7 months old and not house broken

[jcalbany]

Help? I have tried all the things the books tell you to do, is there any tricks that have worked for you all?

[aly]

Have you tried crate training? Do you know how to do this? Is the dog female or male? Is it spayed/neutered? How often does it have accidents?

Give a little more information and I could probably give you some advice

Consistency is always key in housebreaking.

[ November 05, 2001: Message edited by: aly ]

[Karen]

What breed of dog, and could you describe your current "routine" with the dog? Also, has he or she been to the vet to make sure there's no physical problem, like a Urinary Tract Infection?

And, most importantly, WELCOME! What's your pup's name?

[Dixieland Dancer]

I agree with Aly. We need more information on what you have tried and not tried. Are you crate training? What kind of dog? What age did you get the dog? Do you have a daily routine with the dog?

[yorkster]

Boy....can I relate to housebreaking problems! We do need more info though: My first question would be...how long have YOU had the dog, and do you know it's history?
And of course 'what kind of dog? what sex? indoors &/or outdoors? ' all that stuff would be good to know.

[jcalbany]

Originally posted by aly:
<STRONG>Have you tried crate training? Do you know how to do this? Is the dog female or male? Is it spayed/neutered? How often does it have accidents?

Give a little more information and I could probably give you some advice

Consistency is always key in housebreaking.

[ November 05, 2001: Message edited by: aly ]</STRONG>

Thank you for your reply. He is a male bichon frise. He has been neutered last month. Had him since a pup. the biggest proble is going poop in the house. I have not heard of the crate traing for housebreaking. This dog does not bark to let you know when to go outside.

[jcalbany]

Originally posted by Dixieland Dancer:
<STRONG>I agree with Aly. We need more information on what you have tried and not tried. Are you crate training? What kind of dog? What age did you get the dog? Do you have a daily routine with the dog?</STRONG>

We take him out side alot, doing the treat thing, we do pay lot of attention to him, but as soon as you leave the room it happens. He is a bichon frise male, neutered. got him as a pup from a breeder.

[jcalbany]

Originally posted by yorkster:
<STRONG>Boy....can I relate to housebreaking problems! We do need more info though: My first question would be...how long have YOU had the dog, and do you know it's history?
And of course 'what kind of dog? what sex? indoors &/or outdoors? ' all that stuff would be good to know.</STRONG>

Had him since a pup. Male bichon frise, neutered, fulltime indoor,Thank you for the reply

[RachelJ]

First thing is to have your dog on a regular schedule for feeding, and to try to limit the number of treats. Second is to be aware of the times of the day your dog is inclined to poop and then to know whether or not he has done it. With a dog that is difficult to housetrain, you must be aware of this. For example, the dog goes out the first thing in the morning. Do you observe him to see if he urinates and defecates? Generally a dog is going to poop as often as you feed them,and they have their own little body clock as to when they do it. Some will poop when they first get up, others will do it after they have eaten breakfast. You need to be aware of these things. Exercise is another factor as often it will "get things moving". This is especially true of a puppy who might be very active. Very active play sessions can generate the need to defecate. Always praise your dog for "going" outside and be careful on the "scolding" for accidents. If you catch him in the act, I would just say, NO, OUT, OUT, OUT, and pick him up and put him outside, even if the act has been finished. If you don't catch him, there isn't much you can do other than clean it up.

Please do not give up. This is a problem that can be overcome with persistence and patience. At 7 months your puppy's body is still maturing which in and of itself is going to help.

[ November 07, 2001: Message edited by: RachelJ ]

[Dixieland Dancer]

Crate training is the greatest thing for housebreaking a dog. Anytime you can not keep all eyes on the dog or when they decide to take a nap they need to go into their crate. As soon as they get up or are let out it is your responsibility to take them out. Do it on a leash (use a long one so the dog has some feeling of privacy) and keep telling the dog "GO POTTY". Once they do "GO POTTY", praise like you never have before. Make lots of noise in your praise and let the dog know how happy you are that they went Potty. Make a fool of yourself in your praise if thats what it takes but make a fuss that the dog did something you wanted. Then if they get caught (only if they get caught in the action) going in the house you can reprimand with verbal displeasure. Immediately then take them outside and give the command "GO POTTY" reinforcing that they are to do it outside. If the dog is not caught in the action do not reprimand. They will not understand what you are displeased with. The dog will catch on but your consistency and willingness to work with the dog are the keys.

Good Luck

[jcalbany]

Originally posted by Dixieland Dancer:
<STRONG>Crate training is the greatest thing for housebreaking a dog. Anytime you can not keep all eyes on the dog or when they decide to take a nap they need to go into their crate. As soon as they get up or are let out it is your responsibility to take them out. Do it on a leash (use a long one so the dog has some feeling of privacy) and keep telling the dog "GO POTTY". Once they do "GO POTTY", praise like you never have before. Make lots of noise in your praise and let the dog know how happy you are that they went Potty. Make a fool of yourself in your praise if thats what it takes but make a fuss that the dog did something you wanted. Then if they get caught (only if they get caught in the action) going in the house you can reprimand with verbal displeasure. Immediately then take them outside and give the command "GO POTTY" reinforcing that they are to do it outside. If the dog is not caught in the action do not reprimand. They will not understand what you are displeased with. The dog will catch on but your consistency and willingness to work with the dog are the keys.

Good Luck </STRONG>

Thanks for the help. I will do as you suggest

[jcalbany]

Originally posted by RachelJ:
<STRONG>First thing is to have your dog on a regular schedule for feeding, and to try to limit the number of treats. Second is to be aware of the times of the day your dog is inclined to poop and then to know whether or not he has done it. With a dog that is difficult to housetrain, you must be aware of this. For example, the dog goes out the first thing in the morning. Do you observe him to see if he urinates and defecates? Generally a dog is going to poop as often as you feed them,and they have their own little body clock as to when they do it. Some will poop when they first get up, others will do it after they have eaten breakfast. You need to be aware of these things. Exercise is another factor as often it will "get things moving". This is especially true of a puppy who might be very active. Very active play sessions can generate the need to defecate. Always praise your dog for "going" outside and be careful on the "scolding" for accidents. If you catch him in the act, I would just say, NO, OUT, OUT, OUT, and pick him up and put him outside, even if the act has been finished. If you don't catch him, there isn't much you can do other than clean it up.

Please do not give up. This is a problem that can be overcome with persistence and patience. At 7 months your puppy's body is still maturing which in and of itself is going to help.

[ November 07, 2001: Message edited by: RachelJ ]</STRONG>

Thanks for the help. I will try the crate and your help also.

[Dixieland Dancer]

This is a cut and paste of a post I made to someone else on the issue of housetraining. It has some more info on the subject. Hope it helps. I have edited it slightly to make it more personal for you.

I can not state strongly enough that I think your pup does not understand what you expect of him in the housetraining arena. The most common nonmedical reason for housesoiling is improper housetraining!

Since it seems your dogs housesoiling stems from incomplete house training, you might try some refresher training.

1. Keep you dog confined in a comfortable crate when you can't supervise it. Make sure the crate is large enough for the dog to sit, lay and stand in but no bigger. If your crate is bigger, partition it off with a cardboard box or something to take up the excess space. If the dog can be trusted not to soil during the night then don't crate him at night. If he does soil at night then crate him then too!

2. When you let the dog out of the crate, immediately take him out to "GO POTTY". No balls, frisbees, etc. Make sure you give lots of verbal cues to "GO POTTY". When he does then you make a fool of yourself with praise for him. Kiss his hairy lips, hug him, whatever it takes to let this dog know you are sooooooooooo haaaaaaappppppppy! Don't do anything else until the dog potties. You may need to use an extra long leash so the dog feels like he has some privacy. Give food rewards if he responds well to food. Don't do anything else until he "GOES POTTY". Use the term over and over again "GO POTTY" so your pup will associate the phrase with the action.

3. Before Ball and fun time take the dog back inside for a few minutes. This way the dog will understand that outside is potty time before play time. You may take him in for a drink of water or something and then establish going out for fun after. Do NOT put potty and play outside activities in the same context until the dog FULLY understands the phrase "GO POTTY" and will do it on command.

When I have Dixie outside and we are playing I can tell her "GO POTTY" and she immediately drops her frisbee and does what I ask her. I still praise her like crazy even though I know she understands what I'm asking her to do 100%.

4. This may be the hardest and most important step to follow through on. If your pup refuses to "GO POTTY" in a sufficient amount of time (say 3 or 4 minutes) then immediately bring him back in the house and put him back in his crate. Repeat the procedure again in about 15 minutes.

It is important that you back up to the beginning. If you think you are being harsh on him by crating him then he wins, you lose, and your the one who needs to deal with it. I personally would rather crate than have to clean up urine from a dog that should be trained already! After all once he is house trained you can let him out of the crate permanently!!!!!

One final thought. You should have an established schedule of knowing when your dog has to go. For instance I know that Dixie is a morning pooh dog. I make sure she goes before I leave for work. Dusty is a morning, late afternoon, and evening pooh dog. How many times a day does your pup go and what time of day is it usually? If it's morning you need to give extra time then for both pee and poop. If it's evening the extra time goes there. Have a set routine and know your dogs schedule. You will be surprised how willing your dog will be to please you, once he understands exactly what you expect!