What to Put on Carpet to Stop Dog From Peeing on It

Feeling frustrated because your dog won’t stop peeing on your precious carpet? Here are some things you can use to stop them!

A store-bought or homemade dog repellent can prevent your dog from peeing on your carpet. You don’t have to spray the entire room, because dogs usually urinate on the same spot. Vinegar and ammonia are two great solutions as they both have smells that dogs aren’t fond of.

Reading on, you will learn how you can use different sprays to stop your dogs from peeing or pooping on your carpet. I’ll also explain how you can use vinegar and ammonia to deter your dogs from soiling your room and what you can do if you failed to save your carpet from being defecated on. Let’s jump right in and see what all this dirty business is about.

Sprays to Stop Dogs From Urinating

There are numerous dog repellents that you can use to prevent your dog from soiling your carpet. Most repellents are available in the form of sprays that contain chemicals that have smells dogs don’t like. Many of these sprays have a chemical called cayenne pepper which has an intensely unpleasant smell which dogs avoid.

Dogs tend to urinate on or around the same spot, so if you have been unlucky in preventing your furry companion from defecating on your favorite carpet, just spray the repellent on the spot where they did the thing they were not supposed to do. This will discourage the dog from peeing on or around the same spot again.

Just keep in mind that some sprays contain chemicals that can be harmful to dogs, so always ask your vet before you let your dog go near something they might find irritating.

Some sprays have enzymes and other ingredients like cinnamon. The best thing about commercial sprays is that they completely remove the smell of the urine, which is important because not only will the smell encourage your dog to urinate on the same spot again, but other household pets might also join in with your dog.

A Mixture of Lemon Juice and Water

If you’re not in the mood to go on the Internet and purchase a dog repellent, you can easily get rid of the urine scent with the help of a solution containing lemon juice and water. All you have to do is take some fresh lemons, squeeze them, and mix the juice with water.

Spray the mixture on the carpet where the dogs tend to urinate and they won’t do it again. The mixture can be easily made by anyone and you can spray it on the carpet as many times as you want.

Vinegar Is the the Arch-Nemesis of Dog’s Urine

Vinegar is one of the best solutions that you can use to stop your dog from peeing on your carpet. It contains acetic acid which has a smell that dogs will avoid like the plague. The downside to using vinegar is that it has a smell that even we don’t like (unlike the smell of lemon juice).

Since dogs don’t like citrus scents, you can add some citrus-scented essential oils to vinegar and water and spray the solution on the urinated spot. However, some essential oils can be harmful to dogs so make sure they don’t lick the sprayed area. If you’re worried they might do that, then add very few drops of the essential oil to your solution.

White vinegar, which can easily be found in any grocery store, contains 5% acetic acid. If it doesn’t stop your dog from urinating, then you can purchase a 30% vinegar which is the strongest vinegar available to consumers. 30% vinegar is mostly used for industrial and agricultural purposes, but it’s often diluted with water for house cleaning and it’s perfect for making sure your dog doesn’t soil the carpet.

Ammonia as a Last Resort

Ammonia has a powerful smell that dogs can’t stand and it should only be used as a last resort as it can be irritating to your pooch. In fact, the smell is so strong that your dog’s eyes might start to water. The good thing is that they will never urinate on the carpet again.

Take a mixture of ammonia and water and spray it on the carpet multiple times. Just remember that it’s not an eco-friendly option and even you won’t enjoy the smell.

If you find it impossible to get rid of the smell from the carpet because it’s trapped in the fiber, you might have to get rid of it and buy a new carpet altogether.

The Dog Might Require Retraining

While using any commercial spray will deter your dog from ruining your carpet, training is the best way to get them to stop urinating inside the house. If you leave your pooch alone in the house because of work or college, you won’t be around to spray anything on the carpet. Train your dog from an early age to urinate in a specific spot outside the house.

If your dog’s already trained, then you should spend some time figuring out why they’ve started urinating inside the house. Health-related issues like diabetes or bladder stones can cause them to urinate even if they don’t want to.

Once your vet has determined that they don’t have any medical conditions, then it’s time to retrain the dog. Create a feeding schedule for your dog and let them out of the house every 30 minutes. House training can take anywhere from 4 to 6 months, so you have to be patient.

If leaving them outside is not an option, then you can put them in a crate if you’re not going to be home for a long period of time. Just make sure you’re not leaving them in it for too long as too much time in a crate can make dogs anxious and depressed. They need an appropriate amount of exercise every day, so you should either hire a dog walker or ask a neighbor to let them out every 30 minutes.

Final Thoughts

Your dog urinating on your carpet can be frustrating and cleaning it can be an unpleasant experience because of the smell, but there are tons of repellents in the form of sprays available in the market that can prevent your dog from doing it.

Dogs usually urinate on the same spot and it’s the urine scent that brings them back to defecate on the area. The smell can also encourage other household pets to urinate on the same spot. With the help of homemade solutions, you can easily get them to stop dirtying your carpet. Mixtures of vinegar and water, lemon juice and water, and ammonia and water are especially great at removing the unpleasant smell and deterring your dog from urinating on the carpet again.

In case these solutions don’t work and your dog is house trained, you might have to take your dog to a vet to see if they have any medical condition that’s causing them to urinate in the house. When medical conditions are ruled out, you can try retraining your dog, which can take up to 6 months. Once you’ve successfully trained your dog to stop urinating on your carpet, you can cuddle them inside the house all the time!