One of the struggles in housetraining your dog is thinking your are in the clear — not an accident for weeks — only to find your dog reverting to their old potty behaviors the moment you walk into the home of friends or family. Suddenly you’ve gone from proudly declaring that your dog is house trained, to hurriedly cleaning up a mess while apologizing and trying to hide your embarrassment. Not fun!
Understanding why otherwise potty trained dogs still do their business at other peoples’ houses is important in fixing the problem. Luckily, the answer and solution is fairly straightforward.
Why Does My Dog Pee in Other Peoples’ Homes?
In all dog training, there is a term we call “generalization.” Generalization refers to the way in which dogs learn behaviors in different settings, times, and scenarios. In many cases, dogs will not generalize entirely on their own, and will need additional guidance when learning concepts that may be easy for us.
As it relates to housetraining, dogs need to learn that “don’t potty in the house,” means “don’t potty in any house.” In humans, this association is easy, but in dogs in needs to be taught. It’s actually the next step in the training process, to take your dog’s understanding from good to perfect.
How Do You Stop a Dog From Peeing in Another Person’s House?
Stopping a dog from peeing in other peoples’ homes is as straightforward a process as the rest of dog housetraining, which I detail in my article, How to Potty Train Any Dog.
Every time you enter someone else’s home, give your dog a good long chance to do their business, ideally in a spot approved by your host. Wait for them to finish and reward them as if you’re in step one of potty training. Lots of praise, and lots of treats if possible, as soon as the dog has finished doing their business. This is now their designated potty spot at this person’s home.
After your dog has done their business, it is safe to enter your host’s home. While you are visiting, keep a few things in mind.
Firstly, your dog will need to go out more often. If they are fully house trained, your dog will physically have good control over their bladder, but the understanding that they are in a potty-free zone is just not there. Knock a couple hours off their potty schedule and take them out to the designated potty spot a little more frequently, and reward them like it’s a new behavior (because it is).
Secondly, watch your dog for times they may need to go outside regardless of their schedule. These are the same times I detail in my article, How to Know When To Take Your Dog Outside. If they signal to you by standing at the door or staring and whining, take them outside. If they have just had a nice big meal, take them outside. If they have spent the last twenty minutes enthusiastically play-fighting with your host’s dog, take them for a potty break after. Use each and every successful potty break as an opportunity to show your dog that they are showing you the behavior you want.
Lastly, remember that confining your dog is still acceptable while visiting friends and family. If your dog is a little iffy on housetraining and you’re having an extended stay in someone else’s home, bring along your crate and use it according to whether or not you can supervise your dog. This will signal to your mostly-housetrained dog that they should not be going potty at the moment, and ensure that your dog is not sneaking off and doing their business at a time that you can’t stop them and take them outside.
Remember that housetraining is a reward-based process!
Other Reasons Your Dog May Be Peeing in Other Homes
Outside of generalization, there are a few other reasons to consider that may cause your dog to pee at other peoples’ houses.
Firstly, your dog may be peeing at someone else’s home because they are smelling that a resident dog has peed inside, and to them this is a signal that this is okay. This complicates things, as a pee smell is a pretty clear indicator to most dogs that peeing happens here and their pee is okay, too. To remedy this, consider discussing if your host is open to a deeper clean of the area with any of the products or techniques I discuss in my article, How to Deal With Accidents While Potty Training Your Dog.
Another reason is that your dog may be marking. I go over marking in more detail in my article, Why Does My Dog Eliminate in Stores? This is a very different behavior from elimination, with a different goal and mindset behind it. This is the only type of potty situation I tend to simply correct outright, as it is a choice to do an unsightly behavior as opposed to learning the new behavior of pottying outside.
However, before correcting a dog for marking in any home, ensure that your dog is really housetrained otherwise, and get them checked on by a veterinarian for the following reason.
Your dog may actually be going potty in the home — and it may appear like marking — if they are having urinary issues such as a UTI. This will be more likely to present as a 24/7 housetraining problem as opposed to manifesting just in the homes of other people. However, I always highly recommend consulting with your veterinarian before setting a training path if your dog shows sudden and unexplainable changes in behavior.
