I have a 10 month old Goldendoddle with a severe urninating problem. If anyone in the family or visitors even touch this dog he urninates. So here we have this beautiful dog and we can't even pet him. I am at a loss and don't know what to do. I would hate to have to give up this dog. Can you help.
Thanks - Roseann

Hi, Roseann!

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Thanks!

Have you had this dog since he was a puppy? Could he have possibly had a traumatic experience while someone was petting him. He sounds like he has a lot of nervous energy. It's a little hard to say what has triggered this. It could have been something as simple as a loud noise that startled him when he was younger, and since he is nervous and insecure, someone petting him could cause him to relate that to a bad experience he's had.

He probably needs to be socialized more. You could also try and make him associate someone petting him with a good experience, and reward in the form of a treat or a favourite toy.

How often is he exercised? Do you take him on fast paced walks everday to drain his nervous energy? They are a high energy breed, and need to release their tension. Depending on the climate where you live, the type of activity you like doing, and your situation, you might consider rollerblading or biking with him. Some activity that is fast paced, where he has no choice but to move forward.

A dog park where he can run free is great too! They are retrievers, so you might want to get a ball thrower from a pet store, and get him really running to retrieve it. A treadmill is also a good thing if you can't get out with him as often as he needs, but that should only be used in conjunction with other activities when weather allows.

Also, if you have access to a lake or better yet, a pool where you have more control, that is a very calming way to drain nervous energy. You could also have him retrieve a ball or toy in the pool to give him focus.

I would be willing to bet that if you do at least one of these things, his negative behaviours will come to a halt if you are consistent, and you will have a much happier, less nervous, and definitely more well behaved dog. Good exersise can solve many problems all at once with dogs.

Good luck!

We see a lot of this in the vet clinic that I work at.
As long as he is not urinating in his sleep, it is probably just excitement. A lot of dogs will urinate when they get excited.
I copied and pasted a print-out that we give out to clients who are experiencing this same problem:

Some dogs are more dominant, and other dogs are less dominant or more submissive. Normally dogs will accept their owners as the leaders of the pack. They are in essence, accepting them as the top dogs in the house. Extremely submissive dogs, dogs with self esteem issues or puppies, will often urinate when they get excited. This often happens when their owners return home after having gone out, when they are told it is time for a walk, when guests or people they know show up at the house, and even sometimes when they are petted. What they are doing in essence, is sending out the message "You are my superior, I am not a threat". They do this through urination, because a dog's urine contains information about its status in the group.

It is extremely important not to yell at a dog, punish, or discipline a dog for submissive urination. By yelling at the dog , all you are doing is reinforcing the dogs feeling of submissiveness. This may cause the dog to urinate even more.

The key to curing a dog's submissive urination problem is to remove the excitement that causes it, and by building up a dog's confidence, since confident dogs don't urinate when they get excited. When you come home, do not greet your dog with excitement. In fact, it's better if you ignore your dog completely for the first few minutes. Nonchalantly, let your dog out to urinate or have another family member take the dog out. It is very important not to get your dog excited. Don't make direct eye contact with him since direct eye contact is a sign of dominance, and don't talk to him, or talk to him in a low monotone voice. When the dog urinates, lavish excessive amounts of praise upon him. The goal here, is for the dog to get excited about urination outdoors.

Obedience training is a GREAT way to build up a dog's confidence and it also provides socialization with other dogs which is good for confidence building. Playing fetch or having the dog do something constructive for which it receives praise is another way.