[bewton]

Ok so this July we got a 2 month old Corgi. Everything was going good, he would have a accident outside once in awhile but we would catch him in the act, say "STAN NO", and take him outside. Once he would go to the bathroom outside we would praise him and give him a treat. So our bathroom training went pretty well for about 4 months. He would tell us when he had to go potty by barking, we would respond by taking him to the door and put him outside on his rope. He would always go to the bathroom outside and we had no problem.

Well one day our rope breaks and we go outside with him to go to the bathroom for about a week. When he would go potty outside we would praise him and give him a treat. A week later we finally get a new rope and we start putting him back out on it. He now seems very reluctant to go outside as he will not go to the door when we call him to let him out. He will only go to the bathroom when we are outside with him and he is not on his rope. This is a problem as we cannot go outside with him every single time. Today we tried putting him out on his rope almost every hour and he just would not go outside. In fact he peed in the house 6 times, and pooped 5 times. When he goes to the bathroom inside we put his nose in it and say "STAN NO" and then put him out on his rope.

How can we communicate with him that we want him to go outside on his leash to go potty. This is starting to become a major problem with him, as we love him and do not want to give him up. Any advice on what we may be doing wrong would be greatly appreciated!

Thank You!



****other information
-When he is inside we try to confine him to the same area as us so we can catch him if he goes to the bathroom.
-While we are at work we put him in a kennel, he does not go to the bathroom in here. When he gets out of the kennel is really the only time he now goes to the back door to ask us to put him out so he can go potty.
-He's now around 10 months old
-He is fixed

 

[Amaryllis]

Why can't you go outside with him every time? Is he getting walked as well? How often does he need to go? He could have a UTI.

Also, you really shouldn't use his name in conjunction with "no" or a negative tone of voice. He could associate his name as being a word that means you're not happy.

 

[Gally]

I have a 10 month old Corgi as well. He only needs to go out for potty 3 times a day and then we take him for at least 2 long walks as well. 6 accidents seems like a lot so I would have him checked for a uti first. If there isn't some medical reason why you can't go out with him then I don't really see why you can't just take him out.

Corgis are very smart and very stubborn. They like routine so he is now used to your routine of taking him out and clearly enjoys that more than going by himself. I would stop yelling at him as you are probably just confusing him. Dogs don't make connections well. He may think you are yelling at him for peeing in front of you when just last week you were praising him for it. I would keep going out and praising him there in the same spot in the yard every time until that is the only place he wants to go again.

I think all dogs prefer to be near their people and Corgis being a herding breed really need their humans around them. Just something to consider when you are training him.

 

[LilasMom]

When he goes to the bathroom inside we put his nose in it and say "STAN NO" and then put him out on his rope.

NEVER put a dog's nose in its urine or poop. This does nothing but make him afraid of you. It won't teach him to go outside, it WILL teach him to hide his pee and poop from you.


Also, I do not recommend leaving a corgi out on a rope. He is still very young so if you just put him outside to pee he will never learn that if what you want him to do. Always be there when he goes to the bathroom so WHILE he is peeing or pooping you praise him. Any praise after the fact does nothing.
Also, unless you "correct" your dog while he is having an accident, any "corrections" will have no affect at all if you "correct" him after he already had the accident.

When he is having an accident, go " Eh-eh!" a bit louder than speaking-tone but NOT angry and then take him outside. He probably doesn't want to go outside because he doesn't want to be tied up. He is probably now associating potting outside with being by the rope, so of course he wants to pee inside. Peeing outside means being tied up.

Since you will basically be potting training him again, even though he is an older pup, do NOT let him out of your sight. There is no reason to pee in the house if he is being watched. If you are doing something like working, napping, cooking, cleaning, etc crate him so he can't have an accident. When you are up, late him outside at least every 30 minutes. When he pees or poops outside him him a TON of praise WHILE he is going. If he has an accident inside, don't do any "corrections" except a stern "eh-eh" or similar sound.

Training is all about positive reinforcement and preventing behavior, not correcting it.