How do I start over w/ training??? HELP!
 

Hello, I work 9-12 hrs/day as an engineer and my wife works the same hours as a nurse. Our 1yr old 13lb yorkie, newton, was trained quite well using the potty patch on the screened porch (for the last 4 months), but has gotten extremely lazy and has started peeing in the house versus going out on the porch using his doggy door and potty patch. I have a security cam that I can view from work and i watch him peee on the hardwoods when we're not around. We can NEVER catch him in the act, and when we are home he only uses the potty patch and we praise him all the time.

He wimpers and cries whenever we confine him - this breaks our hearts and we dont want him to hate us for it - so I'm not sure if crate training him for 9+ hours is the right thing to do, but I need some help and direction because this is miserable.

How can i potty train him correctly and at his age and weight considering we're gone for 9+ hrs a day? Is the doggy door more of a curse because hes not using it or is used to going so often?

Please help!

I would go with crate training for him. I don't see any other way. If he can 'hold it' throughout the night - he can hold it during the day while you're gone.

I'm gone from 6am until 4pm (10 hours) and my dogs are fine holding it til I get home. And they are not desparate to 'go' after that time either.

It won't be easy but it will work if you persist. Good luck!! :thumbup:

How about using an x-pen and pee pads? Urine production slows down at night so it's not really true that they can hold it as long during the day as the night. You might be able to gradually train them to hold it longer during the day, the bladder will stretch, but you shouldn't force this on them. I think if you're going to be gone for long periods of time, it's more humane to use pee pads.

I agree if you have been taking him out or letting him go (on a peepad) as often as he wants to - you can't suddenly crate him for 9+ hours while you disappear. As I mentioned - it will take time to train him to gradually hold it longer, but it can be done and you'll have no issues with going in the house. My two dogs now have run of the house while I'm gone - no problem. :thumbup: My dogs never minded the crate at all, it was a safe refuge for them as they were growing up and being trained (two years apart as one is now 6 years old and one is 4 years old). Crating within an X-pen works beautifully too. When mine were young, I crated within my kitchen which was blocked off from the older dog while I was at work. Good luck.

would you consider moving the potty patch indoors? maybe keep one inside the house and one outside the house just in case...

Yes, the way you did it sounds fine, many dogs love their crates, Joey goes into his on his own sometimes, but the OP said that his dog didn't like the crate. It's very difficult to get them to love the crate once they have know freedom, but with gradual training and treats, it can be done, it's justs not something they can do easily overnight, and with no one there during the day, I'm not sure how they would train.

Is doggy daycare an option?

Or a dog walker/dog potty service?
My neighbor has a college student roomate who walks dogs during a break in the day fir working people.
X-pen is the only unsupervised other method.

I would not crate your dog for 9 hours during the day. It is healthier for both animals and humans to maintain regular intake and elimination of water. Better for the kidneys and entire system.

I would try an xpen inside around the doggie door to the outdoor area where you have the potty patch. Limit his freedom and still give access to potty.

Second, I would consider the potty patch may be turning him off. My boys love a fresh pad and will let me know when they think their piddle pad needs to be changed. Make sure you keep the potty patch adequately cleaned.

Good luck.

I was working in the office while training Sophie Kate, 9 + hours was way to long for her to be in the crate. I had to hire a dog walker to come over everyday and take her for a 30 minute walk. As she matured and learned to use the pad she would get limited roam after her 30 minute walk (meaning not crated but confined to a specific area of the house).

Now at 4 years old I still put Sophie Kate in her crate if we are going to be gone for any time longer than one hour. I just feel better with her confined, I know she is not getting hurt. I also confine her in case of emergency, if a neighbor needs to get in the house to rescue her they know where to find her.

I had to restart the basics of potty training a few times, it was not an easy task in our household.

Our Bella loves her x-pen....we call it her "condo" ..bedroom: her bed bathroom: her peepads den/dining: area to play with her toys, dishes in the corner.

Our's has a little door that we leave open when we are at home and we look and there she is in her bed when she gets tuckered out.

I don't think your dog is "lazy." Something is causing him to not want to go outside on your porch. Maybe the weather or some noise outside is bothering him. Is the patch clean? Some dogs do not want to go near a potty that smells or is soiled. If he was doing fine before and has gone off training I would investigate what the issue could be. You could also try walking him. An xpen with potty pads or the patch he is accustomed is an option. I use to work 10 to 12 hours days. I would always take my little guy out for a walk in the morning and as soon as I got home. He would always pee several times as we walked. I just took him down the block and back. It didn't take more than 10 to 15 minutes and he was good for the day. Then he would go out again before bed. Consistent training is the key.

Good point, we shouldn't put human attibutes on our dogs, there is a reason he doesn't want to go outside on the porch, it has nothing to do with laziness.

I don't think your dog is "lazy." Something is causing him to not want to go outside on your porch. Maybe the weather or some noise outside is bothering him. Is the patch clean? Some dogs do not want to go near a potty that smells or is soiled. If he was doing fine before and has gone off training I would investigate what the issue could be. You could also try walking him. An xpen with potty pads or the patch he is accustomed is an option. I use to work 10 to 12 hours days. I would always take my little guy out for a walk in the morning and as soon as I got home. He would always pee several times as we walked. I just took him down the block and back. It didn't take more than 10 to 15 minutes and he was good for the day. Then he would go out again before bed. Consistent training is the key.

Great advice :thumbup:
In addition to the xpen, i would start over like he is a puppy and cover the floor of the xpen with puppy pads amd gradually take them up in small increments as he proves he is trustworthy.
Also agree about the patch, and keeping it clean.

He could be marking as well if he has not been neutered

I don't know how my post got put up there twice. I only posted once. There is like 10 minutes between the first and the second listing.

That's weird! Anyway, it was a good post!

I would just restrict the amount of area he has to roam... Like say an expen by the door so he can still come inside but has less space. Good luck...

My two are 4 and 2 and are restricted to a bedroom with laminate floors the first half of the day and then my DH comes home to let them out and then they have the second half of the day with access to the whole house. We have found this works for us and we have fewer accidents.

I agree with the others...there is a reason for your Yorkie baby acting like this. Your job is to uncover it and rectify the problem. It could be as simple as him missing you, with you both being gone for so much of each day. If you are currently spending more time with him in the area he is soiling, he could just be 'retreating' to that special shared space trying to stay 'close' to you while you're gone. Leaving that area to go to the potty area while you are away takes him 'away from you' if this is the situation.

As has been mentioned, you could limit his roam area, of course, including puddle pads or whatever in the limited space...which could seem like a punishment to him if you don't spend time with him there if he is just missing you, or you could try spending more time with him near his potty place so he associates that area with you more, or at least put something reminiscent of you near the potty so he wants to be where your scent is...the potty being nearby is then a plus. He may 'not mind' leaving you when you are home, but not want to leave your shared special space when you're gone.

You could wear a garment or use a small blanket...even a small baby receiving blanket...that smells like you and him together...even if you just tie it around your waist in the evenings while you hold him, put it in a plastic bag overnight to preserve as much scent as possible...or sleep on it, then leave it out near his potty area and make sure you spend some time there with him too...hold him, play with him, etc., so he has memories of the shared space and the comforting scent.

My Yorkies will sleep on my jammies and/or robe...which I purposely leave on the bed for them and the kitties to snuggle on, or my pillow or my side of the bed, or on the pillows I lean against or the space I typically sit on in the evenings on the love seat while I am gone from home.

Yorkies love their humans...they get sad and lonely alone, IMHO. We got Mia so Brody would have 'like species' company, but still Brody goes to something of Mommy's for comfort and when he feels even slightly unwell...or even when Daddy's home all day and Mommy is gone, although he enjoys the company of Mia, and Daddy, greatly, too.

Keep a really open mind when you evaluate what your Yorkie is feeling...why he is acting differently between the two situations..you home...you gone. I hope you are able to uncover the reason quickly, and get his little life back on track quickly.