sarahskye

So Ive had Skye for almost 2 months now, and after the difficult start, he settled in, discovered the couch, went outside to toilet, slept downstairs without waking me up, and yesterday suddenly mastered the stairs alone. However, for the last 2 weeks he seems to have regressed in the toileting department. He knows he goes outside, we go out for early morning walks and he normally does at least 2 poos, and he has access to the garden pretty much whenever he wants. I can not get him to go for a walk at night, and have to bribe him just to go in the garden then, where he will usually just have a wee. No matter how long I stand out there with him, thats all he will do. Now im regularly waking up and going downstairs to poos on the carpet. He has also cocked his leg and peed on furniture in my parents house a few times, and pood on my floor twice during the day when I left him for a short time (one of those times was im front of my dad!). The daytime incidents have happened when the door was open also, so he could have gone outside. When weve caught him, he has been shouted at and put outside. Ive tried adjusting his feeding times to try and make him poo before bed, but nothing seems to work and I just dont know what to do. Any advice from anyone who's had these problems would be great! (im in the UK, and crating isn't really a thing here)

Hes doing so much better Shes a bit sore today bless her, she was more worried about the dog though! I'm kind of pleased theres not many little critters around here, although Im not sure if he would bother with them or not! Hes actually a bit scared of pigeons and crows! I think my mum will have learned now not to be fooled into a false sense of security when hes walking on a loose leash, need to keep a good grip on it at all times!

Finally was able to sleep in my bed while he slept downstairs last night! I left Classic FM playing at low volume and left a tshirt with my scent on in his bed, then quietly sneaked off upstairs, and didnt hear a peep from him all night! He was still awake at the crack of dawn wanting to go for a wee, but think I'll just have to get used to that! Such a big improvement on that issue in just over a week Had a bit of an incident yesterday morning when my mum took him for a little walk, on which he decided out of nowhere to suddenly bolt, pulled her over and ran off! After a panicked phone call from her thinking he would head straight for the road, I found him standing outside the garden gate!! Little bugger, almost gave us both heart failure! Actually amazed he found his own way back and remembered his house! Just got some bitter apple spray delivered to try on the couch, but he seems to be leaving it alone now, and concentrating on ripping the edge of the carpet in the hallway with his claws instead!

Yes he'll only do zoomies in the living room, so just waiting for him to crash into the radiator or dresser! But it is cute, and makes me laugh, which makes him do things even more! Tried again today luring him up the stairs with stinky cheese, with the harness on to support him, and he did much better on his second attempt, both up and down, still quite a way to go though I think, but we will get there and I might get my bed back! He might change his mind about the sofa, at the minute its just something to rest his chews on or toys on while hes chewing them!

6 days in and theres definite improvement already, hes starting to come out of his shell for small parts of the day, doing zoomies and playing with his soft toys He's ok going for a walk in the morning, he quite enjoys it when its nice and early and no one is around (except for a few scary crows and pigeons!). In fact he is like a different dog for the first few hours of the day, then seems to go back into his shell a bit, but its very early days! So my main issue now is that I still cant sleep upstairs yet, as he wont be left downstairs alone! Im going to start his alone training, not feeling very confident about it! I can manage to get a shower in the evening now if I sneak up while hes flat out asleep, but any other time if i go up to the loo the crying starts within seconds! I feel he will either never want to use the stairs, or its going to take a very long time to get him to, so he may always need to sleep downstairs. Any tips on how I can start to sleep in my own bed again while he sleeps downstairs? He wont get on the couch or anything, just likes to be on his bed on the floor, and even if hes asleep he will realise im gone very quickly and freak out! And I have caught him trying to chew at the couch a few times now just through the day when im working at my desk across the room! Otherwise he is being a very good boy, and is such a gorgeous gentle dog

He is so handsome! His name is Skye Hopefully we will get there soon with the stairs! Then to try and get his confidence up on going outside, poor little guy is scared of every little thing, especially crows!

Thanks Yes im in the UK so he wouldnt have been kept in a crate before, and I dont really like the idea of putting him in one really when he's not used to it! I want him to be able to roam freely round the house, all he needs to do is master the stairs! Tried to help him today using a harness with a handle and cheese laid up the steps, we got him up there and he was so happy to finally see whats upstairs! Coming back down was another matter! Hopefully he isnt too traumatised to try again! He seems to be a bit livelier in general today which is great

Thanks everyone! So although hes now been here 5 days without a crate, would it still be a good idea to get one? or is it too late to start trying with that now hes had free run in the house? I think the stair training will make the biggest difference, so I will try that today!

Thanks for the advice! I dont have a crate. Ive had a greyhound in the past who we didnt have any of these problems with, so i naively thought everything might be the same! He has only been in a home before for 2 days then was returned to the kennels, so i know that will have traumatised him even more the poor thing. My stairs do have carpet, I've tried going behind him to help but that just freaked him out more! Will try the treats, he doesnt seem very willing to do anything for treats though! The kennels advised against using a harness for walking, hes actually good on the lead, and if he pulls they showed me how to wrap the leather lead round him to act as a harness, which works fine. I just want to help him get over all his fears so he can enjoy going on his walks and in the garden!

Just adopted a gorgeous 2 yr old boy 4 days ago, having lots of problems so far and struggling to cope! Hes a lovely dog but so scared of everything. Ive had to sleep on the couch as he cant get up the stairs, and as soon as I try to go to bed he starts crying and digging furiously at the couch. If I go up to the bathroom or shower the crying starts straight away, and hes tried to destroy a few things like the tv remote already! Im literally having to stay downstairs for fear of what he will do when Im out of sight. He also circles and paces, and cries a lot and lies in the hallway next to the front door, as if he just wants to leave, which is quite upsetting. Also having potty issues, I can get him to go out to do his business in the morning as hes desperate, but he holds it in all afternoon and night, it cant be good for him! Hes easy spooked on walks and will just refuse to go any further, and he doesn't like going into the garden, so its very difficult to get him to do anything. I know all of these things are down to his anxiety and everything being new and scary to him, and I just want to help him settle as easily as I can! Any advice on any of these issues would be very welcome!