~Anne~ Posted June 16, 2015 Share Posted June 16, 2015 (edited) How do you discourage a determined little dog from getting on your lounge? Each day I have to cover my lounge in large plastic sheets which is annoying - see pics. The problem is, that doesn't stop her either. She still gets up on the lounge while it is covered in plastic. I even have taken to smearing eucalyptus oil all over the plastic and it didn't work. I've tried lavender on the plastic and it didn't work. I have to put the plastic on because she has now urinated on the lounge 3 times!! She also once wet on the plastic on the lounge but that was a little while ago. I can't risk her urinating on it again as it's too hard to wash because the urine soaks right into the foam cushion. I can wash the cover easily, but the last time it took 3 weeks for the foam to dry and so I had a missing lounge for that time. She seems to like getting up on the scatter cushions and making a nest, so I removed the cushions before I put the plastic down. This makes it better but she still often gets up there. She never tried to get up when I'm home. She's never been allowed on the lounge. I've made her bed a little nest with a lovely warm blanket in it as well. You can see it in red on the floor. Does anyone have any suggestions? I'm a little over covering the lounge every day. Edited June 16, 2015 by ~Anne~ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Spotted Devil Posted June 16, 2015 Share Posted June 16, 2015 I'd have a couple of approaches. Firstly manage - restrict the dog's access either to the room or use a big play pen for her. If you are not around there is little you can do as she clearly likes it. Secondly - train an alternative behaviour. Build value for lying on her own bed, one treat at a time. I would use the dog's daily meals to train this. Shape it initially in a short session and then practice walking past and the dog choosing to jump in the bed. Then I'd work on duration. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sheena Posted June 16, 2015 Share Posted June 16, 2015 If all else fails, you could always get one of these Static Scat Mats Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Rusty Bucket Posted June 16, 2015 Share Posted June 16, 2015 (edited) When my dog was a puppy - I would pile up unsteady stacks of tin cans on things I didn't want her on, so they'd rattle and clang and cause some surprise if she got up where they were... And they're not very comfortable for sleeping on either. Given they rust if you look at them sideways - I would put the tin can pyramids on top of the tarps in this case. PS do you have a dedicated place for her that she is allowed to sleep in that room - ideally (from the dog's point of view) about the same height? Edited June 16, 2015 by Mrs Rusty Bucket Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
persephone Posted June 16, 2015 Share Posted June 16, 2015 keep her somewhere else ? give her her own chair?she may not like being on the floor .... Place long lengths of aluminium foil along the couch... loose- not tucked in .... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
~Anne~ Posted June 16, 2015 Author Share Posted June 16, 2015 (edited) Wow, thank you everyone. I didn’t expect so many responses so quickly. TSD – it’s really hard to restrict her. The living area is the main area of the house and where the dog door is. We used to use a playpen as a fence when I had the three pugs but stopped. To give a little bit of background: about 8 months ago we stopped putting up the little fence and keeping them restricted. We had Boofy still at this point and I was concerned about the heat and cold as the fence gave them a little area about a metre by 2 metres but it was up against the glass doors because that is where the dog door is. It is also where it is coldest in Winter and hottest in Summer. Boof was battling cancer so we decided to trust them in the house free range and not pen them in. Most days they were outside anyway unless it was hot, cold or rainy. Then they were left in. Then Boof died. The first couple of days we were at home with her as it was a weekend but then we had to go back to work. The first day I left her outside. I came home to find her sitting at the gate up the side passageway plus a small hole torn in the screen door. This happened again the next day and the hole in the door was much larger. The following day I left her inside and she urinated on the lounge. So the next day I put plastic on the lounge and came home to find she had urinated on that. That’s when I dragged the pen back out again. Thinking Id secured her in I left for work only to come home to find her on the lounge and the pen wide open. Shed manage to unlatch it. I tried the pen again the next day and this time even tied it with a scarf plus used the latches. Again I found her on the lounge! :laugh: I put the pen away after that and started using the plastic. She kept getting up so I tried lavender. She still kept getting up so I tried eucalyptus. And that is where I am up to now. She’s an 11 year old she-devil who misses her mate. She only ever gets up on the lounge when we are not there. She’s as deaf as a post and this is 1000 times more noticeable now that she hasn’t got Boof to rely on so often we come home and she pushing z’s on the lounge and she doesn’t realise. :laugh: Mrs Rusty – she has a dedicated bed but it is on the floor. My husband actually suggested that we might be best putting a bed up on the lounge and allow her only on that but I am unsure if she will get that and it still leaves the lounge at risk of her urinating on it. The tins won't work because she's stone deaf. She has a history of bladder problems. She came to me as a rescue about 6 years ago. She was going to be euth’d because she required surgery to remove bladder stones. It was the second of such surgeries and it has now left her with a weak bladder, When she needs to go, she needs to go NOW! Most of the time she is fine but if she gets too excited and has a full bladder, she starts to wee and cannot stop it. I guess that’s the other issue. I don’t know if it laziness that has seen her urinate on the lounge, or if she thinks it is an ok place to urinate or just coincidence where she has just woken up and thought “I Have to urinate NOW’ and she just happens to be on the lounge??? The static might be an answer. I’ll certainly have to look into them. I’ve never heard of them, sheena. I might try the aluminium tomorrow, pers, and see if it works. My husband called in home to day to find that she had scratched the plastic off the lounge, pushed down the back cushions and was blissfully sleeping on them. He said he took a photo so when I get home Ill post it up. She’s a she-devil I tell you! :laugh: Edited June 16, 2015 by ~Anne~ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JulesP Posted June 16, 2015 Share Posted June 16, 2015 Yeah foil works really well - not. Ok this was with cats but they shredded it within seconds of me putting it up. I would be putting up a better barricade and making it very nice for her inside the barricade. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Spotted Devil Posted June 16, 2015 Share Posted June 16, 2015 The problem is that all the things that you do to prevent her peeing on the couch may well be masking an underlying issue which won't be resolved - whether it's incontinence or bladder infection/stones or anxiety. Might be worth a visit to your vet. Also are you cleaning the area with Urine Off? That's my brand of choice hands down. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
~Anne~ Posted June 16, 2015 Author Share Posted June 16, 2015 (edited) Yes, I'm using urine off. She's urinated on the lounge 4 times in total over the last year. Once luckily was only on the plastic. The first time was about 12 months ago, the second approx 2 months later and the last two since Boof died. She hasn't urinated on it for the last 3 or 4 weeks and has stopped waiting up the side passage. I feel her anxiousness has lessened a great deal and she is getting used to living as an only dog. I believe she was suffering anxiety but I am unsure if the urination is linked to it?? She isn't an anxious dog but she did take a few weeks to settle after Boofy died. We've altered a few things, such as she now sleeps in our room which she loves. I am 100% confident that she hasn't any medical issue aside from the damage that was done to her bladder through the stones, infections and surgery. This is her today! She had no idea my husband was there. She's so damn cute but I don't want her on my lounge. :D Edited June 16, 2015 by ~Anne~ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
~Anne~ Posted June 16, 2015 Author Share Posted June 16, 2015 Yeah foil works really well - not. Ok this was with cats but they shredded it within seconds of me putting it up. I would be putting up a better barricade and making it very nice for her inside the barricade. Yes, you're possibly right . But again, that means putting it up every day just as I put the plastic on the lounge every day. If it wasn't for her urinating, I'd just throw a blanket on there and let her get up there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
~Anne~ Posted June 16, 2015 Author Share Posted June 16, 2015 (edited) This is her just now in her bed. Edited June 16, 2015 by ~Anne~ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Spotted Devil Posted June 16, 2015 Share Posted June 16, 2015 Very cute! How can you resist!!! I know my Burmese girl Lilly cried for about 12 months after Miss Brontë died. Then again so did I Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
~Anne~ Posted June 16, 2015 Author Share Posted June 16, 2015 (edited) Agree, she is very cute. I can't even get mad at her. She's like an eccentric old woman. She makes us laugh non-stop. :laugh: I hate losing them. I know exactly how you feel. I'm not sure what her background is exactly being a rescue, but since we've had her she's had loads of companionship and then lost it. In the last 4 years we've lost Molly our moggy, Monte and now Boof. She's on her own, it's Winter, she totally deaf and her sight isn't great so she has a lot to deal with. I think I'm going to try a two prong strategy. My husband thinks we should get her a higher bed. Perhaps a trampoline style? I'll have to look around and see what there is. I'm also going to investigate the mats that Sheena suggested. Until I get both items I will continue to protect the lounge with plastic. Tomorrow her groomer will pick her up about 9am and keep her all day so I won't have to worry about the plastic. Olivia likes the company and I love having a groomer who goes the extra mile and keeps her company all day just because she loves her too. Everyone who meets this little dog falls in love. Edited June 16, 2015 by ~Anne~ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JulesP Posted June 16, 2015 Share Posted June 16, 2015 What about a crate? A nice soft crate with pillows etc, not to shut her in it but it might make her feel more secure and safe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
~Anne~ Posted June 16, 2015 Author Share Posted June 16, 2015 What about a crate? A nice soft crate with pillows etc, not to shut her in it but it might make her feel more secure and safe. Im not sure she'd like it. She's only ever travelled in one in the car. At 11 any change is going to take some getting used to but I guess it is worth trying if the new bed and mat fails. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Spotted Devil Posted June 16, 2015 Share Posted June 16, 2015 Play pen wise (or crates) I would go with Vebopet every time. Great value, strong and if it's Spaniel proof you'll be fine :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RuralPug Posted June 16, 2015 Share Posted June 16, 2015 A cheaper way to cover the lounger with tinfoil is to buy a space blanket ( at the most $5 try any camping store or firstt aid supplier, possibly even Kmart, Big W etc.) they are large enough to toss over the couch with one throw. make a horrible crinkly noise when stepped on and are not cosy! Maybe get her her very own couch? The toddlers flip out sofas are wonderful for that and fairly readily available. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Rusty Bucket Posted June 16, 2015 Share Posted June 16, 2015 The tins won't work because she's stone deaf. I think it's about more than just the noise. But also the movement and sometimes they connect with the dog on the way down, not enough to hurt but that sort of surprise you get from being tapped on the shoulder when you think you're all alone.... erm. But you can try it when you are home and see what happens. Can you put the play pen across the couch? Ie sort of drape the couch with the play pen so it's not so comfy? I'd also be trying to get a UV light from somewhere so you can check you have got every last pee spot... Or I'd be trying her bed on the tarp... and maybe some pee pads on the rest of the tarp. I did house sit in a home where both the cat and the dog felt it necessary to pee in the room that was allocated to me... so after that I kept the door shut. They didn't pee anywhere else they were not supposed to. So I guess it could be an emotional territorial / anxiety thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
~Anne~ Posted June 16, 2015 Author Share Posted June 16, 2015 Play pen wise (or crates) I would go with Vebopet every time. Great value, strong and if it's Spaniel proof you'll be fine :D I've been thinking about the crate. She wouldn't be able to hold her urine for the 9-10 hours she's at home. She needs access to the dog door so a crate won't work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
~Anne~ Posted June 16, 2015 Author Share Posted June 16, 2015 A cheaper way to cover the lounger with tinfoil is to buy a space blanket ( at the most $5 try any camping store or firstt aid supplier, possibly even Kmart, Big W etc.) they are large enough to toss over the couch with one throw. make a horrible crinkly noise when stepped on and are not cosy! Maybe get her her very own couch? The toddlers flip out sofas are wonderful for that and fairly readily available. The noise idea won't work though as she is deaf. She won't hear it. I guess she might not like the feel but I really didn't think she'd like the feel of plastic either and yet she sleeps on it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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