Follow up on maltese peeing just outside the pee tray

E-MAIL TO DR SING DATED JAN 13, 2011
Hi Dr Sing,

Above attached are the photos of my dog's pee tray and the surrounding of it.

The first pic is the tray.
2nd pic is the newspaper i put below it. And as you can see the urine patch there.
3rd pic is the floor where he will urine there at times, he will stand on the newspaper there and aim on the floor.

Btw, there is no change of environment or situation. Most probably i guess is because we hardly accompany him and hardly bring him for a walk.

Is there any effective ways to solve this problem? And, if i neutering him at the age of 3, will it be too late?

Thank you
Name of owner

REPLY FROM DR SING DATED JAN 13, 2011

You did change his routine by cutting down the regular outing. So he can't urine-mark downstairs and dare not urine mark the whole apartment (in fear of punishment). So, he made do with just outside the pee tray. I presume he will urine-mark the whole apartment if nobody is around and if he has not been confined to the crate.

Urine marking occurs in your dog due to deprivation of doing it outdoors. This is main reason as all dogs, like young children, are used to a routine and in some children's book, a routine makes a child feel more secure and happier.

Neutering may reduce this urine marking as the testosterone production is shut down. However, you still need to re-train the dog (routine to go downstairs after neutering for some weeks or months). Many still urine-mark but with reduced frequency. Neutralise the urine smell.

Go back to the routine or neuter. It is also possible that the pee tray is too small or the dog just does not want to dirty his paws. If only dogs can talk.
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E-MAIL TO DR SING DATED JAN 14, 2011
He will not urine-mark the whole apartment,only will pee outside the tray.
What should I do to neutralise the smell?

E-MAIL FROM DR SING DATED JAN 14, 2011
He may not do it now. If you leave him home alone in the apartment for the next few weeks, you may be surprised. That is why some male dogs in Singapore are crated when home alone or at night (to prevent urine-marking).

Try white vinegar + water at 1 part of vinegar to 3 parts of water and use tissues with this solution to wipe off all urine smells.