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Trouble house training

V

Verhinesk

Member
Has anyone had trouble house training his puppy? We have a 17 week old EM, and he goes outside, wets, comes back inside and wets again. Basically, Gus wets wherever he is standing. We take him outside constantly, and he goes, but he also goes inside. Thank heavens for tile floors. By the way, these accidents aren't limited to wetting. He's not as bad with his bowels, but he does the same thing. Sometimes, I catch him just before and rush him outside. Any advice? I've spent a fortune on papertowels and Clorox wipes.:(
 
cinnamon roll

cinnamon roll

Super Moderator
Super Moderator
Do you go outside with him when you take him out? What exactly do you do when you take him out to go potty?
 
Willowsmommy

Willowsmommy

Well-Known Member
Wash the floor with white vinegar. It neutralizes the ammonia in the urine. What smells clean to us, smells like the toilet to him.
 
V

Verhinesk

Member
cinnamon roll said:
Do you go outside with him when you take him out? What exactly do you do when you take him out to go potty?
Click to expand...

I walk out into the yard with him. Sometimes, I stay on the patio while he walks around. I always praise him. There are times we go outside and stay for 20+ minutes.
 
cinnamon roll

cinnamon roll

Super Moderator
Super Moderator
I would suggest taking him out on a leash, keep him on the leash until he does his business, once he is done praise of course then take him off the leash and let him play as a reward. Have you ever used a house leash on him?

Verhinesk said:
I walk out into the yard with him. Sometimes, I stay on the patio while he walks around. I always praise him. There are times we go outside and stay for 20+ minutes.
Click to expand...
 
V

Verhinesk

Member
cinnamon roll said:
I would suggest taking him out on a leash, keep him on the leash until he does his business, once he is done praise of course then take him off the leash and let him play as a reward. Have you ever used a house leash on him?
Click to expand...

I've never used a house leash--not sure how it works. Will try the leash taking him outside. I was hoping he'd outgrow this. Is it normal for EMs to go several times in a short period of time. He's had his check-up at the vet, but we've not checked for kidney/bladder trouble. He seems happy/healthy. Onetime, we caught him drinking and wetting at the same time. I would not have believed it if I hadn't seen it.

Also, he has made it through the night without going outside.
 
DennasMom

DennasMom

Well-Known Member
The drinking and wetting at the same time does sound suspicious. A UTI check would be a good idea.

It can take a while for the bladder muscles to develop completely, but at 17 weeks he should be getting close to full control.
He hasn't been neutered yet, has he? I would worry about a surgery slip, if that was the case.

If you leave him contained in his crate (or sleeping space) - can he hold it?
If so, I'd work for 3-4 days on spending a LOT of time in the crate (~2 hours at a time), to make sure he exercises the bladder "hold it" muscles during the day. That would also help get him on a schedule, and maybe promote full emptying when he does go out.

I'd put him on a routine with absolutely no unsupervised time in the house - that's where the house-leash comes in handy - keep him tied to you at all times, so you can learn his 'cues' to go outside - and also correct with a firm "no" if he does start to go inside... with a quick scoop up and outside (can he stop the stream once started? i.e. when you pick him up?) - once he finished outside, a big Potty Party and rewards (we play fetch & tug as rewards outside) before going back inside... give him a good 10 minutes to decide if he needs to go again or not. Boys are notorious for not finishing... they always need to have some reserves for marking the next bush.

If you can 'name' the event ("potty" or "get busy") that will help him learn it, too. When he starts to pee in the appropriate location, start chanting your 'cue' word (potty, potty, potty), and stop just before the stream does. Once he gets the idea that "potty" and going pee occur together every time, you can start to ask for a "go potty", and he'll hopefully connect the two (Pavlovian response). This is a very helpful command for times away from home when he doesn't want to go on a strange surface (gravel versus grass), or needs to find the perfect tree or bush to pee on...

I'd double the recommendation for the "simple solution" or "natures miracle" enzymatic cleaners. They helped us keep carpet and rugs from smelling like a toilet around here - although cat pee still seems to be too strong if allowed to dry before application... :(
 
cinnamon roll

cinnamon roll

Super Moderator
Super Moderator
Thanks DM for explaining this I was slacking today

DennasMom said:
The drinking and wetting at the same time does sound suspicious. A UTI check would be a good idea.

It can take a while for the bladder muscles to develop completely, but at 17 weeks he should be getting close to full control.
He hasn't been neutered yet, has he? I would worry about a surgery slip, if that was the case.

If you leave him contained in his crate (or sleeping space) - can he hold it?
If so, I'd work for 3-4 days on spending a LOT of time in the crate (~2 hours at a time), to make sure he exercises the bladder "hold it" muscles during the day. That would also help get him on a schedule, and maybe promote full emptying when he does go out.

I'd put him on a routine with absolutely no unsupervised time in the house - that's where the house-leash comes in handy - keep him tied to you at all times, so you can learn his 'cues' to go outside - and also correct with a firm "no" if he does start to go inside... with a quick scoop up and outside (can he stop the stream once started? i.e. when you pick him up?) - once he finished outside, a big Potty Party and rewards (we play fetch & tug as rewards outside) before going back inside... give him a good 10 minutes to decide if he needs to go again or not. Boys are notorious for not finishing... they always need to have some reserves for marking the next bush.

If you can 'name' the event ("potty" or "get busy") that will help him learn it, too. When he starts to pee in the appropriate location, start chanting your 'cue' word (potty, potty, potty), and stop just before the stream does. Once he gets the idea that "potty" and going pee occur together every time, you can start to ask for a "go potty", and he'll hopefully connect the two (Pavlovian response). This is a very helpful command for times away from home when he doesn't want to go on a strange surface (gravel versus grass), or needs to find the perfect tree or bush to pee on...

I'd double the recommendation for the "simple solution" or "natures miracle" enzymatic cleaners. They helped us keep carpet and rugs from smelling like a toilet around here - although cat pee still seems to be too strong if allowed to dry before application... :(
Click to expand...
 
V

Verhinesk

Member
DennasMom said:
The drinking and wetting at the same time does sound suspicious. A UTI check would be a good idea.

It can take a while for the bladder muscles to develop completely, but at 17 weeks he should be getting close to full control.
He hasn't been neutered yet, has he? I would worry about a surgery slip, if that was the case.

If you leave him contained in his crate (or sleeping space) - can he hold it?
If so, I'd work for 3-4 days on spending a LOT of time in the crate (~2 hours at a time), to make sure he exercises the bladder "hold it" muscles during the day. That would also help get him on a schedule, and maybe promote full emptying when he does go out.

I'd put him on a routine with absolutely no unsupervised time in the house - that's where the house-leash comes in handy - keep him tied to you at all times, so you can learn his 'cues' to go outside - and also correct with a firm "no" if he does start to go inside... with a quick scoop up and outside (can he stop the stream once started? i.e. when you pick him up?) - once he finished outside, a big Potty Party and rewards (we play fetch & tug as rewards outside) before going back inside... give him a good 10 minutes to decide if he needs to go again or not. Boys are notorious for not finishing... they always need to have some reserves for marking the next bush.

If you can 'name' the event ("potty" or "get busy") that will help him learn it, too. When he starts to pee in the appropriate location, start chanting your 'cue' word (potty, potty, potty), and stop just before the stream does. Once he gets the idea that "potty" and going pee occur together every time, you can start to ask for a "go potty", and he'll hopefully connect the two (Pavlovian response). This is a very helpful command for times away from home when he doesn't want to go on a strange surface (gravel versus grass), or needs to find the perfect tree or bush to pee on...

I'd double the recommendation for the "simple solution" or "natures miracle" enzymatic cleaners. They helped us keep carpet and rugs from smelling like a toilet around here - although cat pee still seems to be too strong if allowed to dry before application... :(
Click to expand...

Thanks for the help. I'll have him checked for UTI just to be sure. We don't have carpet in our house (thank goodness). We live on a farm, and the people had just retiled the entire house before selling it. Has worked out great with Gus's accidents. Will try the house leash as well.
 
spritemk3

spritemk3

Well-Known Member
My 11 week old girl did in fact have a UTI which was making housetraining ridiculous. She's still having accidents, but fewer. I did make a string of bells and she's getting pretty good about nosing them then sitting at the back door. Yay. However when she does go inside and I catch her it's "NO..." then outside on a leash. My husband is far less diligent, doesn't always watch her like he should, when she does pee, and he sees it going on he tells her "NO" then figures she's done. Grrrrr. Then she gets the zoomies as I try to catch her and take her out. He also takes her out without a leash which to me signals "play time". I keep asking him to leash her and take her to the potty area only, but he definitely has selective hearing. Maybe I can single handedly do this. Sigh.....
 
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