Future Cavalier owner with questions

My husband and I have been researching breeds and meeting with reputable breeders and have decided that a Cavalier will make a great addition to our family (just us, I'm home, no kids, 2 cats). I've been lurking here a while and decided to start posting!

I do have a question about smaller dogs and marking in the house. I've been hearing differing opinions on this, and would like to hear from current owners about owning neutered males and if marking in the house is an issue.

Thanks, and hopefully this will soon be us:

Christine

hi christine.

I know nothing about males and marking im afraid but i just wanted to welcome you to the site. I have a female, ruby in colour and name, and she is 5 and a half months old.

I will say that the king charles cavalier is a brilliant choice. They are a very placid dog. I find mine brilliant with children which is very important.

so//.........icon_welcome

Females can mark too! I have one female who marks -- lots of little wees on every walk we take, usually on top of other dog's wees. But never inside.

However indoor marking is primarily a training issue as part of housetraining, and secondly, in males, a hormone issue. Neutering stops 60-70% of dogs prone to marking. Generally males won't mark in their own home anyway -- they mark to define territory so will often mark in a new place especially if there's the scent of another dog. I always watch my dogs when they first visit someone's house but none of the boys mark indoors (well Leo might if another boy peed on, say a doorframe first... ). Some neutered males and the majority of intact males I've found will try to mark inside someone else's house that they don't know though.

I have a male cav, he was pretty easy to housetrain and never marked in the house. He got the whole housetraining thing very quickly, for some reason he always seemed to want to pee outside. I used a crate to housetrain him.

I have two males and have never had a problem with marking inside the house.
Tracer marked alot outside until we had him fixed, but now never does. Armani never marked outside before or after neutering.
I wouldn't worry.

Maxwell was neutered at 8 months, he still squats and has never marked anything but his bed~ Hogan was Neutered when he was over a year old- he marks items that are mine....( He way of making me his...*smile* )

Hogan was a bit challenging to train not to mark , but I will tell you that the tin can filled with Macaroni and a careful eye worked wonders and he very rarely does it anymore....it really only took 4 shakes of the can and he got the message.

I wouldn't be overly concerned about marking issues, at the end of the day it can be trained out ...and if hes getting neutered~ as he should be if your not going the show circuit~ you might never have any kind of an issue.

Thanks everyone! I have to say that even growing up with male dogs I had never heard of them marking in the house and this information freaked me out a bit! We plan on having our dogs spayed/neutered, as they will be pets, not show or breeding (leave that to the pros!), and we will be crate training too. Nice to know it isn't too much of an issue; we really have no preference for male/female, just the right dog for us.