Curbing anxiety peeing in dogs often takes a multi-faceted approach considering that the issue is emotional and therefore it’s important to tackle the underlying causes of the stress and anxiety. Most people know that dogs tend to pee to empty their bladder or to urine mark, but many dogs tend to also pee when they are stressed and anxious. There are several forms of anxiety peeing in dogs and it’s important recognizing the exact type so to tackle it accordingly. Following are some forms of anxiety peeing in dogs.
Not a Dominance Issue!
It’s very important to firstly clarify something: peeing on rugs, beds, carpets etc. are not a dominance issue! There is still much widespread belief that dogs who urinate on things are attempting to attain status or obtaining some form of revenge. Indeed, there is still belief that anything dogs do (jumping, stealing food, pulling on the leash) is due to dominance.
In reality, science tells us that most of the things dogs do is often because of two main reasons: doing such things provide pleasant consequences or doing such things prevent dogs from getting into unpleasant consequences. We must also though put instincts and associative learning into the equation.
Dominance theory therefore remains an outdated and archaic approach, and ultimately has no place in modern, science-based behavior modification. On top of that, it often creates an adversarial relationship between the owners and the dog, and therefore is not necessary in order to solve the issue.
A better approach is evaluating when and under which context the behavior occurs. In other words: When is the dog peeing? When left alone? When the owner looms over him to pet him? When there are new guests or major changes (new baby, recent move, construction workers). When the owner scolds the dog? By the way, scolding should be avoided as it makes matters much worse!
By taking a closer look into the circumstances that may evoke peeing in stressed or anxious dogs, we can better understand how these dynamics go into play. Following are a few examples of anxiety peeing in dogs.
Separation Anxiety Peeing in Dogs
Separation anxiety peeing in dogs takes place when the owner leaves the home. Typically, the owner comes back from work and is greeted by an overly excited dog. Next thing, as the owner walks inside, he finds a small puddle by the door. The peeing though didn’t happen as he entered and was greeted by the dog, but possibly hours prior.
Separation anxiety in dogs causes them profound distress. Owners may witness their dogs starting to pace as they get ready to leave the house. Pre-departure cues such as taking a shower, having breakfast, then putting on clothing and shoes often evoke the pacing and whining. These signs then progress and culminate when the owner closes the door and starts the car engine to leave the house.
Many dog owners are not aware of what happens when they leave the house. They only see the pacing and whining prior to leaving and the puddle of urine upon coming back. Yet, when they set up a camera or some form of remote monitoring they can see what is truly happening: the dog is pacing, whining, salivating, scratching the door, having accidents in the house and acting in distress for hours at a time. In this case, the peeing is an expression of the deep anxiety the dog is feeling.
Tip: this kind of anxiety peeing in dogs requires behavior modification which often entails gradually desensitizing the dog to pre-departure cues and creating positive associations with them. Severe cases may require medications along with behavior modification. Please consult with a dog behavior professional familiar with separation anxiety.
Submissive Peeing in Dogs
In this instance, the puppy or dog is peeing in the presence of the owner and when the owner carries out certain behaviors such as looming over the dog or scolding the dog. These behaviors cause the puppy or dog to feel intimidated and the trickle of urine is the dog’s way of sending a message “I mean no harm, please treat me gently.”
The trickle of urine may take place as the pup quickly squats or the pup may roll over and pee from this position.
In any case, the behavior is common also among dogs. Puppies who pee when approached by an adult, more confident dog, may pee to manifest that they pose no threat. The urine is believed to contain special componenets which tell the adult dog that he’s only a puppy. We can’t detect these, but we can make changes to help the pup feel less intimidated in our presence.
I once saw a pretty bad case of a puppy urinating submissively. The pup was a cocker spaniel (a mellow dog breed that need gentle training) owned by a 90-year old lovely lady, but who tended to get very frustrated when the puppy peed on the floor triggering her back pain upon bending down to clean up.
Most likely, the puppy was just having regular accidents in the house (as most puppies do), however, when the puppy was scolded for the accidents, the peeing increased ten-fold because now, on top of peeing due to lack of sphincter control, the pup was also peeing submissively in response to the lady’s upset. Ths led to a chain-effect of puppy peeing, owner getting upset, puppy peeing submissively and then the chain started all over every single time the pup was caught having an accident.
Submissive peeing is mostly seen in young puppies and most puppies outgrow this as they gain more confidence and owners embrace more gentle training approaches. Some dogs though may remain stuck in submissive peeing if the problem is not resolved and the dog is stuck in an anxious state. In this case, the peeing is an instictual behavior meant to avoid a potentially perceived threatening situation.
Tip: this kind of anxiety peeing in dogs requires instilling more confidence in the dog and utilizing more gentle training methods.
Generalized Anxiety Peeing in Dogs 
And then, there are dogs who pee because they are suffering from a profound form of generalized anxiety. These dogs are prone to getting stressed and anxious in various situations. They may be stressed from outdoors noises, they might be unable to cope with changes and events like a new move or a new dog or a new baby/spouse/visitor etc.
There are several theories why this form of peeing may take place. One theory has it that it’s an instictual behavior to cover up unfamiliar smells (for example, the dog anxious about the visitor will pee on his luggage, the dog anxious about a new baby may pee on the baby’s blanket).
Another theory is that, unlike many confident dogs who like to leave their “pee-mail” outside explicitedly for other dogs to investigate, these dogs may pee indoors on beds, carpets or rugs because they are “introverts” and are therefore trying to disguise the smell of their urine so to stay protected from danger.
Tip: this form of anxiety peeing in dogs requires reducing the dog’s anxiety with calming aids and behavior modification.