Rachel,
First you do need to verify that it is not medical. At this age though I would venture to say it is not but that still needs to be addressed.

My guess is that your poor little Rosie never was fully house broken and doesn't really understand the concept. Let me say this is not because she is stupid, it's just she was never trained to understand. The good news is, it is not too late!

You may be asking then why does she cowar when she goes potty in the house? Simply because she is afraid. Think about your reaction (or other family members) when she does this. She probably sees you getting very angry and telling her she is a bad girl or other negative things. Your anger is why she is cowaring and because she knows you are angry with her. She wants to please you, not make you mad! Let me give you an example.

My Dixie suffered with separation anxiety. Before I understood why this was occuring and reading all I could to figure out how to help her, I would come home mad and putting her in a down and ignoring her for significant amounts of time. I would not pet her and give her the normal greeting I usually did. I was mad. Since she probably did the damage within minutes of my departure and I was being mad hours later, she had no clue why I was mad, just that I was and it was directed at her. Now I realize she was smart enough to realize not to tear things up but she had another issue that was the underlying problem - the separation anxiety. She needed help not anger and punishment. Fortunately, once I realized what the problem was and learned how to help her, she got better and is comfortable now when I leave.

My suggestion is to back up and make sure Rosie knows the fundamentals of potty training.

* Do you crate her?
* Do you have a command such as "go potty"?
* What do you do when she eliminates where she shouldn't?
* Is there consistency with all parties involved in making sure she goes outside?
* Have you had her since she was a baby?

There are several excellent threads on house breaking that you can refer too from the past. Do a search. This is a common problem for new puppy owners. You are not alone but you do have a source of help in your Pet Talk friends. A lot of us have been there and can relate.

Tell mom that you are getting help and to hang in there. Rosie will be house trained before you know it.

P.S. There are training techniques that can get you having Rosie doing sits and downs in a matter of days consistently. Don't fret over that too. I believe there are no stupid dogs.... only untrained trainers. Have you ever done obedience classes with her? If not find a class that teaches positive reinforcement or clicker training. You will enjoy the bond it helps build with your furkid!

Let me know if you have any questions.