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Lifting Leg Already?

1K views 10 replies 9 participants last post by  kadylady 
#1 ·
Quick question!

Merlin is just over 3 months old and has been squatting to pee (which I assume all males do till they start marking)

Well.. We were out in the backyard and lo and behold the little bugger lifts he little leg (wobbling of course) on the fence and does a little pee!:doh::doh::doh::doh::jaw: What am I to think of this? :help:

I thought marking started at around 6 months -- Should I be worried? Is he trying to show that his is MY backyard? I definitely do not want him to start this in the house!

What could this mean? He has seen one male dog do this - could it be learned?
 
#4 ·
Sounds like my Winston, he started marking early as well... and humping... precocious little guy :p
He doesn't mark in the house though, only in the back yard, so hopefully you won't have to worry about that either. He is 9 months now and has taken to marking my potted plants.
 
#5 ·
Lifting his leg is a learned and instinctive response. My dog did not learn to life his leg until he was 3 yo. But lifting doesn't always mean marking territory, it can just mean pee. I don't believe that it's a concern. And, I don't believe that it is an addition issue for house training. On the other hand, he may still have accidents, whether squat or pee.
 
#6 ·
My old dog never did lift his leg to pee, he squatted his whole life. Kabota lifts his leg every single time and has never gone inside the house yet in 7 months. I have no idea why some dogs lift and some don't. Muggsy was very large and neutered early, Kabota is half the size and was neutered as an adult, maybe that makes a difference?
 
#7 ·
My male lifts his leg on everything outside, car tires, houses, poles, trees, you name it. But inside a building he has been trained (just like you potty train any dog) that indoors is a no pee zone. He is trustworthy in not only my home where he is left to roam free most of the time but also in new places and friends houses. It's all about the training you put into them.
 
#8 ·
When I'm walking my dog he lifts his leg to mark but I've only seen him lift his leg a handful of times at home in the backyard, but usually he squats. Dogs can be marking when lifting their leg or squatting so don't assume that just because he lifts his leg it's a mark.
If you continue teach your dog that the proper place to pee is outside and never inside then you shouldn't have a problem. You may have an accident here and there since he's young but don't worry too much about it.
 
#9 ·
My father was funny, he said, "When is Luke going to lift his leg?" All dogs learn how to lift their leg at different times. It doesn't necessarily mean your dog will go indoors, but your pooch may have accidents from time to time, since he's still young.

Yeah my grandmother's dog, a Sheltie mix, would only lift a small portion of his leg when going. I always thought it was because of his weight as my grandmother would walk him, but not much. I guess all dogs are different and I didn't know females do it as well!
 
#11 ·
My dad teased my boy Luke too, he didn't lift his leg until he was almost 2, even though he was around plenty of other male dogs that did. He started lifting his leg only when there was a female dog around. And now that we have Zoey he almost always lifts his leg. I can tell a difference between his regular leg lifting pee and marking, when he marks he lifts his leg so high he almost falls over lol. But he has never had an accident in any house (since being potty trained).
 
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