I adopted a 1 year old chihuahua from the shelter and so far he's been really good. The first few days I had him, I was crating him when going to work. I work anywhere from 5-8 hours depending on my shift. I work evenings as a bartender. He sleeps at night in his crate too. Being a stray, I had no idea if he was housebroken or not, so I figured I'd play it safe. After doing the crate thing for about a week while at work, I bought a gate to keep him confined to the kitchen while I was at work and he wasn't going to the bathrom in the kitchen. I was so pleased that he was waiting for me to get home! Well, the other night I got home from work and he was no longer in the kitchen! He must've climbed or jumped over the gate. He didn't soil on the carpet, but he did pee and poop in the entryway by the front door, so I know that he understands that that's where we go out. The problem now is that he has been going by the front door when I'm not watching, which I know is my fault for not watching him. Should we go back to the crate?
I have an escape artist! Back to the crate?
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I would suggest going back to the crate for now. Especially since he's small, a medium or large crate will provide him with plenty of room to stretch/lay/stand. Reinforce the house training AKA "potty training 101", even housetrained dogs can have issues in a new home/new environment in the beginning.
Then, work on slowly giving him a little freedom. If he's not destructive (like a chewer) and you are only worried about him soiling in the house, I'd say start with about 30 minutes loose in the house after he's had a bathroom break. Then an hour. Then 2 hours, etc. If that goes well, then for shorter days you maybe can leave him loose and for a longer shift, you can crate him (so that near the end of the day alone, he won't use the toilet near the door).
Also, you can start to work towards letting him sleep outside of the crate at night when you are home so that it will limit his total daily time in the crate to just your work shift.
Anywhere he does soil in the house, clean it well normally and then clean it with a 50/50 mix of white vinegar and water to remove the scent (to him). An enzymatic cleaner like Nature's Miracle is made for that, but vinegar usually works well and is very cheap.
Then, work on slowly giving him a little freedom. If he's not destructive (like a chewer) and you are only worried about him soiling in the house, I'd say start with about 30 minutes loose in the house after he's had a bathroom break. Then an hour. Then 2 hours, etc. If that goes well, then for shorter days you maybe can leave him loose and for a longer shift, you can crate him (so that near the end of the day alone, he won't use the toilet near the door).
Also, you can start to work towards letting him sleep outside of the crate at night when you are home so that it will limit his total daily time in the crate to just your work shift.
Anywhere he does soil in the house, clean it well normally and then clean it with a 50/50 mix of white vinegar and water to remove the scent (to him). An enzymatic cleaner like Nature's Miracle is made for that, but vinegar usually works well and is very cheap.
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