Infection Or Just Being A Brat?

[Guest addison522]

We have always allowed our 2 hounds, Addison & Captain, on the furniture and on the bed. However, a few weeks ago, one of them (almost positive it was Addison) marked the bed 2 times within 24hrs. I'm pretty sure it was marking and not an accident because there wasn't a lot of pee, just a little puddle. So we decided that now both dogs are not allowed on the bed and we keep the bedroom door closed when we're not in there. Last Friday I found out that one of them peed right in front of the bedroom door (which also happens to be right in front of Captain's food bowls). That time, there was a lot more pee than what was on the bed the previous week. I assumed that one of them had an accident.

 

Last night though, I took the hounds out for their last potty for the night and Addison peed multiple times. About an hour later we went to bed. All of a sudden we hear one of them peeing!! It was Addison and it was on the floor right at the end of our bed, but also, right on one of the dog beds. (it's the bed she usually sleeps on).

 

Do you think she's just being a brat cause she's no longer allowed on the bed? She used to sleep on our bed every night, but not anymore. Or could it be something more serious like an infection?

 

I'm really worried about her... Nothing has changed in her schedule or in her surroundings so I'm pretty concerned!

[TheFullHouse]

For peace of mind I would have her checked for a UTI at the vet's. Once that's ruled out then I would go about trying to change the behavior.

 

Recent experience has taught me that dogs can have UTI's with no symptoms.

[GeorgeofNE]

I don't personally believe dogs think like that AT ALL. "Well, I used to be able to sleep on the bed, and now I can't, so I'm going to urinate now." Remember, to a dog, pee isn't a bad thing.

 

Sounds like a medical problem to me, and I'd take her to the vet.

[christinepi]

Besides, somebody marked twice BEFORE being prohibited from getting on the bed.

[fliggie]

Dogs get anxious, dogs mark, but they don't seek revenge. I know, tempting to consider, but they just don't have that capacity. I would agree that a trip to the vet is a good idea. Good luck!

[JohnF]

I would suspect a UTI or maybe the dog needing to drink more maybe as a result of Diabetes or Kidneys, so a trip to the vet would be wise.

However, and contrary to what some people are saying, they DO absolutely pee-mark out of spite. I remember getting my Borzoi Misha a nice new bed and put it in my room and she sat down in it. Before I know it, in comes Kerry the Great Dane, nudges Misha out of the bed and promptly pees on it! It's kind of like that feeding thing... boss dog needs first treat.

[krissy]

"Marking" would fit if she had a UTI as well. The urgency makes them void small amounts more frequently. I would rule out a medical cause first and then if nothing turns up think about how you're going to modify the behaviour.

 

I also believe that animals don't do things out of spite. It may seem like it sometimes, but there's always some other explanation. My rabbit may pee on my BF's stuff out of spite that he no longer gets nearly as much attention as when I was single, but a more likely explanation is that he's just being a male rabbit trying to cover another male's scent. I have no examples with Summit... he's pretty much perfect.

[Guest AmberStar47988]

After ruling out medical issues and other possible behavior issues, consider that Addison may be trying to tell you something about Captain. It's a remote possibility, but it should be considered. The "Do Greyhounds Feel Empathy Toward Each Other" thread triggered a memory. Years ago, my family had a foster brood mama, Nancy, who suddenly started urinating for seemingly no reason. It was always near my boy Corby's bed or bowl, or where she and Corby often shared common space. There was no medical or underlying behavioral reason, but son of a gun...a few weeks later, Corby had an ischemic stroke. Once he was on meds and was being rehabbed, Nancy never had another problem.

 

When my Beagle, Flossy, was growing progressively more deaf and also near the end of her life from splenic hemangiosarcoma, Asia the Whippet mix became very protective of her. She didn't urinate, but she became slightly space aggressive of Flossy's usual sleeping spots. Once Flossy went to The Rainbow Bridge, there were no more space aggression issues with Asia. As a matter of fact, less than a year later, Asia became CGC certified.

 

Seizure alert dogs, for instance, are trained to alert people when they sense that their person is about to have a problem. Perhaps Addison is trying to tell you, for instance, that Captain's food isn't agreeing with him, or he's developing a case of arthritis that he's not showing yet. I certainly hope, of course, that it's a minor issue like a UTI. Good luck!

[Guest Greyt_dog_lover]

I would suspect a UTI or maybe the dog needing to drink more maybe as a result of Diabetes or Kidneys, so a trip to the vet would be wise.

However, and contrary to what some people are saying, they DO absolutely pee-mark out of spite. I remember getting my Borzoi Misha a nice new bed and put it in my room and she sat down in it. Before I know it, in comes Kerry the Great Dane, nudges Misha out of the bed and promptly pees on it! It's kind of like that feeding thing... boss dog needs first treat.

 

 

John,

that is not marking out of spite, that was marking his territory so the other dog would know its his. Very different actions. Dogs don't have the "capacity" for spite. Spite is a higher-thinking action that dogs brains simply do not have. People love to anthropomorphize their dogs to better understand them, but in the end, they simply arent that bright.

[Guest LindsaySF]

I agree with a vet visit.

 

Dogs don't pee or poop out of spite or revenge. They scent mark, they have accidents (usually the human's fault), they have medical conditions, they do it as a result of anxiety or stress, etc, but not spite.

 

Good luck.

[GeorgeofNE]

I would suspect a UTI or maybe the dog needing to drink more maybe as a result of Diabetes or Kidneys, so a trip to the vet would be wise.

However, and contrary to what some people are saying, they DO absolutely pee-mark out of spite. I remember getting my Borzoi Misha a nice new bed and put it in my room and she sat down in it. Before I know it, in comes Kerry the Great Dane, nudges Misha out of the bed and promptly pees on it! It's kind of like that feeding thing... boss dog needs first treat.

 

 

John,

that is not marking out of spite, that was marking his territory so the other dog would know its his. Very different actions. Dogs don't have the "capacity" for spite. Spite is a higher-thinking action that dogs brains simply do not have. People love to anthropomorphize their dogs to better understand them, but in the end, they simply arent that bright.

 

 

I agree; the situation described above isn't at all the same as what the OP is asking about. This describes a dog on dog communication, not a dog being spiteful to its owner. I agree; dogs simply don't think the same way we do--thank goodness!

[Guest Sunset123]

If it makes, you feel better, we just went through our own "infection or brat" peeing on bed thing.

 

http://forum.greytalk.com/index.php/topic/274922-peeing-on-her-own-bed

 

We went to the vet to check for a UTI and it was all clear. We decided that it was anxiety mixed with drinking way more water than she usually does, and just having plain old accidents.

 

Additionally, my parents' dogs are repeat perpetrators of peeing on the human bed when they're feeling possessive and anxious. Lots of things will make them do a sneak-pee on the bed-- even just smelling the traces of another dog in their yard has made it happen. I don't know if you can call it retribution, but it's certainly meant to send a message.