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I recently took in a stray dog, a cockapoo, a male. He is very smart and sweet. He is not neutered. He was obviously an inside dog and he follows me around everywhere, even though I've only had him a week. The first week I got him I kept him in a crate while I was at work to see if he would use the bathroom in there, and he did not. If I am at home, he will not use the bathroom in the house. He goes outside and then is ready to come back in. For the past two days I left him out. The first day, I left him open to the whole house. When I got home, I found one place in the living room where he had peed on the corner of a chair and the hardwood floor. I told him "No." and he hid. He obviously knew he had done wrong. Today I confined him just to the kitchen and he had peed twice, once in the middle of the floor, and once against him pet bed. I didn't see this until after I had picked him up and praised him (it blended in with the floor). I washed the bed and cleaned the floor immediately with vinegar. I don't want to use puppy pads b/c I don't want him to think it is ok to go in the house. The vet said he is 5-8 years old. And if he can hold it in the crate, I know he can do it. This is my 1st experience with an inside dog/house breaking/ etc. Any suggestions would be great.
Vinegar is not good enough to clean the odor. Dogs have a much better sense of smell than we do. Go to a pet store and get some enzyme cleaner specifically for dog waste.
First, this boy needs more time to adjust. And it's very important NOT to scold. Not even saying 'no.' Because you don't know what very bad associations he might have with that word from his prior life.
Here's my housetraining post. You need to follow this TO THE LETTER. Including the kind of treats you give. And YOU MUST go out with your dog. WITH THE TREATS! This works for older dogs, as well as for puppies. And everyone in the house needs to follow these instructions to the letter, as well.
Housetraining your dog (puppy or adult!)
The first thing you need to do is to remember that you’re trying to reinforce a new behavior. That means that the rewards for this behavior must be WONDERFUL. NOT crap from the store. Wonderful treats are poached chicken breast/turkey breast, cheese and steak. And you don’t have to use big pieces. Tiny pieces (about 3mm cubes) are just fine! I poach a whole turkey breast every few weeks, cut it into hunks when it’s cool enough to handle, wrap them well and store them in the freezer. When I need some, I’ll thaw a hunk overnight and cut off pieces and dice finely, storing them in a plastic bag in the fridge. One hunk will last about five days. Cheese is also popular, so variety is fine.
I carry these plastic bags in my jacket pockets in the winter and in a fanny pack in warmer weather. You HAVE to have these with you, or this method won’t work, because you need to reward as soon as the dog finishes pooping or peeing. It’s not going to work if the rewards are in the house.
Remember that you’re trying to change a very ingrained behavior. Some dogs like to feel certain things under their feet when they eliminate, like fabric, or newspaper. This is called a ‘substrate preference.’ What you’re trying to do is change this substrate preference, and to do that you have to make the treats SO wonderful that the dog will change this very well-entrenched behavior. Thus the chicken, cheese, steak.
I love clicker training, but this can be done without clickers. You just need a way to ‘mark’ the behavior you want to reinforce. Use the word ‘YESSSSS!!!!’ very enthusiastically – that works for some.
You’re going to need to GO OUTSIDE WITH your dog and the dog needs to be on a leash. Yes, even in winter. If you don’t reward IMMEDIATELY after the event (when dog immediately finishes pooping or peeing) and wait inside, the dog is going to be reinforced for coming inside, not for doing its business. So, leash up your dog. STAND IN ONE PLACE. Be boring. Bring a book or magazine for yourself.
Eventually, the dog will do what you’re waiting for. The NANOSECOND that the dog is finished, HAVE A PARTY – lots of loud, high-pitched praise, treats and running around. You want to make this memorable for your dog! You’ll find that once the first event is achieved, the others will come more quickly. Keep on treating (you don’t have to throw a party except for milestones – a milestone = if he only pooped outside but now peed, too, or something equivalent to that) until he’s good and used to peeing/pooping outside. Before you know it, you have a trained dog.
Regarding accidents in the house: NO SCOLDING. Just clean them up. If you scold you’ll get the dog to think it’s bad to pee or poop and he’ll do it in places you won’t see. Until you step in it. Invest in a big bottle of Nature’s Miracle or Simple Solution and use it liberally on accidents.
To quote Patricia McConnell, author of “The Other End of the Leash” and co-author of “Way to Go” (a booklet on housetraining), “Once you face the fact that you just have take your dog out every time you turn around, give them the treat immeditely after they potty, and prevent accidents in the house… well, it usually goes so smoothly.”
With young puppies, remember they have little control of the muscle that holds the bladder closed. This is something they grow into. Just as it’s not expected that a human baby is toilet trained at six months, don’t expect much from a puppy. Patience, patience, patience!!!! The nervous system in a puppy has to mature, and it won’t have much control over the sphincter (closing muscle) at the neck of the bladder until six or seven months. The same goes for the anal sphincter. Until control is achieved, both of these muscles operate on reflex: there are stretch receptors in the bladder wall. When the bladder is full, it sends impulses to the spinal cord and these, in turn, send signals to the sphincter to open and the dog pees.
In the stomach wall, there are also stretch receptors. So when the dog eats and the stomach is stretched, the impulses again go to the spinal cord, but this time the reflex, outgoing, nerve signals are sent to the anal sphincter, so the dog defecates. This operates in people, too – which is why some people rush to the ‘reading room’ after a meal – especially breakfast.
kda, my sister has a older rescue(3 yrs) who was under weight(40 lbs when she should've been 60) and is just now starting to control her bowels as she gets comfort inside(outside dog until adoption) and gains weight. is he under weight? if the system has been stressed its often hard for them to hold it.
The ONLY thing the dog knew was that you were cross; but dogs cannot put an event that happened who-knows-how-long-ago together with what's happening in the here and now. Their brains, their thought processes, don't work like that.
Just judging from what you've written, I think this has nothing to do with the dog having a full bladder (i.e. an accident because the dog had to wee) and everything to do with the dog feeling anxious.
Because we tend to put far too much of a human spin on issues like crating, we tend to see it in light of human interpretation - i.e. that it's a restriction of "freedom". While that might be the case for some dogs, it is certainly not the case for all dogs.
Doggie may just be feeling downright anxious at a) being left while you go to work and b) being inside alone at this juncture. Just because he follows you around doesn't mean he was an inside dog - it could mean quite the opposite in that he's totally clueless as to what he's supposed to be doing and his "security" is being with you - your actions guide him, so if he sticks with you, he'll be fine. When left in the house alone, his anxiety increases so he marks areas to say "I wuz here. And here too." You know I and I know no strange dog is just going to wander in and wonder whose turf this is, but he doesn't know that. It makes him feel better to issue the "press statement".
In your shoes, I'd go back to square one and crate the dog when you're not home ensuring the dog has some things to do while he's in there. Let him settle and get used to the routine. Dogs love routine - they like to know what's going to happen and when it's going to happen and the more yesterday is like today and will happen again tomorrow, the better. Use your time at home to let him acclimatise to you being out of sight, that out of sight doesn't mean you've disappeared. That's something he needs to figure out so he can feel confident and comfortable while you're at work.
get him neutered and then go to home depot and get yourself some odo ban best thing in the world for pet accident odors . My vet reccomended it cause he uses it in his kennels .
Location: Visitation between Wal-Mart & Home Depot
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Is this a rescue or a stray? I'm assuming that the vet checked him for a chip? Have you exhausted all avenues for finding his family? Put up any fliers? I probably wouldn't have him neutered until I had a darned good reason to believe that no one is looking for him. **EDIT** - actually, getting him neutered may be a good idea but if you find his people or his people find you, be prepared for fireworks. **EDIT**
If this is just a dog that wandered in suddenly I hope you've made a diligent effort to get him home before deciding the dog is yours... Someone who is looking for their dog is probably going to be monitoring/posting on Craigslist, calling any vets in the area, calling the ASPCA, calling the Humane Society, in contact with any HOA, civic clubs or other neighborhood networks, so-on and so-forth. You should probably be doing the same.
Last edited by jimboburnsy; 02-24-2010 at 09:49 AM..
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