BACKSLIDING

By Monday, October 19, 2015 37 , , Permalink

Whether you were referring to yourself or someone else, at least once in your lifetime you’ve used the word backsliding.

It’s my personal favorite go-to-word when it comes to dieting, exercising and eating right! #constantstruggle

The term backsliding means –

to start doing something bad again after you have stopped it

Let me tell you – Jaxson’s been backsliding big time lately!

Meet his new BFF Mr. Bissell…

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As soon as Jax saw his friend roll off the moving truck, his obsession to hear Mr. Bissell’s low whirling sound across the carpet got the best of him.

Quietly he must have yearned for a whiff of that fragrance from the cleaning solution inside the tank.

Whatever his fantasy #whoknows he has been “backsliding” ever since.

I cannot get Jax to stop peeing in my house!

It is driving me crazy!

There is no rhyme or reason for this behavior. He is 10 months old now.

I could understand –

  • if this was an issue before we left.
  • if I saw this behavior while we were in transient housing.
  • if he was alone in a new house.

Since none of the above is true – I cannot understand why this is happening now!

Based on his lack of symptoms I doubt seriously if he’s got a medical problem (i.e. kidney infection).

It’s more behavioral – yet I can’t put my finger on it. When I look at the list of possibilities, they really don’t match #allbutone

Behavior Problems –

  • Not enough house training #IthoughtIdidagoodjob
  • Urinating to show submission to another animal #nothisstyle
  • Urinating when excited – loss of bladder control #neverhappens
  • Urinating when afraid/anxious #nope
  • Marking territory #hestillsquats
  • Separation anxiety #alwaystogether
  • Drinking too much water, which leads to urinating more #possiblewinner

“Drinking too much water” is the only one that best describes our little problem.

We inherited a well manicured, large, flat, fenced in yard that Jax adores…

…and since there’s a screened in porch for Harley to put his paws up in and relax while remaining bug free #nowords

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…we spend a great deal of time out there.

His tinkling escapades have no set time, pattern or location. He’s fully aware that he’s violating rule #1 –

I shall not pee in the house

But rather than show any remorse, he chooses to whip out his million dollar smile …

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…and watch me dance with Mr. Bissell. #sowrong

I’ve decided to go back to basics and watch his water intake especially during the evening hours. That’s when most of our “mishaps” seem to occur. I won’t restrict water intake – I’m just going to increase potty breaks.

I’m willing to share some responsibility here. Pawhaps, I’m not reading his signals correctly. #gottafocus

Quite possibly he’s still trying to adjust to all these changes in such a short period of time. #hebetterhurry

What’s your take? Any suggestions?

ONE MORE THING –

Allow me to introduce you to my new BFF.  Little Ms. Clorox Urine Remover #loveher

WWWR

A clorox solution that is safe for carpet 🙂 #thankyouJesus

She gets the urine smell out better than any other product I’ve ever used. #girlfriendisthebomb

MAKE THIS A GREAT WEEK – PLEASE PRAY THAT OURS IS A DRY ONE!

I am joining the Monday Mischief blog hop brought to you by Alfie’s BlogSnoopy’s Dog BlogMy Brown Newfies. The Hop that wraps up the weekend.

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37 Comments
  • Karen
    October 19, 2015

    1. Marking his new territory or 2. He misses Mila!

    • Cathy Bennett
      October 19, 2015

      I will definitely go with #2 How is everyone doing? Give Mila a hug from me and a love bite from the boys!

  • Talent Hounds
    October 19, 2015

    Amazing with all that backyard he still does it inside. Tisk Tisk Jax!

    • Cathy Bennett
      October 19, 2015

      I’m experiencing a case of the “defiant doodle” syndrome #ohmy

  • Golden Daily Scoop
    October 19, 2015

    Oh dear! It sounds like someone is trying to establish their place in the family. Perhaps limiting his water intake after dinner will help? Keeping our paws crossed for you!

    • Cathy Bennett
      October 19, 2015

      Thanks – I’m definitely going to try it.

  • Earl Lover
    October 19, 2015

    And he has such a huge yard!

    • Cathy Bennett
      October 19, 2015

      Yes he does, however Earl, that doesn’t get him off the hook with peeing in the house!

  • Claudette Pope
    October 19, 2015

    Wow Cathy. I definately feel your pain. It sounds like you’re on the right track with increasing the potty breaks. I did actually restrict water intake. Ziggy is a night owl (1:00 am bedtime) so there was No Water after 9:00pm. Once he got a grip on – no peeing in the house- water came back, little at a time. Ziggy also had no rhyme or reason to his inside mistakes. It did totally drive me Nuts, & he didn’t go through a major move. I took him to the Vet thinking there was something wrong, NOT. Jax may be acting out cause. HE just Didn’t want to move lol. Soooo, just keep grabbing your dancing partner Mr. Bissel, and giving Zax his show :-). I promise he’ll get better shortly. Good luck sweetie. Harley better start showing his little brother how it’s supposed to work 🙂

    • Cathy Bennett
      October 21, 2015

      Claudette, you would scream with laughter at Harley. The last time Jax squatted in the hallway, Harley looked at him as if he wanted to say something nasty and then walked away as if he was mumbling some curse words under his breath. I fell out laughing. Gotta have humor when you have doodles!

  • DashLilly
    October 19, 2015

    Second child syndrome. Lilly was the same way and can still have accidents if I am gone too long

    Drives me crazy

  • Denton Gruzensky
    October 19, 2015

    We are in the same place with Shasta. #1 His Cushing’s is under control. #2 He only does it when we are away. My go to product is Nature’s Miracle….. wish I had advice

    • Cathy Bennett
      October 21, 2015

      Isn’t it the more baffling thing ever?!!!!! Can’t for the life of me solve this mystery. Jax will stop and pee right in front of me #thenerveofhim Today #sofar has been a great day!

  • Vicki Green
    October 19, 2015

    We recently moved, too and although fortunately we haven’t observed any peeing in the new house, we have noticed some new behaviors with our dogs. For example they used to enjoy chase games and racing each other but seldom (if ever) played by wrestling with each other. Since we moved it is suddenly like wrestlemania and it’s not like they don’t have room to run and get exercise in other ways – we’ve now got a fairly large acreage where they run around all day chasing squirrels and rabbits. Go figure! Wish we knew what was going on in those canine brains!

    • Cathy Bennett
      October 21, 2015

      Who knew canine brains could be so complex! I haven’t noticed too many changes in behavior, I’m sure some will surface soon. I just want to get a grip on the one that keeps showing up on my carpet.

  • DZ Dogs
    October 19, 2015

    Awwww bummer!! Naughty Jax. I think you’re on the right track though, increase potty breaks, maybe set a time limit and take away the water in the evening at least temporarily, you could also go back to some basic crate training??
    Good luck! I know you can do it!
    But that yard? Awesome!!! We’d love to have a yard that huge. 🙂

    • Cathy Bennett
      October 21, 2015

      Yes DZ, that yard is part of the culprit. It has a really nice screened in porch between it and my kitchen, so I can leave the door open, get a great breeze throughout the house while he plays all day long. The problem arises from all that playing results in more water intake, and I don’t think he has mastered holding it. So I’m trying to take him out more.

  • Emma
    October 19, 2015

    It could be worse. My mom is dancing with the same Mr. Bissell because my 13 yr old sister keeps having poop incidents on the carpet. It is not pretty, but she has always had a sensitive tummy and these days it is magnified 1000 times. As for backsliding, Bailie had done it a million times with being left out of the kennel with Mom is home. She is awesome for about six weeks and then she starts shredding everything she can find and lands back in the kennel for about two months. No clue why that happens either. Good luck. One day it will all be resolved.

    • Cathy Bennett
      October 21, 2015

      I know this is merely a moment in time Emma, but it seems like a long, long, moment sometimes LOL PAWhaps your mom and I need to swap playlists while we keep dancing! Take care.

  • Tenacious Little Terrier
    October 19, 2015

    Hope you have a dry week! Maybe he’s still adjusting to all the changes? When we first adopted Mr. N, he came home and marked our bed. He’s never marked indoors since. Dogs are weird.

    • Cathy Bennett
      October 21, 2015

      So far, the week has been dry. I’ve increased backyard visits in the afternoon and evenings. This seems to help. He’s never marked anything before – he’s not even going in the same place. You’re right – dogs are weird!

  • Jan K
    October 19, 2015

    Oh no. I would guess it has to do with the move. Once in a while I’ve seen completely trained dogs pee inside a house when it’s an unfamiliar one (though I would wonder why Jax was fine when you were in transient housing).
    All I would suggest is going back to square one, and do all the things you did to housetrain him in the first place.
    Good luck…dancing with Mr. Bissell can get old pretty quickly!

    • Cathy Bennett
      October 21, 2015

      Jan, you said a mouthful. My dancing card is definitely up for right now. I think he’s got an ear infection so I’m taking him to see a vet this afternoon. Meanwhile I am going out with him more these days, trying to reinforce how great grass is!

  • bailey unleashed
    October 19, 2015

    aww, poor jax, but my bet is on the move. he’s been through a lot of moves in his short life. from his breeder to your home to temp housing to your new place. once he completely settles in and realizes y’all are there for good, he should be fine. #bepatient. maybe a refresher course in house training would help too. #goodluck

    • Cathy Bennett
      October 21, 2015

      Bailey I believe you are right. I am trying to pay more attention to him, and take him out more often with a ton of praise when he tinkles.

  • LeeAnna Paylor
    October 19, 2015

    I don’t know that spray, but fabreeze doesn’t make odors go away, it works on human brains to think they went away. And gives me a headache. Maybe Jax can still smell the hormones in the long cleaned up pee. Does he pee in the same location each time?

    My lab took a long time to get self control with urine. She knew to go out, but like a two year old, she had no self control. Cole was trained in three days with virtually no accidents. Different dogs.

    Some experts say to limit access to the whole house until they are trained, poor Jax, like kennel use when you are not watching. It seems a shame but it would tell you if it’s physical too. And big treats when he goes outside, woohoo! Harley must be over it too. Little brothers! Sheesh!

    • Cathy Bennett
      October 21, 2015

      Thanks for the advice LeeAnna – I too get sick of the smell of certain fragrances, I wanted to find something that would eliminate the odor of the urine. The Clorox for urine stains is fantastic. The only thing I can think of at this moment is “adjustment” I believe he is taking a longer period of time to adjust than Harley. I haven’t blocked off areas of the house because wherever I go – he goes. And that’s what’s so frustrating. I’m right there. He can bite me for attention if necessary LOL Just give me a sign….

  • Ann Staub
    October 19, 2015

    I’m having a similar problem. It’s *mostly* behavioral and sometimes from old dog incontinence. The behavioral part is when separation anxiety I think. Or it seems like she’s mad at me LOL. I’ll put her out in the laundry room so the cat can have some dog-free time, and Shiner will pee. May have to try this stuff some time. Thanks for the tip!

    • Cathy Bennett
      October 21, 2015

      95% of the articles I read included inconvenience due to aging, so that ruled Jax out. I know I’m missing the signals, so I’m trying desperately to focus more on him during certain times of the afternoon and evenings. And I was serious, the clorox for urine smell and stains is really great. I found it at Lowe’s

  • Jackie Bouchard
    October 19, 2015

    Little stinker! Could he just be out of sorts from the move?

    Sounds like you have an entry here if you stop by Tail of Two Cardis – she’s looking for house training stories and giving away a copy of HOUSE TRAINED. 🙂 You could just put a link to this post! 🙂

    • Cathy Bennett
      October 21, 2015

      Little stinker indeed! Not sure what the reason, just want to solve this mystery and quickly. Running out of carpet shampoo LOL Thanks for the heads up about TTC – I will hop on over there and check it out.

  • Kimberly Gauthier
    October 19, 2015

    We have not experienced this much with our dogs. Whenever there was an accident in the house, it’s been my fault. MY FAULT. I wasn’t paying attention to the signals. It’s tempting to restrict water, but we don’t do that either; I’m with you – more potty breaks. It took care of things with our dogs.

    • Cathy Bennett
      October 21, 2015

      I’m sure it is my fault! But I was looking for a little cooperation from Jax now that he’s older. He has no problem communicating with me (to the point of being a pest) when he wants to play, eat, or cuddle, so why not when he has to pee? #inquiringminds

  • nichole
    October 20, 2015

    We had a backslide with Penny just after her spay last month… but things seem to be going back in the right direction again! Good luck!

    • Cathy Bennett
      October 21, 2015

      I’m curious as to the reason! He’s got what looks like an ear infection beginning to blow up, I’ve got a vet appointment this afternoon. Always something! Good to know about Penny, thanks for sharing, happy to hear that I am not alone 🙂

  • De Hufford
    October 25, 2015

    Bummer! Sometimes you wish they could talk. Hoping it all works out!

    • Cathy Bennett
      October 28, 2015

      It’s getting better De, He’s finally simmering down and adjusting to our new normal.