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Originally Posted by julietsmom Thanks for your reply.
Let me correct you, she is 11 wks not 8 wks. I've had her for a few weeks now.
Ok, so should I let her have the run of the house if I'm paying attention to her sniffing? Or should I keep her confined in a room all alone? I feel bad doing that because she's used to being around our family. WHen she's in the laundry room alone, she barks constantly and gets all worked up. 
I have taken her to her pads when she sniffs around to pee, and she's used them a few times, but for the most part she just goes wherever.
I would much rather teach her to just go outside. How do I do that? With treats? Should I crate her? Should I let her roam around the house or the laundry room? What about night time? She barks all night if she's in that crate. |
OK 11 weeks is better. The few weeks help. She still won't really be able to "hold it" until she's like 16 weeks, but you can get started. To outside train just eliminate the pads and crate train her. When she's not crated tether her to you (Leave her harness & leash on and strap it to your belt) Take her out A LOT! Like every 15-30 mins for 2 weeks or so, then you can start to back off a little once she stops having as many accidents.
Can you put the crate in your room? Loki slept in his crate next to the bed until he was big enough (and trained enough) to jump off the bed. THen we closed the bedroom door and he'd scratch when he wanted to go downstairs and outside. Eventually he learned to run downstairs and ring his bells even in the middle of the night. He would also sit next to me and cry to wake me up or literally stand on my chest or put his paws on my head. When he slept in his crate at night I always took him out at about 2am to avoid nighttime accidents. Otherwise you can put her in a small cuddle bed IN your bed, as long as you are a light sleeper. If she stirs even a little, you should get up and let her out. Otherwise set an alarm and wake her up to go out. We learned quickly it was easier to get up for 5 mins and take Loki out than wake up to a screaming, wet dog who needed a bath.
When you go to the door say "Outside!" and go outside. Wait outside (stand still, only give her the length of her leash to sniff) and when she goes - immediately give her a treat and praise her. Do this repeatedly for several weeks and she'll start to let you know she needs to go out. If she has an accident in the house take a step back in the crate training. Don't give too much freedom too soon!! Also, if she starts to sniff say "NO" or "ACK" or whatever to interrupt her, pick her up (yes even if she's peeing, potty training is messy!!) and RUN outside. This is where the leash comes in handy. Then praise her when she finishes. Also you can take her poop outside (you get over the icky factor real quick) and let her sniff it. Act like she did it! She'll get the idea!!!