Dog Pees On People I Don't Like...

[jacqui835]

Ok so I have a male entire dog and maybe that has something to do with it, but it's very weird. He pees on people that I don't like, and their belongings as well.

He is completely toilet trained in all other circumstances, never pees in the house - can hold it in for well over 12 hours, never marks our house or even our backyard (he squats and pees like a puppy). But, for example, when I used to go over to my mum's house, should he find a bag of clothes belonging to my mum's new bf, he would pee on it. He would also eat his shoes (but leave everyone else's untouched), and if the guy wasn't watching him, ie drunk and watching tv, the dog will actually pee on him. This bf, without going into too much personal detail has not been particularly nice to me or the dog, and kind of kicked me out of the house which sucked. Anyway, I thought it was just him.

I now live interstate, and there is a guy who takes every opportunity to put my partner down - so naturally I dislike him. That said, they have to work on particular projects together and consequently, this guy ended up at our house for dinner. Well Sammy peed on his jacket that he left hanging on a chair in the kitchen, and then, when we were all standing outside at the bbq, he peed on his leg.

Now Sammy is being praised as a hero because the guy isn't too popular with anyone, but, I guess I just don't understand (not by us of course though - I am not happy about him peeing on anyone). Is my dog peeing on people that I don't like (can dogs even tell if you don't like someone?) or is something else going on here - and how do I address it? I know it could be worse, but, you can't really have your dog pee on people you don't like. We tell him off, he knows it's wrong, but this is now the 3rd 'enemy' he has peed on, and he hasn't peed on anyone or anything else but seems determined to just keep peeing on these people (ie if he sees them again, he will pee on them and their belongings again).

Does anyone else have this problem?

Edited October 6, 2011 by jacqui835

[poodlefan]

You dog is displaying dominance. He is marking 'territory'.

I doubt your likes and dislikes have anything to do with it beyond perhaps you not being as vigilant about your dog's behaviour around folk you don't like.

What can you do? Confine the dog outside or in a crate when you have visitors. Its utterly unacceptable to have your clothing or body peed on by someone's dog.

I'm guessing your dog is entire?

Edited October 5, 2011 by poodlefan

[jacqui835]

Hmm interesting. Sometimes (as a doberman) he meets people who are scared of him, who like back away and sometimes even throw food at him if he looks at them because they think that like if he's full he might spare them or something... If I leave him alone with these people, he teases them, never hurts them of course and never does it at all with children but he will antagonise adults. He will stand close to them, lean on them even and put his head very close to their food.

He ignores the people I don't like. Won't come if they call, even if they have like meat for him (as my mum's bf often tried to win him over). The bf often tried to tell him off when he peed on him, and he just runs away. Won't attack or growl or anything, just evades them, whereas with me he stops and crouches or rolls over, looking extra sad and sorry for himself.

But how does he know in a group of people the one that I won't mind him peeing on when he's meeting like 10 people for the first time...

eta: if you read the first post I mentioned in the first sentence that yes, he is entire.

Edited October 5, 2011 by jacqui835

[persephone]

I would suggest you get a trainer's help - socially unacceptable behaviour ..and it does need remedying ASAP.

Your boy does need to learn some self control.

And, yes, dogs do know by your body language/voice tones, etc when you are wary /scared/angry in a situation..or with people..... but you still need to exert your leadership ..and not let them make the decisions .

I used to have a bit of a problem with my BIG boy, Kieran . He would growl at /nip drunk men and teenage hoons . In some instances I was very glad of this ... but of course I couldn't let him just do it ! We did a LOT of work together to even things out - both my involuntary reactions, and his taking control.

[persephone]

If I leave him alone with these people, he teases them, never hurts them of course and never does it at all with children but he will antagonise adults. He will stand close to them, lean on them even and put his head very close to their food.

You and he need to do some work with a good trainer .

This behaviour is not desirable.

[sausy.dog]

Your dog needs some training. Antagonising (as you put it) anybody is unacceptable - he sounds like a dominant dog and leaning on people while they are eating is not ok. Letting people throw food at him is also asking for trouble. I think you need to speak to a professional and come up with some strategies to manage and train him or you are heading towards having a dog that will unmanageable in social situations, especially a large, dominant breed like a dobe.

[Alyosha]

Sorry but your dog sounds like an accident waiting to happen. You should consult a good trainer / behaviourist.

[poodlefan]

Hmm interesting. Sometimes (as a doberman) he meets people who are scared of him, who like back away and sometimes even throw food at him if he looks at them because they think that like if he's full he might spare them or something... If I leave him alone with these people, he teases them, never hurts them of course and never does it at all with children but he will antagonise adults. He will stand close to them, lean on them even and put his head very close to their food.

Solution 1 - don't leave people alone with your dog if its is clear that they are uncomfortable with him. Put the dog away.

He ignores the people I don't like. Won't come if they call, even if they have like meat for him (as my mum's bf often tried to win him over). The bf often tried to tell him off when he peed on him, and he just runs away. Won't attack or growl or anything, just evades them, whereas with me he stops and crouches or rolls over, looking extra sad and sorry for himself.

Good manipulator your dog. Did YOU tell him off for peeing on people?

But how does he know in a group of people the one that I won't mind him peeing on when he's meeting like 10 people for the first time...

He's reading you like a book.

Frankly, I think you should be concerned about your dog's behaviour. He sounds way too big for his boots and unsuitable to be loose in social situations. Put him away or risk undesirable consequences.

[aussielover]

You and Sammy have a very close bond, so it is no surprise that he can easily tell who you don't like.

Though as you said, him peeing on people and intimidating them isn't ideal, so you need to intervene when he does this.

Is he crate trained? If people are uncomfortable around my dog at my house, I always crate her. She usually wins them over in the end though :D

[spyke88]

my boy spider used to pee on people in the dog park... he only did it for a few months when we first started letting him offlead... he hasn't done it in 2 years since. but then again he doesn't often get offlead cause his recall is horrible. in that case i think it was territory/dominance.

good luck remedying it.

[Bisart Dobes]

We have had a couple of instances with two of our dogs have blocked people in our house.

1. Mother & Father inlaw staying - through the night they wanted to get up to go to the bathroom and this boy (Khann rip) wouldn't let them out of the bedroom. He wasn't growling or anything like that - just had that stance that said 'don't do it' !. The next day they decided to sit outside to have their coffee and this dog wouldn't let them in the house again. (Now I don't get on that well with this set of inlaws (I have 3 sets !!! long story) & they haven't stayed again - LOL).

2. Have had one of our girls (Rhemy) block someone from touching her puppies - everyone else who had come to see these pups she would proudly show them to where they were and bought toys to play with both the pups and Rhemy - but with this person, no this person was not going near her puppies. She got put on lead and put away but this person didn't get a puppy.

Dobermanns have an inate ability to read people and to assess your feelings about a situation or person -so this behaviour doesn't suprise me (not labeled the dog with the human brain for no reason). BUT his behaviour is way over the top - I would suggest some serious obedience training and learning of the rules. While he is learning good manners - he needs to be put away from the people he doesn't like (or perhaps take his advice and remove the 'bad' people from your life - LOL).

Can your breeder help you with the training / behaviour ? It needs to be someone who understands Dobermanns. Good luck.

[jacqui835]

Thanks for all the replies guys, I think I understand now.

To Poodlefan - I probably don't tell him off as much as I should - when you dislike someone as much as this (and if you have met me you'll probably have noticed that I like most people) and your dog pees on them well it's hard to be genuinely upset, and Aussielover is probably right, I can't lie to Sammy. He has only peed on people that have either made me cry, or made us (Dan and I) really angry (which is a big thing for me).

He is not aggressive with them (or anyone/thing for that matter), but he is opportunistic, clever and he seems to think he's pretty good. I think I know what the problem is; I think people are silly for being scared of him, the truth is if they don't like him well it's hard to be friends when Sammy means so much to me (and I to him). So with those people he probably thinks it's ok to be a bit cheeky and try his luck - we do tell him off and so for the most part it's not a problem - and he still won't touch their plates, just puts his head near it, maybe rests on their lap or something. But with people I don't like or respect at all, I guess he thinks anything goes.

If my partner and I are having a fight, and Dan tries to tell Sammy off for something, he ignores him and comes running to me - like he wants a second opinion. He will literally come and stand at my side and wait for Dan to catch up. I always support Dan because I think we should be united (even if we're fighting over something else), but it's hard for Dan, because if I'm being mean to him, Sammy will also have less time for him. And I think Sammy loves Dan, I just think that maybe dobermans are 1 person dogs.

I can't lie to him, and telling him off when I don't mean it will not stop him doing it again. I guess I will just have to keep him away from people I don't like until I have better control over myself lol.

[persephone]

I guess I will just have to keep him away from people I don't like until I have better control over myself lol.

to be fair - your dog would be much better off if, by working with a good trainer, you learn the skills to help you both do this, and help educate your dog.Locking him away isn't really teaching either of you skills in how to handle situations ;)

[jacqui835]

We have had a couple of instances with two of our dogs have blocked people in our house.

1. Mother & Father inlaw staying - through the night they wanted to get up to go to the bathroom and this boy (Khann rip) wouldn't let them out of the bedroom. He wasn't growling or anything like that - just had that stance that said 'don't do it' !. The next day they decided to sit outside to have their coffee and this dog wouldn't let them in the house again. (Now I don't get on that well with this set of inlaws (I have 3 sets !!! long story) & they haven't stayed again - LOL).

2. Have had one of our girls (Rhemy) block someone from touching her puppies - everyone else who had come to see these pups she would proudly show them to where they were and bought toys to play with both the pups and Rhemy - but with this person, no this person was not going near her puppies. She got put on lead and put away but this person didn't get a puppy.

Dobermanns have an inate ability to read people and to assess your feelings about a situation or person -so this behaviour doesn't suprise me (not labeled the dog with the human brain for no reason). BUT his behaviour is way over the top - I would suggest some serious obedience training and learning of the rules. While he is learning good manners - he needs to be put away from the people he doesn't like (or perhaps take his advice and remove the 'bad' people from your life - LOL).

Can your breeder help you with the training / behaviour ? It needs to be someone who understands Dobermanns. Good luck.

Sammy is a clever boy - believe it or not he is now training to get his CCD title (having passed the 5 grades below that level). He also does agility. When he is with me and I want to work, he is amazing. I can teach him a new trick in less than a minute, and he will remember that even if I am too lazy to practice again for weeks. But if I'm not on my game, well neither is he. And I'm not going to lie, anyone who has met me will know that I'm a very happy and active person, and I find a lot of situations funny that I shouldn't so as usual, nothing wrong with Sammy - he is just my mirror.

When I'm nervous, I bite my nails. With relocation, a new job and a couple of personal issues, I have been doing it a lot in recent months. My dog has now started chewing on his paws. We took him to the vet - nothing physically wrong with him and my partner is convinced he is copying me. He yells at us both to stop biting our 'fingers'. Sammy just copies and follows me everywhere.

These people can sadly not be removed from my life - it probably doesn't help that I have several friends who are virtually at the point of wanting to attack these people for some of the things they have done to me - and these are people who have never been in fights (ie not violent). You know you have to be civil in these situations, not that they are, but I don't think I would ever be able to tell Sammy off properly for peeing on them or their stuff so I will just have to keep him away from them.

[persephone]

We took him to the vet - nothing physically wrong with him and my partner is convinced he is copying me. He yells at us both to stop biting our 'fingers'. Sammy just copies and follows me everywhere.

;) another really good reason for getting professional advice. As I don't think dogs can equate human fingers to dog toes, I would suggest it is not 'copying' as we know it.

Allergies are most common cause of feet/toe nibbling .. also anxiety can cause a dog to chew/suck .

It's great having a close bond with a dog - however we have to learn more of how our feelings/moods/actions affect our dog's mental health too. Trust me - been there, done that .

[poodlefan]

Thanks for all the replies guys, I think I understand now.

To Poodlefan - I probably don't tell him off as much as I should - when you dislike someone as much as this (and if you have met me you'll probably have noticed that I like most people) and your dog pees on them well it's hard to be genuinely upset, and Aussielover is probably right, I can't lie to Sammy. He has only peed on people that have either made me cry, or made us (Dan and I) really angry (which is a big thing for me).

He is not aggressive with them (or anyone/thing for that matter), but he is opportunistic, clever and he seems to think he's pretty good. I think I know what the problem is; I think people are silly for being scared of him, the truth is if they don't like him well it's hard to be friends when Sammy means so much to me (and I to him). So with those people he probably thinks it's ok to be a bit cheeky and try his luck - we do tell him off and so for the most part it's not a problem - and he still won't touch their plates, just puts his head near it, maybe rests on their lap or something. But with people I don't like or respect at all, I guess he thinks anything goes.

If my partner and I are having a fight, and Dan tries to tell Sammy off for something, he ignores him and comes running to me - like he wants a second opinion. He will literally come and stand at my side and wait for Dan to catch up. I always support Dan because I think we should be united (even if we're fighting over something else), but it's hard for Dan, because if I'm being mean to him, Sammy will also have less time for him. And I think Sammy loves Dan, I just think that maybe dobermans are 1 person dogs.

I can't lie to him, and telling him off when I don't mean it will not stop him doing it again. I guess I will just have to keep him away from people I don't like until I have better control over myself lol.

You're not upset that your dog urinates on people? If you aren't, seriously you need to rethink this. The consequences for it might be a good belting or a boot from someone. Protect your dog by improving his behaviour or by keeping him away.

You're OK for your dog think anything goes with some people? You're OK for him to intimidate and dominate them? Again, what will happen if someone objects to his behaviour or if he decides to up the ante with someone. The potential consequences are that your much loved pet will have a dangerous dog declaration and his life seriously curtailed. Someone could also be seriously injured.

You need to focus on the potential consequences of allowing this kind of behaviour to continue. Regardless of whether or not you think this behaviour is acceptable, the facts are that others don't and its your dog that is at risk of the consequences.

This is a Dobermann we're talking about. He's not a lap dog. Either control his behaviour to protect him AND ensure that he behaves appropriately or the consequences may be disastrous.

This boy's unpapered isn't he? If that's the case and/or you have no intention of breeding from him, I'd be getting him desexed.

Edited October 5, 2011 by poodlefan

[juice]

Yet again someone posting and not likeing the responses, so ignoring them, or making excuses.

Your dog is exibiting dangerous behaviour, stop humanising it and do something about it before as PF says he ups the anti

[corvus]

Well... I wouldn't be so quick to write it off as dominant, antagonistic, or threatening behaviour.

I have known male dogs that mark when they are uncomfortable in their surroundings. They aren't especially discriminatory as a general rule, but that's not to say they wouldn't target areas that smell strongly of someone they are not comfortable with, be that human or dog. It must make them feel better to smell themselves when all around them are smells that unsettle them. Add to that the paw chewing, which absolutely can be a sign of anxiety, and I'm not seeing a dominant dog. I'm seeing an anxious dog.

As for the antagonistic behaviour towards people that are frightened of him, I have a dog that is positively drawn to people who don't want to talk to him. I honestly think he just reads tension in their bodies, or just sees someone behaving strangely and he has to go and sticky beak. I don't think it's odd at all that he gets in their personal space. He doesn't understand what they are on about and being the social fellow he is who has had nothing but good experiences with people, he doesn't even hesitate in going over there for a closer look. What's he got to lose? He will lean on people and get way too close to their food if he thinks he might be allowed to sneak a morsel. He doesn't have much sense of personal space. He gets told to go away and he does, but I can't guarantee it would work with someone who wasn't confident around him or who was drawing away from him. That kinda looks like withdrawing from the food to leave a space open for him to have a go. This is how dogs read each other all the time. If they are ready to let someone else have a go at their resource, they move away from it. If they are not, they hover over it and don't open a space for another dog to enter. Standing too close is pushy in my mind. It's like saying "Hey. I'm pretty sure you're done, right?" So I don't stand around and let it happen because I'd hate for that behaviour to be rewarded, but I wouldn't be especially concerned about it. It might be a red flag for a very confident dog, but hey, I like very confident dogs.

It completely does not surprise me that he runs away if the person who copped a marking tries to tell him off. They have no history with him like you do. If he's run away and been safe once, he'll keep doing it.

All that said, though, I haven't seen him so I don't know what is driving his behaviour. Just ideas.

[Crisovar]

You're not upset that your dog urinates on people? If you aren't, seriously you need to rethink this. The consequences for it might be a good belting or a boot from someone. Protect your dog by improving his behaviour or by keeping him away.

This!

It is totally unacceptable behaviour, and you are lucky he hasn't had a swift kick from someone.

I would not allow him free run if he cannot behave when you have visitors.

[Mrs Rusty Bucket]

I agree with the others.

Your clever dobe is being rewarded for naughty behaviour and it's up to you to make sure he has something else to do when there are people around you or he don't like.

I don't like thinking about what would happen if one of the people panics when he's being frightening. You really need to get him behaving appropriately and keeping a comfortable (for your invited guests) distance.

He will still be protective of you when you need, but you might like to get that working more on a permission basis. Treat these people and their things a bit like any other distraction, eg possums or cats, and train him to do something more appropriate instead.