[Chico's Mama]

As many of you know I've recently moved...and since I moved, Chico has been marking EVERYWHERE! I'm literally following him around the apartment with oxyclean spray and a rag so I can clean up right after him...not to mention these are very light sand colored carpets.

He is house trained...he lets me know when he's got to go outside, and he pees on newspaper at nighttime. But what can I do as far as getting him to stop marking?

 

[Ms_P]

Is he neutered?

 

[KB]

Belly bands.........although I cant say I would use them (never have had to) I just think they might be annoying but people say they work

 

[Cooper]

Is Chico neutered? I can't remember if he is nor not.

Also, if there was a dog in the apartment before, you may need to either replace the carpet or give it a heavy duty steam cleaning.

The confusion from the move might be causing the problem as well. You might try taking him on a good long walk around the property and just let him mark outdoors. That might get it out of his system. :dontknow:

 

[Chico's Mama]

No, he's not neutered...and as far as a dog here before, I'm not sure, but these apartment are brand new, only a feq years old...and my carpet is brand new.

I've been taking him on long walks and he marks on almost every single bush we pass. If I get him neutered will he stop? I just really don't want to neuter him because I'm afraid of him going under anaestasia (sp?)

And what are bellly bands and what do they do?

 

[Cooper]

Neutering him won't guarantee he'll stop marking but it's possible. He's less likely to mark territory if he is neutered.

Cooper doesn't mark at all and he's neutered - but I can't say neutering is the reason. My sister had a doxie that she let pee and poop all over her house (the place smelled like a litter box) and Cooper didn't even care when we went to visit. I was shocked.... I expected him to pee everywhere because her carpet was literally urine soaked.

 

[Ms_P]

There is no reason for you to be afraid of him going under anesthesia. The vets do a test before the surgery to see if the chi will have any problems with it. All you have to do is ask them about it. Most vets do it anyway, but for your piece of mind just ask them to do it.

 

[chimom]

It is not unusual for them to get back into old habits or routines when you move. It is a new environment for them, and even though you might think they have adopted to it quite well, they still have some confusion and stress.

I've always heard that in this case you start all over with training, just as if they are a puppy again. If he is only marking in the house, I would seriously consider having him neutered. It won't necessarily guarantee that he will stop marking, but it's very possible it will help. There are also many health benefits to neutering.

I haven't had a male in years, but I've heard some people have good results with the belly bands. I know one of the members on this site posted about this not too long ago so you might do a search on belly bands to find it.

 

[Chico's Mama]

Thanks for the suggestions...I looked up belly bands on google and they look like a really great alternative to neutering...but if they don't work then I guess I'll have to get him neutered.

I told my husband yesterday I wanted to get a crate and try to crate train him so he can be in there at night time and when we're not home, but Chico is very spoiled and will bark and whine until we take him out...and I don't want to upset my neighbors having him be all loud that late at night. So there's really no point in us spending at least $50 (because we all know crates are NOT cheap) if he's not going to use it.

It's not a real big problem if I have to housebreak him all over again...sure it's frustrating, but I'm home all day so I can do it. I just really want the marking to stop...he hasn't done it in so long, but I guess it's the move that made him start again.

 

[KB]

youd be surprised how much dogs LIKE their crates. Mine go there just to chill out. The doors are always open except when they go to sleep you can always start that way not closing the door, give lots of treats and work your way up

 

[Chico's Mama]

Ya know what? Now that I think about it, maybe I should crate train him. I mean, it's good to do because when I go to NY to visit my family, I'll be taking him and he'll have ti stay in a carrier on the plane and he'll be used to it because it;s like a crate to him.

 

[janiebabes]

I was the member with the marking problem. It was so bad I was going to rehome him (Sturgis). I had ordered some belly Bands off of ebay. They work great! There is a pic of him posted wearing his somewhere on here. But you can not leave them on 24/7. I would let him out in morn. put it on when he came in. during the day when i let him out i took it off and soon as he cmae in back on. there were times i forgot and as he ran past i said noooooooo wait band off lol. when he went to bed at night i removed it. It worked like a charm he is now belly band free and I had him neutered about a month or so ago. Do not be afraid to neuter i had both my males done same day. I am getting into showing and I dont want any accidents with a show dog should she be a female. The thought of hearing them when a female is in heat or attempting to dig out of the yard and escape because they caught her scent or having them develop cancer is a far more price to pay than neutering. Do the right thing for your baby

 

[Cooper]

I had never had a crate trained dog before Cooper and now that I do have one, I will never own a dog that isn't crate trained again. Cooper loves his crate, although he doesn't get in it unless it's bedtime (the couch, he says, is much nicer).

You can cut down on the barking, etc by using kongs or toys to make it a pleasant experience for him while he's getting used to the crate. It's really a lifesaver in the end - especially if you take him to someone else's house and need a place for him to sleep.

 

[LovelyChiPupz]

maybe the stage will pass - just keep taking him out a lot so he gets used to doing the loo outside in his new home.

I think it is just because its a new home and all the smells of who has been there before - he's out there puttin his scent everywhere!

I think it will pass honestly :wave:

 

[Mia]

The marking should pass as hes prob only oding it because its all new territory to him, so as soon as hes settled it should be fine.
I never crate trained keeks properly but on the past two weekends ive had to stay away form home with her. The first night i put her in the craet (well it was actualy this little dog tent type thing) she would not settle for about half an hr, but then just went to sleep, the next night i put her in she was even better behaved and went to sleep almost straight away. The only thing i did to prepare her, was for the past month or so id put her dog bed in the tent and let her go in their to sleep without closing her in.
mia
x

 

[Rubyfox]

Hi,
I have had Smiffy for five weeks now even though he is nearly 2 yrs old and for the first couple of weeks he did the same. I thought what have I done?
but now he doesn't do it at all (probably because he has marked everwhere in the house now) :lol: he even did it on our bed.

 

[janiebabes]

JMHO Marking is Natural for Male and Female however males, tend to do it more.Its there way fo saying this is mine. Many dogs can't be trained to stop. Its a dominance thing. it doesnt matter how many times you take them out they are not urinating just to go It is an intentional natural thing to them. I swear by those belly bands.and neutering When they are young

 

[BeamerFritzyKosmo]

Yes, when we were still in the midst of potty training Kosmo I made some belly bands myself and would put a panty liner on the inside of the belly band. He only wore it around in the house and it worked wonders. It didn't take him very long to realize he wasn't supposed to pee in the house!

FYI, if you want to see if a belly band would work, depending on the size of your chi, you can take an old large mens tube sock and cut it around the band at the top. You can then slip this over his hind end like you would a mini skirt and voila, you have an instant belly band.

 

[Chico's Mama]

thanks for all the great advice guys. i think i'm just going to go with trying to crate train him, as well as bringing him outside a lot.

 

[jec582]

I also recently moved and Pixie had a similar problem. Once she got adjusted and figured out where her litter box was she did fine though.