many times a day might get tiring, see it as a bonding experience between you and your pet. Before you know it, you’ll start to enjoy your walks as much as your dog does, or simply install a dog door.
2. Marking Territory
It’s common knowledge that many dog breeds are territorial, and they claim their territory by marking it. In many cases, this can be taken care of by having the dog neutered, but that’s no guarantee. If neutering your pup doesn’t work, you may need to bring in a professional trainer to take care of the problem instead.
3. Insufficient Training
If you think about it, the better your dog’s house training, the better behaved they’ll be. If you haven’t put much thought or time into effectively training your dog to go outside to urinate, then you can’t expect them to know that they’re supposed to.
Of course, training a young puppy is easier, but it’s never too late to teach your dog good behavior.
4. Separation Anxiety
While your pup peeing in the house might not be for revenge, it could easily be a type of separation anxiety. This usually means that your pup isn’t getting enough attention and is crying out to be noticed. Make sure that your pet has a safe space and his favorite chew toys to avoid this from happening. Also, make sure to spend plenty of time with your pet to avoid accidents in the future.
5. Fear
Believe it or not, fear is one of the more common reasons for a dog to pee in the house right in front of you. In many cases, the pet is afraid of going outside. Maybe your dog is being bullied by a cat, or another dog is scaring them. If they’re afraid, they’ll simply go to the bathroom inside the house to avoid having to go out.
Try switching up your route when you take them for walks or keep them away from the animals or person who is scaring them for best results.
6. They’re Getting Older
When it comes to a dog peeing in the house, age has to be taken into consideration. This doesn’t have to mean that something is wrong with your dog, it just means that they may be getting old and tired. Walk them more often, and try to be tender, loving, and patient with your old friend.
7. There Have Been Some Changes
Many dogs don’t do well with change. A new house can throw off your dog’s routine, just as a new baby, person, or pet can. Give your pup a few days to get used to the changes and see if their habits return to normal once they’ve gotten used to the changes in their life.
8. They’re Overexcited
Keep an eye on your pet and try and notice it they’re only peeing in the house when they’re overly excited about something. Unfortunately, this often happens with some breeds of dogs, especially when they’re puppies and don’t have full control of their bladders yet. Unfortunately, if this is the case, there isn’t much you can do except hope the puppy grows out of it.
9. Health Issues
In some cases, the problem with your pet using the bathroom in the house is due to a health problem that needs to be addressed. For example, your dog may have a urinary tract infection. If you think this might be the case, it’s best to make an appointment with your vet right away for diagnosis and treatment for your canine friend.
Final Thoughts
These are a few of the top reasons that your dog may be peeing in the house right in front of you. If none of these issues seem to be the problem with your furry canine, make an appointment with your vet to try and determine if the issue is health-related. If not, then it might be time to call in the professionals to help you train your pup the right way. Don’t give up. Every puppy and dog can be trained with patience, love, and a gentle but firm hand.
Featured Image Credit: Bonsales, Shutterstock
