Hey Everyone,

I have a beautiful little 8 month old Chihuahua named POW...short for Power Squirrel. My girlfriend and I rescued him from a kill shelter shortly after he was born. He has been a wonderful little guy exhibiting what seems like typical Chihuahua behavior. He and I bonded, but I think he is more of a momma's boy as I often travel for work for weeks at a time. After returning from this last 3 week trip I noticed Pow seemed scared of me. If i call to him he runs to different corners of the room/hides in his crate or under the table. If I persist in calling him he VERY timidly approaches me with his ears pinned back and tail tucked and PEES EVERYWHERE. it seems uncontrollable. I know its a sign of submission, but its only started recently. Any time he's near me, he pees.

This morning he ran into the room all full of excitement, jumped on the bed, and very comically slithered across me all while peeing on me. Cute, but very frustrating.

I don't really scold him, I thought we were buddies, but he now seems incapable of receiving affection from me without peeing everywhere.

He's not neutered yet. I'm wondering if that will solve anything. I want my buddy back! anyone have a similar story or solution? any help would be so very much appreciated!!! THANKS!!

invest in 2 belly-bands:
100% cotton with fully-enclosed elastic, so he cannot be pinched [skin fold caught by the elastic]
nor get a rash from the uncovered petrochemical elastic touching him directly.
WASH them before using them - make sure they fit, then fasten the velcro, PIN it with safety-pins
so it cannot come undone & collect lint, & wash them in warm water with mild soap [no softeners or scents
added to the rinse, just as if U are washing baby-clothes].

if U want super-cheap, find a consignment shop & spend a dollar or 2 each for used toddler's swim-trunks.
buy TWO - one to wear, one as spare.

whatever U are using, the dog wears one in the house ALL THE TIME - it comes off only for potty-trips,
& only *after!* he is outside & off the stoop or porch or patio or ___ .
all his potty-trips should be on-leash, so U can praise & reward right-place & right-time performances.
a log with WHEN he went out, WHAT he produced & how MUCH, & any unusual details, is good.

the belly-band or swim-trunks are lined with a cheap, NO perfume, NO deodorant peel-N-press
panty-liner; check it for dampness every time he's out for a potty, carry a spare pad in a pocket,
replace as needed or at minimum once every 24-hours, to reduce bacteria accumulation.

meantime, see fearfuldogs.com for tips on living with shy-dogs - EVEN IF HE IS NOT shy, the triggers for pee
are the same triggers as those that scare shy-dogs.

i would use CALMATIVES liberally - see
Pet Forums Community - View Single Post - dog body-language - and why it matters so much...
for What, When, Where & How, etc; calmatives are OTC, very safe, have no interactions & no worries re dosage.

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terry pride, APDT-Aus, apdt#1827, CVA, TDF
*wolves R wolves, dogs R dogs, + primates R us.*
tmp, sept-2007

he can be neutered anytime now; at 8-MO he is close to his full growth, already.
he is also past puberty & is not shooting blanks.

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terry pride, APDT-Aus, apdt#1827, CVA, TDF
*wolves R wolves, dogs R dogs, + primates R us.*
tmp, sept-2007

How is he with other strangers? He sounds as if he hasn't been socialised well with people, on the front of things. I would begin to repair the bond you had with him by hand feeding him his dinner food and only interacting with him using some of his favourite things such as food and toys.

His behaviour is conveying anxiety and fear, not really submission.

You say that you don't really scold him, but does that mean you do? And if so, how do you? A dog shouldn't need to be given any physical or verbal (raised voices etc.) punishment as the downsides are generally much greater than the good.

Is he clean all the rest of the time and never has any accidents? if so then I wouldnt think it is any urinary tract problems/infection, if however he does have regular other accidents then it might be worth having him vet checked to make sure.

Dogs can pee just from over excitement in greeting people, but from the other signs you have said he shows then it does sound like submissive urination from uncertainty/fear.

I think the best thing to probably try, is when you arrive home to completely ignore him when you first get home. No speaking to him, approaching him,eye contact absolutely nothing at all. I would take all pressure off, and wait and see if he seeks you out, and let him make up his own mind when he wants to seek you out.

Is he food driven and is there certain treats he absolutely loves? Chicken,cheese,hotdogs,sausage or anything liver based is usually a favourite and high value treats to dogs. I would just go about your business and then just sit, may be just throw a few treats in his general direction using slow gentle movements but otherwise completely ignore him. Then see if he will approach, gradually drop treats nearer and nearer to you and see if he will come closer and take them. Finally see if he will take one from your hand, but again dont look at him speak to him or make eye contact. If he will take a couple try speaking softly to him only, if that goes ok then treat, then see if he will accept a very gentle stroke, then if that goes ok finally eye contact as well. If this all works, then start to try to build up your relationship again, if he likes toys and ball games then maybe start trying to interact with him in play.

if he does carry on peeing/or has more accidents, then it may be an idea to get him a vet check anyway.

Hope this might help.

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When my dogs were puppies, they had some excitement urination when I came home but it was just in dribbles. This passed in time. If you dog isn't fully trained, you should not let him have the run of the house yet. Hiding in his crate in a way is good because he sees his crate as a safe place. So you might want to actively crate train him more as not only to reinforce his crate but also to help house train him.

Learn his schedule if you can and keep him under constant supervision. When you can't, put him in the crate or a puppy room that has his crate plus an area with papers or a litter box. My two lhasa apsos use a litter box indoors.

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Clint Cora, Owner Of Indoor Litter Box Trained Lhasa Apsos

These are all very helpful suggestions. a little background here.

We successfully crate trained him, starting as soon as we brought him home. He's very friendly around other people, though he picked up a bad barking habit from our roommate's chihuahua. He barks at other dogs and the sound of people on the porch but nothing crazy.

He is house trained aside from the occasional accident...which is typically our fault for missing a scheduled 'outside time'.

I spent a few hours with Pow in a room by ourselves. At first he was hesitant to come near me, but after a while jumped on the bed and VERY timidly snuggled up next to me for some affection. I didn't make eye contact or solicit any response...just left it all up to him...i pet his ears and under his collar which he really liked...and when I would stop for a moment he would try to burrow under my hands for more petting, and eventually fell asleep snuggled next to me.... SO...hopefully with more of this, things will start to normalize.

I also tried the hand feeding thing which seemed to work a little. Thank you guys for your quick and helpful replies!!

Great news, just take your time and let him do it at his pace and seek and ask for the attention each time. Sounds like its a step in the right direction.
You just need to re-build the bond and trust again by the sounds of it. Let us all know how its going!!

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