Your bed represents your comfort at the end of a chaotic day. What happens when you finally get the time to rest and find out your dog peed on your bed?
This can cause a lot of frustration, and you probably feel helpless, too tired to clean, and mad at your dog. These situations are very common, and they do have an end. First, you need to understand the deep-rooted causes.
Here are some possible reasons why dogs pee in beds, and no worries, we also have training advice and cleaning tips for you.
1. Excitement, Anxiety, Fear, or Stress
Not taking into consideration other health conditions, dogs can urinate when they feel anxious or overly excited. Stress is another reason for their inappropriate urination. This is very common in younger pups, and this behavior diminishes as they grow older.
If this persists, you need to seek the help of an expert in house-training your dog.
There are other factors, such as surrounding changes, that affect them, causing uneasiness and anxiety. The behavior may start with relocating and end with your dog becoming accustomed to the new environment. You should ensure a consistent routine with plenty of exercise for your dog.
This creates a safe and comfortable space for him, and it helps reduce the anxiety that leads to inappropriate urination.
2. Lack of housetraining
In some cases, you may think your dog is fully potty trained, but you still seem to find your bed wet. Sometimes the dog chooses new favorite spots for urinating, including your comfortable bed. If you feel like your pup isn’t housetrained enough, it’s time to take action!
Work on it by yourself or seek assistance to help your dog understand the proper places for urinating. Other than working with a professional trainer, it’s important for you to be constant with your dog and foster discipline in your interactions with your beloved pup.
Make sure they have enough bathroom breaks, maintain a consistent routine, and use positive reinforcement.
3. Who’s the boss?
It’s commonly known that some dogs leave their scent as a way to mark their territory. In another instance, they may pee on your bed. More specifically, he is trying to let you know that in this area he is the boss and you can feel safe.
Well, he is not the boss, so you should learn how to make it clear. You are in charge, responsible for the safety of your dog and your bed. Basically, you need to tell your dog that this is your territory and he shouldn’t mark it.
Of course, you need to make him understand, so start training him, set clear boundaries, and use positive reinforcement to make him understand and respect your space.
4. Urinary tract issues
You know your dog better, so you know that there’s something suspicious if he never did it before, but lately, he has started urinating in inappropriate places.
It’s important to check if he has a medical condition, such as urinary tract infections, kidney diseases, diabetes, bladder stones, or an inflammation of the bladder. These are issues that might cause them to have uncontrollable urination. Consider consulting a vet, and make sure it’s all good with your pup.
Urinary infections are very common health issues. There is nothing you should be afraid of, but you must know to recognize them and see if he keeps urinating involuntarily. Checking in with a vet and completing a urinalysis will help you find out if there are any underlying health conditions.
How to keep your dog potty trained:
There should be a clear separation between bedtime and toilet time.
If your dog is still a pup and you must train him, you should be sure to differentiate the places where they sleep from the places where they pee.
You can keep indoor puppy pads and place them far away from where they sleep, so they can understand the space difference between those two separate actions.
Provide a calm environment.
As we explained, unwanted urination can be a display of anxious behavior. The very handy and win-win solution is to create a calm environment for your pup. A good environment is good for everybody in the house.
It’s good to show him he should feel safe in his bed, differentiate his bed from yours, and make them see being in bed as a time of resting and comfort rather than a place to pee.
Remember that dogs react to positivity.
You can use gentle commands, cuddles, treats, or any form of positive reinforcement, as this is the most effective method to train your dog. If you’re in the process of training your dog, every time he uses the potty, he should be encouraged and rewarded.
With time, he will understand what you want from him, and he will be even easier to work with.
Always be gentle with your dog.
Just ignore the people advising you to scold your dog to get good behavior. It’s, in fact, the opposite. They are more likely to respond to a positive attitude and gentle encouragement.
Shouting and screaming only makes them anxious, less receptive, and harder to get along with, so an aggressive attitude can only be detrimental.
The only way to train your dog and make sure he understands what you want from him is to make him feel loved, safe, and supported.
As promised, we have some cleaning tips for dealing with dog urine on your bed.
Follow these steps:
1. Act fast! Remove the bedding and toss it in the washing machine. Use quality detergent and add a cup of vinegar to neutralize any bad smell.
2. Don’t Rub! It’s important to avoid rubbing the area because it can worsen the stain. Choose to blot the area with paper towels instead.
3. Use a Good Cleaning Solution. You can use an enzyme-based cleaner or prepare your own solution by mixing water and vinegar.
Apply the solution with a spray, and let it sit for 5 minutes. This will break down the odor and the stains.
4. Blot Again. Use the blotting technique once again after you let the solution soak in to remove any excess dirt and moisture.
5. Baking soda!? For a deep cleansing, baking soda is an amazing natural deodorizer. Add it to the area in a generous amount, and you can let it stay overnight or at least for some hours. It will fully absorb any moisture and odor left.
6. Vacuum. When the baking soda magical work is done, remove it with a vacuum cleaner to finally eliminate any remaining discomfort and have your bed smelling fresh.
8. Prevent. You can consider purchasing a waterproof mattress to prevent the urine from soaking in and make the whole cleaning process easier in case of future accidents.
Amazon has a lot of them, and this Bamboo Mattress Protector has an amazing balance of quality and price.
Following these steps will help you find out what’s the matter with your dog, see if you can train him by yourself at home, or if you need to get professional help and effectively clean your bed after an accident.
If you liked our article, we invite you to read this one about 11 Signs Your Dog Is Feeling Ignored… and What You Can Do About It.
