8 month old puppy sprays in our house!

Bertie, our 8 month old ruby cavalier has started cocking his leg and spraying in our house! He started on the curtains and now favours the table leg. Why is he marking his territory in his own home? He's an only dog! He's driving me crazy washing the bottom of the curtains on each occassion.

We had this problem briefly with the previous cavalier when he was an adolescent but he never did it in his own home!

Do you think 'the snip' could cure this?

Thanks for your replies in advance.

Yes, this is one of the main reasons people neuter males at around this age.

but will it cure this problem?

The veterinarian answer you would get to this question is usually that it reduces the dog's desire to mark his territory but not his ability. That's so that if he still does mark a couple of times after the surgery the dr has covered his bases.

I had an experience with this recently through a friend of mine. She has two male poodles - litter mates - and even though I had been on my soapbox with her since they were six months old to have them neutered she kept putting it off. She laughed when they humped her leg (which I told her wasn't a good idea!) Then when they started marking the house she finally loaded them up and took them for surgery. She hasn't seen either of them spray since.

They mark the area because they can. Maybe there is the scent of another dog lingering that only they can smell? Who knows. I think it's a "boy-thing".

If he is strictly a pet and not bound for breeding, I don't know of any good reason to keep him intact.

Mishmosh, in the short term until you decide whether or not you are going to neuter, put a belly band on him. Instead of marking, he ends up peeing his own pants... most unsatisfying... and in a way becomes a self punishment for leg cocking. Walking around with a urine smelling thing tied to your tummy is no fun.

When we adopted Sonny (2 yr old) his breeder warned us that he may want to cock, so she gave me two belly bands. I am very pleased to say that he only had to wear it for a couple of weeks and he now never cockes his leg inside the house, nor anybody elses.

What is a belly band?

http://www.dog-breeds.net/dog_diaper_belly_band.htm It's a band that velcros around the fog. If he urinates, it will say in the band. Take a peek at the pictures for a better explanation!

Thanks Molly.... you saved me from having to go find a picture of one. If you have a sewing machine, you can zip a couple up pretty fast yourself too. I'd recommend buying at least one though, because you can see how they are shaped & the sort of material they are made of. I am a bit brain-damaged in the sewing department, and my efforts weren't very good. I tried to make it out of towelling & it kind of curled up at the edges.