7 Month old Goldendoodle occasionally peeing on the house

[lsmalley]

My Golden Doodle behaves as potty trained 99% of the time. I don’t understand why he pees in the house once every 2 to 3 weeks. Also, when he has the “accident” he doesn’t go to the door to be let out as he normally would and he gives you no other clue he needs to go. His urine stream will start as he’s walking, followed by a puddle.

 

Any suggestions?

[Adrienne Farricelli]

If your puppy is peeing as he's walking and give no signs he needs to go (which he usually does), it sounds like he isn't aware of what is happening. Sometimes, this can be triggered by medical causes (urinary tract infections, bladder stones, systemic disorders such as diabetes, exposure to diuretic pills dropped on the floor, side efect of steroid drugs, etc) so a good place to start would be to mention this to your vet (and maybe bring a fresh urine sample for the appointment) just to rule out medical causes. With a clean bill of health and medical causes rulled out, you can then move on to finding what else may be triggering the behavior.

 

An important piece of the investigative work may be finding a common antecendent for those accidents: in other words, what happens prior to the accident? You may need here to put on your investigative hat and observe your dog carefully throughout the day. Perhaps, you haven't paid enough attention before, but chances are your puppy may have gulped a lot of water after playing in the sun and his bladder overfills to the point of causing the leaking while walking ('overflow' incontinence), or perhaps, he's doing it when company is over or he feels threatened by something. Some dogs pee when frightened, stressed or excited by something, so maybe there's something that is causing some emotional turmoil.

[lsmalley]

Thanks! I took him to the vet today and his bladder was completely empty! So I’m going to try again tomorrow to see if he has a bladder infection or bladder stones.

[Adrienne Farricelli]

Thanks for the update. What were your vet's thoughts about the peeing during walking? You can collect a urine sample from home by using a ladle to collect a sample while he's squatting and collecting it inside a sterile glass jar. Note the time collected and put your dog's name and your last name on an adhesive and stick it to the jar. You should take it to your vet within one to two hours. If that’s not possible, you can refrigerate it for up to 24 hours, but the fresher the better. Alternatively, your vet can collect a sterile sample directly by cystocentesis, but if your pup doesn't like needle sticks then best to go the traditional route.