Potty Training Pets- HELP!

ok get rid of the potty pads they don't work. I thought this was cruel but it worked on my dog. Get a Cage that only fit her size that doesn't allow much room. (I know its mean). Put him/her in it. After 2 hrs take them out right to the yard. Let him/her roam and try to encouge dog to go. If the dog goes allow him/her only in one room of the house to play for a little awhile. Put him back into the cage. 2 hrs later repeat. When its time for a feeding let him out only in the same room feed and water then 1/2 hr take him outside. After a couple days of good behavior reward him with another room to play in and so on. Hang in there he'll get the point.

If they are anything like my Chihuahuas a doggie door will help in warm weather, but they refuse to go out when it's cold or rainy. I assume you are already doing the basics of trying to catch them in the act and appropriate punishment and praise. Some people have also had luck with a cat litter box! If you are willing to pay (often a lot!), then a animal behaviorist might be able to help. Barkbusters offers a guarantee, but the guarantee is for them to keep coming, not for your money back. I am convinced that some small dogs are a lost cause, especially if you cannot dedicate 100% of your time to their training. With two kids at home, I know you can't do that. I can't wait to see other answers, especially from small dog owners. I've never had trouble training larger dogs!

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You didn't say how old your dogs are, so I will assume they are adults. Something you can do (no matter the age) is take the dogs out several times a day ON leash. That way, as soon as they #1 or #2, you can reward them with a small treat for "going" outside. You have to reward them immediately though, or they won't know what they are being rewarded for. Do this enough times, and they will realize that going outside is a good thing to do. Eventually you can wean off the treat completely, but remember to continue praising them even after.

I'm a big supporter of scheduled feedings. Not only does it keep the dog from grazing all day long as he/she would if they were free fed(food out all the time), but you have a better idea of when they need to "go". Take/let them out as soon as they've finished eating. Most dogs (it seems especially true in small dogs) go very soon after eating.

I've heard that the rule for how long they can hold it in is to take their age and add 1. That's an estimate of how many hours they can hold their bladder. If they are going during the night, you can give them some water before bedtime, get them to go out and potty and then pick up the water bowl until morning. Some dogs will drink and drink at nighttime when you are sleeping and mess up before you wake.

The best thing to do is to be able to watch them almost constantly for a few days to get a feel for their signals that they need to go and how often they usually need to go. I know most times this isn't possible, but even if you can take a day or so on a weekend when you don't have any plans and just be close by so that you can watch over them, it will help you get a feel for their internal schedules.

Hope this helps.

Oh I meant to add that doggie doors are great for when you aren't home or you are busy with something, but they don't help your dog learn housetraining. If for some reason you were to have to move to a place where you couldn't have one(ie: apartments), you would have to start the training process from scratch. Training at younger ages is easier than training older dogs. IMO doggie doors are a great asset AFTER a dog is already housetrained and knows what is expected of them.

You need to discuss your housetraining issues with your veterinarian. If they do not have advice for you, find a different vet. Crate training is great. If your animals are still intact (not spayed or neutered), it could be impossible to get them housetrained until they are altered. If they are adult dogs and still not housetrained, you have a long road ahead of you, and may never get them fully trained. Doggie door is a good option, do not use potty pads. Please schedule an appointment with your vet to discuss the issue, it is a common issue they deal with. good luck. -jm

Our Shih Tze is really smart and we took her to puppy training. All is done with treats. But it still took a year. The breeder said she was trained at 7 weeks no way. She finally got it but still if I leave my bedroom door open for her to roam I may find poop. Once in a blue mood pee. But rewards. Put them on a leash and take them to the same spot every time. Reward with treats for every trick and train. My doo sees me eating a snack and she wants hers. Do not allow them to just play or get distracted. There are there to potty. Eliminate all food and water after a certain time at night. Also time how long after a meal like every 15 min after depending. I also is with children. What goes in comes out and it can be 15 -30 min but it will be time. If my dog eats late at night she will wake me at 4am to pee. But she wines at me to take her. So it is timing and evenually they get it. The trainer told us if you use paper inside then you will always use paper for your dogs. Also I heard that you start with huge paper then keep using less and less and gettig it close to the door. Evenually out. But we just cleaned up the mess and they have wonderful PetSmart Carpet stuff that takes out the odor. Never use amonia for cleaning up the mess as dogs see it as pee. They also will keep going back to the same spots. My dog loved the hall where we could not see watchint tv. I steam clean my carpets about every week so I never smell any of it but my smell is not as good as it used to be. My granddaughter is my nose and eyes. G. W

Are they small dogs? I volunteered at an animal shelter as well as worked at a vet through college and learned that on average, toy and small dogs are harder to potty train. The good news is that at least they only produce a small amount of pee at a time, but still I can imagine your frustration at the smell. The vet I worked for used to suggest doggy pampers for the dogs that had problems with potty training. They are little diapers that you slip on. Almost like the swimming diapers for babies but they absorb and are washable. Try them and see if it helps! It may not fix the potty training problem but at least you can keep the urine from getting on the carpet! :)

I have used Doggy doors for a few years and they have been great. I just got a 4 mo old boxer pup ( now 5 months) and she wasnt potty trained when I got her, but with the doggy door and walking out with her and praising her she quickly figured it out. The door is easy to teach them to use. take a few treats or hot dog pieces and have one person on on side and one and the other. first hold the flap of the door up and get them to go thru it. than poke the treat threw the door from the outside and coax them thru the door. after a couple times with the treat they have all figured it out. i have trained a few dogs this way. Now the puppy chewing is another story............. the bitter apple spray is slowing her down, but it is a question what is her next target.

My advice is to crate them, and let them out every couple of hours or so. Ask them if they need to "go potty outside" when you let them out. After they have finished, give them a treat. Thats what I did, and it only took a couple of days to train mine. Now, I only have to ask if they need to go outside, and they go to the door. Be consistant with crate and the treat. Good luck

Crate training works. Our vet recommends it. Dogs are naturally den animals and will not go in their crate.Take them out of the crate and directly outdoors on a leash until they get the idea.
As long as they can smell pee/poop on your floors they will continue to use that spot. There is a product called Urine Out that disolves the enzimes and totally gets rid of the odor. You can only buy it on line or from a Vet.It is expensive $25 for about 10 0z spray bottle but it works.
Good Luck

D.-

The key to potty training is being consistent...if you catch them in the act, verbally correct them and put them outside right away. When you catch them going outside use lots of praise. Nature's Miracle makes a good product for getting the smell out of your carpet. Crate them whenever you cant give them your full attention...eventually they will stop going in their crate (they look at their crate as if it's their home) If you are not home during the day try a dog walker...I'm a pet sitter and walk lots of dogs with "potty issues". Good luck!

K. @ Pet Sitter Pro
www.petsitterpro.org