House Training

[Jammer1973]

Ok to start of I am trying to get my girlfriends yorkie house trained and it is driving me nuts.... I should probably say that I am by far not a fan of yorkies because I not care for tiny dogs. A little to demanding for me, but I love my girlfriend and will deal with it. Her dog has a dog door so I am confused as to why it always burns one in the house????? Plus it will not go in the yard to pee...... It pees on the concrete????? Is this just do to there size, that they do not like getting in the grass? I have tried giving her treats everytime she goes out side, but that has still not made a dent. I will deal with a lot of things but I will not put up with dogs that poop in the house, please help before I go nuts......Any suggestions or history of your own problem and how you overcame it would be greatly apreciated.

[PANAMA69]

is the grass to tall for her? how old is she?

[Jammer1973]

she is a little over 2 years old. I keep the grass pretty short, but sometimes it gets a little higg if it rains to much. Also is it normal for the breed to not be able to make it through the night? She always has to go out at 3AM every night? We are in bed between 10 and 11 if that helps.

[PANAMA69]

She should be able to make it through the night maybe she has a uti or somenthing, also how long she is been leaving with you? the change of environment mees up their potty train, how your girlfriend had her potty train before, going in the pads?

[Jammer1973]

We moved into her house, so there is no change in the envoiornment. When we are gone during the day she is in the bathroom with a pee pad. It is when we are home or if we leave for a hour that we have the problem. The thing is that she knows she was bad, that is what irritaes me the most.
When we are home and she is out and the dog door is open she still poops in the house. I have told my girlfriend to either have her in her lap or in the crate, and she says that is cruel to do it to her. So I give in to her and she lets her run around and wow go figure within 30 min she has pooped in the house again. I just do not get it, there is a dog door a pee pad out and she still poops where ever the mood strikes her.
I just do not understand this breed.................. I have had dogs all my life and this has never been a issue with any dog I have ever owned...........

[PANAMA69]

My Phoebe is 15month old and she is a 100% potty train since she was a pup, so don't blame the breed ok, some dogs are hard to train than other and there have to be consistancy and patient too. This is what it work for me I use a playpen with her toys, food, water etc, her pads when she was out of the playpen I keep my eagle eye on her if she had a accident with a firm NO and take to her pads, or outside,REMEMBER if you correct her after she had done it she will not get it, she will not know why you are so upset about it, have to correct her when she is doing it, if she goes in the pad I praise her (make a big deal) at night I crate, her crate was next to my side of the bed and I will take her out in the night when she need it, but I made sure she had potty before I put her in her crate. She sleep now with us, and have the house for herself because she earn it

[jennafire]

I understand your frustrations, However have you thought of kenial training her.

I did this with mine and it took a while for him to realize not to pee in the kenial or in the house, but it worked.

my household works a lot of hours throughout the week, and we just started to let him run through the house, every once in a while he will pee in the house, but that usually means that he just wants more attention.

I suggest that you try and Kenial the dog through the day and the night, every time that you are not watching the dog 100% she needs to be in the kenial.. It will work. Also continue the treats after she goes out side.

I hope this works for you

[MissSophie]

The fact that you live in Houston makes me wonder if your grass has been wet most of the time. Also, when you say the dog went on the concrete, that was also a hint that she didn't want to go on wet grass. Ours will do that when the grass is wet. We get so frustrated when it rains a great deal. Then we find surprises in the house. Also, are you using pads and the outdoors? From what I am reading on here, most people use one or the other. Maybe it is a combo between wet grass and being confused as to where she should go?

[Jammer1973]

Ok I guess I should be a little more descriptive:
1. She sleeps in her kennel at night, she is let out before we go to bed (10-11) and at 3am every night she has to go out. Not a UTI she has just recently gone to the vet and that was ruled out.

2. Grass outside: yes she hates it when it rains and she will not get in the grass if it is wet. Also if we are not closely watching her when it rains it is guaranteed that she will not only poop but pee in the house. VERY IRRITATING...

3. During the day she is in the bathroom with a peed pad, we are gone for about 10 hours during the day.

4. Main problem is when we are home or want to run to the store real quick:
a. we leave for the store and get back say no more than 45 min and there is poop on the floor. She immediately runs to the kennel when we walk in know that she has been bad. I keep trying to tell Autumn that if we are not there she has to be in the bathroom or the kennel and she says that is so cruel she is penned up all day..... yadayada....
b. we are watching tv she get away from Autumn and within seconds there is poop on the floor.

5. She has a dog door, she has a pee pad. When she has been bad Autumn takes her to her accident and and firmly says no and puts her outside and closes the dog door.
a. is this a bad idea? Will she register that outside is the place for being bad or will it register that Autumns says bad girl potty out side?

Frustrated in Houston.........

[Ladylavender]

Ok, you are doing it all wrong. I agree with one of the posters. If she is not potty trained at 2 years old, don't blame the breed, blame the trainer.

I will guarantee that she does not know she is being bad. She knows that when you come home, she is in trouble. She does not know why, but she knows she is because she gets yelled out everytime you come home to her, so that is why she is runs and hides.

If you are disciplining her after she has already gone, then you are wasting your energy, because you are not teaching her a thing. This is why she is not "getting it", because you are NOT potty training her. You must catch her in the act, or you can forget about it.

Also, a dog develops their preference of surface to Pee and Poo on at a very early age. If she is preferring the house, rug, concrete over the grass, it's because she has been trained to pee and poo on these surfaces (whether she has been actively trained it does not matter. If she was allowed to pee on these surfaces, then the preference was developed.) So to "undo" this preference is going to take a lot of hard work and diligence on your part.

It may take many many months, before she gets it right, so you need to be patient. But this is what I suggest:

1. Never, ever, ever, keep her out of your eye site for one second that she is allowed free range of the house. That means you will need to follow her where ever she goes, or you will need to have her tethered to you, or confined (when you can't watch her every move).

2. Take her outside on a leash and take her to the grass. Make one area specific for her "potty area". (you may need to spray it with some potty spray to stimulate her to go.) Also carry some poo out there so she can sniff it. Dogs need to sniff poo to stimulate them to go poo.

Repeat the "go Potty" or "go Potty Poo" or whatever name you want to give it. While she is on the leash, keep her in this area until she goes. Treat her immediately. Don't treat her when you go back inside, treat her outside as soon as she goes. Praise her like you are having a party!

You may need to develop a schedule, like every 1 -1 1/2 hours or after she wakes up from a nap or 15 to 20 minutes after eating.

3. No free feeding. Get her feeding schedule to 1 to 2 times a day only!

4. No water after 8pm. (this should help to not have to go in the middle of the night, however, since this habit has already been formed, You just may have to reconcile yourself that 3am relieving is a fact of your life.)

5. You will need to take her out on the leash to go potty every single time, rain or shine and you will have to be out there with her. So make sure you have an umbrella near by. You stay out there with her until she goes, no matter how long it takes no matter what the weather.

6. Never leave her unattended when you are not there. Confine her to the crate even for the one hour you are gone for an errand.

7. Just say "no" to potty pads. If you really want her to learn to go outside you will have to do away with those so as not to send her mixed messages.

8. When she has an accident, and you will know as soon as it is happening because you have your eagle eye on her and she is tethered to you, you will state "NO!" very sharply, pick her up and carry her outside to the grass to finish up. You will treat her immediately!! and Praise her.

9. If you don't catch her in the act, ignor the mistake! Yes ignor it! (I mean clean it up with a Odor Neutralizer like Simple Solution, but no punishment). After all, it's your fault she had the mistake, not hers. She is only doing what comes natural and it's up to you to train her what you want. Dogs will not associate a punishment hours, mintues, seconds after an act. They only associate that when you are mad, you rub her nose in poo or pee, they are not quite sure why you do this and they are definitely not associating the poo and pee with your anger. The discipline has to come a the instant the error is in process.

Good Luck. Be nice and kind to your dog and she will want to please you.

[Ladylavender]

I forgot to add: Only after she is reliably house trained can you rely on her using the doggie door for purposes of going outside to relieve herself.

[s13silviagirl]

Originally Posted by Jammer1973

We moved into her house, so there is no change in the envoiornment.

For her, you moving in is a BIG change in her environment. Listen to Ladylavenders advice! It is great! Remember, she needs to learn that outside is where to go...and that means a human taking her out and making it happen.

[medusa512]

Originally Posted by Jammer1973

We moved into her house, so there is no change in the envoiornment. When we are gone during the day she is in the bathroom with a pee pad. It is when we are home or if we leave for a hour that we have the problem. The thing is that she knows she was bad, that is what irritaes me the most.
When we are home and she is out and the dog door is open she still poops in the house. I have told my girlfriend to either have her in her lap or in the crate, and she says that is cruel to do it to her. So I give in to her and she lets her run around and wow go figure within 30 min she has pooped in the house again. I just do not get it, there is a dog door a pee pad out and she still poops where ever the mood strikes her.
I just do not understand this breed.................. I have had dogs all my life and this has never been a issue with any dog I have ever owned...........

she is jealous of you! she is trying to make you see that you don't rule the house or her mistress.
i have a lab who hates to go in the grass even if it is cut and if you do not follow her around saying, "go on ganja! get off the deck! go on! get off the deck!" she'll just step off the deck and her butt hangs over the edge, so it winds up getting on the deck anyway. she's reeeally bad about that.

also, she may be trying to give you "signs" about when she needs to go, but since she's not your pup you aren't familiar with them. there IS hope, but it might take longer than you'd like.

has she always been left in the bathroom or is it just since you moved in? edgar hated being shut in the bathroom and would eat the walls, the pee pad, the toilet paper, chew the carpet and the bowl brush handle (once), and then he would go behind something to make it hard to clean up. he would even "cover" his messes with the towel or blanket! argh, more work than just using a mop.

i also comend you for sticking it thru. this chica must be pretty special!

good luck with this.
t

[margot.]

Originally Posted by Jammer1973

We moved into her house, so there is no change in the envoiornment. When we are gone during the day she is in the bathroom with a pee pad. It is when we are home or if we leave for a hour that we have the problem. The thing is that she knows she was bad, that is what irritaes me the most.
When we are home and she is out and the dog door is open she still poops in the house. I have told my girlfriend to either have her in her lap or in the crate, and she says that is cruel to do it to her. So I give in to her and she lets her run around and wow go figure within 30 min she has pooped in the house again. I just do not get it, there is a dog door a pee pad out and she still poops where ever the mood strikes her.
I just do not understand this breed.................. I have had dogs all my life and this has never been a issue with any dog I have ever owned...........

1. crate training is NOT cruel - obviously, you want her to be happy in the crate and you can't leave her in there for too long, but crate training my pup was the best thing I ever did - he was 99% house trained in 2 weeks. Plus, she'll learn to let you know when she has to go.

2. sometimes pee pads can be tricky, I personally don't use them because: (A) I dont want him to EVER think that peeing and pooing inside is OK. Period. and (B) i've heard SOME yorkies get confused about where to go and still other yorkies prefer the pee pads and dont like going outside.

3. Feed her on a schedule, she'll go on a schedule too. Dont let her free feed until she's 100% house trained. She's a dog and she won't starve herself, give her food for 20 min. and take it away, regardless of whether or not she's eaten it (just more for next time) she'll learn that she's gotta eat her food when it's put down

4. Buy a large bottle of Nature's Miracle - if you haven't been using that on anything she's peed or pooped on - it's pretty much your fault these accidents have been happening. It's the only stuff that will get rid of the smell completely. She pees and poops wherever, smells it later and thinks, Oh-here's a spot to go!

5. I'd bring it back to basics and give her some really yummy treats when she goes outside. I'd hold off on the doggy door (because when she goes outside and pees or poops you wont be there to see it and reward her) for now - she's not ready for it. She needs to know that going outside is the best thing ever and it will get her lots of praise and a yummy treat (Natural Balance has great treats that smell gross to us, but delicious to dogs).

6. The whole back to basics includes taking her out and if she doesn't pee or poop putting her in the crate. TRUST me, she'll let you know when she's gotta go. Also, I move my crate around to wherever I am so that Banksy can go in and out as he pleases and so he doesnt feel lonely if I'm home and he's in there.


Finally, read this: http://www.doggonegood.org/housebreaking.html
It works, I promise.

[margot.]

Originally Posted by Jammer1973

Ok I guess I should be a little more descriptive:
1. She sleeps in her kennel at night, she is let out before we go to bed (10-11) and at 3am every night she has to go out. Not a UTI she has just recently gone to the vet and that was ruled out.

2. Grass outside: yes she hates it when it rains and she will not get in the grass if it is wet. Also if we are not closely watching her when it rains it is guaranteed that she will not only poop but pee in the house. VERY IRRITATING...

3. During the day she is in the bathroom with a peed pad, we are gone for about 10 hours during the day.

4. Main problem is when we are home or want to run to the store real quick:
a. we leave for the store and get back say no more than 45 min and there is poop on the floor. She immediately runs to the kennel when we walk in know that she has been bad. I keep trying to tell Autumn that if we are not there she has to be in the bathroom or the kennel and she says that is so cruel she is penned up all day..... yadayada....
b. we are watching tv she get away from Autumn and within seconds there is poop on the floor.

5. She has a dog door, she has a pee pad. When she has been bad Autumn takes her to her accident and and firmly says no and puts her outside and closes the dog door.
a. is this a bad idea? Will she register that outside is the place for being bad or will it register that Autumns says bad girl potty out side?

Frustrated in Houston.........

OK - Number 5. I think taking her to her accident is NOT right and putting her outside she is associating outside with bad things and not outside with "the place I pee and poop and get good food" Dont do this, it's just going to make it harder and worse. Also, if you haven't used Nature's Miracle to clean up the smell, it's literally like throwing someone out of the house for peeing in the toilet. Where she smells old pee and poop is the place she goes. You need to be able to praise her for doing whats right, so you need to know when and where she's doing it.

Number 4. a crate would eliminate this problem. Sometimes dogs get anxious when people leave, but if her crate is a safe place, she'll be fine and she wont go to the bathroom. Personally, I feel better about having Banks in the crate, I know he's safe and cant get hurt in there.

Number 2. rain or shine, she needs to know that outside is the place to go, which means you AND your girlfriend need to get your umbrellas out and take her out to pee and poop. Banksy doesn't like the rain, but he knows he's gotta go outside, so he has no choice.

Lastly, have you thought about a dog walker for the weekdays. This would help with house trainging and you could crate her during the day which would eliminate any inside vs. outside problems. it's not that you can NEVER use pee pads, I just think since she's got so many issues, you should just take things one step at a time.

Good Luck!