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Toilet Training


Guest pippadog

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Guest pippadog

Hi

 

We've had Nifty 7 weeks now and his toilet training has been great when we leave the back door open. If the door is open he goes out and toilets outside. However if the door is shut, he wets in the kitchen where his crate is.

 

Do we just keep taking him to the loo every hour in the day and hopefully in time he will bark when he wants to go out. He seems to worsen in the last few days. Obviously if we notice him wetting inside we would say no. But it always seems to be when I am upstairs in the shower or something.

 

Any suggestions.

 

Laura

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He has no idea what to do if the door is closed! You've made it easy for him to go outside, but that doesn't mean he's learning how to tell you, "Hey! The door is closed and I have to pee!"

 

You need to housebreak him as if he's a puppy.

 

Every basic puppy training book covers this in detail. The highpoints include: You need to get him on a schedule, and not let him out of your sight until he gets the picture. So if you go upstairs, he goes with you. If you CANNOT keep your eyes on him, put him in the crate. That's one of the reasons crates are good for newly adopted dogs who are not housebroken!

 

When you let him out (after long naps, after meals, upon waking, after you return home, etc.), go with him. I like to say something like, "Let's go potty!" When he pees or poos, tell him what an incredibly good dog he is. "Good potty! What a good boy you are!" Eventually you teach him a specific word that you want him to associate with having to go to the bathroom.

 

As to the accidents he's already had, you need to remove all traces of urine so that he doesn't think it's OK to use the kitchen as a bathroom. They make special urine cleaning things for that.

 

Sounds like he really WANTS to be good, if he's at least going near the door! So it shouldn't take you too long. Good luck.


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Susan,  Hamish,  Mister Bigglesworth and Nikita Stanislav. Missing Ming, George, and Buck

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Excellent advice from Susan. Just a couple small details to add. Not all dogs bark to tell you they need to go out - I'd actually say the majority don't. You need to learn what his signal is. Some dogs just act restless and pace, others might walk to the door and scratch at the door or nose at the doorknob. Others might just sit quietly at the door, or sit and stare at you. As you get to know Nifty better, you'll pick up on what his signals are.

 

If you're going to be unavailable to let him outside (such as in the shower), the crate is the best way to prevent an accident. If you want to try not using a crate for short periods (like 15-20 min while you shower), take him outside first and make sure he does his business before you leave him.

Jennifer &

Willow (Wilma Waggle), Wiki (Wiki Hard Ten), Carter (Let's Get It On),

Ollie (whippet), Gracie (whippet x), & Terra (whippet) + Just Saying + Just Alice

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Guest pippadog

Hi

 

Thanks for the excellent advice. Because its been very warm and I am in all day I've tended to leave the door open so he can go in and out when he wants to. Obviously its my fault if he has an accident and they have been few and far between. I will try and focus on going out with him every hour or so and saying go to toilet etc. Nifty is in a crate but it is generally open for him to come in and out when he wants to. I will try to shut the crate when I need to pop to the loo myself or when I'm away from him for minimal periods.

 

Thanks

 

Laura

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Guest Wasserbuffel

I'm a big proponent of teaching the dog to ring bells to be let out. My grey didn't know how to ask to go out, and would just go down to the basement if we didn't notice her at the door, and make a mess. We learned that her going down the stairs meant that she really had to go. This became a signal, but not one that was really practical.

 

I strung up some bells and taught her to touch them with her nose for a treat. After she was good at that, I got her to touch them for a treat each and every time I put her outside. After several days of that, I got her to ring the bells just for the door opening (no treat), and made it so the door would not open until she rang the bells. She soon learned that ringing the bells = the door would open.

 

Now, she doesn't ring the bells for her regular turnouts, but if she wants to go outside at an odd time, sees a rabbit, or just wants to sunbathe, she'll ring them.

 

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Guest Wasserbuffel

Jayne already knew the "touch" command when I began, so if you want to do the same, I would suggest starting there.

 

To teach "touch", is fairly simple. Hold a food item in your closed hand. The dog will touch your hand with its nose to investigate and try to take the treat. The moment the dog makes contact, say "touch" and let them have the food. Lather, rinse, repeat. After several repetitions, offer your hand without a treat and say "touch". Reward if the dog touches. Keep it fun. Move your hand around so the dog will have to move to hit the target.

 

Once you have "touch" down, you should be able to get the dog to target things other than your hand by the same method. Put the bells in front of the dog and say "touch". The dog will likely bypass the bells and touch the hand holding them at first, but that's OK just shake the bells a bit so they ring. Practice this until the dog will touch the bells on command.

 

Now, hang the bells next to the door. Get the dog to ring them there at command. Once the dog is consistently ringing the bells at the door on command, have it do that each time you put him/her out. Make it a rule for a while that the door doesn't open until the dog rings the bells, make sure to reward and offer the dog plenty of chances to ring the bell on their own accord before giving the command.

 

It sounds involved, but it really only took Jayne about three days to really "get it", and start ringing the bells on her own when she wanted out. It helps if they're really food motivated.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I'm going to try this with our dogs. Great idea.

Taunya and her Supreme Grace, Anna - Sharsanna (Kiowa Sweet Trey x Camden Coming), Surge (no races), Kelsos Yorktown (Trent Lee x Kelsos Spotswood), Galgo Espanol - Valentin. Forever waitin' on Red (Kiowa Mon Manny x Bella Ionic).

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Guest giantsfan

One of ours did not give us any obvious signals about having to go out, so we taught her to ring bells hanging from the doorknob as well. It works great and is quite helpful if we are upstairs and she needs to go out.

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True about the signal! They never need to tell anyone they need to go out at the track; they're just magically sent outside on a schedule. How was I to know that George's "signal" was to pace around the apartment with his stuffed dog in his mouth? My old dog walked to the door, looked at the leash, looked at me, looked at the door. Pretty clear sign. Pacing around with a stuffed animal? No so much!! Five years in, he still does the same thing! We just work with what we have!


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Susan,  Hamish,  Mister Bigglesworth and Nikita Stanislav. Missing Ming, George, and Buck

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