Why does my dog mark in the house after a walk?
Young dogs will sometimes sneak off at night to mark corners and furniture despite reliably using potty pads when you are home. Scrubbing the spots with enzymatic cleaners fails to deter them, resulting in indoor marking that persists even immediately after returning from outside.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
Found another way around this?
Share your steps and trade-offs so fellow engineers don't have to reinvent the wheel. No account required.
Why does my dog mark in the house after a walk?
- 1Using an enzymatic cleaner on marked spots2 people mentionedDid this help you?
- 2Getting the dog neutered to reduce marking driveDid this help you?
- 3Consulting a veterinarian to rule out underlying medical issuesDid this help you?
- 4Crating the dog when unsupervisedDid this help you?
- 5Hiring a dog walker during the dayDid this help you?
- 6Coming home on a lunch break to let the dog outDid this help you?
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“My 14 month old chihuahua is randomly marking the house, he just started this behavior. He’ll even do it immediately after I bring him out for a walk.”source ↗
“My Westin uses his potty pad reliably when we’re around. But at night he sneaks to mark corners and the sofa base.”source ↗
“I’ve cleaned with enzymatic cleaner, but he keeps going back.”source ↗
“We live in an apartment and both of us work during the day. We can only take him out first thing in the morning and at night, so we use the pad to avoid him having to hold it”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
- 3Puppy housetrained in one room but pees in another
- 4Why does my puppy leave a trail of pee and poop?
- 11Why does my puppy pee indoors right when I come home?
- 17How to stop a puppy from scratching furniture and appliances?
- 4Why does my dog pee inside right after a walk?
- 8Why does my puppy pee in their crate during the day?