Housetraining Class Sat at 3pm
 

I had posted this in the General Page but I think should have potsed here:


Gia has been very very difficult to house train, things were going well for the first couple of days but in the past week things have gotten out of hand. Things were working out pretty good the first few days until I had to end up taking her to the vet for her constipation (then the real Gia came out). I'm trying to train her on wee wee pads, I have the bottom of the closet cleared out and I have lined it with wee wee pads. She refuses to go there I also have a baby gate in front of my door so she can't leave the room. The closet door is always open for her to go in and out but she still insist on using potty everywhere else. I brought that potty training spray but it doesn't seem to work. I take her back to the potty area every hour or so to remind her. She has pooped in my bed, she pooped in my Mom's bed twice. I don't know what to do, I have moved the baby gate from in front of the door and put it in front of the closet while she's in the closet but she'll just cry cry cry. At night she'll sleep on her bed for a little while but in the middle of the night she'll wake up and cry cry cry,( that's how she ended up pooping on the bed because she can't get down by herself yet).I've also been cleaning up the stains with vinegar & water to take the scent out.


Anyway I'm thinking about signing Gia up for dog training classes (they come in house). Given that Gia has only been here 9 days I can understand if she has a mistake here & there but not all the time.

UPDATE.........Right now I have the entire bedroom lined with wee wee pads I think I have about 15 out right now just so she won't make a mistake on the floor. The trainer is coming Sat at 3pm for an hour, he's supposed to start the process of potty training and to give us some tips because obviously we're doing something wrong (BIG TIME). he's charging 60.00 for an hour (I know it's a lot) but we have to do something I don't want my husband make me give her away

$60 is a lot, but I think that's avg. for when they come to your house. We found one that is $70/hr, but we really don't need anyone to come to the house so we passed on it.

After you catch her pottying somewhere are you taking her to the pads? I feel bad for you, I would be soo fustrated! Good luck w/ this!

Like today I sat on the floor with her and every time I saw her squat and try to pee I would stop her and pick her up and put her on the wee wee pad. We went though this for about 3 hours (I kid you not) she became so stubborn that she would just sit on the wee wee pad and fall asleep for about 20 mins, then when she would wake up the same exact thing would happen all over again.

What if you try to train her outside? Maybe the pads just aren't for her:confused:

Also, I'm sure your already doing this, but incase not, have you been rewarding her when she does go on the pad? If you are, then I feel for you, like I said I would get too fustrated. Potty Training is difficult!

OK if you've only had Gia 9 days, then she is going to have many many mistakes. Yes all the time. Puppies don't automatically know where to go! They know they have to go about 10 seconds before it comes out. You're expecting too much. She needs to learn what to do.

Why do you have the bedroom lined with pads? Can't you confine her to somewhere with tile? Or better yet, try crate training? If you do it properly she will at least hold it (most of the time) until you let her out and carry her to the proper potty spot. At first that will be every 15 mins, then every 20, 30, 45 mins, etc. as she gets older.

What do you ultimately expect? Do you want a pee-pad trained dog or an outside trained dog?

DO NOT put her on the bed. If she can't get down and she has to go, she is going to go! Why should she hold it? She was crying to tell you she needed to go. If a little kid says "Mom I have to potty" and you don't take them to the bathroom, they will mess their pants. She CAN'T hold it. You need to take her out AT LEAST once, if not twice, in the middle of the night.

Training is a good idea because the trainer can set up a plan for you and make sure you are doing the right things. Be careful and make sure they are a positive trainer. Stay away from anyone who wants you to do a leash correction or alpha roll your dog. Look for someone who rewards good behavior with treats and ignores bad behavior. Beware that anyone can say they are a trainer. Good ones are out there but you have to be careful!

Here's 2 good books to read in the mean time. Check to see if your library has them. Power of Positive Dog Dog Training Positive Perspectives

Good post! I compeltly forgot about crate training, but yeah the pup should be kept in the crate at night. It will also help her learn to hold it longer.

She's not going to get it in 3 hours. More like 3 months. Calm down and take your time with this. She probably didn't understand what you wanted and was bored, so she fell asleep. Are you rewarding her when she does go on the pad? Is she food motivated? Loki will do anything for a treat. Last week I taught him to "wave". He probably thinks it's the stupidest thing in the whole world but he's thinking, "OK if I hold up my paw like this she gives me chicken. Whatever." So he does it.

The vet told me not to let her touch the ground outside until she has all of her shots because she will be prone to pick something up from other dogs walking in the same area. I live an apt so I don't have a backyard to train her in. Every time she goes I give her vanilla dog ice creme which she loves & goes crazy over.

Thanks Erin for the post, I ultimately want her pad trained because it can get pretty cold up her in the winter plus I can't put her on the ground outside just yet not until she has all of her shoots. We tried the crate training but she will cry at the top of her lungs and believe me Gia has lungs. The other night we put her in there she cried for about 45 mins I took her out because I couldn't take anymore. I love her so much and I don't want to give her up
The trainer that's coming was referred to me by my girlfriend and her dog is like a genius, so hopefully we can make some progress. I'll try to crate train her for the reminder of the week

Has the dog ever been crated? Of course their not going to like it, but they get used to it. My boxer hated the crate when he was a younger puppy (he's 3yrs old now but he's still my puppy :p ) but now he tolerates it. He's fine in there, occasionally he'll whine. He knows when it's time to go in there, and when he goes in there hes quiet. At first though it was whining nonstop. You just have to ignore it until they learn to tolerate it.

Our apt is fully carpeted even the bathroom ,the only room that doesn't have carpet is the kitchen but it's to small for her to use that as the bathroom.

I'll try this tonight now I usually but her to sleep around 10 how often should I take her out of the crate? And when I take her out should I put her on the wee wee pad right away? Now if she gets stubborn and not want to go on the wee wee pad do I put her back in the crate?

I would try leaving her in the crate during the day, maybe first try like 30 mins, then an hour, just keep gradually making it a longer timespan. Also, before you go to bed make sure to let her out, and first thing when you wake up.

You should maybe start with putting her in the crate for 5 minutes. And stay near the crate so she can see you. Then after 5 minutes, take her out of the crate and give her a little treat. In a while, try again, this time leaving her in for 10 minutes, still staying near the crate. When that time is up, give her a treat. Repeat these same steps until she is in the crate for about 30 minutes. Then when you finish that set, do the same thing again but this time you don't stay near the crate.

I read that in a book that discussed crate training.

Very true. And make sure that you don't take her out when she's whining. Wait for her to stop for a few seconds. Soon you will learn the difference between "MOM I HAVE TO POTTY" and "DON'T LEAVE ME HERE" Loki did the same thing at first and now I just have to say "Crate" and he BOLTS to his crate and sits there and waits for his treat. Then he curls up and takes a nap. He also chews his Kongs in there. It's his little safe spot. He will go there when we have company or when he is tired. I even got him a little mattress and crate cover for it. Not until after he was fully crate trained though. He goes in there when we are not home or when he needs to be safe, like if we are cooking or mopping the floors or something.

It also helps to have a wire crate, not a plastic once. They can see out of the wire ones and don't feel so isolated. Also make sure it's not too big. Place a box or divider in the back of it. If you need to set a timer, do so. First let her out every 20 mins for a few weeks. Then every 30 mins as you see she can hold it longer. We got stuck at 30 mins for at least a month. Then by about 6 months old Loki could hold it about 2 hours. By 8 months he could go 4 hours. Now we don't typically leave him longer than 5 or 6, but I think he could go 8 hours in his crate if needed. Now, when he's NOT in his crate he asks to go out every 1-2 hours. So crate training is completely different than housetraining, but they complement one another. The crate training comes first.