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Originally Posted by Nancy1999  I use to think that it didn't make a difference where the dog came from in ease of training, but after talking with Mardelen (Mary) I've changed my mind. She says that she doesn't train the pups, the mother does, and she has watched the mothers nudge the puppies over to the pee pad. Since reputable breeders keep mothers and puppies together way past the weaning period, it may be that this makes it easier to train a pup. Joey knew what the pad was and sought it out when we placed him in his playpen; if it were within three or so feet from him he would try and find it. So pet store puppies may have a harder time of "getting it" because they often leave mama much earlier, and mama is probably not trained herself. Have you tried talking to the breeder about the problem? Remember just because someone shows, it doesn't make the reputable, you can learn more about her enthusiasm for the breed by asking for her advice.
I have also read that the crate used for training must not be too large. They need to think of the crate as a bed, not an apartment, where they can poop on one side and sleep on another. The crate should be no bigger than for them to stand up turn around in. We used a small carrier for overnight training, and took him out once or twice during the night and placed him on the pee pad. During the day, unless I had both eyes on him, we kept him in a play pen with a pee pad. This site has some great tips. Indoor Potty Training - Papers, Pee Pads, Litter Boxes and more |
Good advice, and good information. Maybe that's why Kaji was such a breeze to potty train. He was with his mother for a year.
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Originally Posted by miababyjeff Thank you so much to everyone for the advice! I guess my only question is how can I train her to go outside to pee and poop if I leave her in the xpen with a puppy pad to pee on. That would work if I wanted to teach her to go on potty pads, but I want to train her to ring the bell and go outside. It seems like she would never really learn to "hold it" and then when I do take her outside she won't need to go. Does that make sense? The whole idea of the crate is to teach her to hold it til you can take her out where you want her to go, but that won't work either if she will just pee in it. Her crate I was using is super tiny and we blocked half of it off so she could just turn around and she still peed and pooped in it. |
I think wanting a 16 week old pup to start ringing a bell to go potty outside is way to soon, and expecting too much of such a young one. Some have probably done it, but it's definitely not the norm. Start with the piddle pads. It's better to get her to understand that pottying must not be done in the same place she sleeps. Putting the piddle pad on one end of her pen and putting bed, food, and water on the other will help distinguish that. Or you could go the crate training route. Either way, make sure that every hour on the hour you give her a potty break. Put her on the pad and give her the potty command, "go pee pee" or whatever you want to use. Have a special treat for pottying and eventually she will understand, "I potty here I get something yummy." Just don't expect it to be instant. You later can transition to outside potty and teach her to use that bell.