Peeing the bed & handling the laundry

[im_nomad]

Hi to all. Not posting this in medical or the senior forums as I know why this is happening from time to time (kidney problems with a touch of age, and maybe a few "personality" issues thrown in, as she was prone to this years ago from time to time and always knocked the old saying that dogs will never mess where they sleep). I'm also in the process of "resetting" her after she stayed with a dog sitter for a couple of weeks who didn't stick to my routine FWIW.

What I'm looking for general thoughts on how to react when my dog purposely seeks out her bed to pee in (as opposed to leaking in their sleep or losing control when they're sick, which isn't what happened here). She has replacement beds around the house, and in the past when she peed on one, I gave her the other while it was in the wash. But tonight, after she came directly in from outside and peed on her bed, I didn't do that. She's walking around all puzzled looking trying to figure out where her main bed is. btw, she still has access to the other beds, I just haven't moved them into the living room.

If she had only one bed, this wouldn't be an issue, she'd have to wait regardless. But if a dog soils their bedding, from a behavior or "getting it" perspective, is it best to remove (or not remove) and not replace, or give them an alternate something or other to lay on?

Thanks in advance

[doggirl]

Can you give some more background? Details on the dog and this problem?

[marko]

I'm not at all convinced your dog can make these higher level connections.

Dogs have a teeny attention span. If you CATCH your dog peeing in the bed is one thing - and if so, a loud NO! and bringing the dog outside immediately (to finish the pee there) is a good idea.

But if you do not catch your dog in the act, and 'punish' your dog after the fact, it can not associate the punishment with the deed. Therefore it cannot learn anything, and is unlikely to 'get it'.
15 seconds after the pee is too late. You need to catch the dog AS he pees....

At this point though....the residual urine smell in the bed might be enough to attract the dog to pee there. You'll need to clean that bed SUPER well so that the dog can't smell it. Perhaps others in the forum can suggest a great cleaner if they feel it might help.

Good luck!

[im_nomad]

@marko, I did mean I catch her in the act, her "living room" bed is literally three-four feet away from where I'm sitting right now and the majority of times she's ever done this, it is right in front of me. We both had just walked in from outdoors where she had refused to pee, and I was in the living room when she walked over to her bed, squat and peed within seconds of coming inside. I moved the bed out from under her and put it in the wash. Shes usually put directly outside when I catch her at this but to be honest, most of the times she just pees across the floor(s) and by the time she gets to the back door, is all done and I have two rooms to mop. Last night, she finished on the bed. I was frankly too tired to clean any more than I had to.

I honestly don't think this is a scent thing at this point because I've brought brand new beds for her even and it didn't ever stop her from doing it. She just likes to pee on her bed from time to time. I do use good strong cleaners though.

In any event, I ended up feeling guilty looking at her laying on the floor where her bed was and brought in one of her other beds.

My main point was when you catch them in the act, whether there was any point in removing the bed right away (i.e. should she feel the wet bed), removing it and not replacing (i.e."hey I just peed on my bed and now I have no bed") or just saying to hell with it and replacing one for another.

[Barkingdog]

Originally Posted by im_nomad

Hi to all. Not posting this in medical or the senior forums as I know why this is happening from time to time (kidney problems with a touch of age, and maybe a few "personality" issues thrown in, as she was prone to this years ago from time to time and always knocked the old saying that dogs will never mess where they sleep). I'm also in the process of "resetting" her after she stayed with a dog sitter for a couple of weeks who didn't stick to my routine FWIW.

What I'm looking for general thoughts on how to react when my dog purposely seeks out her bed to pee in (as opposed to leaking in their sleep or losing control when they're sick, which isn't what happened here). She has replacement beds around the house, and in the past when she peed on one, I gave her the other while it was in the wash. But tonight, after she came directly in from outside and peed on her bed, I didn't do that. She's walking around all puzzled looking trying to figure out where her main bed is. btw, she still has access to the other beds, I just haven't moved them into the living room.

If she had only one bed, this wouldn't be an issue, she'd have to wait regardless. But if a dog soils their bedding, from a behavior or "getting it" perspective, is it best to remove (or not remove) and not replace, or give them an alternate something or other to lay on?

Thanks in advance

How about buying pads to put on the dog bed . It sound like your dog may be getting confused or could have an urine infection . Does your dog wander around a lot in the house, if she does I would have the vet check it her out , dogs can dog dementia or vertigo. I met a woman who dog started to wander around the house and the poor dog had vertigo.

[Dog Dancer]

Firstly I would have her checked by the vet for a UTI or crystals. If a urine test comes back clean I would remove all of her beds if this is the only place she is wetting. When you take her outside to do her business, do you have a word for it "Go do your business" or "Go pee"? I would make a point of not letting her back in until she has gone. You said you took her out and she refused to go then came in and went. Don't let her do that. What's more frustrating - waiting ten minutes outside or cleaning up inside?? Good luck to you with this, but I really think a vet trip would be in order.