Lifting their leg

Gus is my first male dog, and he's just started to lift his leg (trying to). Is this instinct or where do they learn this from?? He'll be four months old this weekend. For those of you with males, when did you notice this with them?

I don't mind if he squats or lifts his leg, I just think it's interesting how it evolves with some and not with others. Plus, it's pretty funny watching him "learn", he's wobbly and usually ends up falling! :lol:

Wow, he's ahead of the boys we have had. Most of ours didn't start lifting their legs til maybe 7 to 9 months?? I really do think its instinct, because ours have done it even when they were in a house full of females.

I now own my first ever boy dog, JoJo and he is 6 months. He still squats and I have never seen him lift his leg. He is also neutered and I don't know if that has anything to do with it???

Bruce H said:

Wow, he's ahead of the boys we have had. Most of ours didn't start lifting their legs til maybe 7 to 9 months?? I really do think its instinct, because ours have done it even when they were in a house full of females.

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He's done it only three times now, the first time I thought he was just stumbling, but then when I saw him to it again, it was more obvioius as to what he was trying to do! :lol:
He's also started peeing on top of where Abbey has peed. He's done this a few times. I didn't think they established themselves this way until a bit later, but apparently he's ahead of that curve too :roll:

My first cavalier, Misty, learned to lift his leg when he went into boarding kennels at 5 months old - he must've watched the others

Sounds like Gus is quite the boy! :lol: And hitting puberty early -- that's a sign his testosterone is kicking in, as is the weeing on top of Abbey's wee. I think 6ish months is more typical but four months is within the frame too. Jaspar started around 6 months; it is funny to watch them one day lift the leg a little, then progressively higher. Sometimes now Jaspar leans so far back with his leg so high in the air that it looks like he'll flip on to his back. :roll:

Jaspar still squats at times, usually for his first long wee, then lifts his leg all along the walk to sprinkle the appropriate spots, as determined by him. I know some males never lift their legs and always squat. Leo very occasionally will squat. What always makes me laugh is how, when they are out of urine, they will still lift their legs at places they want to mark.

Charlie never lifts his leg - I don't think he knows how too :lol:

Maxx only lifts his leg when there are bitches around or we are out walking and he wants to look macho :lol:

He has taken to lifying his leg on my pebble fountain in the garden too, bless him :roll:

zack is my first male dog. he's now 8+ months. He started lifting his leg at 6 1/2 months, it started abruptly, and just after we started going to the dog park. It appeared that he was learning it from watching the other dogs. i'm sure it's instinctive and related to the mechanics of marking, but it looked like Zack was observing and then copying, as he followed another dog around, and after that dog lifted his leg on a spot and went on, Zack imitated the whole ritual right behind him. Zack was neutered a couple of weeks later. He continues to lift his leg as well as squatting. He has not been doing much in the way of marking. Like when we go walking in the neighborhood, i've been noticing he's not really into marking. He will sniff a lot, but then he doesn't pee. It doesn't seem to occur to him. It seems like he was doing it more before he got neutered.

At the dog park, i often see older males squatting. Zack doesn't exactly squat. He is pretty much standing up on all fours peeing, it looks more like standing, with back legs splayed, than squatting. he's not at all low to the ground, and i think that's why he pees on his front feet many times.

Gus is a little precocious. Maybe it's because he's in love with Abbey? :flwr:

Maxxs_Mummy said:

Charlie never lifts his leg - I don't think he knows how too :lol:

Maxx only lifts his leg when there are bitches around or we are out walking and he wants to look macho :lol:

He has taken to lifying his leg on my pebble fountain in the garden too, bless him :roll:

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Nice to hear from you Donna!!

When our dal was a puppy, he lifted his leg for the first time when he was on a hill, tipped over and rolled all the way down. DIdn't lift his leg for a long time after that.

All 3 of my males are neutered and they squat. The 6 yr. old lifted his leg up until he was neutered at 5 (pee'd on his front legs too). After being fixed, he started to squat and doesn't hit his legs any more.

The 2 yr. old squats until he starts to feel water and then daintly lifts one back leg just enough to not get wet! Very prissy boy he is :lol: :lol: . He is the same one who will not wee on wet grass.

My collie is now 4(neutered at 6 months of age)and still squats to pee...kind of funny looking. My boy Scout was not neutered until he was 2. He started lifting his leg around 7-9 months. After being neutered he now squats more but will still lift his leg occaisionally to mark his territory.

How cute! Gus is a little man now!

Geordie was neutered at about 7 months and i've never seen him lift his leg. His style is more like Zack's, but I don't think he hits his front legs.

Ozzy has just started to do it - about 6 and a half months I would say, normal on long blades of grass, was funny the other day when he tried to do it up a lamp post and wobbled all over the place... :lol:

Joey is 11 months old and always squats. He was neutered at 6 months old. He has never even attepmted to lift his leg. He also is not a marker. When we go out on our walks he does one big pee right away and that is it for the rest of the walk. I wonder if this will change or if that is just the way he is going to be. It really is fun reading about how different all dogs are in their routine.

Jen said:

Nice to hear from you Donna!!

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Thanks Jen :flwr: I have been popping in from time to time but my computer time has been severely curtailed by everyone else lately :|

Max is nearly 2 and i have seen him lift his leg maybe 5 times...

he did it for the first time when Cloes two older males came for a holiday and he was obviously watching them.... but when they left he went back to squatting...

now he stands on all fours..... and lifts teh leg like behind him as if he is doing a ballet move!!!!

its funny to watch!!

karlin said:

Sounds like Gus is quite the boy! :lol: And hitting puberty early -- that's a sign his testosterone is kicking in, as is the weeing on top of Abbey's wee. I think 6ish months is more typical but four months is within the frame too.

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We had class last night and I brought it up to our trainer, who said it was all part of what we're dealing with in terms of his behavioral issues. He's insistant on the world revolving around him, and we're slowly crushing this idea with the training we've been doing. He's a lot better than he use to be, but yea, this is all connected. The snapping and lunging has stopped, not sure if he's out of that phase or the training is working, either way, he's a lot more manageable now. He loves class, he's so smart and so eager to learn. He sits on his hind legs a lot--in the upright position, so we've been teaching this as a trick. Now he's added sticking his right front leg out-probably for balance, but we're teaching it as a trick---shake. All this and he's only 4 months old!

Reggie never lifts his leg... he is 18 months...

I think he would fall over if he tried He isn't the most graceful thing


Ps... Cathy Moon...Your Photo is stunning!!!!