A question for Robbo

[Horus]

Having always had female dogs I have never had this problem, but recently my daughters 4 year old Cocker Spaniel has recently started peeing up just about everything from curtains to radiators. He is well loved so it should not be an attention seeking sort of thing, there are two other males in the family so it may be a 'top dog' sort of thing he is trying on. As they do not wish to breed from him I have suggested getting his 'nuts' removed as this my stop his urge to scent mark, she is getting pretty desperate to stop him from doing this, so any ideas or suggestions saying as you have a few boys of your own?

[LovelyLadyLux]

Nasty habit you 'boys' have of quickly lifting the leg and let fly. The old terrier I had was neutered and only once I was more than mortified when he ran into my gf house to play with her dogs and promptly lifted his leg and let fly on the back corner of her leather sofa!

Luckily it was the far back corner and on a wood floor so all was quickly clean and sopped up but he had NEVER done this in the house for his entire 8 or 9 yrs (he was definitely old enough to know better)

I have seen some people put belly bands on their non-neutered male dogs to prevent the constant marking.

[Horus]

Belly bands? that's a new one on me

[Robbo70]

It is quite possible thats its a dominance moment but at 4 years of age he should be past the piddling stage unless the others are coming to the house and marking before him. I am a firm believer in nuts off for any males. I dont think being in a state or horny hormonal angst is mentally good for them, and they can smell a bitch on heat up to 2 km away so there is always a good scent to get them riled up. It is possible someone has moved in, even 2 streets away with a bitch in season!

if your daughter is really against nuts off, then she could try a chemical castration to see if there is any improvment before going through with the op. All mine are done because they are not worth stealing once they cant be used for breeding to be honest

The biggest culprit though..... what ever is being used to clean up the widdle. Most household cleaners contain amonia which smells exactly like a dog has widdled to your dog. he therefore widdles over the other widdle smell, and then your daughter cleans it with chemicals that smell like widdle... and so on and so forth. Suggest she try cleaning all the widdle areas with biological washing powder in hot water. Thoroughly wash down all areas and see if he continues to widdle?

[LovelyLadyLux]

I'm a firm believer in neutering. Unless you have a show dog that is going to produce prized pups then IMO it is 'no nuts.'

A belly band is a wide absorbent cloth that gets wrapped around a male dog's middle (and velcro'd firmly in place) to stop the offending organ from doing anything! Had a gf who was breeding shih tzus and it was her way of keeping everybody together yet being able to control WHO was humping WHO

BUT - I'm like Robbo in that keeping an unaltered male dog must be pure torture for the dog as they're probably smelling any and all females in the area who are in season.

[Robbo70]

I should also add, any change in behaviour should always be checked out by a vet, just to rule out any medical issues. he could have a kidney problem or early onset diabetes which would result in increased widdling

[Horus]

Thanks folks

[Mad Dilys]

The above replies really made me laugh, I must read them - speaking in canine dialect of course to my daughter's much loved Buster aka Dirty Dog who makes me think of Compo, the dirty old rogue in Last of the Summer Wine.

DD is a Spanish spaniel cross that has survived many crises in his approx. 10 yrs that would have killed most dogs, he enjoys all the most disgusting habits that a canine can with the exception of humping human legs and inert items like cushions.

He was castrated when he was rescued from his first home, which he spent confined to a filthy balcony when he wasn't begging for food in the bar, when he was occasionally taken out by his owner. The only training he received then was how to beg for attention ie food successfully.

Food and sex rules his life, though he does have a sinister sense of humour which has brought my exasperated daughter very close to having him put down on one occasion. In the event she couldn't do it and currently spends about £100 a month on his food and medical expenses.

I adore him. His entertainment value far outweighs any money spent - though I'm not the one clearing up after him.

For part of the time he is a perfect pet, attentive obedient and gentle - the gentle part is the only thing that remains when he assumes his alter ego.

It is routine to barricade the sofas at night, just in case he wees or worse among the cushions. Mostly he is dry in the house, but just when you think "Ah what a sweetie" he will casually lift a leg against the incoming shopping or secrete a poo, just for fun.

The other two dogs - both neutered, one male very big Doberman and a female Jack Russell who is Top Dog - are used to his naughty nose and tongue exploring every orifice every day plus regular humping, front end back end whatever is nearest.

He's very canny and reads people very well, for a couple of years he managed to never hump in front of me. I robustly defended him against the rest of the family who insisted it was his main occupation. When I started to stay for longer than two weeks he couldn't keep it up and I have to agree food, humping and licking are his main interests.

Lack of real discipline at all stages of his life have obviously left their mark, combined with the probability that his adrenal glands have taken over his sex drive. I had a dog like that before and a course of cortisone would reduce the sex drive effectively. Unfortunately it is contra-indicated with the meds that Buster is already taking.

He is pretty much my constant companion when I'm in the house and especially the garden. He enjoys "training sessions" with me, partly because of the rewards but also just the attention.

The screams of joy when Dylan the Dog Walker arrives have brought enquiries about cruelty from neighbours they are so loud.

Dylan is his idol. He treats Buster like a Chihuahua picking him up and cuddling him (Dylan is Fit.) My enduring memory of Buster is towing my grandson on his scooter along the promenade at great speed with his big ears blowing in the slipstream. Buster's ears not grandsons

Bless him for the smiles he brings.

[Horus]

Now a dog that craps omongst the cushions is another matter altogether

[LovelyLadyLux]

MD's description of Buster brought a couple of out loud giggles from me as I can just imagine IN MY MIND that Buster's antics would be super cute BUT if I was the one on a search and discover mission every day amongst the pillows Buster's humping days would be long over!

I do have really wonderful memories of lots of the dogs long past that I had. Some were real characters and, as MD says, their amusement value was phenomenal. Not too sure which dog was the ultimate top dog but they all bring some pretty good memories.