Question:
My brother adopted a pug and doxie at the same time. both came down with parvo short after. the pug died and the doxie survived-we put him in the hospital for a week- after returning home he has been peeing everytime we pet him or when he scream at him. my brother is growing tired and sick of this. the worst part is the chewing. he has partially destroyed one corner of the kitchen cabinet. and now my brother has brought a year old pug. the doxie is now chewing and biting everything. he has destroyed the pug's collar, the sweater, and now three pet beds. my brother has now decided to return him to the shelter or worst give him away to another family. after reading your web site i am starting to think it is anxiety and submissive peeing. what can we do. i already left a message for a local dog trainer. we live in a small rural town with limited
access to many services but i do want to keep the dog. i feel another family will not treat him as well. your advise and feedbak will greatly be appreciated. thanks

desperate dog-owner.

Answer:
You don't mention how old the Dachshund is, but I am guessing young, probably under a year old as most of this sounds like normal puppy behavior. I am going to break down my answers since there are several things going on.

First, the peeing is submissive peeing. This is involuntary. Your dog is not "doing" this it is happening "to" him. You say he does this when you pet him (normal for dogs who submissively urinate) and when you "scream at him". First of all, you should never be screaming at your dogs. Of course he is peeing when he is being screamed at, he is afraid. When a dog submissively urinates it is an appeasement behavior, it happens because the dog has "given up" and is letting you know he is no threat and means no harm. Screaming at him and/or punishing him will make it happen more often because the dog will try harder to show that he is no threat. You absolutely have to stop screaming at him. There is never any valid reason to do that. The best way to deal with submissive peeing is to try and identify when it happens. Just when you get home? Just when you pet him? When you talk to him and pet him? When he is getting yelled at? Once you know when he does it you can avoid doing the things that trigger it. For many of my clients I have them not talk to the dog, or look at the dog as these are typical triggers for dogs who pee submissively. Rather than looking at the dog and talking to the dog when you pet him, look away and don't talk very calmly (no upbeat happy voice) just calm, quiet "good boy". Wait for him to come up to you and if he does you can gently put your hand down but don't attempt to touch him, allow him to choose to come to you. If it happens mostly when you first get home, go outside and ignore him until he settles down and then crunch down (don't bend over him, actually crunch down) and offer your hand while looking away. It will take some time but he will come around. Many young dogs will outgrow this but you will have to work on it too.

As for the chewing on stuff, well, that's what dogs do. Puppies and young dogs chew on things. Part of this is a management issue, rather than a training issue. Don't have the pug wear sweaters or collars when they are loose together. Don't offer beds that can be destroyed rather go for a cot style bed or just some blankets. Confine him in an exercise pen or crate so he doesn't have access to things he may destroy. This is absolutely normal behavior and it is not necessary to take him back to the shelter for these issues.

Working with a good, positive reinforcement based trainer is a good idea. I recommend you search for a trainer through the Association of Pet Dog Trainers website (www.apdt.com) to find a qualified, reinforcement based trainer in your area.