Your+Dog++May+2019

GREETING WEE

Have you ever been

so-oo happy to see

someone that you’ve

weed yourself

a little?

No, dei nitely not

me either!

However, some

puppies get so

overexcited to

see their family or

visitors that their

little immature

urinary sphincters

just cannot hold on,

and they unwittingly

wee as they say

‘hello’. Some pups get

so excited that they

run around the house

in glee, leaving a trail

of urine for you to

clear up.

The good news

is, as the puppy’s

sphincter gets

stronger with age,

the behaviour

usually improves. If

you have an overly

excitable greeter,

make sure visitors

meet the dog initially

outside, and keep

greetings pleasant

and kind but low-key,

to limit that

over-arousal.

&

Q A

AM I MISSING

SOMETHING?

Dear S teve,

Q

I recently brought a new

puppy into our home,

a 10-week-old collie X Cocker

Spaniel. I haven’t pad trained

him, because I wanted to avoid

rewarding him for going inside.

He’s pooing outside regularly

— he’s only done it inside

twice, and that was in his crate

overnight. However, he doesn’t

show any signs that he needs to

wee. I take him out every hour

he’s awake. I’m sure he knows

he needs to go outside, because

he’ll go within seconds of being

let out, but he won’t ask to be let

outside and he won’t show signs

he needs to go either (no snii ng,

circling, pacing, or whining),

he’ll just squat and go. I know he

won’t have full control until 20

weeks, but is there something I’m

missing? Thanks for any help!

Your Dog reader, on Facebook.

Steve says: It sounds like you’re

doing a great job; at 10 weeks,

your puppy is still such a baby

so continue with your patience

and consistency.

As time goes by and your

puppy builds a stronger history

of receiving rewards for toileting

outside, then the motivation to

head outside will grow stronger,

and he’ll be more motivated to let

you know he wants to go outside

to earn the rewards!

Over the next few weeks,

rather than ‘on the hour, every

hour’, start taking your puppy

outside after sleep, play, visitors,

excitement, and then last thing at

night. You’ll then be lengthening

the time between outside visits,

which in turn will encourage your

puppy to let you know if he does

actually need to go outside.

Body language from a puppy

can be very subtle at i rst, but

as you get to see your puppy in

more and more locations and

situations, I’m sure you’ll become

more l uent in the ‘words’ he uses

to communicate with you. The

more he knows you’ll respond to

his body language, the ‘louder’

that body language will become.

● Employ good control and management via your puppy pen

to avoid ‘mistakes’.

● Heavily praise and reinforce toileting in the ‘correct’ area.

● NEVER punish or rub your puppy’s nose in ‘it’. You wouldn’t

rub a dirty nappy in a toddler’s face!

● Be consistent, be disciplined, and appreciate your job is

to help this baby dog. No matter how valuable your carpet

is, I guarantee it will never be as valuable as the life and

relationship you’ll have with your dog.

TOP TIPS!

MY

PUPPY!

problem

Steve

’

s

SUBMISSIVE

URINATION

Sometimes known as an

appeasement behaviour, this

is when the puppy may lack

coni dence or is a little fearful

of the human they are being

greeted by.

As already mentioned, this is

a perfectly normal behaviour, and

with maturity and a development

in coni dence, the problem

behaviour will usually extinguish

over time.

To help accelerate the process,

always look to develop the

puppy’s coni dence in people and

new environments.

In the short term, try these tips:

● Greet your puppy in an area

such as the garden or an area

where, if mistakes do happen, it’s

not the end of the world.

● Appreciate it’s not the

puppy’s fault; he genuinely

cannot help it.

● As ever, avoid the temptation

to tell him of or punish him as

this will only make him more

frightened and submissive next

time, which will exacerbate

the problem.

● Keep greetings as gentle as

possible. Crouch down, and let

pup come to you. A tickle under

the chin is far better than a big

scary hand reaching over the

puppy’s head.

● Be aware of your own body

language; be small, be sideways,

and be slinky. Don’t lean over

or stare directly at the puppy;

instead divert your eyes and face

to the side and let puppy set the

pace by coming to you.

The use of positive

reinforcement training,

and the development of trust and

relationships within the family

home, will help improve and

eliminate the submissive

urination over time, but, as with

all problems, if it persists contact

a good trainer or vet.

50 Your Dog May 2019

Don’t tell your pup

of ; he can’t help it!

“Look to develop the

puppy’s coni dence

in people and new

environments.”

‘OTHER’ TOILETING ISSUES

46-48 YD Puppy Problems CS(SW)ok.indd 50 26/03/2019 09:40