Our young dog has a submissive urination problem when I come home from work. What can I do?

Submissive urination is not really a house training problem, although people new to dogs may feel that it is. In fact it is often a RANK ISSUE between the dog and the owner. I put it in this section because more people will look here for the answers to their problem.

What the dog is doing is peeing to show you that he considers you a higher pack member. When you correct the dog for peeing it will only pee more - kind of like saying "Hey - I peed on the ground to show you that I thought you were tougher than me - what else do you want me to do?"

Owners often cause submissive urination in their pups by starting corporal training too young. Correcting a puppy for anything other than not coming is a mistake. When dog owners start to train a puppy with corrections they establish themselves as a very powerful pack member - someone to be respected and someone to be very submissive to.

Submissive urination will usually go away when the dog is about two years old.

In the mean time here are some things to try:

1. When you come home do not bend over and pet the dog. This triggers the dogs submissive behavior. Ignore the dog, even if it is jumping on your leg. Just turn away.


2. Whatever you do - DON'T BEND OVER THE DOG. This is a serious pack behavior and will trigger the dog to pee.


3. Don't talk to the dog. Talking nice to a dog often makes it pee. Rather what I recommend is to keep dog treats by the door. Treats that the dog really loves. When you come in, take 3 to 5 treats and toss them away from you on the floor. This gives the dog something else to think about and something else to do rather than pee on your shoe. It also makes the dog look forward to you in ways other than being submissive.


4. If the dog does pee on the floor - do not scream or scold or correct it. this only makes things worse. It just elevates you to a higher level of dominance.


5. When people come over either put the dog in a crate or let them meet your dog outside. Personally I do not allow people to pet my puppies. Why should I?