potty training issues

Hi all, I am new here. A little back ground: in August of 07' my father called me and said that he had adopted a puppy shih-tzu-poo from the local shelter and had him for a few weeks. He said that is older shih-tzu poo however did not like the pup, and had resorted to biting and urinating and pooping on the floor. My dad asked me if I would please take the puppy and once I saw him, I fell in love. I brought my Bumper (named after what he does to give kisses- bumps into your face) home to my grown black lab AND brand new carpet that had been JUST installed only a few months earlier ;).

Since my dad and his wife were paper training Bumper and their older male dog was paper trained as well, I went and bought those puppy papers for him to go on. I slid it closer and closer to the door over time. He always used it and never dirtied anywhere else except there which was a blessing. Eventually, I started putting the pads outside the door, then down the step, then in the yard.

And, I have had nothing but problems since. I make sure to feed my pup and, remove any food he has not eaten on a timely schedule. I take him out first thing in the morning and everytime after he eats. I am at home during the day, and I make sure he is pottied alot. He DOES pee everytime outside, but he will NOT poop out there. The problem is, he is also peeing in the house.

He does his business in my sons room, the hallway, the basement and behind the kitchen table. He pees in the same places. I had to resort to blockin off the hallway which also leads to my sons room, but I cannot block off my kitchen as it is open. I also bought a playpen and if I take him outside and he does not do his business, he has to go back in the pen. He gets free time if he does pee/poop outdoors.

I have used natures miracle ( and my house still stinks terribly). I just invested in a blacklight and some other items to remove the stench and stains and am awaiting their arrival.

I have used treats ON THE SPOT- NOT waiting until he comes back in. I didn't want him to think he was getting rewarded for coming in, instead of doing the deed outside, so it was immediate treat in his mouth right after he finished and lots of praise. And he knows he does good! He wags his tail and jumps all over me when he does good; he gets very excited.

Now... though, I just don't know what to do. From pads, to playpen training, I am just not sure what to do with this dog. He NEVER pees in front of me. He just takes off and does it when I am not looking, which its hard to always keep an eye on him because I have four children and another dog, and a cat.

Should I go back to pad training? How often should he have free roam in my house? I read on some websites to let him out for 15 minutes on the hour, then a half hour on the hour, but only if he does well. It seems rude to keep a puppy in a playpen 45 minutes out of every hour, but somethin must be done.

How do I teach him he cannot go inside? When I see a mess, I just groan and blot it and pick it up and flush it. I read that I should take him to the spot, and have him "watch me" clean it up with paper towels and then take him and the paper towels outside and place him down next to the paper towels.

What about diapers? He is a chewer- can dogs chew them off?

Now, I have an autistic and mentally retarded son. My son is in diapers for obvious reasons and frequently rips them off and urinates the bed. It seems no matter where I go, the scent of pee and poop is in the air in my home. My sons room gets remodeled once a year, new carpet and everything. My puppy has destroyed his brand new carpet in two months flat, but I am wondering if my SONS scent makes my puppy think it is OK to go in the house.

Another thing is, when I do have him in the playpen ( and its smallish) he WILL dirty in that. The vet told me he does not have any medical problems and any dog that dirties in his sleeping quarters cannot be trained.

Now what is even more interesting is this- he doesn't dirty the carpet that has not been replaced. Just the new carpets. Also, the spot behind the kitchen table up against the balcony door was the very FIRST place I was pad training him at. And, if I lay a carpet pad in the hallway, he will dirty there. He likes small walk carpets that lay on the big carpets, so I removed all of those and no longer lay them down as once he got that soiled, he would move on to urinating up the floor carpet.

I love this dog to pieces and the way that he loves me is just amazing. He cannot live with out his mommy and he has blessed my life. I even make certain to buy him the treats that he loves for good behavior as he will turn up his nose at 90 percent of all treats. So I drive to get him the ones he really loves. He is like my child. I cannot live without him, but I cannot continue to keep cleaning up soil after soil. I wonder where it all comes from as he is on a feeding schedule!

Help!!!! I am waiting until he is completely broken until I get new carpet. Also, another strange thing is this- if IIII don't take him outside, and say someone like my 14 year old son or my hubby does, he will stand there and bark at them and not urinate. My pup is absolutely stubborn that way, I MUST take him, but it gets difficult for me as I need a break sometimes. It doesn't help when my husband doesn't watch to make sure he goes and my son will not give him a treat on the spot if I paid him. I'll get rid of the husband before I get rid of my dog!

You might want to have the dog checked by the vet to rule out any medical problems first. If that checks out ok, try an animal behavior trainer.

It is a slight possibility that your son's urine could be enticing the dog to also urinate in the house (I have seen a few rare cases of that at work).

Either way usually the first step is to rule out a medical problem first.

Good luck.

I would be inclined to go back to the puppy pads for a while, you said you have had nothing but problems since you stopped - he seemed to understand what they were for and it will certainly save your carpets and frazzled nerves!

By taking this step back (not backwards there is a difference) you will be calmer about the whole peeing issue which your pup will pick up on. Take the pressure off you both and focus on the positive things your doggy gives you. Good luck

Oh man, I'm sorry you're having so much trouble with your little guy... D: *sigh* puppieees.

It sounds, to me, like Bumper has too much freedom. A puppy's freedom to roam around the house unsupervised has to be earned, and it has to be gradually increased. I would block his access to the areas of the house that he likes to potty in the most, COMPLETELY, for now... unless you're right there with him. You need to treat him like a brand new, 8 week-old puppy at this point, and start fresh.

Don't do the potty pads. They work with some dogs, with other dogs, they just expect that to mean they can potty anywhere in the house. From now on, make sure he never has an opportunity to potty in the house. Crate him, or put him in an x-pen, when he can't be watched. Tether him to you when you're busy around the house. Take him out hourly to potty, and take out your son and husband to teach them how to give him his potty command and reward him - have them help clean up, so they realize what a pain the messes are! Take him on walks or get him running and playing in the backyard, to encourage him to poop. Your best tool is to set him up for absolute success.

Did the pup come from a pet store where it was kept in a small cage for most of it's life until you got it? You mentioned that it urinates in a very small area that it is kept in. We have had serious issues with our now 13 yr. old shit zhu since the day she arrived in our home. After trying every training method know to mortal man, we still have a dog that both urinates and defecates in the floor or her bed. She was checked out numerous times by our vet and then another vet just to be sure when she was a pup and for several years afterward. Finally, we consulted a doggy shrink. Yea, I know, but I was desperate after she peed on my sofa and my bed. I was told that because she was in a pet shop for so long as a pup, that she thought she was suppose to pee where she slept or ate. It made sense to me after I thought about it because our little Joy was almost 4 months old when she came to us. She had been in the pet store since she was 2 months old and in a small cage at the breeders before that. No matter what we tried, it just never worked. I could take her outside and walk for two hours, stay with her, tie her out on a line outside the door, nothing worked. She would not use the bathroom until she came back in the house. The minute she started to go, I would grab her and carry her out, trying not to upset her. She would finish using it that time outside and then when no one was looking, she would use it again inside. Paper training was the closest we came to housebreaking. She would put her front feet on the paper and potty on the floor. Ok so then we tried two pup pads and then three or four. Good Heavens, we should have just covered the whole house with pup pads and maybe we could have saved the carpet in my new home. I have had pets and wild things in my home my entire life and have never had such an issue with any one of them. It has been the most frustrating thing I have ever had to deal with. For a little over a year, she and my poodle lived in the horse barn office where I was daily, but I went back to work and felt guilty for leaving them there without their human family around more often than twice a day. So back into the house they came and there went the carpet! My poodle did not come from a pet shop or a breeder. She is from a local lady that just likes to raise sweet babies for families. She is well trained and would burst before she would potty in the floor. Thank goodness! Our little Joy (shit zhu) is now 13 and probably won't make it to 14. she is deaf, blind, and almost hairless now. She still eats like a horse and poops like one too. Since she is blind, the only place she travels is to the kitchen from her bed in the laundry room where it is always warm and out of the drafts. Hard to believe, but now is the best we have had it with her as far as going outside to potty. She waits to be carried out after eating. She still gets around good and the vet says she isn't in pain, so she will live out her days as long as I know she is not suffering. The way she enjoys her food, I cannot think she is suffering. I don't want to discourage you, just to let you know that not all dogs can be changed. Or if so, we just never found the correct method. It sure wasn't from lack of trying though. Keeping her here has at times almost caused a divorce. I am sorry for the long post here, but felt I had to share. If you cannot change her, it just may not be your fault. Many have health issues, but then some have mental issues as well. I think ours was the latter. For a long time, I thought I was just not handling it the correct way and felt guilty. I did my best and I know that I did. I finally decided I either had to live with it or get rid of her and I could not do that. I chose to live with it and handle it the best I could.
Linda