CH0602 Posted November 22, 2018 Report Share Posted November 22, 2018 Hi all, Long-time lurker, first time poster! My male tri-colour, Jax, is around about 10 months old now and has been house trained since I'd say around 3 months. However, over the last few weeks he's started to mark indoors. Specifically he's only marking in the kitchen and only in three locations - the bin (least frequent), up the side of the tumble dryer, and on the patio doors at the back (most frequent). Nothing has changed over the past few weeks in terms of introductions to the kitchen which may have initiated this behavior but it's getting more frequent; he's also only doing it when he knows we aren't watching so it's been hard if not impossible for us to tell him it's wrong. All I can think of is his exercise schedule has been a little different due to some problems in my partner's family, meaning I've not been able to get him out as frequently as I've had to stay with our four-year-old daughter. This was a minimal impact though and normal service is resumed, however the marking seems to be getting worse if anything. Has anyone experienced this sort of behavior before, and what solved it? It's causing a bit of stress with the Mrs so keen to get it sorted as soon as I can! Understand it's a habit though and may take some work. Thanks Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lenie Posted November 22, 2018 Report Share Posted November 22, 2018 Has he been neutered? That is around the age that they reach maturity and his hormones are likely kicking in causing him to start behaviors such as marking. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gcv-border Posted November 22, 2018 Report Share Posted November 22, 2018 I would definitely bring him to a vet to get him checked out for a UTI. I had a similar problem with an intact male dog around the same age. It took a while for me to realize it was medical, not behavioral. I wish I had checked for a UTI earlier. If he doesn't have a UTI, at least you will have eliminated one possible cause. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CH0602 Posted November 22, 2018 Author Report Share Posted November 22, 2018 Thanks both. No he hasn't been neutured yet, just started looking in to getting it sorted. Had considered UTI, will definitely get it looked in to. Feel like it is behavioural though as he only does it when we're not looking. Any other reasons you could think of? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maralynn Posted November 22, 2018 Report Share Posted November 22, 2018 My “perfect” dog tried marking at this age. I chalked it up to raging hormones. I treated him like a puppy again IRT housebreaking and it passed quickly. You might also try a belly band short term so the behavior doesn’t work for him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GentleLake Posted November 22, 2018 Report Share Posted November 22, 2018 Yeah, most likely what's changed is hormones. After checking for a UTI (actually, I wouldn't even wait that long to begin), if it is behavioral then go back to treating him like an untrained puppy. If you're not able to keep an eye on him, either put him on a crate or ex pen so he can't make any more mistakes. Or you could tether him to you until he gets the idea. Every time he has a chance to practice this behavior, it becomes more ingrained and it will be harder to break him of it. Prevention is key. Oh, and welcome to the Boards. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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