[L_mama0226]

My husband and I have an older pit, she had puppies in March (she is now fixed!) and we decided to keep one. We have tried everything with him and we love him so dearly but we are at our wits end. He chews on absolutely everything, wallets, shoes, paperwork, the METAL coffee table, and the worst yet; our couch. We cannot for the life of us house train him, he can be outside for up to an hour and comes straight in to use the bathroom. We have tried crate training (all three dogs stay in separate crates while we’re at work), we have tried shock collars, and the other dogs did great with them, however it can be on 4 and they Yelp and stop what they’re doing. He is a different story. The collar can be on 40, yes 40 and it’s like he doesn’t even feel it. We have tried simply tapping him on the nose when being disobedient, we have tried taking things from him when he chews on them, but then he goes to bigger things that can’t be “taken” such as my couch. We want him to have a quality of life and not end up outside on a lead, but we have no idea what to do. Any suggestions are greatly appreciated!

 

[Shell]

Quit using pain.

Quit using shock collars (pain)

Quit tapping on the nose.

Banish from your mind even the potential of a life outside on a lead. If a life outside on a lead is actually a real potential outcome, surrender the dog to a reputable rescue or local humane society.

Look, you have a 4-5 month old active breed PUPPY. A baby mentally and physically. Even trainers who do use shock collars and punishment based trainin will rarely recommend doing so with a dog under about 1 year old.

Positive reinforcement, remove opportunities to fail (as in, no free access to couch etc-- eyes on the dog at all times when not crated), reward heavily for potty outside. Outside and no potty, inside for 15-20 minutes while watched, outside again, repeat as needed until potty outside and food or toy reward given. Lather, rinse, repeat.

Basically, you need to do a180 in training methods.

Edit to add more context:

Pit bull type dogs are some of the most physically pain tolerant dogs yet emotionally mush balls. The dog is genetically programmed to stand up to pain but when the pain is coming from his owner, from often seemingly out of nowhere (shocks), it very emotionally disturbing. It takes away the building of a strong relationship between dog and owner that should be based on trust and respect, not on fear and uncertainty.
Build trust and build a working partnership.

 

[storyist]

I don't know if that's the case, but if you're putting the dog outside for an hour, it won't work. A lot of puppies are so fascinated with the outside world, they forget they need to relieve themselves. Thus, they come back inside, and whoops. Go out with him. Walk around with him quietly and reward when he goes outside. I can't remember how long I did that with my Rottweilers when puppies, but I know it was quite a while after they were really and truly housebroken.

If you're already doing that and he just somehow has gotten the idea outside is not the place to go, try taking his mom out with him. When she goes, let him see you reward her, fuss over her. Let him smell her output so there's no doubt he understands what she's getting praise and rewards for. Don't reward him unless he goes too.

 

[L_mama0226]

Quit using pain.

Quit using shock collars (pain)

Quit tapping on the nose.

Banish from your mind even the potential of a life outside on a lead. If a life outside on a lead is actually a real potential outcome, surrender the dog to a reputable rescue or local humane society.

Look, you have a 4-5 month old active breed PUPPY. A baby mentally and physically. Even trainers who do use shock collars and punishment based trainin will rarely recommend doing so with a dog under about 1 year old.

Positive reinforcement, remove opportunities to fail (as in, no free access to couch etc-- eyes on the dog at all times when not crated), reward heavily for potty outside. Outside and no potty, inside for 15-20 minutes while watched, outside again, repeat as needed until potty outside and food or toy reward given. Lather, rinse, repeat.

Basically, you need to do a180 in training methods.

Edit to add more context:

Pit bull type dogs are some of the most physically pain tolerant dogs yet emotionally mush balls. The dog is genetically programmed to stand up to pain but when the pain is coming from his owner, from often seemingly out of nowhere (shocks), it very emotionally disturbing. It takes away the building of a strong relationship between dog and owner that should be based on trust and respect, not on fear and uncertainty.
Build trust and build a working partnership.

Thank you! I appreciate this advice. We’ve been so unsure on how to go about this and this definitely helps!❤

 

[L_mama0226]

I don't know if that's the case, but if you're putting the dog outside for an hour, it won't work. A lot of puppies are so fascinated with the outside world, they forget they need to relieve themselves. Thus, they come back inside, and whoops. Go out with him. Walk around with him quietly and reward when he goes outside. I can't remember how long I did that with my Rottweilers when puppies, but I know it was quite a while after they were really and truly housebroken.

If you're already doing that and he just somehow has gotten the idea outside is not the place to go, try taking his mom out with him. When she goes, let him see you reward her, fuss over her. Let him smell her output so there's no doubt he understands what she's getting praise and rewards for. Don't reward him unless he goes too.

Thank you! We’ve tried rewarding him for outside, but that failed. So we will definitely try with mama❤

 

[DaySleepers]

Potty training isn't really a one-and-done type of training, especially with a puppy. You need to be consistently going out with him every time and rewarding him every time, so he becomes motivated to hold his bladder and bowels until he's outside.

Remember that, like with human toddlers, puppies haven't fully developed their ability to control their bladder and bowels, and also haven't developed the mental ability to realize when they have to go until they need to go RIGHT NOW. The earliest you see all this come together in most puppies is six months, but many pups take longer to fully figure everything out and develop. So punishment absolutely isn't going to help you, even if he was responsive, because a lot of his accidents are going to be literally out of his control right now.

But they are in your control. Set up a schedule and take him out frequently - at least once an hour. Also take him out right after he's woken up (including naps), right after he's had a vigorous play session, and right after he's eaten or had a big drink of water. Pretty much any puppy is going to need to go shortly after these activities. If he doesn't go when he's out with you, he goes right in the crate for 5-10 minutes and then you try again, only giving him freedom after he's empty. If he gets super distracted by the yard, take him out on lead and choose a really boring spot to stand with him. Excitement, praise, rewards, and play only come after he's done his business!

 

[pandora]

I read this post about 7 hours ago and its taken me that long to calm down enough to write an answer that wont get me a ban,
For your sake but more for this pups sake please please please re-home him. Get him a home where he will not be subjected to pain (torture) as a training method..Amazing anyone still thinks pain is an effective training method anyway.

If the training isnt working then its the wrong training.

Keeping him outside all the time ...unacceptable.

You know there is a lot of controvesy in many countries about pit bulls with many people saying there are no bad dogs just bad owners...

 

[oliverwilson1987]

As mentioned above, you can use not methods of punishment, but rewards.
Try the Playful method of training "Its essence lies in the fact that for the performance of a skill the dog is given to play with a favorite toy", it may have more influence on your dog.

 

[L_mama0226]

I don't know if that's the case, but if you're putting the dog outside for an hour, it won't work. A lot of puppies are so fascinated with the outside world, they forget they need to relieve themselves. Thus, they come back inside, and whoops. Go out with him. Walk around with him quietly and reward when he goes outside. I can't remember how long I did that with my Rottweilers when puppies, but I know it was quite a while after they were really and truly housebroken.

If you're already doing that and he just somehow has gotten the idea outside is not the place to go, try taking his mom out with him. When she goes, let him see you reward her, fuss over her. Let him smell her output so there's no doubt he understands what she's getting praise and rewards for. Don't reward him unless he goes too.

Thank you! We’ve tried rewarding him for outside, but that failed. So we will definitely try with mama❤

Potty training isn't really a one-and-done type of training, especially with a puppy. You need to be consistently going out with him every time and rewarding him every time, so he becomes motivated to hold his bladder and bowels until he's outside.

Remember that, like with human toddlers, puppies haven't fully developed their ability to control their bladder and bowels, and also haven't developed the mental ability to realize when they have to go until they need to go RIGHT NOW. The earliest you see all this come together in most puppies is six months, but many pups take longer to fully figure everything out and develop. So punishment absolutely isn't going to help you, even if he was responsive, because a lot of his accidents are going to be literally out of his control right now.

But they are in your control. Set up a schedule and take him out frequently - at least once an hour. Also take him out right after he's woken up (including naps), right after he's had a vigorous play session, and right after he's eaten or had a big drink of water. Pretty much any puppy is going to need to go shortly after these activities. If he doesn't go when he's out with you, he goes right in the crate for 5-10 minutes and then you try again, only giving him freedom after he's empty. If he gets super distracted by the yard, take him out on lead and choose a really boring spot to stand with him. Excitement, praise, rewards, and play only come after he's done his business!

thank you!

 

[L_mama0226]

I read this post about 7 hours ago and its taken me that long to calm down enough to write an answer that wont get me a ban,
For your sake but more for this pups sake please please please re-home him. Get him a home where he will not be subjected to pain (torture) as a training method..Amazing anyone still thinks pain is an effective training method anyway.

If the training isnt working then its the wrong training.

Keeping him outside all the time ...unacceptable.

You know there is a lot of controvesy in many countries about pit bulls with many people saying there are no bad dogs just bad owners...

I’m fully aware of that which is exactly why I’m asking for advice.

 

[L_mama0226]

As mentioned above, you can use not methods of punishment, but rewards.
Try the Playful method of training "Its essence lies in the fact that for the performance of a skill the dog is given to play with a favorite toy", it may have more influence on your dog.

Thank you!