Still Toilet Training After 7 Weeks.

[moggy]

Sophie is 5 months old and we have had her for 7 weeks. She sleeps with us at night and has never had an accident in bed. She goes all night without having to go. She usually goes wees and poos outside BUT......about once a week she wees inside. It is driving us crazy. Just when we think we are getting somewhere she disgraces herself.

Today she did TWO inside. We caught her with one and growled at her and she ran outside. We made her stay out for about 20 minutes and she looked so pathetic sitting at the door crying to come in. She is so gorgeous it is hard to be firm with her.

Is this usual with toilet training? Will she finally get it right?

Moggy.

[The Spotted Devil]

She's still a baby

I found the toughest part of toilet training a puppy is to understand when they fully "get" it. We might think they have but they often don't. This includes them knowing when and where they need to go, being able to control their bladder and being able to signal you that they need to go. The latter can be difficult with some....my boy just gets a little restless and perhaps whines very gently. That's enough warning for me but it goes completely over OH's head There's no point making her stay outside for 20 minutes if she doesn't fully "get" it! I make OH take Zig out every 2-3 hours simply because otherwise he will completely miss Zig's signals.

The best thing to do IMO is to teach a command - I use "quick, quick!" - don't let your young dog practice getting it wrong. Set her up to succeed! Take her outside to toilet more often than you think she needs, stay with her (do NOT just leave her outside), give her your command when she does toilet and praise the daylights out of her She'll soon get the idea - when she has toileted you can even have a special tug or fetch game with her as a reward! Make it fun and not a chore and you'll both relax

Edited December 19, 2007 by The Spotted Devil

[Nekhbet]

She is so gorgeous it is hard to be firm with her.

when you forget that statement it will be easier.

If she's still going inside put her on a leash whilst inside or limit her to your immediate vicinity. Maybe you are missing signals she is giving so if she starts looking around or you notice any change at all outside. Also if you free feed her you will notice its hard to predict when she will need to go, so if you feed her twice/3 times a day she will need to go that many times as well.

[Poodle wrangler]

She is so gorgeous it is hard to be firm with her.

when you forget that statement it will be easier.

..........

Couldn't agree more.

Pups need a new 'mother-figure' to teach them how to grow into good dogs.

Ever seen a dam with puppies?

She is firm but caring. This is how you need to be.

Also think ahead, so you set up your pup to succeed and earn rewards and affection. A trained dog (as in just the basics- toileting, recall, sit, stay, walks on loose leash and listens to you) is so much nicer to live with. The dog is happier, too, because they sense you're happy with them not frustrated.

Are there any local obedience classes you can go to?

With toileting- be more vigilant indoors and let her out more often if she is still having the occasional accident.

[moggy]

Thanks all for your advice.

We keep her off the carpeted areas except when we are there then we watch her like a hawk.

We take her out last thing at night and first thing in the morning and she knows to go, no problem, and we praise her.

She has access to a doggy door which she goes in and out during the day to toilet.

It is just this occassional mistake when she will suddenly squat without any prior indication. We relate it to a child being toilet trained and waits till the last minute when it is too late.

Moggy

[Her Majesty Dogmad]

I would worry about using the words "quick, quick" in case I used them on another occasion and received a few presents! I use the command "Do wees" and mine go then.

I'm not very experienced with puppies but would imagine they would certainly have the odd accident. Here's my method which has successfully trained dogs between 1 and 10 years:

HOUSETRAINING TIPS

Ok - first thing to do is decide on the command (I call it “do wees”) you will repeat over and over. You have to really focus on the dog for about 2-3 days to be successful. You have a pocketful of special treats on hand all the time for the first 2-3 days.

Walk the dog several times a day and every time the dog wees, you get very excited and keep saying “Good boy/girl, do wees, do wees” – give the dog treats every time.

First thing in the morning, last thing at night and every time you see the dog eat or drink (both precursors to weeing) whisk the dog into the garden and repeat the command “do wees”. Get very excited and present treats every time dog goes.

The dog’s aim in life is to please you. If the dog should have an accident inside the house – say NOTHING at all. The dog soon gets the idea that when he/she goes outside you are really, really pleased and he/she gets rewarded.

NB: Please note that the smell of urine must be properly removed for any housetraining to be successful. There are products on the market such as “Urine Off” but they are very expensive. A mix of white vinegar and water is a much cheaper alternative and should work for tiles and other surfaces although you should always take care with wood etc. For carpet/rugs, I use either a mixture of Napisan/water or bicarb of soda and water. I completely soak the stain using a dab on technique with a cloth. When it is very wet, I use an old towel to soak up the excess moisture. Again, be careful on any expensive carpet/rug, I have never had any problems but I cannot guarantee any method here.

[Leema]

It is just this occassional mistake when she will suddenly squat without any prior indication. We relate it to a child being toilet trained and waits till the last minute when it is too late.

I am going through toilet training (... a puppy, not me...) at the moment, and I have a similar situation. Clover's pretty good until she's been playing boisterously with Mac for a while and it just 'sneaks up'. I just have to keep an eye on her going in and out and make sure I do take her out when it's been, say, longer than an hour.

I agree it is frustrating, but there must be some light at the end of the tunnel. When Clover does go inside, she will switch surfaces - e.g. from tiles onto carpet or vice versa. That indicates to me that she does know she's supposed to go on a specific surface, but hasn't worked out that it's JUST grass.

Of course, continue to reward heavily for toiletting you witness outside. It's hard to make the time to reward for toiletting outside when there's a dog door, but do try! I know Clover WILL go first thing in the morning, so will wait that one out (<1min) so I can heavily reward her.

[Erny]

Don't consider your pup as being "toilet trained" until it has gone for 4 weeks without having an accident.

Many people begin to 'relax' a little too early, IMO .... and this sets up for training inconsistencies.

Dogmad - I use "quick quick" without any problems. The Guide Dogs Assoc use "quick quick" as well. I found that "quick quick" only worked if we were also on a surface the dog was used to 'going' on (in my girl's case, grass). Body language and tone also has an effect at the time.

Edited December 20, 2007 by Erny

[coco22]

obi is 13 wks old and we've had him for 5 weeks now. we live in an apartment so we use a training pad in the laundry room for his toilet. until now, he still pee on the carpet even though we have trained him to go to the laundry room when he needs to pee. we have been consistent in bringing him to the toilet but sometimes he simply refuse to pee in the laundry room and the moment we let him out, he will pee on the carpet. he's still a baby so we are very patient with him and hopefully he will get it fully one day

[Erny]

Coco .... how long do you wait with him for him to toilet on the 'toilet mat' in the laundry?

Do you wait with him?

Edited December 20, 2007 by Erny

[Motchi]

NB: Please note that the smell of urine must be properly removed for any housetraining to be successful. There are products on the market such as “Urine Off” but they are very expensive. A mix of white vinegar and water is a much cheaper alternative and should work for tiles and other surfaces although you should always take care with wood etc. For carpet/rugs, I use either a mixture of Napisan/water or bicarb of soda and water. I completely soak the stain using a dab on technique with a cloth. When it is very wet, I use an old towel to soak up the excess moisture. Again, be careful on any expensive carpet/rug, I have never had any problems but I cannot guarantee any method here.

Hiya, wondering what ratio of vinegar to water to use in the mix?

Thanks

[Budyjelle]

May I ask?....Do you have to have a separate word for weee and another word for pooos?

[The Spotted Devil]

May I ask?....Do you have to have a separate word for weee and another word for pooos? ;)

Personally I just use 'quick, quick' for both - but because I know Zig's routine pretty well now, if he hasn't done poos in the morning (especially if it's cold and wet outside ) then I'll just send him away from the back door again telling him "and the rest!"......and he'll dutifully go and poo like a good boy ;)

[Miss Monster]

I use 'toilet' for Bakari for both - he's nearly 6 months now and hasn't had an accident inside for about 5 weeks. When I'm outside and I see him going I say the command just to make sure he gets it. He's pretty good at letting us know - if we are in the car he'll cry until we stop to let him know and we leave the back door open a bit when we're home so he can go out when he wants a drink/needs to go.

I was thinking about 'do wees' but my OH flatly refused to say 'do wee's' to his dog

[Budyjelle]

May I ask?....Do you have to have a separate word for weee and another word for pooos? ;)

Personally I just use 'quick, quick' for both - but because I know Zig's routine pretty well now, if he hasn't done poos in the morning (especially if it's cold and wet outside ) then I'll just send him away from the back door again telling him "and the rest!"......and he'll dutifully go and poo like a good boy ;)

Thank you, The Spotted Devil

I am hoping to get one of these Dog door inserts to help after the first 6 weeks of intense supervision and training.

http://www.patiolink.com.au/index.HTML

.

Edited December 22, 2007 by Budyjelle

[Budyjelle]

I use 'toilet' for Bakari for both - he's nearly 6 months now and hasn't had an accident inside for about 5 weeks. When I'm outside and I see him going I say the command just to make sure he gets it. He's pretty good at letting us know - if we are in the car he'll cry until we stop to let him know and we leave the back door open a bit when we're home so he can go out when he wants a drink/needs to go.

I was thinking about 'do wees' but my OH flatly refused to say 'do wee's' to his dog ;)

I am thinking of using "whizzer"....for that very reason ....I don't want it to be a word I use a lot...and I talk a lot too ;)

[moggy]

Got our doggy patio door from Petstock.

Website is: www.piginmud.com.au

Moggy.