Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have a resonably well trained 5 year old husky, knows all the basic commands (sit, stay, down, play dead, shake, crawl) and we give him plenty of attention and exercise(he doesnt like to play much though). When we first got him(about 6-7 months ago from the humane society) he refused to pee if we took him out in the middle of the day unless it was on a walk and he got to stop and mark something every 2-3 minutes or so. On two occasions now, when I got home from work, I went to take him out and he decided to mark the carpet somewhere right in front of me. He is house trained and knows he's supposed to pee outside(he even knows he's not supposed to go in the kitchen), he couldnt have been bored, my wife was home all day today and he got plenty of attention (apparently he even got some from the pizza delivery person). I don't really see how boredom could have been an issue, I also don't think lonliness is either(we have a 2nd dog and my wife was home most of the day), and he knew i was going to take him out. He's seemed rather happy for the last 2 months but all of a sudden in the last 2 weeks he's acted out. Any ideas as to what the problem could be?

Is he neutered or was he neutered recently when put up for adoption? If neutered recently (within the last 3 or 4 months), he still has a lot of hormones that make it desirable to mark. Eventually it will subside, but if it becomes a habit and the spots are not cleaned up VERY well with an enzyme cleaner, then you need to retrain.

Also, he may have a medical issue like a urinary tract infection. You may want to take him in and tell the vet what you are noticing.
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PHReign
Email me: HReign@pethobbyist.com" target="_blank">PHReign@pethobbyist.com
Dear dog,
I can not buy anything larger than a king sized bed. I am very sorry about this. Do not think that I will continue to sleep on the couch to ensure your comfort. Look at videos of dogs sleeping, they can actually curl up in a ball. It is not necessary to sleep perpendicular to each other stretched out to your fullest extent possible. I also know that sticking tails straigt out and having tongues hanging out the other end to maximize space used is nothing more than doggy sarcasm.

>>I have a resonably well trained 5 year old husky, knows all the basic commands (sit, stay, down, play dead, shake, crawl) and we give him plenty of attention and exercise(he doesnt like to play much though). When we first got him(about 6-7 months ago from the humane society) he refused to pee if we took him out in the middle of the day unless it was on a walk and he got to stop and mark something every 2-3 minutes or so. On two occasions now, when I got home from work, I went to take him out and he decided to mark the carpet somewhere right in front of me. He is house trained and knows he's supposed to pee outside(he even knows he's not supposed to go in the kitchen), he couldnt have been bored, my wife was home all day today and he got plenty of attention (apparently he even got some from the pizza delivery person). I don't really see how boredom could have been an issue, I also don't think lonliness is either(we have a 2nd dog and my wife was home most of the day), and he knew i was going to take him out. He's seemed rather happy for the last 2 months but all of a sudden in the last 2 weeks he's acted out. Any ideas as to what the problem could be?

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Besides urinary tract infection, at that age he could have prostate trouble, which needs veterinary attention. It can become very serious.
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Kathy Diamond Davis, author, "Therapy Dogs: Training Your Dog to Reach Others," 2nd edition, and the free Canine Behavior Series articles at http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=SRC&S=1&SourceID=47

I hope he's okay. Keep us updated.