[buckingfassist]

I've had a puppy golden retriever for about 9 days now. she is just over 2 months old. for the passed 7 nights i have been up throughout the night every 3 hours to take her out to do her business. She was doing great for about 3 days with the 3 hour system, so i decided to graduate to every 4 hours. im very pleased to say that i took her out at midnight and then 4 AM and then at 8 AM and she didnt use my house as her personal toilet the entire night. so i continued with the 4 hour system. every time she does her business outside i praise her and give her a treat. When she has an accident inside i scold her.

Today she pooped 3 times and peed one time in the house between 11 Am and 1 PM.... very very frustrating. Is this normal after 9 days of vigorous training?i thought she was starting to catch on, i guess i was very wrong.

I've been keeping her confined to my bedroom since i got her, and shes doing great in the bedroom. She recognises my bedroom as her home and never poops while shes in the bedroom. I want to monitor everything she does and i dont want to overhwelm her with such a big space until shes house broken. The thing is, the minute i open my bedroom door to take her out into the yard, she decides to storm out into the living room and poop on my moms carpet. no amount of scolding prevents this. Today i caught her in the act and said "No!" agressively and a smacked her. I grabbed my shoes so i can take her out, but while i was grabbing them she continues to poop on the carpet. Finally i braught her outside, where she ran around for 10 minutes but did not do her business. So i thaught it would be ok to bring her in for a while. The minute i got back in, she pooped again.

She recognises the living room rug as her toilet. How can i reverse this?

Also, ive been having an incredibly difficult time walking her. She does NOT want to walk. I have to pick her up and bring her at least a block away from the house so that she doesnt try to turn and run back home, and even then, all she does is hit the brakes and decide shes not moving. I tried tugging gently on her leech to no avail. i tried tugging agressively at her leech to no avail. Ive tried walking around and luring her weith smelly snacks... to no avail. Is it because hses scared? Maybe she just doesnt like to walk? should i just give up on walking her and only take her into the yard for the time being?

This is getting very frustrating guys, i really need some good advice. Or maybe the lack of sleep is just getting to me and im missing the point? Maybe this is all absolutly normal for a 2 month old puppy? if its normal, and you think it will subside with time let me know. Right now im very frustrated and i feel like sacrificing my sleep is absolutly useless, because she does her business in the house anyways.

 

[poofywoof]

Puppy-raising is tough sometimes. First, you must not smack or hit your puppy again... ever. The only thing smacking or hitting will teach is DISTRUST. It is very important your puppy trusts you completely (if she can't trust you, who can she trust?).
Try putting your puppy on a more controlled schedule. Be sure she eats, excercises, and potties at the same time each day. It is difficult to predict when food will come out if you don't schedule when it goes in.
Don't let your puppy loose in the house yet, she is way too young! Keep her in her crate and then put her on leash or carry her outdoors when its potty-time. No freedom inside for a while. Keep her right with you or confine her. Do not let her far enough out of your reach to have an accident on the carpet.
Clean your carpet with an enzymatic product like Nature's Miracle so that she doesn't have the potty scent in the house.
Do not pressure her to walk on-leash too much, you could make her fear the leash by being too forceful with it right now.
You just need to keep working, your puppy is still VERY young!
Keep all your teaching and training positive, try not to let your frustration make you do things you will regret.

 

[emily445455]

The only thing that you are doing wrong is hitting your dog. It won't affect your puppy now...but it will probalby bite you in the butt somewhere down the line.

Puppies potty in the house...it's just what they do. I cannot tell you how many times my puppies either pottied on the floor after 20 mins of being outside or pottied on the floor while I was putting my shoes on to take them outside. It's just what non-house broken dogs do. Have lots of cleaning supplies on hand and get some patiences....it will be awhile before she doesn't potty in the house at all.

Have fun if your carpet is white or off-white...mine is basically ruined

 

[buckingfassist]

Thanks for the reply guys. I didnt know smacking her is bad, i've seen many a dog owner do it. And i never do it hard enough to hurt her. Just so she understands i dont want her to do that. But i'll stop doing so.

Also, i dont have a crate for her. When i cant watch her (which is never for more than 4 hours and only while im sleeping) she is in my room with the door closed.

 

[mandymmr]

The only thing that you are doing wrong is hitting your dog. It won't affect your puppy now...but it will probalby bite you in the butt somewhere down the line.

I have to disagree! I have had to swat mine everyonce in a blue moon and he trusts me 100% as well and never bites anyone!

 

[emily445455]

Once in a blue moon...not every time s/he goes potty on the floor. if I had hit my puppies for going on the floor....yeah....I would be hitting them a lot.

 

[rosemaryninja]

*takes a deep breath*

Okay. The first thing you have to remember is that you have a baby animal under your care. Somehow, over the next couple of years, this fluffy baby animal has to become a stable, confident, healthy, well-behaved adult dog. And it's your job to make sure she gets there and beyond. Hitting your dog is not part of building confidence in a puppy... there is never a necessity to smack your dog, in any kind of training. Please stop hitting her. It teaches her nothing but fear.

Puppies can only hold their bladders for as many hours as there are months in their age. A two month old puppy can only hold it for two hours; a three month old puppy can only hold it for three hours. At this point you should be taking her out every two hours to be completely safe. If she is holding it for four hours when asleep you can stick to that, but bear in mind that she can hold it for longer when asleep than when she is awake. Take note of when she eats -- she will need to poop shortly after. Take note of when she plays and walks -- puppies ALWAYS need to go after a play session.

You're doing the right thing by limiting her space while she's not housebroken. A crate would expedite the housetraining process but it is possible to housetrain without one as long as you are very, very vigilant about supervising her. Keep a leash on her and tether her to you so she never gets into chewing things or pooping without you seeing her. The minute you see her sniffing and circling, interrupt her and rush outside. When you are outside for potty time, she is on a leash all the time... she does not get to run around and explore and play. Play time is play time, potty time is potty time. Stand in one spot with her on a leash and wait for her to go. When she does, shower her with praise and treats and then it's straight back inside.

Get an enzymatic cleaner for the spots where she has pooped or peed indoors. Nature's Miracle is a good one. Otherwise she'll be able to sniff out her previously soiled spots and will most likely go in the same spots again.

Okay, now for walks. Remember what I said about her being a baby? At this age you want your dog to feel that everything in the world is safe. Everything in the world is rewarding and no harm will come to her from the outdoors. This is the best way to raise a confident dog that isn't fearful of things like strangers, strange dogs, cars, bicycles, skateboards... expose her to them at a young age and make the experience of being exposed to them a REWARDING one. Bring treats out on walks. Don't force her to walk further than she is comfortable. Coax her and praise her for exploring the outdoors. No tugging on her leash if she doesn't want to walk any further -- you can try to encourage her using toys, praise or treats, but yanking her along isn't going to accomplish anything.

Let her be comfortable on her walks. If she's only comfortable within a block of the house, keep it that way for now. Make being outdoors FUN. Slowly, as she gains confidence and starts to trust the great outdoors, she will become braver and more willing to venture further away from the house. Force her to walk now, or scare her while she's on her walks, and she will become fearful and never want to explore any further. But make her walks fun and she will realise that the outdoors is a strange but exciting place. And then you will hardly be able to keep her down...

Be patient! Don't expect too much too fast. This dog is going to be in your life for the next 13-15 years! You have a lot of time to learn and grow together. Puppy-raising isn't easy for ANYONE so just take it easy. Everyone makes mistakes. It sounds like you have a smart cookie on your hands but even smart puppies take awhile to learn.

 

[FourIsCompany]

I've been keeping her confined to my bedroom since i got her, and shes doing great in the bedroom. She recognises my bedroom as her home and never poops while shes in the bedroom.

This is great! The problem is, when you open the door and let her out, it's like going "outside" to her. You've let her out of her den and she HAS to go. So, now, just control her exit from your room. Either pick her up and carry her outside or put her on a leash and take her directly outside.

Just realize that the bedroom is now her den and as soon as you let her out, she's going to go. Just manage that better. When she has eliminated and you bring her back IN, that's when she can spend a little time in the living room under strict observation.

As far as walking, 2 months is very young to be walking on a leash away from home. I didn't do that until my pups were maybe 16 weeks and had all their shots. rosmaryninja has given some great advice.

 

[Reacher]

I am not using a crate and am taking my puppy out every 2 hours or less. He has only pooped in the house once and that was because I overslept and didn't let him out. He has peed a few times, but I have laminate floors so I just wipe it up and move on. I praise him and offer treats when he pees outside and ignore him when he does it inside.


At the vet recently, he told me two things that make lots of sense.

1. When you scold a pet in the act of elimination inside the house, and then expect them to do it in front of you when you go outside sends them mixed signals. All they know is the last time they pooped in front of you they got yelled at. Why would they want to do it again in front of you even if they are outside?

2. I was also told that when you do scold, you never want to use your pet's name in the scolding. You only want to use the name in praise so that way it identifies it's name with pleasure instead of something negative. So many people say "Bad Rover!" when they should say "Bad dog" or something similar.

I don't know how true the above is, but it sounds logical to me.

 

[prairiemommy]

Another thing I noticed with our puppy is that the longer he could hold it at night = the more often he had to go in the morning. When he first started holding it for longer periods at night, he started needing to go out every half hour or so in the morning to pee/poop. Now that he's getting used to his schedule, he does better in the mornings but if he has a longer night than usual, I will need to take him out more often again.

Your puppy is still so little - she'll get the hang of things slowly but surely. Good luck!

 

[Gina&Dogs]

You've been given lots of good advice already, and I know you'll get through potty training!

One thing that always helped me is to take the dogs to the same place in the yard every time. They have a pee zone and a poop zone. After just a little time they know what they are supposed to do when I take them to the different parts of the yard.

When you take your puppy out, tell them to "go potty" or something of that nature and keep saying it until they go. When they do, praise them and make a huge deal about them "going potty" in the right spot. If you teach your puppy this, it will know exactly what you are wanting it to do, even if you're not in the "potty zone". Take them to the park and say go potty and they go potty. This has worked really well for me!

 

[Trixie]

Same advice I give everyone who wants their dog to be housetrained -- manage your expectations. Accidents (if you can even call them that) at 8 weeks are totally normal. Expect accidents -- although much, much less frequent ones, of course -- up to about a year.

Knowing what to expect and managing your expectations helps you let go of a lot of stress. Raising a puppy is hard, but it shouldn't be stressful if you know what to expect and don't let your expectations get unrealistic.

 

[buckingfassist]

So this has gotten from bad to worse... my dog is now doing her business in my room. im trying to follow these guidelines as best i can and nothing seems to be working. hopefully in time she will stop. ive been attempting to put her on a controlled schedule for eating but its not really up to me. The dog will eat when she feels like it.... if i put food in an empty bowl, theres no guarentee she will eat it when i want her to. she will just eat it when shes hungry... how am i suposed to decide when my dog eats?

i left her bowl empty all night, thinking she would be hungry at 8 AM when i fill the bowl. Well thats exactly what i did, i filled the bowl... she had absolutly nointerest in her food so i said whatever and just left it there for whenever shes ready. iwent to the washroom to pee, came back and found a pile of shit on my floor, a puddle of piss placed next to the poop, so they can keep eachother company, and a full bowl of food.

Her next trip to the yard is scheduled for 30 minutes from now, which is likely pointless since she already used my bedroom as her personal toilet.

 

[FourIsCompany]

how am i suposed to decide when my dog eats?

Don't fill her bowl. Look on the package and see how much she's supposed to have in a day. Split that into 3 servings and offer that amount at 6 am, noon and 6 pm. Put the bowl of food down. Wait 10 minutes. If she's not eating it, pick it up and wait till the next feeding time. As soon as she does eat, take her out. If she doesn't go, take her out in 15 minutes intervals until she does. KEEP A LOG of when she eliminates, even if it's in your room. After a week of this, you should know when she's going to have to go. No extra treats, just food.

 

[Trixie]

At risk of upsetting the OP -- I think you need a serious attitude readjustment if this is going to work.

First of all, all of this -- all of it -- is normal. Totally, 100% normal housebreaking behavior. Nothing is out of the ordinary at all.

Second, your dog has no idea that she is using your room, your house, whatever as a "personal toilet". Dogs don't use toilets. Dogs do not innately know where they are supposed to eliminate. (unlike cats who figure it out) Dogs need to be told. Over and over and over again. Same spot. Same time. Every day. It isn't "hard" the way calculus is "hard", but it does take work.

Finally, bring those expectations down a notch. A two month old puppy will not be housebroken. Expect accidents up to a year. You also need to control their eating.

Invest in some Nature's Miracle, set your alarm clock to wake you up at 3am for an extra time out to eliminate, keep at it. It WILL happen, but don't make yourself miserable trying to make it happen fast. Just take it one day at a time, relax, and understand that accident happen.

 

[LoveMyBirdDog]

Well everything everyone has said I agree with.

Just want to add....
You have to take you puppy out A LOT when it is very young.

As soon as it wakes up... CARRY her outside. Don't let her walk outside. As soon as you hear her stir and stretch. Get up, pick her up, carry her outside. The puppy may go 3 or 4 times while outside. Give her time.

As soon as she finishes her last bite of food.... Get up, pick her up, carry her outside.

As soon as she gets done playing hard with her chew toy, or chasing you around, or running around in your room. As soon as she stops playing (hint hint I'm smelling for a place to eliminate)... Get up, pick her up, carry her outside.

Repeat this as often as possible. Puppies usually like to play, pee, nap, pee, play, pee, nap, pee, eat, pee, play, pee, nap. (with some pooping in between)

Yes you may be taking your puppy outside 15-20 times a day. But if you do this.... she will likely not go inside.

And when I say Get up, pick her up, and carry her outside.. Then you may not even have time to put your shoes on.... Forget the shoes... just go.

 

[Trixie]

A point on the food -- free feeding is disasterous for housetraining. Put the food down, give the dog 20 minutes to eat it, take it up if the puppy doesn't eat it. Put the food back down at the next feeding time. Give the puppy another 20 minutes to eat. Your puppy won't starve.

 

[emily445455]

The dog will eat when she feels like it.... if i put food in an empty bowl, theres no guarentee she will eat it when i want her to. she will just eat it when shes hungry... how am i suposed to decide when my dog eats?

Scheduled feeding times help a lot. Even somewhere around the same times each day can help. I feed my pup between 9-10am and between 6-7pm (depending on when I get up, etc). Sometimes if hubby and I go out, she won't eat until 9pm....but most days she eats around the same time. I only do free-feeding once the dogs are fully or almost fully potty-trained.

I leave the food down for about 15-20 minutes, and if they don't eat it...then I take it up. They will eat when they are hungry and missing a meal here or there won't hurt them.

I cannot stress enough: patience is very very very important. Puppies poop and pee on the floor....I think most of us here are used to picking up poo and wiping up pee, lol...but we weren't always. It takes time on both ends...it takes time for the puppy to understand that outside is for potty, not inside....and it takes time for us humans to realize and be okay with that.

Good luck.

 

[Elana55]

Wow.

OK.. you REALLY need a Crate. Really. It will make your life and your puppy's life (and house breaking) MUCH easier.. not to mention cleaner.

You are frustrated.. and that is understandable because you never had a dog before.

When you get the crate, write back for more advice. There is plenty here to be had.

Also.. do a search on house breaking. Every time you get upset when your dog poops/pees in the house, all the puppy learns is that it is dangerous to poop/pee when you are there. He may learn this so well tht he makes sure he never poops or pees in front of you... He can transfer this to outside (not peeing or pooping in front of you outside where you want him to go).

After you have the Crate, please read Jean Donaldson's book "the Culture Clash" as it has some excellant discussion of house training.

When you get your first puppy you want all the cute things like playing and cuddling.. and after you have him you realize it is also a lot of eating and pooping and peeing and sleeping! Just like any baby. yeah.. it is fun but it is a LOT of work.

 

[emily445455]

Def agree, a crate is wonderful. Although my first dog pooped in it a lot when she was a puppy...which sucked, it was such a pain to clean out. But my 2nd puppy peed in it once and hasn't since....so...IDK depends on the dog I think.