Would it be reasonable to ask and enforce that a male dog does not cock his leg in our garden?
My husband and I would like to get two dogs and the advice seems to be that a male and female generally get on best. We used to have a female dog and she didn’t use the garden for toileting at all, I think because we walked her first thing and last thing. We would keep this routine with the newbies and they will be adult dogs. They will be welcome to pee and poop on the lawn; however, I don’t want the pee high up on shrubs and flowers. If it is reasonable to stop the male dog cocking his leg in the garden should I start this straightaway or should I at least let the dog settle in his new home so as not to stress, confuse or frighten him?
Laura, Oxfordshire, by email
I would think the best way to stop a male from peeing where you don't want might be to get one of those pee posts, sold in many pet outlets, and train on to that. Perhaps if you cordoned off an area in the middle and that was the only upright object then the dog would have to use that. Although my GSD hardly ever cocks his leg anywhere and I believe that a lot of males dont unless they are particularly trying to mark territory. Hope that helps
ReplyDeleteIf you are getting adult dogs does that mean you are choosing rescues or taking on a pair direct from another family? It might be a bit much to expect an adult male to stop cocking his leg at the same time as moving into a new home, but if you are consistent and persistant with house training both dogs, you should be able to teach them to use one part of the garden, but it would need a lot of energy on your part.
ReplyDeleteIf they are coming direct from a rescue you often find that dogs castrated before around 6 months don't cock their legs.
I think you are going to have a lot more impact on your garden from 2 dogs than a few scorched leaves on bushes! I use container grown plants on paved areas and fence flower beds off.
ReplyDeleteYour dogs will want to run and play and dig, same as any young creatures - or children. Maybe you should create a place for them to play in one part of your garden, rather than attempt to limit the damage?
Not all male dogs cock their leg. My cocker spaniel rarely lifts his leg and a friend's German shepherd who is nearly two has never even attempted to lift his leg. It all depends on the dog. If the dog has not been castrated it's more likely that he will lift his leg, so I would recommend getting him castrated asap.
ReplyDeleteIf your new male dog is castrated and still lifts his leg it will be very difficult to stop that behaviour. Instead, rather than teaching your dog to stop lifting his leg, you could just teach him that he's only allowed to lift his leg in one specific place eg, against a fence post. Do this by keeping him on a long line whenever he's in the garden. If you see him lift his leg in a place that is out of bounds for his pee, grab the long line, use a firm voice saying 'No', then take him to the place you'd like him to pee. It may take him a while to get the idea but he'll catch on eventually. Every time he does a pee on the right place, give lots and lots of praise. You should start training him to do this straight away, if you give him a few days to settle in and then start teaching new rules, he'll get very confused and worry that the rules will change again. It's natural for a dog to learn new rules when he comes to a new enviroment so don't feel bad for him, he'll be happier if you start your training straight away. Good luck!