If your wonderful dog, who has always done his “business” outside, begins leaving puddles in the house, please do not default to the assumption that this is a behavioral issue.
My 14-year-old female senior dog started having occasional pee accidents last summer. A vet checkup showed no evidence of bladder infection or other medical causes. We figured it was mainly just from being old; so we started taking her out for a late evening pee break and that seemed to do the trick.
At first, it didn't seem to be working - then we realized that she was just going out and sniffing around the yard and not peeing. I figured maybe she wasn't getting the idea that she was supposed to pee, not just sniff around; so I started going out with her and directed her to a spot in front of our house where dogs walking by always stop and pee. Of course, she wanted to pee there too, and that assured she was "drained" enough to make it through the night.
We never had this problem with our senior male dog, even when he was very old (he lived to be 17), but I guess it's because as a male dog, he LOVED peeing at every possible opportunity. He also was the sort of dog who would go on a 3-mile walk and then come home and poop in the yard. Our female dog has never really liked peeing and pooping in our yard; she has always preferred to do her business outside of our property when she is on her walks. So, I guess the association of "I'm in the yard" with "I should pee" wasn't nearly as strong with her.
Can I add another reason to the list… my rescue dog started leaking a little later in her life and it was said it was likely because of neutering.. she was prescribed a daily vitamin c tablet and never had the problem again.
As a trainer, I always direct people to the vet if a formerly well-trained dog begins having accidents. If there's no physical issue, we can adjust the pee schedule, as Esme discussed above.
My 14-year-old female senior dog started having occasional pee accidents last summer. A vet checkup showed no evidence of bladder infection or other medical causes. We figured it was mainly just from being old; so we started taking her out for a late evening pee break and that seemed to do the trick.
At first, it didn't seem to be working - then we realized that she was just going out and sniffing around the yard and not peeing. I figured maybe she wasn't getting the idea that she was supposed to pee, not just sniff around; so I started going out with her and directed her to a spot in front of our house where dogs walking by always stop and pee. Of course, she wanted to pee there too, and that assured she was "drained" enough to make it through the night.
We never had this problem with our senior male dog, even when he was very old (he lived to be 17), but I guess it's because as a male dog, he LOVED peeing at every possible opportunity. He also was the sort of dog who would go on a 3-mile walk and then come home and poop in the yard. Our female dog has never really liked peeing and pooping in our yard; she has always preferred to do her business outside of our property when she is on her walks. So, I guess the association of "I'm in the yard" with "I should pee" wasn't nearly as strong with her.
So interesting! Thank you for sharing Esme.
I always preach to look for medical reasons first, before jumping to behavioral causes.
Can I add another reason to the list… my rescue dog started leaking a little later in her life and it was said it was likely because of neutering.. she was prescribed a daily vitamin c tablet and never had the problem again.
As a trainer, I always direct people to the vet if a formerly well-trained dog begins having accidents. If there's no physical issue, we can adjust the pee schedule, as Esme discussed above.
Thanks for your comment Saffi!