Should I give her less freedom?

[hviola]

I have taken her outside about every hour since she was 8 weeks old. She is now 17 weeks old. I dont want to use pee pads. She knows when I take her out she is supposed to go potty. But she still pees and poops whenever in the kitchen, even if Im in there. I have the kitchen gated off, its about a 15 x 17 foot area.

Would putting her in the xpen in the kitchen help with potty training? I hate having her in a smaller area during the day, but I need to do something, Im sick of stepping in pee.

(And I only scold her if I catch her in the act.)

She likes her crate, and will sleep all night, and doesnt potty in her crate. I also place her in her crate a couple times a day for naps.

Please, help. I need some tips to make this easier.

[hviola]

Anyone?

[Mom to Hot Rod]

I would definitely have her in a smaller area. Even though you may be taking her outside, she doesn't know that that is what she is supposed to do. Try pinpointing the times that she needs to pee and poop and take her out then. Also, I use a command so he knows that is what he is supposed to do. We noticed Hot Rod pooping first thing and about 4/5 in afternoon. We made sure to take him out at those times. I would try crating or using the xpen.

[Ladymom]

It's going to be a little more difficult to potty train her since you brought her home so young. Yorkies should be twelve weeks old before going home and a good breeder has usually already started training them to pee pads. The puppies have their mother as a model, too, and learn from her.

You can't expect a puppy that young to be able to hold it all day. To be blunt, I'm sure you use the bathroom during the day. What has probably happened is that she has gotten used to going whenever she feels like it in your kitchen because she has no alternative. If you work during the day you must give her a place to go while you are not home.

You may not like pee pads, but unless you can get a pet sitter to come in during the day, you really have no choice. You need to train her to use the pads, though. You mention you can only scold her when you catch her in the act. That right there tells me she has too much freedom. You must supervise her 100% when you are home even if it means leashing her to yourself. Take her to her pad on a schedule, after she eats, exercises, wakes up, etc. When she goes, praise her like crazy and give her a treat immediately so she makes the connection between the behavior and the reward. Dogs respond much better to positive reinforcement than they do to scolding.

As far as the size of the area, yes, you need to restrict her area more. Keep her in an x-pen while you are gone. Only when she is reliable about using her pads can you expand her area.

[hviola]

Originally Posted by Mom to Hot Rod

I would definitely have her in a smaller area. Even though you may be taking her outside, she doesn't know that that is what she is supposed to do. Try pinpointing the times that she needs to pee and poop and take her out then. Also, I use a command so he knows that is what he is supposed to do. We noticed Hot Rod pooping first thing and about 4/5 in afternoon. We made sure to take him out at those times. I would try crating or using the xpen.

Yes, I do notice that she poops first thing and at least 2-3 more times during the day.

I have her xpen set up in the kitchen now. I moved her bed, dishes, and safe toys in there. She seems a little upset and anxious, but is ok. Do you think it would still work if I let her have the kitchen for about 20 min after pottying, then go in xpen for 40 min, then potty again? This way, she still gets plenty of chances to get attention and to play with our doxie?

(LOL as Im typing this, my cat jumped in there with her and layed down, guess the kitty likes the pen.)

[hviola]

Originally Posted by Ladymom

You can't expect a puppy that young to be able to hold it all day. To be blunt, I'm sure you use the bathroom during the day. What has probably happened is that she has gotten used to going whenever she feels like it in your kitchen because she has no alternative. If you work during the day you must give her a place to go while you are not home.

She doesnt need to hold it all day because I take her out every hour, on the hour from the time she wakes up till she goes to bed. I am not working, just my husband. I was just unclear on how much 'freedom space' they should have while still in potty training and trying to figure out a good schedule.

Please dont make me feel like I am mistreating my sweetie.

[pookiebear]

Try bringing her in just as soon as she goes poo or pee outside. Give her plenty of praise after going to the bathroom. Then she will know she's out there for that sole purpose. You ARE a good mommie!

[cvasquez]

I would say she should get more freedom as she takes care of business outside and has fewer accidents.

This is what worked and works for me. First I have a set feeding schedule so I can anticipate when Paisley needs to poop. I take her out every 30 minutes and if she takes care of business great! If not she goes in her crate for 10 or 15 minutes and then outside again. When she takes care of business I let her in the gated kitchen. As she did well with this I moved the time to going outside every hour. But when she did not pee outside I would put her in her crate for 10 minutes and then back outside. I have to tell you that I spent a lot of time taking her outside.

Paisley hasn't had an accident in months, I am still waiting for her to regularly tell me she need to go out. She will occasionally stand by the door, but mostly if it's been an hour or so I know it's time to go out. I have now blocked off the kitchen and family room for her. She slowly is getting more freedom.

I wouldn't say she is 100% potty trained just yet. But she is very close. Even though she has not had an accident in a long time, i feel I am the one that is potty trained. I know her signs and when it is time for her to go.

Hang in there and be consistent.

[LaPeque]

Hi there ... I know how frustrating house training can be ... I'm right in the middle of it as well.

I read a fantastic step-by-step guide online (can't find the link now!) and have been following it to the letter ... Oscar hasn't had an accident in a few days and I'm thrilled with the results ... I'll try to briefly summarize below.

First off, crate training is key. Get a crate that is just big enough for your puppy to stand up, turn around and lay down. Anything larger will encourage him to potty on one side and sleep on the other.

Starting first thing in the morning, take your puppy from the crate outside on a leash. Give him enough room to sniff around, but be boring ... don't move and don't play with him ... he needs to understand that the purpose of going outside is to eliminate. Give the command "go potty." (Or whatever you use). Once your dog goes, immediately reward with a treat. Then reward him by letting him off the leash for a short outdoor play period, and give him 30 minutes off the leash in the house. (It would probably be a good idea to put him in your blocked off kitchen during this time, just in case.) Then he goes back in the crate.

Approximately every hour, (and after feeding) repeat the same scenario. Once he goes, reward with a treat and off leash play time. If you take him out and he doesn't go, put him back in the crate. Take him out about 20 minutes later and try again. Repeat crate - outside - crate - outside until he goes. Then, treat & off leash play time.

Once your puppy has gone a couple weeks without accidents, begin to increase the off-leash play time by 10 or 15 minute increments. If he has an accident, slightly reduce the play time until he's able to go a week again with no accidents. Eventually he will be spending more and more time out of the crate until you have established a pottying routine, and he doesn't need to be crated. I've tweaked the times based on my own puppy's schedule and intestinal needs, and you can be flexible.

It takes a ton of energy, but it so worth it! In the beginning I tried to keep my puppy in a controlled area kind of like yours instead of using the crate, and even watching him like a hawk I was probably cleaning up 5-7 accidents a day.

Hang in there and good luck!

[hviola]

Originally Posted by LaPeque

Hi there ... I know how frustrating house training can be ... I'm right in the middle of it as well.

I read a fantastic step-by-step guide online (can't find the link now!) and have been following it to the letter ... Oscar hasn't had an accident in a few days and I'm thrilled with the results ... I'll try to briefly summarize below.

First off, crate training is key. Get a crate that is just big enough for your puppy to stand up, turn around and lay down. Anything larger will encourage him to potty on one side and sleep on the other.

Starting first thing in the morning, take your puppy from the crate outside on a leash. Give him enough room to sniff around, but be boring ... don't move and don't play with him ... he needs to understand that the purpose of going outside is to eliminate. Give the command "go potty." (Or whatever you use). Once your dog goes, immediately reward with a treat. Then reward him by letting him off the leash for a short outdoor play period, and give him 30 minutes off the leash in the house. (It would probably be a good idea to put him in your blocked off kitchen during this time, just in case.) Then he goes back in the crate.

Approximately every hour, (and after feeding) repeat the same scenario. Once he goes, reward with a treat and off leash play time. If you take him out and he doesn't go, put him back in the crate. Take him out about 20 minutes later and try again. Repeat crate - outside - crate - outside until he goes. Then, treat & off leash play time.

Once your puppy has gone a couple weeks without accidents, begin to increase the off-leash play time by 10 or 15 minute increments. If he has an accident, slightly reduce the play time until he's able to go a week again with no accidents. Eventually he will be spending more and more time out of the crate until you have established a pottying routine, and he doesn't need to be crated. I've tweaked the times based on my own puppy's schedule and intestinal needs, and you can be flexible.

It takes a ton of energy, but it so worth it! In the beginning I tried to keep my puppy in a controlled area kind of like yours instead of using the crate, and even watching him like a hawk I was probably cleaning up 5-7 accidents a day.

Hang in there and good luck!

I will give this a try. I will have to use a timer so I dont lose track of the time. The only thing I cant do yet is give outdoor off leash time. We will be installing a chain link soon though. We are just waiting for the materials to go on sale at Menards.

So potty/reward, 30 min kitchen, 30 min crate or xpen, repeat. Got it. (I also take her for a daily walk, have a 'trick training' session, and a few play sessions every day. Her and my kitty like to bat kibble peices around on the floor together.)

[LaPeque]

Oscar can't really have "free" outside time either ... there have been a lot of hawks circling lately. So I take him for a walk around the neighborhood.

I hope it works for you! I was getting desperate and found that plan online at about 3:00 a.m. one day when I'd almost given up hope.

[chachi]

Definitely less freedom I know you said you didnt want to use pads but I wanted to tell you I have one that just wouldnt go to the bathroom outside no matter what I did. She did always go to the same place in the house though so I put a pad down there and she started using it. I am not crazy about having pads in the house either but it serves its purpose

[LaPeque]

Originally Posted by hviola

So potty/reward, 30 min kitchen, 30 min crate or xpen, repeat. Got it.

Ah! One thing I forgot to add ... I actually took Oscar to a potty training seminar at PetSmart right after I got him. The trainer said that once our puppies do something right, we have only 3 seconds to reward them if we want them to associate the reward with whatever they've done. (They literally have the attention spans of gnats). Any later, and they'll be thrilled to get the treat, but won't understand what it's for. So when I take Oscar out, I put treats in my pocket ... as soon as the poop comes out, the treat goes in.

[Ladymom]

Originally Posted by hviola

She doesnt need to hold it all day because I take her out every hour, on the hour from the time she wakes up till she goes to bed. I am not working, just my husband. I was just unclear on how much 'freedom space' they should have while still in potty training and trying to figure out a good schedule.

Please dont make me feel like I am mistreating my sweetie.

Sorry, your post said you hated having her in a smaller area during the day so I assumed you meant you were gone during the day.

[Mom to Hot Rod]

Originally Posted by hviola

Yes, I do notice that she poops first thing and at least 2-3 more times during the day.

I have her xpen set up in the kitchen now. I moved her bed, dishes, and safe toys in there. She seems a little upset and anxious, but is ok. Do you think it would still work if I let her have the kitchen for about 20 min after pottying, then go in xpen for 40 min, then potty again? This way, she still gets plenty of chances to get attention and to play with our doxie?

(LOL as Im typing this, my cat jumped in there with her and layed down, guess the kitty likes the pen.)

Yes, in addition to what others have said, definitely make sure to have some fun time after all the business is taken care of. I always give a great after going potty so they know that they have done what is expected and therefore they get a reward. Just be patient...going thru all of this now myself with Hot Rod's sister. Patience pays off eventually...

As the potty training gets better, you can open up the area(s) that your little one can have access to. don't go too fast as this will may lead to confusion. Always make sure that she knows where the pad is or the door or make sure to take her out if you see any signs of needing to go out. Good luck!