[skatalite]

Hey all! First post here, but I've been a reader for a long time. This is a lengthy post just so people can have as much information as they need to give the best advice.

My fiance and I rescued a Miniature Pinscher/Chihuahua mix on Christmas day. Her name is Annie. Vet pegged her around six months old at the time, and she's fixed and a healthy dog.

The people we got her from didn't do any form of training with her, so we began potty training her. She had a couple of mishaps in the house, but nothing too frequent.

Beginning in February, Annie began peeing more frequently, and then she peed in her crate. Took her to the vet, and over the course of a couple urinalysis, turned out Annie had struvite crystals and a bladder infection. No stones. Phew! She's on antibiotics, distilled water and Solid Gold Berry Balance. Her pH level is great now and infection gone. We also upped her water intake since she was never much of a drinker. We now add 1/2 cup of water to her kibble per meal time, for about a cup a day.

Since she's drinking more water, and since she's so little, she needs to go out more frequently. No problem... Until we have to go to work, or have engagements to attend. Then we sometimes, about half the time, come home to her having peed in her crate.

For instance: Today, we fed her dinner around 4, took her out twice before 5, then were gone until about 7. Came home, took her out again, then we were gone until 11. Came home, and found she had peed in her crate.

She's healthy, checked out by the vet and clean bill of health. Her crate isn't too big for her. And, we make sure to give her plenty of opportunities to go bathroom outside before we leave.

So, I'm curious how we can correct this.

1. Perhaps she just needs to go more often before we leave for a lengthy period of time.

2. Maybe getting a larger crate, but putting a puppy pad down in it will work? But we don't want her thinking her crate is the bathroom.

3. Or, maybe the answer lies in changing her feeding habits. Three smaller meals a day instead of two, so water intake is spread out more. If we don't mix water with her kibble, then she won't get a good day's worth of water.

Can anyone offer any suggestions? Thanks!

 

[doxiemommy]

When she pees in the crate do you clean it with an enzymatic cleaner? If not, there are probably traces of the enzymes in her urine left, and that attracts her to going there again. It's kind of like advertising that it's ok to pee there, since it smells like pee anyway.

Now, it won't smell like pee to you, probably, but dogs have a much stronger sense of smell. So, that would be the first step.

I wouldn't go with the larger crate, as you said, you don't really want the crate to be her bathroom. IMO, I think a combination of #1 and #3. Maybe feed her in 3 small meals per day. Or, just make sure that feeding time allow for plenty of time for her to empty bladder and bowels before you have to leave, when possible. Could you try 1/4 c water in her food, as opposed to 1/2 c?

 

[skatalite]

When she pees in the crate do you clean it with an enzymatic cleaner? If not, there are probably traces of the enzymes in her urine left, and that attracts her to going there again. It's kind of like advertising that it's ok to pee there, since it smells like pee anyway.

Now, it won't smell like pee to you, probably, but dogs have a much stronger sense of smell. So, that would be the first step.

I wouldn't go with the larger crate, as you said, you don't really want the crate to be her bathroom. IMO, I think a combination of #1 and #3. Maybe feed her in 3 small meals per day. Or, just make sure that feeding time allow for plenty of time for her to empty bladder and bowels before you have to leave, when possible. Could you try 1/4 c water in her food, as opposed to 1/2 c?

Thanks for the reply!

My fiance and I discussed reducing how much water we mix in her kibble, but based on what I've read and have been told, she should be getting between 1 and 1.3 cups of water a day. Since she rarely drinks water on her own, putting it with her kibble will keep her hydrated. And, of course, will help flush out her bladder and keep it clean.

But no, we didn't clean it with an enzymatic cleaner. I'll Google those as well, but I was wondering if you could recommend anything. And since she sleeps in a doggy bed, she also peed on that (we have two of them, she'd peed on both). Are there enzymatic cleaners we can use when we toss them in the wash?

Many thanks!

 

[LilasMom]

Yes, there is a brand called Nature's Miracle that I am a fan of.

She was probably peeing there repeatedly because of the pee signals she kept smelling. When you put the enzyme stuff on the dog beds, make sure it soaks through all the way.

 

[LilasMom]

I also wanted to ask, does she eat the kibble within a short amount of time or is it left sitting out? Mixing water with kibble makes a breeding ground for bacteria if left out too long.

 

[skatalite]

Yes, there is a brand called Nature's Miracle that I am a fan of.

She was probably peeing there repeatedly because of the pee signals she kept smelling. When you put the enzyme stuff on the dog beds, make sure it soaks through all the way.

I also wanted to ask, does she eat the kibble within a short amount of time or is it left sitting out? Mixing water with kibble makes a breeding ground for bacteria if left out too long.

Alright, Nature's Miracle, then. Excellent. We have three cats and one of them used to urinate on our carpet. We thought of using NM until we decided we'd much rather just replace the carpet, heh. Don't know why it didn't dawn on me to think of Nature's Miracle, so thanks for the reminder.

Also, she eats the food right away. The water slows her down cause she has to drink it first, then she hoovers the kibble. From the time we mix it in her bowl and give her the command to eat, the food is gone in a matter of minutes. Her and her sister, Ava, (a pit bull/chocolate lab mix) both eat super fast, so we've had to put portion pacer balls in their bowls. But thanks to the water, Annie doesn't eat nearly as fast.

 

[LilasMom]

Ok that should be fine then, I would think it would only be an issue if you left it out for like hours. Personally I like when dogs get moisture with their meal, not just before or after, especially if they don't drink too much water on their own. I think my yorkie was like that because, because on kibble her pees where small but now that she is on a non-dry food her pees are much larger.

 

[doxiemommy]

I also loved Nature's Miracle! And, yes, they make a product called "Laundry Boost" I think, that you can throw in the washing machine when you wash the bedding. Or, you can just use the regular Nature's Miracle in the washing machine.

 

[skatalite]

Ok that should be fine then, I would think it would only be an issue if you left it out for like hours. Personally I like when dogs get moisture with their meal, not just before or after, especially if they don't drink too much water on their own. I think my yorkie was like that because, because on kibble her pees where small but now that she is on a non-dry food her pees are much larger.

I'm definitely noticing larger puddles Annie leaves, thanks to her new diet.

I also loved Nature's Miracle! And, yes, they make a product called "Laundry Boost" I think, that you can throw in the washing machine when you wash the bedding. Or, you can just use the regular Nature's Miracle in the washing machine.

Awesome! I'll check on Amazon and compare some prices. Many thanks!

Also, here's the pup we're talking about:

 

[doxiemommy]

Awwww! What a cutie!

 

[Dolly's Mom]

I'm new on here..with a 9 week old puppy, Dolly, who is Maltese and Poodle mix. I've had her for one week and until last night she peed in her crate anytime she was put in there. It was cold yesterday morning, so I put on a knit sweater from her bigger sister, and then her harness over that. She went Pee/poop outside easily, then when I had to leave for a couple of hours, put her in the crate. Surprise!! When I got her out, it was dry...sweater still on. Afternoon nap of 3 hours and crate still dry. Overnight she slept from 10 to 3 am, whined a bit, put her out, she peed, went right back to sleep...crate still dry. This morning at 6 am, put her out and she peed/pooped and now is just quietly playing with her toys and being a sweet puppy. I THINK putting the sweater on her made her feel safe, (kind of like the thundershirt idea) and she has not had an accident in the house or in her crate since night before last! Just an idea. I live in Michigan so it is going to get warm eventually, so I will look for a light-weight covering because this certainly has made a HUGE difference in her behavior.

 

[kathylcsw]

Your puppy is so cute!!

 

[chubby]

Thanks for the reply!

My fiance and I discussed reducing how much water we mix in her kibble, but based on what I've read and have been told, she should be getting between 1 and 1.3 cups of water a day. Since she rarely drinks water on her own, putting it with her kibble will keep her hydrated. And, of course, will help flush out her bladder and keep it clean.

But no, we didn't clean it with an enzymatic cleaner. I'll Google those as well, but I was wondering if you could recommend anything. And since she sleeps in a doggy bed, she also peed on that (we have two of them, she'd peed on both). Are there enzymatic cleaners we can use when we toss them in the wash?

Many thanks!

I've tried Nature's Miracle but it didn't quite work as well as Bissell's Ewww product for urine elimination. I found she had far fewer accidents when I started using that cleaner.

 

[BlairS87]

OOH man, skatalite you have a beautiful dog! I love it
take care of it