Question
Every night, as soon as I turn off the last light in the house, if I've forgotten to take the dog (a 13-year-old miniature dachshund we obtained from a reputable breeder 11 years ago) out immediately prior, the dog will wake up within an hour and indicate he has to go out.
If I do not take him out, he will urinate on a bathroom throw rug. Occasionally, he will try to drink / lick up whatever is caught in the carpet fibers. He has water and food available to him and he seems to eat well.
We have a dog door, but he conducts this business after the house is shut for the night (we live in an area where many other types of critters could potentially enter said door when it is not monitored). He uses the door just fine; the problem is that he urinates inside while we're all asleep, and he has to go because we either went to bed earlier than normal, or we just forgot to take him out before bed.
I don't think he's ashamed of having done what he's done, but he could be; I suspect he is bored.
Why is he doing this? He doesn't do this when he goes in the grass; he doesn't even turn around to acknowledge it when we're outside; granted, it's already soaked down, but it should smell the same.
It's not his going inside that concerns me; I understand why that happens. It his post-business cleanup / drinking that is baffling. Why does he do this?
Answer
Why is my dog drinking his pee when he urinates inside?
Dog's drinking urine can be a sign of a few different things:
- health problem
- behavior problem
- improper housebreaking
- a simple stage that some dog's go through as younger dogs and it passes naturally
This answer is linked with this post How should I correct my dog when I catch him drinking his urine?.
The inside of your home is the den and pack animals naturally like to keep their dens clean. They will want to relieve themselves as far away as possible from where they eat and sleep.
From wolfcountry.net
During nursing the mother will clean the pups and stimulates them to urinate and defecate by licking the genital region. She swallows all of their excretions, keeping the birthing area clean and odor-free.
In wolf packs the entire pack protects the mother and the den and help to raise the puppies.
Given he doesn't do this when he is outside, I wouldn't regard it as a problem, per se, he is doing what comes naturally and cleaning up.
One reason is that urine doesn't absorb into linoleum, tile or finished wood like it does into dirt, grass and concrete. It remains pooled on the floor, tempting the dog's curiosity. Another reason is that, while a dog may not be housebroken, it may still know that urinating inside is forbidden. It will lap up its urine to hide the evidence.
Conclusion:
You've stated your dog came from a reputable breeder, implying he was well cared for as a pup; so it's unlikely this is caused from the syndrome of dogs in confined spaces learning to eat and drink their own waste.
Given the information that it only happens when you forget to take him out at night or when go to bed early (so he has to hold on longer overnight) I would say it's just your dog trying to fix up fix mishap and no great problem.
My suggestion is that the cause of the problem sounds like:
- He needs to be taken out more frequently.
Answered By - user6796