New Dog Questions & Prep - Housetraining?? (clean, train, infections)

[JLB1228]

My husband and I are thinking about adopting a dog and I want to be as prepared as possible before doing so. I generally work from home 2 days a week & weekends we are around. That leaves 3 days though where we'd be at work during the day. I was thinking for those days, if the dog can't hold it, we could set up an area inside where it could use the bathroom. I've even planned out the location (a doggie door into our sunroom/patio).


My question I guess, is if I adopt a dog that previously had a home and is housetrained, will that be possible to train the dog to: option 1, go outside to do its business, but option 2, use this special area? Make sense? How would I do that?

[cheesenugget]

It depends on how long you will be gone, what size of a dog you are getting, age of the dog, the amount of potty training it already has, etc.

Assuming it's the typical 8 hour or so absence, I would suggest getting an older dog, about 3 years the youngest to senior age, medium-sized to large breed. At that age, more than likely it was already trained, used to holding it in a little longer while sleeping and waiting for you to come home.

However, smaller breeds and younger pups need more help. They have smaller bladders and puppies need to be trained. Peepee pads are commonly used.

You can train your dog to pee where you want, no matter the age. It depends on what you prefer.

[Katie1]

You can train but How about hiring a Dog Walker for those 3 days. Not only would the dog go Potty outside so no re-training But it would break his day as well. Some one that spend 30 mins playing with him brushing him just plan giving him some attention.

[JLB1228]

Well we got a dog... she's about 40lbs or so (but needs to gain another 15-20lbs to be healthy), about 4 years old, hound/pit mix. The shelter thought she was housebroken, mild, not very reactive, but clearly was in a place where she wasn't treated the best.


Well she's definitely not housebroken at all. The first week was a bit of a disaster as she wasn't spayed yet and in heat. We put down puppy pads and she used them so/so. Week 2 after her spay, she was very good about only using the puppy pads (or close to it), but still, she'd go outside and do nothing, then we'd leave her inside alone for 10 mins and she'd use the pads!


Now we're in week 3 and she is all over the place. She is on and off with the pads, with going outside, with anything.


How do I get her to go outside first of all, and if she absolutely can't hold it, then use the pads????


Also, we got a crate, but on long work days I don't want to leave her crated for so long so those are the days she is out in her room and we have the pads/floor being used. When we're home, we crate her if we're not going to be around and she's so/so about not going in the crate... but surely I can't always be crating her everytime I want to leave her sight.


Any advice? Good trainers or books or sites to check out? We're exhausted and we haven't even begun what we thought would be the hardest part - introducing her to our cats!

[cheesenugget]

It is common for a newly adopted dog who was perfectly housebroken, forgot its training after adoption. Retraining the dog is the norm after adoption.

Is the dog only peeing, not defecating? Was she checked for UTI? These types of infections are common for female dogs, especially those who weren't spayed. Bacteria creeps in there and... there you go. Lots of liquid and a dose of antibiotics will fix it.

If it's not a medical issue, set a strict schedule of feeding/potty time. No more wee wee pads, especially for a big dog who will pee a lot, soaking the pads and possibly the floor underneath it without your knowledge. Wee wee pads work best for puppies and small dogs.

Each time you feed her, wait about 2 hours, and go for a walk. Try new areas, walk for about 15 minutes, the more she moves, the more she will want to pee and poo. If nothing happens, try again in an hour. It's time consuming but this tests to see how long your dog can hold. If she pees 5 hours after feeding, then you know her limitations - 5 hours.

Consider hiring a dog walker or daycare if you could not walk your dog past how long she can hold it in.

Make sure to clean all accidents with an enzyme cleaner. They sell them at your local petstore.

[twelvepaw]

It takes time for a dog to settle in and learn the rules of a new household.
Start from square one- 15 minutes or so after she eats take her out for a nice long 20-30 minute walk. Dogs often need to pee (and poo) multiple times, so don't assume that because she pees once that she is done. Praise and treat after she potties appropriately.

You absolutely must go outside with your dog when she goes out to potty- first because you need to see what she is doing, and also so that she develops good potty habits and gives herself time to fully relieve herself instead of wanting to come back inside the house to be with you. After she potties, then play time- have fun, pets, throw balls, etc. before going back inside.

On work days be sure she gets outside and is able to thoroughly relieve herself before you leave. Crate her when you are at work. Dogs just primarily sleep when we are gone anyway. If you are gone for 9+ hours then ask a pet sitter to stop by to let her out at least until she can get into the rythm of the household schedule.

When you are home let her out to potty every 3 hours or so, and before dinner.

And yes, agree with cheesenugget- be sure to clean all areas with an enzymatic cleaner- many people use Nature's Miracle.

[hothulamaui]

do you have an area where you can put the crate and surround it with an ex-pen? or a room like the kitchen that you can put gates up so she can walk around in there when your gone and not do too much damage? the best thin is to not give her the run of the house while you are gone, take her out every I/2 hour or so. watch her body language, they usually start to circle or hunch up their backs. reward, reward with praise and treats when she does it out side. thanks for rescuing her.

[JLB1228]

Thanks for the advice! Will make some adjustments to our walking routine and just give it more time. May have been expecting too much too soon when they said she had housetraining. I think it is a separation thing too. She never goes in the house if we are around, just when left alone. And she's getting better about not going in her crate at all!


I do have the Nature's Miracle and it's great. And she's only been left alone in one room where I hated the floors anyway I bought a tray for under the pads and that's worked out beautifully - so long as she used them. But for now I think we will do away with that idea and just focus on the crate training to go outside.

[Jumpindogs]

Good advice from twelve and cheese. I would not use an expen until the dog has learned to be very comfy in it...some dogs try to escape and an expen can actually move around and/or collapse.

If you think your dog has a little SA then Katie's suggestion of a dog walker...as long as the person is 100% reliable; recently adopted dogs can escape the unsuspecting handler (many such stories)...is a good idea.

We remove water bowls an hour before we leave for work and make sure to get a good pee out of our dogs right before we leave. That way they are not potentially sucking water during that long day and then unable to hold it. We always provide plenty of water upon returning home from work and one of us stays home that entire night to enable them to drink and pee at will. And they have access to water all night long during which they typically don't drink...they are too busy lounging in our bed...but can if they have to. We have always done this and none of our dogs have had trouble with bladder infections. I know it's suggested to have fresh water available at all times but judicious use of the water bowl can help with potty training and still be safe for your dog...with the caveat that there are certain medical conditions for which limiting water may not be wise.