Thanks for the suggestions! He's not actually marking, he squats to pee and empties his bladder. I think I've seen him hike a leg maybe twice in four years. It's not "dirty puppy syndrome" either, he won't go in his crate and avoids beds and toys that have been peed on.
Before I started crating him 24/7 he would occasionally pee on rugs and dog beds, and pooped in the house at least once a week. We have all hard floors, and I removed and tossed all the rugs and beds that had ever been peed on. We've been mostly rugless for a while, but my bigger dog and foster dog really need to have soft beds to lay on. Ru was going into their crates and peeing on their beds.
Constant crating when he can't be sitting on my lap appears to be working. I haven't had the vet check him out yet because the quote for the tests was $500 . Given that he also poops freely in the house, and appears to be able to hold it when other options are removed, it's a bit steep. I could knock about $40 off that price if I managed to collect some chihuahua pee, but it's remarkably difficult to get something under a 6" dog when his unit is basically touching the ground. So far I've only managed to make him leery of cutting boards.
I've sen him wake up from a nap on the couch or a pillow, stretch, and then pee right where he had been sleeping. He will also pee on his stuffed toys and then later be visibly unhappy that said toys have pee on them. While it could be a UTI or bladder stones, I suspect that he's just...not as smart as dogs who know better than to pee on their stuff.
Before I started crating him 24/7 he would occasionally pee on rugs and dog beds, and pooped in the house at least once a week. We have all hard floors, and I removed and tossed all the rugs and beds that had ever been peed on. We've been mostly rugless for a while, but my bigger dog and foster dog really need to have soft beds to lay on. Ru was going into their crates and peeing on their beds.
Constant crating when he can't be sitting on my lap appears to be working. I haven't had the vet check him out yet because the quote for the tests was $500 . Given that he also poops freely in the house, and appears to be able to hold it when other options are removed, it's a bit steep. I could knock about $40 off that price if I managed to collect some chihuahua pee, but it's remarkably difficult to get something under a 6" dog when his unit is basically touching the ground. So far I've only managed to make him leery of cutting boards.
I've sen him wake up from a nap on the couch or a pillow, stretch, and then pee right where he had been sleeping. He will also pee on his stuffed toys and then later be visibly unhappy that said toys have pee on them. While it could be a UTI or bladder stones, I suspect that he's just...not as smart as dogs who know better than to pee on their stuff.