Peeing in a Guest House

Question
Hello, I don't really know how to categorize our dog's problem.

We have a 1.5 year old neutered female husky mix which we have had for about 3 months. She was a sled dog before she came to live with us and we rescued her. She came fully crate trained and we continued with her training. We have been very successful. However, whenever we either leave her with someone else or we go to visit my parent's home (they have a very energetic 12 year old golden lab) she has the bad habit of peeing randomly in the house.

Up until now, we have tried placing her back into her crate for a time out after telling her in a firm voice that she has misbehaved and we have also tried ignoring her completely because we have observed that she is very pack oriented.

This behavior is very strange to us because she always comes and communicates to us when she has to go out. We don't really know what to do to correct her behavior and we don't really know why she is doing it. She is usually a really well behaved dog. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks!

Answer
Hello Gabriella,
Dogs do not generalize well.  Although she understands your house is not to be used as a bathroom, she does not look at others' homes in the same way.  If there are homes you regularly visit, you can use potty training steps there-watch her carefully for signs, take her out regularly and praise when she goes out and use her crate if you are not able to watch her.  Since you have only had her 3 months, she was probably in a very different environment before you got her.  Most working dogs are not allowed the same kind of freedom as "house" dogs.  Although she was crate trained, I imagine she spent a good portion of time there and did not go visiting much, so she was never able to learn about proper manners in strange homes.

The good news is, once a dog knows a behavior it is easier to teach the idea that it is appropriate everywhere, not just in their comfort zone.

Keep persevering and you will succeed,
Erica Slomka
Jumpin JACS Dog Training