Skye has taken to piddling on the carpet overnight. She used to come and nudge me awake if she needed to go outside, but I seem to come downstairs to a damp patch every morning. This seems to have coincided with my wife coming out of hospital after a brief stay. Any advice would be appreciated, as I am fed up with squelching as I walk around the frontroom.

i don't know if this will help but my pup used to run to the dining room to go toilet if we didn't take him out - he would always go on the carpet so we just don't let him in there anymore and he doesn't pee inside as there is no carpet anywhere else! during the nights he is in his crate anyway so i just take him out when I'm up and he will just pee for a good while, i have no idea how he holds it all night - he used to wake me up to go out every couple of hours not too long ago!

Just curious... is she very attached to your wife? Mine used to do it out of spite when my ex and I first separated. It could be that she was rebelling because she missed your wife. Just a thought.

How have you cleaned the spot on the carpet? If you haven't used an enzyme cleaner, no matter what you have done, the carpet still smells like her own pee to her. One accident can turn into 50 if she thinks it's okay to pee in that spot or on that carpet.

Nature's Miracle is a very popular enzyme cleaner that's found in almost all pet stores. Spray it on the spot and let it soak for a while, then wipe it clean. See if that helps before trying other solutions. My guess is she doesn't know it's bad anymore.

Koda wrote:

How have you cleaned the spot on the carpet? If you haven't used an enzyme cleaner, no matter what you have done, the carpet still smells like her own pee to her. One accident can turn into 50 if she thinks it's okay to pee in that spot or on that carpet.

Nature's Miracle is a very popular enzyme cleaner that's found in almost all pet stores. Spray it on the spot and let it soak for a while, then wipe it clean. See if that helps before trying other solutions. My guess is she doesn't know it's bad anymore.

I've just checked the product that we've been using and it doesn't mention enzymes anywhere, so I think a trip to Pets at Home is in order.

Time for some habit reinforcement before hitting the sheets at night make one last trip outside. You'll have a good chance of her doing her business. Plus what Tori said use the Natures Miracle, on the spot because if she can smell it (you won't) she'll think its okay to go there.

Keimo&Izzi wrote:

Just curious... is she very attached to your wife? Mine used to do it out of spite when my ex and I first separated. It could be that she was rebelling because she missed your wife. Just a thought.

She definitely missed Julie while she was in hospital, and I was fully prepared for these little accidents while she was in. But this has started since she came home.

Here4thePics wrote:

Time for some habit reinforcement before hitting the sheets at night make one last trip outside. You'll have a good chance of her doing her business. Plus what Tori said use the Natures Miracle, on the spot because if she can smell it (you won't) she'll think its okay to go there.

We usually send her into the back garden for the last 20mins before we go to bed, and last night she did it despite me letting her out during the night.

Gary29 wrote:

Keimo&Izzi wrote:

Just curious... is she very attached to your wife? Mine used to do it out of spite when my ex and I first separated. It could be that she was rebelling because she missed your wife. Just a thought.

She definitely missed Julie while she was in hospital, and I was fully prepared for these little accidents while she was in. But this has started since she came home.

Hmmm.... maybe she liked having your undivided attention. ???

I honestly think it has little to do with your wife being gone or coming home. It might have stressed her out and caused a relapse, but there's no way to really tell and it's going to have very little affect on how to remedy the situation

Start with the basics. Clean the carpet thoroughly with an enzyme cleaner. You might want to do the whole carpet or get more than one bottle and do it twice just to be safe because like Len said, you won't smell it but she still can.

Also, keep reinforcing to her that outside is the place to go. Praise her like mad when she goes outside.

See if doing both those things have an effect, but at the end of the day, the only thing that truly solves potty training issues is eradicating the smell and starting over again at Step 1. Taking her out as often as necessary to avoid accidents. It would suck, but it's really the only way. Good luck!

Right. I've blitzed the carpet with an enzyme stain and odour remover, and it's back to toilet training basics. Hopefully we'll stop any further accidents.

Might want to make sure she doesn't have a bladder infection. Kitty seemed to forget her potty training a while back, and she ended up having a bladder infection. If you don't see improvement in a week or so I would take a urine sample to the vet just to rule that out.

Lu&Katsmom wrote:

Might want to make sure she doesn't have a bladder infection. Kitty seemed to forget her potty training a while back, and she ended up having a bladder infection. If you don't see improvement in a week or so I would take a urine sample to the vet just to rule that out.

Good luck getting her to pee in the cup.