[petsgalore]

A little over a year ago I bought Lady Mindy from a pet store.She was already 4 months old and had developed some very bad potty habits.I have tried everything I have read and already know[as she's my fifth dog in my lifetime]and nothing is successful long term.
*These are the things I do-and I am consistent-this has all been ongoing since I got her*
-She is crated when I'm not home and at night.
-She has limited access in the house-stays in the room with me at all times.
-I put her on a leash outside,she's not allowed to run and play until she does her business.
-She gets rewards/treats for pottying outside.

She does well for a few weeks at a time and then all of a sudden 2 or 3 days in a row she reverts back to her old habits.She even potties in her crate during her lapses of judgement.I have "NO-GO" spray that I spray into her crate daily and usually it works.I clean her messes in the house thoroughly and use an enzyme cleanser.I even tried putting her feeding dish in the area she soils the most often[my bedroom]but she still would go in there.

Any suggestions on anything else that may help?The vet says there is nothing wrong with her-she just will take alot longer to get it right.He said that older dogs from Pet Stores or basically the same as getting shelter a dog because they've been taught to go wherever,whenever-to sleep by it,in it-and to eat by it.

Again,any suggestions on anything else I can do?

[Curbside Prophet]

Please remind us what kind of dog she is.

Is she spayed?

What's her daily schedule like? - please include times alloted for physical, mental, and social stimulation.

Do you practice NILIF?

Are there any behavior problems that you're concerned with?

Has anything changed in her world recently?

[petsgalore]

Lady Mindy is a German Shepard/Aussie/Cattle Dog Mix;she is spayed.

The last couple of weeks her schedule has been different since I'm off of work for the summer[I work for the public schools].I'm home more often and she's outside alot more running around and playing.The only behavior problem she has is that she is a totally foodie-always seeking out food.I do practice NILIF and it seems to work most of the time.Her general schedule while I'm working is-

6:00-wake-up;outside;weather providing a short 15-20 minute walk
6:30-feeding and then back outside
7:30-outside before I leave for the day
7:40-12:00 crate
12:00 -I'm home for lunch-she goes outside
12:30-6:00 crate
6:00-outside
6:30-feeding then we go for a walk-generally about 45 minutes to an hour
9:00-outside
10:00-outside one last time before bed then crated for the night

Between the 6:30 walk and the 9:00 outside time we play off and on throughout the night-a couple days a week she has a playdate with my brother's yellow lab.She does play occassionally with my other two dogs-but they are 8 and 13-not as playful as she would like them to be.

As long as I keep her with me always we have no problems with accidents.Anytime she's out of my sight,or sometimes in her crate,she has accidents.Sometimes it's when her schedule has changed-like on the weekends-but usually her schedule is very consistent and she still has accidents.

[Jen D]

This may have been mentioned but is the crate to big and when she goes in her crate is she able to sit on the other side without getting stuff on her?

[petsgalore]

Her crate is the right size for her-but when she has an accident in it she moves herself over so she isn't laying directly in it-but part of her will still touch it.I could make it a little smaller with a divider of some sort-but I'm not sure she'd be able to turn around if I did that.I'll give it a try,though.

[Jen D]

Sounds like the right size! Do you feed her the same time everyday and if you work full time is there someone that can come over and let her out during the day? The pet store dogs are one of the hardest because that is all they know going in the crate, even the shelter dogs are good because most haven't come from a pet store.

Sorry don't bother about the work schedule I just read your post again.

[Curbside Prophet]

Do the accidents happen at the same time during the day when they do occur, or is it random? Is she reluctant to go in her crate? How have your be reacting to the accidents?

[petsgalore]

They are random occurrences.
She never hesitates going in her crate-mostly because she's a foodie and she knows she gets a treat when she goes in the crate.She doesn't go in the crate during the day-other than to get her toy bone out of it,though.She only goes in it when I give the "Kennel Up" command.I have left it open and even put treats or toys in there for her to try and get her to go in it more often-she goes in but won't stay in there.I don't have any blankets/pillows in there for her-the one I put in there she peed on and bunched up in the corner.
When I find an accident I totally ignore it-take her outside and then come back in to clean it up while she is outside.
If there are no accidents;when I bring her in,I'll look inside the kennel and make a big deal out of the fact that there's no potty in it.
I always make a big deal out of her pottying outside.I even praise the older dogs for pottying outside.I use an enthusiastic tone when on scat patrol in the yard.I kind of sing-"Yeah,there's poopy outside-Mommy loves poopy outside"