House training

Spot the Merry Risk

Spot the Merry Risk

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3 month old puppy of a breed known for being difficult to house train.

Fig was well brought up by her first time breeder but she did house training differently to us - there were puppy pads everywhere and a big box of sawdust which they were wncpuraged to wee in. Fig was with us for two week before we had a long planned five day holiday and she went to a v experienced friend, I know house training would have gone completely out of the window - then two days later I had an operation. For the 8/9 days we are in a settled phase and I’m hoping to crack this.

I am very on it during the day and we have a good set up - single level small property, two doors open straight onto decking and then the grassy garden, one door goes outside onto tarmac, our bed is about 25’ from her crate so I can hear her at night and be with her quickly. Her days are a mix of playing, sleeping, eating, new bite size experiences, socialising - the is a gay little puppy and I want to keep her like that so there’s no big telling off for mistakes. We have pretty much cracked indoor weeing through me getting her out a lot. Indoor pooing might miss one a day. She never asks to go out - just drops one under the table, blink and you miss it!

My issue is night time. She was in a small crate, covered warm etc, last week and poo would be around midnight, last food would be around 6pm. She would always go in the crate covering all bedding and needing a daily wash, so we moved to a bigger crate, which she is often treating as bed and run. She doesn’t ask to go out. Last night final wee and poo was 11.30, I got up at 4.15 and she had pooped. Took her out, did nothing, out again 7.15, did both.

Rew was super easy - never pooped in the house and only had two wees! - but he was a summer puppy. Remind me not to get a winter one again! And tell me please how I can help her to get clean, because we are all a bit tired!
 
You might have to bite the bullet and put an alarm on and get her out every hour or two hours and make sure she is wrapped up warm. Also think about what similar surfaces are in your house to what she was used to before.

If you think about how long she had at repeating the old way and how long she has been with you/you have been working at this, it will be the same time if not double or triple to create a new habit.
 
Strict alarms during the day every hour, and after doing anything (and/or a house line so she’s never just popping under the table) and a 2am alarm for night trips that you can gradually move later until she’s going through the night. Going with them and big praise for going outside, etc.

For daytime, I did find introducing a set of bells was helpful for my cocker so he could ask. Perhaps surprisingly, the dachshund got it consistently much more quickly - but she also came home at 10 weeks not 8, and the breeder establishes toileting outside pretty well.
 
FionaMc said:
Strict alarms during the day every hour, and after doing anything (and/or a house line so she’s never just popping under the table) and a 2am alarm for night trips that you can gradually move later until she’s going through the night. Going with them and big praise for going outside, etc.

For daytime, I did find introducing a set of bells was helpful for my cocker so he could ask. Perhaps surprisingly, the dachshund got it consistently much more quickly - but she also came home at 10 weeks not 8, and the breeder establishes toileting outside pretty well.
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If I’m home I have an eye on her pretty much all the time. I work from home and she’s in her crate then (only 10 hours a week). I always go with her, I always want to see what she’s done and to praise loads, and I’m trying to teach her pee-pee and poo-poo. Through the night alarms I’m still hoping to avoid - both me and Mr StR tend to get up for a pee in the night so will take her out then. I’m not normally asleep until after midnight as it is and his alarm goes off at 6am.

Tell me about the bells? I don’t understand what that means?
 
Spot the Merry Risk said:
If I’m home I have an eye on her pretty much all the time. I work from home and she’s in her crate then (only 10 hours a week). I always go with her, I always want to see what she’s done and to praise loads, and I’m trying to teach her pee-pee and poo-poo. Through the night alarms I’m still hoping to avoid - both me and Mr StR tend to get up for a pee in the night so will take her out then. I’m not normally asleep until after midnight as it is and his alarm goes off at 6am.

Tell me about the bells? I don’t understand what that means?
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They’re just a set of bells you can hang on your door (fancier options possibly also available), and if you ring them before going out, and then encourage a touch and open the door when they do - can be used to help give dogs a clear way of saying ‘let me out please!’. Better guidance and actual products can probably be found by googling bells for toilet training.

They worked well for the cocker when he wasn’t giving clear signs he wanted to go out so having occasional accidents but was generally otherwise doing quite well with the concept. But as with anything your miles may vary!
 
FionaMc said:
They’re just a set of bells you can hang on your door (fancier options possibly also available), and if you ring them before going out, and then encourage a touch and open the door when they do - can be used to help give dogs a clear way of saying ‘let me out please!’. Better guidance and actual products can probably be found by googling bells for toilet training.

They worked well for the cocker when he wasn’t giving clear signs he wanted to go out so having occasional accidents but was generally otherwise doing quite well with the concept. But as with anything your miles may vary!
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Thank you - she gives no signs ever of wanting to go out (I pre-empt all toileting) but I would love it if she did. Will look into training this!
 
I think some dogs are harder to train. I'd never had a problem until Ruby. It was 9 months before she didn't need reminding to go out and I was still getting up at least once a night with her. I did hourly in the day and 2 hourly at night for weeks (on a lead in the garden as well as walks). She just wasnt bothered about where she went. We didn't punish but we did reward the good stuff. No suggestions, just keep on keeping on.
 
I feed mine about 4 pm so all poos done before bed. One of my terriers was terrible to housetrain, would be out there with him for ages and he would come in and poo in his bed , not pleasant. I’d never had a problem before but had always had bitches so assumed it was because he was a dog , he also has chihuahua in him and they are supposed to be difficult . I cracked it by giving him a treat every time he weed or pooed in the garden
 
Update. We rarely get a pee or poo in the house now, this is more because I’m super vigilant as her ‘want to go out’ signs are minimal. Night time is very tiring - fed at 5pm, pee at around 10pm, then final pee and poo at 11.30pm. Took her out again at 3.20am did both and again at 7.20am did both.

I am literally praying that at some point her bladder and bowel can go longer than four hours - I know one of her brothers is going a solid eight hours and then has to be woken up!
 

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I'm probably going to throw a spanner in the works here but is she really having her last meal at 5pm? How old is she? How many meals does she have per day?
At less than 4 months old, I would expect her to still be having 4 meals per day. I don't usually drop the lunchtime meal until about 6 months, maybe a bit younger depending on what else is happening. And the last meal about 11.00pm
I agree that Summer pups are the easiest, our Lab pair had spent a lot of time playing outside with the litter, mum and older siblings during July and were practically house-trained when we picked them up at 8 weeks. While the hardest to house-train were a pair of winter JRTs who were born and raised in the farm kitchen.
 
Pearlsacarolsinger said:
I'm probably going to throw a spanner in the works here but is she really having her last meal at 5pm? How old is she? How many meals does she have per day?
At less than 4 months old, I would expect her to still be having 4 meals per day. I don't usually drop the lunchtime meal until about 6 months, maybe a bit younger depending on what else is happening. And the last meal about 11.00pm
I agree that Summer pups are the easiest, our Lab pair had spent a lot of time playing outside with the litter, mum and older siblings during July and were practically house-trained when we picked them up at 8 weeks. While the hardest to house-train were a pair of winter JRTs who were born and raised in the farm kitchen.
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Born 9th Sept. Yes definitely nothing after (around) 5pm. I understand what you’re saying about four meals but she settled into three right from the start (early November), I wonder if a small meal around 9pm would give her a chance to empty again before midnight. FWIW she never wakes me in the night, I have to pick her out of bed, but she would need to go before 5am. It’s all a balancing act which I haven’t got sussed out yet.
 
She is getting there but like Ruby a bit slowly. Ruby was a winter puppy too. Standing in the pouring rain in PJs a huge coat and under an umbrella in February was not fun! It was worth it in the l9ng run though. It took a couple of years for her to really signal clearly she wanted to go out. I was still initiating it 2 or 3 hourly in the day for a very long time
 
misst said:
She is getting there but like Ruby a bit slowly. Ruby was a winter puppy too. Standing in the pouring rain in PJs a huge coat and under an umbrella in February was not fun! It was worth it in the l9ng run though. It took a couple of years for her to really signal clearly she wanted to go out. I was still initiating it 2 or 3 hourly in the day for a very long time
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Tbh that has made me feel a bit better.
 
Honestly I used to despair of ever getting there. I have never had a dog who was so uncaring about where she toileted! No idea why. Consistency was definitely the key. I don't think she was "naughty" so she was never punished. She was always very cheerful about it whereas other dogs I've had have seemed "sorry" and knew they shouldn't have done it. She just used to wad her tail looking all bright and innocent and not disturbed by it at all. I couldn't take her to someone's house because she would just pee or poop whenever she fancied. OH just said he still doesn't trust her😂. Shes 6 now😳.
 
misst said:
Honestly I used to despair of ever getting there. I have never had a dog who was so uncaring about where she toileted! No idea why. Consistency was definitely the key. I don't think she was "naughty" so she was never punished. She was always very cheerful about it whereas other dogs I've had have seemed "sorry" and knew they shouldn't have done it. She just used to wad her tail looking all bright and innocent and not disturbed by it at all. I couldn't take her to someone's house because she would just pee or poop whenever she fancied. OH just said he still doesn't trust her😂. Shes 6 now😳.
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Ruby's a JRT isn't she? I honestly think they don't really care what humans think.


OP when does she have her first meal of the day? How long is the gap between her last meal and her first of the next day? I would be concerned that she is hungry overnight and doesn't understand the difference between feeling hungry and needing to poo, just has got used to the feeling.
 
Pearlsacarolsinger said:
Ruby's a JRT isn't she? I honestly think they don't really care what humans think.


OP when does she have her first meal of the day? How long is the gap between her last meal and her first of the next day? I would be concerned that she is hungry overnight and doesn't understand the difference between feeling hungry and needing to poo, just has got used to the feeling.
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Generally she’s fed around 7am, midday and 5pm, but from further up this thread I’ve split the quota into four, feed soon and then again at 9pm? Or maybe later? Happy to take advice on timing if last feed.
 
My whippet X pups were sooo bad to toilet train, they used to go on the furniture! Never had a dog do that before. They took till 10m 😳 Definitely having 3 at once was a challenge, wouldn’t recommend that 😂 my BCs were all fully toilet trained by 12w.
 
New routine - last, smaller, feed at 9pm. Bed at 11pm, after she’d been out for a wee and a poo. I woke up at 5am and took her out for another wee and poo, she was awake but not waiting at the crate door, and she went again at 7am. So she went six hours, which is okay.

Now I need to find a way to get back to sleep after the night time garden trip.
 
Spot the Merry Risk said:
Generally she’s fed around 7am, midday and 5pm, but from further up this thread I’ve split the quota into four, feed soon and then again at 9pm? Or maybe later? Happy to take advice on timing if last feed.
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I think all you can do is experiment a bit to find what suits her best. Ours are fed 8.00 am, 6.00pm and 11.00 pm with a 1.00pm feed for pups that need it. Because we have big dogs we routinely feed 3 meals per day to adults to avoid bloat.
 
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