Pet parents will almost always encounter some kind of new experience with their pets, but what if it’s not a very pleasant one? Inappropriate urination (on you or your guest) isn’t something that we’re all prepared to deal with, so when it does happen, what should we do to ensure it doesn’t happen again? In this article, we answer the question, “Why did my dog pee on me?” while sharing other information to help you and your dog move forward from this awkward encounter.
So Why Did My Dog Pee on Me?
If you’ve seen this problem once or twice before, you’re probably terrified of the possibilities and ask, “What if my dog pees on a guest?” While this experience will make us want to slowly disappear behind some shrubs, it’s important to understand why our new pet might do this. We all know that dogs will communicate differently compared to humans but did you know that peeing is a way for dogs to communicate?
Experts refer to urine marking as a way for dogs to convey a message. Because 40% of the dog’s brain is made to analyze smells, they mostly navigate the world through their nose rather than their eyes. When they leave a mark, dogs will leave behind traces of personal information; while this won’t be appealing to you, understand that this is your dog’s way of telling you something.
Reasons Why Your Dog Might Pee on You
When your dog does pee on you, don’t take it as a sign of disrespect; while it’s not fun being urinated on, there are a few reasons why your dog might do this. Here are just a few of them.
Attention-Seeking Behavior
When a dog marks its owner or engages in scent marking around its owner’s space whenever there are new people around, it may be looking for more attention. Dogs can be surprisingly jealous when their owner has less time to spend with them, so this could be their way of splitting your focus from the new person. Behavioral issues like this aren’t related to their need to assert dominance but are more related to a stressful kind of urination.
Anxiety or Fear
Much like people, dogs can also experience fear, anxiety, and nervousness. Nervous peeing will often occur in rescue dogs or a nervous dog that has been abused, so it will need lots of patience and love, along with positive reinforcement.
Moreover, if your dog suffers from separation anxiety, you’ll need to dedicate more time to it and never leave it alone for too long. Apart from these, new situations such as a new baby, new environment, new home, new experiences, and a wide range of stressors can trigger your pup to urinate on you.
Not Neutered or Spayed
It’s a popular belief that unaltered or intact dogs will usually mark their owners. When it comes to both male and female dogs, there are various reasons why dogs may pee on people that aren’t hormone-related. Loud noises, unfamiliar scents, and even fire hydrants can trigger dogs to take a sudden potty break.
Excitement Urination
Excited urination occurs when your pet gets in an overly excited mood and may pee on you without even knowing it. Dog owners who aren’t sure of how to contain their dog’s excitement every time they see each other should consult an animal behaviorist to get help with this condition.
Submissive Urination
Submissive peeing happens to dogs of all ages and occurs when they are approached by someone, are greeted, become scared, or even during play sessions. When addressing this, it’s important to get to the root of the problem; submissive behavior is an instinct that goes back to being pack animals that need an alpha dog to lead them. When a submissive dog shows a submissive gesture, it’s a sign of respect and trust and acknowledges that you’re the leader.
Some dogs will display submissive postures such as lowering their gaze, lying down, licking another dog’s chin, or making its body look smaller. Most times, these types of behaviors are perfectly normal. However, young dogs may also display submissive urinating out of fear or feeling threatened.
Territorial Behavior
While dogs aren’t spiteful or vengeful creatures, there will be times when they become jealous of a new addition to the family. When you bring new pets into your home, territorial marking can sometimes occur when your first dog wants to establish boundaries with your second dog. If this is a new behavior, be sure to properly introduce new pets to your adult dog so that it doesn’t feel threatened by the new arrivals.
Medical Problems
Dogs with a urinary tract infection, bladder stones, kidney disease, urinary incontinence, bladder infection, or a prostate problem may pee on their owners. Another medical issue to look out for is canine dementia; in its advanced stages, your dog might not know what it’s doing. If there’s an underlying issue behind your dog’s unwanted urination, you may want to go for a vet visit.
Age-Related Urinating
Young puppies will be beaming with energy, so they won’t discriminate between peeing in your home or in a public place. They may not even realize when they pee on you — they will also be more prone to accidents. On the other hand, older dogs are like elderly people and may experience involuntary urine leakage.
Unfortunately, as dogs get older, they also lose bladder control, which means that small amounts of urine will leak out of them from time to time.
Boredom
According to many dog owners, the most common reason why their dogs pee is boredom. When a dog feels bored, it can develop behavioral problems such as house soiling, excessive barking, urination, and chewing on furniture. Because dogs are naturally social animals, they can resort to bad behavior when left alone for a long time.
Improper Training
House training is extremely important for dogs because without potty training your puppy may suddenly start peeing around your home. If you give up training them too soon, they may even end up peeing on you, which won’t be such a good result.
Dietary Changes
Sudden changes in their diet may lead to health problems in dogs, as well as unwanted behavior. When dogs eat and drink less than they usually do, it may lead to changed habits in their potty schedule. For instance, high sodium and low protein diets may result in increased urination; this may also cause physical issues such as an increase in urination.
How to Handle Instances of Urinating
The first step to do when you want to correct your dog’s behavior is to try and understand how you can give your dog the support it needs to get rid of this bad habit. Use the following tips to help your dog get rid of urinating incidents.
Never Spank Your Dog
Laying a hand on your dog in order to punish them is never the right answer; this will harm your dog’s confidence and make them lose trust in you as their leader. Moreover, doing this can harm the relationship between you and your dog, making it harder to give them proper training.
Don’t Assume that Your Dog Won’t Get Mad at You
No matter what your dog does, don’t yell or scream at it; dogs will feel emotions like we do and they will understand how you feel. Recent studies reveal that dogs can feel love like humans do and are able to read human emotions through facial expressions. Because they’re able to feel as deeply as we do, upsetting or berating them will do more harm in the long run.
Never Withhold Water
Your dog should always have access to clean and cool water at all times. You should never withhold water from your pooch as a form of punishment.
Don’t Lock it Up in a Crate
Your dog should be able to associate its crate with a comfortable and safe space for it to rest, instead of a place for punishment. If your dog sees its crate as a place of negativity, it may become fearful and anxious, while developing behavioral problems.
How to Stop Your Dog from Peeing
The most important thing to do is stay calm and try to determine the possible reason for your dog’s peeing in the first place.
- If you’re worried that your dog’s issue may be the result of a medical cause, you may need help from your veterinarian.
- It’s a good idea to revisit your dog’s training if needed; you may have started training your pooch but you need to remind it how to use the potty every now and then.
- Make sure that your dog doesn’t get bored; have a family member, friend, or pet sitter to take it to the dog park, for a walk, or to a daycare for dogs.
- The best way to help your dog avoid unwanted peeing is to get started with potty training; you can use various techniques available online to help you.
- Always speak to your pooch in a soft and caring tone, along with friendly body language.
- When it comes to elderly dogs, consider using incontinence aids such as doggy diapers, waterproof bedding, and training pads with the help of your vet.
- The easiest way to manage dog peeing is to take it out more often; even if your dog can hold it in, doesn’t mean it should. Neglecting to urinate for long periods of time may lead to a urinary tract infection.
- Take away things that may cause anxiety and fear in your dog, such as fireworks, loud music, and unruly kids.
Conclusion
Whether your dog’s peeing is the result of medical conditions or behavioral issues, punishing them will only make things worse. Dogs are a man’s best friend, so the last thing we want them to feel is fear and anxiety whenever they make a small mistake. Making a huge fuss over such incidents will only make the issue worse, so it’s best if you try to understand them.
Sources