Peeing when bad

    • Bronze

    Peeing when bad

    I have a one year old German Shepherd who lately dribbles all over the floor if he has been bad, or even if he thinks you are mad at him for anything.  It is far worse if you go up to him or touch him, even if you are not yelling or even just petting him.  If he was or thinks he was bad or you are mad at him, he just starts peeing.  It is getting to be a big problem.  I think someone may have yelled at and hit him or something, he never used to do this until recently.  What can I do?
    • Gold Top Dog
    You are describing "submissive urination".
     
    This is a dog's signal to a dominant member of their group that "you" are in charge, they acknowlege your position, and you need to recognise this form of canine communication and ease up on this dog.
     
    If you do not get the message, the dog will only pee more because they weren't understood by you.
     
    Avoiding eye contact, turning your body to the side, ignoring the dog, and remaining calm will help this situation.
     
    Punishing the dog for peeing will only make it worse and cause the dog not to trust you because their every attempt to communicate submission is not being recognised.
     
    Can you describe more about your dog's history? Can you tell us how you deal with this dog when they have done something "bad"? Any info will help.
     
    I think it's simply a matter of understanding dog psychology, their forms of communication, and understanding how you are being "read" by the dog with a dog's mind, which will help in this situation.
     
    Please help us help you by giving us more details about this dog and your relationship with him. Is this your first dog?
    • Bronze
    I don't know what part of my message makes you think I am some abusive dog owner.  I certainly am not.  I will try your recommendation and hopefully this will help.  Thanks for the response.
    • Gold Top Dog
    ORIGINAL: jnak

    I don't know what part of my message makes you think I am some abusive dog owner.  I certainly am not.  I will try your recommendation and hopefully this will help.  Thanks for the response.


    There is nothing at all in your post that indicates abuse.

    This is simply a case of learning about how your dog reads you and tries to communicate with you.

    Many of us have been in your shoes at some point. [;)]
    • Gold Top Dog
    If he was or thinks he was bad or you are mad at him,

     
    are you  "mad" at him often? what have you done in the past when he was "bad"? 
     
    He may just be going through a late adolescent fear period.
    • Gold Top Dog
    I didn't read anything in anyone's replies indicating they thought you were abusive. But different dogs do have different thresholds as far as what they consider dominating or threatening behavior. What for one dog is just a suggestion for another is very scary. You can treat two dogs the exact same way and have one be a submissive urinator and the other will just blow you off completely.

    Angelique's suggestions were all excellent.
    • Gold Top Dog
    Both of my dogs were treated as close to the same during their growing years as is humanly possible, but the JRT Baby peed until she was almost 2.  We just said , "Oops lets finish outside, and then calmly cleaned up with out any more ado.  It finally just disappeared on its own.
    • Gold Top Dog
    I didn't read anything in Angelique's post that insinuated you were abusing your dog, she gave a few scenarios, to cover all the bases as to what the cause might be.
    • Bronze
    I am sorry about the comment on saying I was abusive, I guess it was just all the "you" need to do this or that.  Expecially "You" need to ease up on this dog.  It makes it sound like that is what you were getting at. 
     
    I hope it is just something that he needs to go through.  He always would pee when my Dad would come over, but only to him.  Now he does it to me.  I just got home, and he peed because he was excited, I don't think he thought he was bad this time. 
    • Gold Top Dog
    Have you told your vet, maybe take a urine speciman in check for a urinary tract infection?
    • Gold Top Dog
    My GSD pup used to do this when I would come home. She was excited and greeted me with this submissive display all at the same time. If I ignored her, her excitement level would drop and so would her need to display submission.

    It took about 15 minutes when she was young and gradually went away as she grew up. She was always a very compliant and loving dog. But I learned a lot about how my behavior could keep my floors clean. [:D]

    This will pass in time, and I think you'll get the hang of it. [;)]
    • Gold Top Dog

    Critical Periods in a Dog's Life -- Developmental Stages

    [linkhttp://www.dogclub.co.uk/advice/puppygrowth.php]http://www.dogclub.co.uk/advice/puppygrowth.php[/link]
    "[size=4]6 to 14 Months
    [color=#0000ff]Second Fear Imprint Period or Fear of New Situations Period.
    Dog again shows fear of new situations and even familiar situations.  Dog may be reluctant to approach someone or something new.  It is important that you are patient and act very matter of fact in these situations.  Never force the dog to face the situation.  DO NOT pet the frightened puppy or talk in soothing tones.  The puppy will interpret such responses as praise for being frightened.  Training will help improve the dog's confidence."
     
    Links on dealing with submissive urination:
    [linkhttp://terrier.com/advice/submissive.php3]http://terrier.com/advice/submissive.php3[/link]
    [linkhttp://la-spca.org/education/dogs/submissive_ur.htm]http://la-spca.org/education/dogs/submissive_ur.htm[/link]

    [link>http://www.hilltopanimalhospital.com/submissive%20urination.htm]http://www.hilltopanimalhospital.com/submissive%20urination.htm[/link][/size]
    [link>http://www.usask.ca/wcvm/herdmed/applied-ethology/behaviourproblems/suburine.html]http://www.usask.ca/wcvm/herdmed/applied-ethology/behaviourproblems/suburine.html[/link][/size]
    [/size][/color]
    • Silver
    When I got my Manchester Terrier, she did this same thing. She did come from an abusive situation, so her cas was a little different. If anyone reached over her or leaned over her, she'd pee. I did the wrong thing at first, I punished her and it only got worse. That's when I posted here and the people here really helped me out!

    I learned to change my body language. I would encourage her to get up on my lap or I would sit on the floor before I petted her. I would have her get on the chair and I would squat down before putting her leash on her. It took about 2 months for her to trust me enough that she didn't submissive urinate. It took 3 months after that to get her to trust small females and yet another 4 months to trust males or heavy women.