How to Stop a Dog From Urinating on Carpet

There are several reasons that a dog may start urinating on the carpet. He may not be properly housebroken or he may be marking his territory. Once you rule out any medical conditions that prevent your dog from controlling his bladder, implement good house or crate training techniques and use an enzyme spray to keep dogs from peeing by removing the urine odor are good options to break this habit.

Take your pup to the vet to make sure he doesn't have a medical condition that is causing or contributing to his incontinence. This is especially important if your housetrained dog suddenly starts urinating on the carpet.

Accidents in the home are a common symptom of urinary tract infections, for example. These are usually caused by a bacterial infection and can be easily treated with a course of antibiotics. Other causes of urinary tract infections may require additional treatment options. Some of these include kidney stones, diabetes, and cancer.

If you have an intact male dog, he may be urinating as a way of marking his territory. Talk to your vet about neutering him which often helps to address this behavior.

Once you have ruled out or treated any medical conditions that may be contributing to the issue, you will want to start addressing any training issues. But first, you will want to thoroughly clean the carpet where your dog has urinated in the past. The scent of urine can stay on the carpet for a long time, even if you can't smell it. This odor encourages your dog to return to use the site again.

Rent a carpet cleaner or hire a service to clean your carpets. Use high-quality products designed to neutralize pet odors and clean stains. Avoid steam that will set the odor as well as vinegar and ammonia products.

During the training process, block off the area so that your dog cannot return unless you are there to supervise him. Promptly clean up any new urine on the carpet by soaking up as much as possible with paper towels and use an pet-urine enzymatic cleaner to fully clean the carpet and remove the odor.

It will take time to change the habit of urinating on the carpet, so be prepared to spend plenty of time supervising your dog, sticking to a schedule, and offering plenty of positive reinforcement. Never punish your dog by hitting him or pushing his nose into the urine spot. This will not stop the behavior, but instead, make your dog more likely to hide his need to go potty.

Establish a feeding schedule for your dog so that you can plan when he will need to go outdoors to go potty. You should take your dog outside on a regular schedule. Start by taking him out frequently, especially if he is a puppy or is having accidents in the home. Gradually increase the intervals as he gets older and his behavior improves. If you work full time, consider crate training as dogs will avoid eliminating in their crate or den. You can also hire a dog walker to take your dog out if necessary.

Supervise your dog closely while housetraining and take him out if he shows any signs of elimination such as circling or sniffing, especially in the area where he has urinated on the carpet in the past. If you catch him in the middle of urinating, calmly interrupt him and take him directly outside, even if you have to pick him up and carry him. Every time you take him outside, stay with him until he urinates and praise him with your voice or treats.