My 5 month old puppy has been potty trained for a while now. Just recently he will urinate when gets angry or upset. When he is out of his crate he is fine, and when he is in his crate he will urinate all over himself. If he is disiplined or told no in anyway, he will urinate. I'm not sure what else to do. He has been tested for a UTI. He has had 5 baths this week.
some examples:
In the mornings before I take him out, which I take him out the same time every morning, he will be covered in urine.
When I was in the car with him, I had pot roast in a sealed container, I left to put gas in the car, he opened the container and ate the pot roast. When disciplined, he urinated on the car seat.
Another time I was getting his food, and he kept going in the closet where his food is kept, I told him no and to wait. He urinated on the floor.
When my other dog gets taken out to go to the bathroom, he will bark excessively and urinate on himself. His crate always smells like urine.
I'm not sure what else to do. If I disipline him, he will urinate, but if I don't he will urinate as well.
German Shepard Behavior Issues
Moderators: emmabeth, BoardHost
Re: German Shepard Behavior Issues
Hi. I am not sure on the causes of urination, my guess it's his reaction to too much stress. Experts will comment.
But would suggest that you rethink the way you discipline him.
I am not sure what "disciplining" means in your case, could you elaborate?..
But in any event, disciplining him AFTER he ate the pot roast is too late. You have to either make sure that he can't reach what he can't have, or intercept and say "No!" right before he is about to do something that you don't want him to do, and at the same time you need to redirect him to something else.
And also - he is 5 month old! He is supposed to be a handful, explore world, and stick his nose everywhere, so you really need to be on top of your game all the time, making sure that there is nothing dangerous around within his reach.
It's hard though, I know
But would suggest that you rethink the way you discipline him.
I am not sure what "disciplining" means in your case, could you elaborate?..
But in any event, disciplining him AFTER he ate the pot roast is too late. You have to either make sure that he can't reach what he can't have, or intercept and say "No!" right before he is about to do something that you don't want him to do, and at the same time you need to redirect him to something else.
And also - he is 5 month old! He is supposed to be a handful, explore world, and stick his nose everywhere, so you really need to be on top of your game all the time, making sure that there is nothing dangerous around within his reach.
It's hard though, I know
Re: German Shepard Behavior Issues
The way that we disipline him is that we tell him no firmly. Then he goes back in his crate for a little bit. Then we will let him out. I can usually catch him in the act and tell him No firmly. But it seems as though if he doesn't like what I tell him, he will urinate. He'll posture and urinate.
Re: German Shepard Behavior Issues
I agree with Ari, he sounds very stressed. Having five baths a week will be stressful for starters, though I can see that's a vicious circle If his crate smells of urine, that will encourage him to urinate in there, too.
I think you should ease off completely and try not to discipline him at all. Don't expect him to behave around nice-smelling food - as I don't often eat meat, my dog gets quite stressed if I roast a chicken and sometimes I have to accommodate for this in his behaviour. Don't make him wait for food for any longer than it takes to put it in the bowl. (You can work on a wait command when he's in a more relaxed mood for now.) Rather than telling him 'no' and to wait, say cheerily 'Just a moment - it won't be long!' Don't tell him off for weeing in the wrong place. Try to remove 'no' from your vocabulary. If he's doing something you don't want him to do, distract him with a toy.
He may be stressed because he's bored and understimulated - could you give a full run-down of his daily routine, including walks, games, training, mealtimes, crate times, etc?
You also probably need to go back a few steps with the potty training. Take him out regularly and praise him when he wees. If he goes in the house, just clean it up without comment. You will need to give the crate a really good cleanout with biological cleaner and wash all the bedding, or even replace it (use old blankets etc from charity shops). It may help to take him out in the night in case he struggles to last till morning.
If this is usually only a problem in the crate, would it be possible for him to be left out of the crate? Could you maybe keep him to one dog-proof room behind a stairgate, or in a penned-off area, when you're not there to keep an eye on him? It may at least make clean-up easier and he might not end up covered in pee himself.
Thinking about it, you're probably feeling pretty stressed by this yourself. This will communicate itself to your dog, so as well as removing as much stress for him as you can, try to remain calm yourself!
If his crate smells of urine, that will encourage him to urinate in there, too.I think you should ease off completely and try not to discipline him at all. Don't expect him to behave around nice-smelling food - as I don't often eat meat, my dog gets quite stressed if I roast a chicken and sometimes I have to accommodate for this in his behaviour. Don't make him wait for food for any longer than it takes to put it in the bowl. (You can work on a wait command when he's in a more relaxed mood for now.) Rather than telling him 'no' and to wait, say cheerily 'Just a moment - it won't be long!' Don't tell him off for weeing in the wrong place. Try to remove 'no' from your vocabulary. If he's doing something you don't want him to do, distract him with a toy.
He may be stressed because he's bored and understimulated - could you give a full run-down of his daily routine, including walks, games, training, mealtimes, crate times, etc?
You also probably need to go back a few steps with the potty training. Take him out regularly and praise him when he wees. If he goes in the house, just clean it up without comment. You will need to give the crate a really good cleanout with biological cleaner and wash all the bedding, or even replace it (use old blankets etc from charity shops). It may help to take him out in the night in case he struggles to last till morning.
If this is usually only a problem in the crate, would it be possible for him to be left out of the crate? Could you maybe keep him to one dog-proof room behind a stairgate, or in a penned-off area, when you're not there to keep an eye on him? It may at least make clean-up easier and he might not end up covered in pee himself.
Thinking about it, you're probably feeling pretty stressed by this yourself. This will communicate itself to your dog, so as well as removing as much stress for him as you can, try to remain calm yourself!
Jasper, lurcher, born December 2009