Need help with Potty Training

[eroar2]

Hi all. I am new to the forum. I have a 7 month old Yorkie (Annie). We live in an apt so I have been training her to go inside. In the beginning we used puppy pads and then eventually I switched to doggie litter. She was doing very well in the beginning and went in the litter box to do her business. Then we went on a trip (her included) and after we got back she didn't use the litter box to pee only poop. So we put a pee pad on the floor next to the litter box and she would use that to pee. We usually go away for the weekend once a month and since our last trip she won't poop in the litter box either. Most of the time she will at least do her business in the bathroom where we keep the pad and box. but just not in/on either... And the last few days I have caught her eating her poop. I try to follow her when she leaves us and heads to the bathroom, but she doesn't like an audience and won't do her business if anyone is watching. I am not home during the day so I try to work with her to no avail when I am home in the evening and weekends. Does anyone have any suggestions?

[TinkerToy]

I have a 10 month old yorkie named Tinker. When I first got her she was only 4 months old. I trained her to use the puppy pads by sticking one in a big plastic tub, make sure it is tall enough so she cannot jump out. Make sure you put the tub with the pad in it in the area where she will use the pad when she is trained. Every 20 or 30 min. put her in it and don't let her out until she does her business. Always have treats on hand so when she goes you can give her one right away. Also, every time you go into the bathroom take her with you and don't let her out until she goes. It only took me a few days to get Tinker to master the pad. Ever since then she has never had a problem.

[tikkismommy]

Dear eroar2,
Do you want your dog to potty inside or outside?
Heres what I am doing.

well, what am doing for Tikki is quite simple. I put wee wee pads on the floor beside her crate, in her crate, and outside. Usually when we wake up she has a little present for us, but when we take her out immediatly she goes potty(this usually happens either outside or on the wee wee pad). If she misses, we take her to the spot we want her to potty in. Slowly but surely it will get the hang of it. Eventually your yorkie will learn.

-Alexandra and Tikki

[Maximus]

Eroar, this is the issue I am still dealing with. First of, I think your dog is amking a response to your leaving him by himself when you go on a trip. He may not be rebelling, but confused and insecure when you leave for a couple of days. My dog, when he first came, knew to potty on a pad, but when I left him alone in the bathroom, he cried and peed and pooed everywhere else. Just very upset, you know?

2ndly, I think for young Yorkies, changes of environment is not good at all. When environment changes, they change their habbits as well. My dog was first pretty well trained, then he came to my house and began not using the pad for peeing, but pooing only. Oh my god, believe me, I had my share of tough times so far. I heard Yorkies are hard to house break, but man, I never had a dog this hard to train.

I tried everything. You name it, I did it. Crate training, multiple pads, taking him outside, repremanding, etc. But one thing I didn't try was "Treat". And this is proving to work better than anything else... Even though he doesn't voluntarily go to pee on pad, at least, he is peeing there when I take him and put him there.

Call me crazy. I quit my job for my dog. I had to. No one could take care of him but me. Now I take him potty every 4 hours to the pad, so he can't go anywhere else.

He had a couple of accidents yesterday though. he keeps on wanting to potty in the bathroom where I go. I don't know why. If anyone else's dog going potty in the bathroom floor, knowing that you go do your business there? And you didn't teach him to go there? Let me know, if anyone else;s dog is that way.

And your doggy eating poopy, well, I heard that dog eating poo is not uncommon, but usually associated with unbalanced or poor nutrition. So just make sure your doggy is eating right and enough.

Keep me posted on how he does. Try to spend as much time with him as possible. And treats work pretty well.

[Ringo]

Maximus.....

My dog's accidents are usually when I'm using the bathroom, also. I wasn't using treats either but last week I started and it made a HUGE difference in the peeing department. He knows exactly what to do to get that treat. He's even going to pee on command. My treats are actually his dog food. (Royal Canin). I tried just the praise system, but that didn't work. I'm always talking in a high pitched voice to him and acting happy so I guess I just confused him,

I feed him on a schedule at 6, 12 and 5 and now he's pooping right after he eats. I tried to paper train,but he refused to poop in front of me.......so he does all his business outside behind a certain bush.

[Maximus]

Ringo, your dog is doing so much better than Maximus... I am jealous. I only began to use treats like 2 weeks ago too. And it made a differece for me too. He just seems to want the treat, but he doesn't really try to "show" me that he did it on the right spot, you know what I mean? I think he is only pretty good about it now b/c I take him there and put him on the spot and say "potty" every 4 hours. But he still has his bad days, like peeing a foot away from the pad or peeing on the bathroom floor like I mentioned...

As for feeding, I feed him at 9am and 6pm and he pooes after he eats usually. He is better about pooing on the pad on his own, than peeing.

And your doggy refusing to poo in front of you and going outside behind a "certain" bush, that is so cute , it made me smile. Yeah, they dont like it we watch, ha ha, who would? It's very uncomfortable, it's like going to a public bathroom with no doors on them! Anyway, Max does the same thing, he preferred not to be looked at, so as soon as I turn my head, he pees or poos.

[eroar2]

Thanks for the info Maximus. Actually we haven't left Annie alone yet. Whenever we travel she comes with us, so my guess the change is confusing her.

We had a trainer come over last Friday and suggested that we crate train her. She does have a crate, but it is too big so we have to get a smaller one. Also, I never gave her treats before for going potty but the trainer suggested that as well so we have been trying that the last couple of days. Only hard part is that Annie like Ringo doesn't like to be watched doing her business. If she has to and we are in the bathroom (where we put her wee wee pad) she will go find another place in the apt where we aren't watching her... So lately, when I see her heading to the bathroom I will give her a headstart and then tiptoe behind her (which isn't always easy cause she hears everything) (If she doesn't see/hear me she will do her business, if she sees me she'll come back and follow me ) Anyways when she does do her business I give her a treat and praise her. Sometimes I do miss her doing it, but we will see how well this works!

I think her eating her poopy (I'm not sure if she is eating it so much as she is playing with it) might be due to boredom (although she has more toys than any dog I know)

[bld2751]

A comment about giving them treats - I am giving Hercules treats when he goes to the bathroom, but I've decided to cut down some, and I don't give him a treat all the time now. Only sometimes. This is because I found out he was fake-peeing! He would run over to the door, go outside to his area, and then squat like he's peeing, but nothing would come out! It was soo funny, what a smarty-pants, huh? It wasn't funny when he kept doing it every 5 minutes for like an hour though in the dead of winter!

So I still give him treats, but not all the time. Good luck to all!

[stacisnyder04]

That is too funny, Just goes to show us how smart those little guys are. My friend just got a black lab and she gives him treats after he goes potty and she too realized that he was faking most them time just to get treats, that is soo cute. Dogs always seem to amaze me on how much they know.

[Maximus]

Bld, that's too cute, that's too funny. Too cute...

[bld2751]

I know these little dogs sure are smarty-pants aren't they!!???

[LvFla]

Originally Posted by eroar2

Hi all. I am new to the forum. I have a 7 month old Yorkie (Annie). We live in an apt so I have been training her to go inside. In the beginning we used puppy pads and then eventually I switched to doggie litter. She was doing very well in the beginning and went in the litter box to do her business. Then we went on a trip (her included) and after we got back she didn't use the litter box to pee only poop. So we put a pee pad on the floor next to the litter box and she would use that to pee. We usually go away for the weekend once a month and since our last trip she won't poop in the litter box either. Most of the time she will at least do her business in the bathroom where we keep the pad and box. but just not in/on either... And the last few days I have caught her eating her poop. I try to follow her when she leaves us and heads to the bathroom, but she doesn't like an audience and won't do her business if anyone is watching. I am not home during the day so I try to work with her to no avail when I am home in the evening and weekends. Does anyone have any suggestions?

As for eatting the poop, try putting meat tenderizer on her food, that is what a vet just told my friend to do

[LvFla]

Originally Posted by tikkismommy

Dear eroar2,
Do you want your dog to potty inside or outside?
Heres what I am doing.

well, what am doing for Tikki is quite simple. I put wee wee pads on the floor beside her crate, in her crate, and outside. Usually when we wake up she has a little present for us, but when we take her out immediatly she goes potty(this usually happens either outside or on the wee wee pad). If she misses, we take her to the spot we want her to potty in. Slowly but surely it will get the hang of it. Eventually your yorkie will learn.

-Alexandra and Tikki

When we are gone for the day, she poops on rug, she is 8 yrs old and has been doing this forever, sometimes she is good. If at my parents house she is much better and will go on pad and she knows she gets a treat at either place if she does. Don't understand why she does this at home. She knows and hides when I come home when she poo's on rug. Her pad is right there. There has to be something to break her of this.