I have a 3 and a half year old Beagle, whom I have had since he was six months. He is house broken, and whines or sits by the door when he has to go out. Someone is always home and he is hardly ever crated. However, he likes to pee in the bathroom, I catch him in the act very often. I try to get to him to pick him up and rub his nose in it, but he growls and snarls at me. I am pregnant now, and am worried that this aggressive behavior will worsen. I have about 6 months to fix this problem. I do not want to re-home him. He has been to the vet and is 100% fine. There has not been any stressful or new pets in the house for about a year. I am not sure what to do.

I catch him in the act very often. I try to get to him to pick him up and rub his nose in it, but he growls and snarls at me.

I would growl at you too, that is not going to teach him anything other than you are being mean to him.
Would you rub a child's diaper in their face because they pooped in it?

Has he been neutered?
2-3 years is a dog sexual peak. Some may develop these bad behaviours from a young age, others later in life.
That is why neutering when young is very important.

If he has been neutered then I would suggest keeping him out of the bathroom by shutting the door...
Obvious answer yes, but it's a sure fire way to stop him peeing in the bathroom.
Once you make sure everyone knows to keep the door shut you will need to re-train him to potty outside.
Use POSITIVE re-enforcement (not rubbing his nose in it) by praising him when he goes outside.

Do you have a word meaning toilet?
For mine I say "wee wee" and they will either get very excited if they need to go out of just stay laying on the couch if they don't.
I make sure I say it to them regularly (every hour or so)

When I had a dog I had a bell by the door. Like this:
http://www.petexpertise.com/images/detailed_images/brassbell120548881647da4cb05f690.jpg

It was magical. It'd hear that ding-a-ling and I'd let him out.

Took some training but he no longer peed in the basement ;)

I also don't suggest rubbing his nose in his own pee-- that's bad advice. Simply tell him "no!" when you catch him, bring him outside ASAP and show him "PEE PEE OUTSIDE!" and bend down and pet him and say "good boy pee pee OUTSIDE".

It'll take some time but dogs are smart little fellas ;)

My dog trainer gave me the advice of rubbing his nose in his mistake, which makes him put peeing inside the house and why he is being reprimanded together. This is how I house trained him when he was a puppy. This had worked for me. No, I would not rub my child's face in a diaper- hence the fact that he is a child and not an animal. He is neutered and has been since he was 8 months. When I am taking him outside to go to the bathroom, I use the word "outside," he understands this and will run to the door and sit.

My dog trainer gave me the advice of rubbing his nose in his mistake, which makes him put peeing inside the house and why he is being reprimanded together.

I would love to know who this trainer is, they must have been around since the 1900's because no good trainer these days will advise people to do this.
Dogs simply do not understand that punishment. It is most likely your dog was just trained from the fact you were taking it outside, not from rubbing it's nose in it.
I know everyone has a different way of training but in my opinion that method is just unnecessary.

My dog trainer gave me the advice of rubbing his nose in his mistake, which makes him put peeing inside the house and why he is being reprimanded together.

This is called "Aversion Training." It can work well with young pups but with older dogs it becomes an aggravation contest rapidly - seeing who can tick the other off faster. Many humans will reach the point of hitting the animal fairly soon. Possibly your trainer even suggested a rolled up newspaper or flyswatter as part of the aversion.

The "Positive Reinforcement Training" methods recommended by most of the experts and dog lovers on this website, as well as internationally renowned trainers like Cesar Milano and Victoria Stilwell, have been proven more effective than aversion training with older dogs, abused dogs, and especially with re-training dogs like your beagle.

Shutting the bathroom door is a good first step. The bell is brilliant but probably will take years with an older dog (I still love it, though). The tried and true method is taking him outside, staying with him 'til he goes, praising him, and not letting him back in until he does go. It's very time consuming, but it lasts.

I thought I was told that they have NO idea why you are rubbing their nose in it.
If you actually catch them doing it, they will understand a firm NO, but after the fact it really doesn't register.:)

Ding Dong:D

My dog trainer gave me the advice of rubbing his nose in his mistake, which makes him put peeing inside the house and why he is being reprimanded together. This is how I house trained him when he was a puppy. This had worked for me. No, I would not rub my child's face in a diaper- hence the fact that he is a child and not an animal. He is neutered and has been since he was 8 months. When I am taking him outside to go to the bathroom, I use the word "outside," he understands this and will run to the door and sit.


Please post the name of the trainer or at least the City. I have NEVER heard this and I've been active in animal rights and animal rescue for a lot of years.

Shocking and cruel to rub feces on anyone or anything's face - and this is a real good way to teach a dog to eat his own feces. That's the only way to get it off his nose.

If you are overwhelmed with your pregnancy and taking care of the dog perhaps you should consider rehoming the dog.