90% Pottty Trained from previous owner. . . but still need help.

[Celticlass78]

I adopted Pepper from a family who had him for about a month. He is currently 4 1/2 months old. They informed me that he was about 90% potty trained except that he sometimes pooped inside. I have had him with me for nearly a week and I am having some questions if I am doing things right. He sleeps in his crate and only whines to go out an average of 2 time a night. I take him out to potty 10-20 minuets after eating and I ensure that he is praised. During the day I keep him in his playpen and we interact throughout the day. If we play hard he goes out to potty again. On average his bladder seems to hold 31/2 to 4 hours at a time.

My concerns are the following:

1. He does not give any indication that he needs to go to the bathroom. Except one morning when he jumped off my lap and ran to the door and started scratching. This has only occurred once. I believe that my husband and I are going to start bell training.

2. We comeback from the potty but then he poops on the carpet or relieves himself again. This is usually about 5-10 min after returning. However this is not a consistent behavior.

With this in mind, is it that he was 90% trained at his old house and now I need to retrain him for mine. Am I doing something wrong or is there another method to try? I am dedicated to making things work for him and us.

[TLC]

Originally Posted by Celticlass78

I adopted Pepper from a family who had him for about a month. He is currently 4 1/2 months old. They informed me that he was about 90% potty trained except that he sometimes pooped inside. I have had him with me for nearly a week and I am having some questions if I am doing things right. He sleeps in his crate and only whines to go out an average of 2 time a night. I take him out to potty 10-20 minuets after eating and I ensure that he is praised. During the day I keep him in his playpen and we interact throughout the day. If we play hard he goes out to potty again. On average his bladder seems to hold 31/2 to 4 hours at a time.

My concerns are the following:

1. He does not give any indication that he needs to go to the bathroom. Except one morning when he jumped off my lap and ran to the door and started scratching. This has only occurred once. I believe that my husband and I are going to start bell training.

2. We comeback from the potty but then he poops on the carpet or relieves himself again. This is usually about 5-10 min after returning. However this is not a consistent behavior.

With this in mind, is it that he was 90% trained at his old house and now I need to retrain him for mine. Am I doing something wrong or is there another method to try? I am dedicated to making things work for him and us.

Yes you must retrain him for your house and your rules. Honestly mine had good potty for months and then would regress and we had to start at the beginning again. Keep in mind you still have a little baby. In time he'll be trained how you want. Be consistant and positive and even add a little treat like a cherio for good potty behavior.

PS - It took over a year for my guys

[yougetthesmiles]

I feed mine some soft food in the morning and this seems to stimulate the pooh and they will go for me.

I use my wee wee wraps on my males while they are in the house just to keep my carpets protected. I don't trust them at all.

You just have to watch for his signs that he has to go potty.

Welcome to YT!!!!!! Glad you are here with us!

[crystalsmom]

Rather than going on walks when you are training, I find it best when you go outside to always go to the same place. Say ' go pee pee' and of course when he goes there a couple times and picks up the scent and you praise him and give him a very sm. treat like a cherrio that won't upset his tiny tummy, he will catch on in no time. They love to please and once they figure out that's the spot they will want to do it there. I made the pee pee mean poop or pee pee. If you travel once he gets older and he doesn't have his spot the "go pee pee" is what helps. It really is difficult but it is unusual that he doesn't let you know. A pup that age would start sniffing or going around in a circle. Good Luck.

[zaknnana]

When you speak of "cheerios" do you mean like the "CEREAL CHEERIOS"??? How many of those can they have in a day and not be bad for them and what kind??? THANKS!!

[PrincessDiana]

Keep in mind that he is ONLY 4 1/2 months old. Most dogs are not consistently potty trained until closer to adulthood. I know of dogs that are 1 1/2 years old that still don't know how to tell their owners. I still think the best way is to just prevent accidents before they happen. However, bell training is a GREAT idea and something that has worked successfully for many people.

As far as with him being trained at his previous house.. I would basically throw all expectation of him being trained out the window. Dogs have to be trained for the place. They do not know what is appropriate elsewhere. Franklin and Maggie are HORRIBLE other places (when I visit my mom, for instance). Just keep some belly bands on him until he can get better and that'll save you some sanity. A good enzyme cleaner is a must also!

Good luck.

[TLC]

Originally Posted by zaknnana

When you speak of "cheerios" do you mean like the "CEREAL CHEERIOS"??? How many of those can they have in a day and not be bad for them and what kind??? THANKS!!

Yes those are the ones. They a great training tools, b/c they are so small and can't do any harm to your baby. When I used them I gave one out every time 'good' potty happened.

Plain, Honey Nut, Frosted, Strawberry - those flavors come to mind

[Celticlass78]

Thank you all for the advice. I haven't had to clean poop off the carpet since my Westie 15 years ago and I forgot that it can make me slightly insane. I like the idea of the cherrios and I am really making it a point to focus on his non verbal cues for when he needs to go to the bathroom. I'll let you know how it is going. I am so glad that I found this site!