help! 8 month old puppy pees in house!

[IcansPotaFake32]

So we adopted our french bull dog puppy last Sunday and he was great the first few days in terms of house training. Toby is 7.5 months old. His owners told us that he was housetrained and if he makes a mistake we should "press his nose in it and say NO!"....this should have been my first indication that a. he makes mistakes b. he was raised in fear.

So Saturday night I met my friend out for dinner and Toby was left home with his "grandparents" (my parents) who I currently live with. At around 8 pm he pooped all over our dining room. When my mom came in and said "Toby! oh no!" he got scared and peed all over himself. He was feeling very badly and whimpered by the upstairs door (which is my bedroom).

I take him out every 3-4 hours. At night if he has to go he scratches next to me and it either means that he wants to come up (into my bed) or that he has to go. Also, I wake up frequently so everytime I wake up I take him (which is every 3-4 hours). I was so proud because today he scratched my bed and I took him out and he pooped. Obviously, he was praised.

Today, he went out and pooped again and then came back in and after about 30 minutes he peed on a little hallway carpet. My father said "no Toby! and showed him the little carpet where he peed and pointed to it." Toby then hid under the bed and then under a chair in the living room.

What do you think?

 

[Danica]

Awwww poor Toby. He's so precious!!!

I think that it would be a good idea to take him out more often and praise him and give him a treat as soon as he goes. I think it's clear that his previous owners have made him very afraid of what happens when he pees in the house. The poor thing is just afraid. The best thing to do it clean it up, use an enzyme spray so the odor is removed completely and do not even aknowledge that he made a mistake. Go on with your routine and eventually he will get it. But really I have small dogs and they need to be let out constantly... that will probably help alot!

 

[elizat]

He's absolutely adorable.

Honestly, if that was my dog, I would start training from ground zero, so to speak and tell your family/friends that are in contact w/ him your plan. It sounds like he is very scared and doesn't know what to think when he goes to the bathroom in the house and is confused overall.

I think if your family can't get on board w/ your strategy, I'd take over the task alone and take him out like clockwork, every three hours or so (or more if needed) to the same spot, even if he does not go every time initially. I'm a talker too- I would always say "go piddle" when we did this, but I know some people/vets/trainers say a verbal command combined w/ this is not necessary, but it worked for us. Praise the heck out of him when he does well.

I personally feel that disciplining a dog for going to the bathroom in the house AFTER he's already done it does nothing at all, except confuse/cause fear. Another story is if you CATCH them doing it and that is when I think it is okay to tell them no sternly, and promptly take them outside to finish their business and/or show them that is where to go. When I was training my dog, if I found a mess after the fact, I would say "ewww" in a voice that was not mean, but not happy, if the dog came trotting over to see what I was doing and try to play while I was cleaning.

 

[aklein]

Elizat gave great advice.
I would just like to add that you shouldn't leave him unsupervised if he isn't housebroken. It just makes the process a lot more difficult and confusing for him. I would suggest that you use the crate training method with him. It is really simple and pretty much forces him to let you know when he has to go. The dog psychology of it is as follows: dogs are den animals and do not want to soil where they sleep. So he should be in a crate that is big enough for him to stand up and turn around in, not too much bigger. So when you can't watch him, he goes into the crate. The big thing is that you really need to pay attention to his signals that he is about to go. It could be a wimper or a look, but you'll eventually figure out what it is. As soon as you are cued, take him out. Keep him outside until he pees and poops. This may take a while. But the last thing you want is to bring him back inside and have him pee or poop in the house. Also, praise him like he is the best dog in the world when he goes to the bathroom outside. Use the sweet puppy tone and just lavish affection on him.
Just remember, accidents do happen. If you catch him in the act, give him a stern No and just pick him up and put him down outside. Then praise him for finishing up outside.
Whew! I think that covers it. Good luck.

 

[skyqueen]

What a lovely, little dog...I've always wanted a FBD. Aklein gave you great advise. Use the crate, some people think crate trainning is "mean"... it is not, quite like a den/house. I've tried them all, pee pee pads, scents etc. You can't watch your little dog 24/7. Get him in the habit now, saves everyone. Once he has more control and gets the knack of poop/pee, he won't need to be crated. Unless you catch him in the act, forget any kind of punishment, he won't know what you're scolding him for. And yes...praise goes a long way. Good luck

 

[Irishgal]

Everyone gave great advice! I will just add, don't give up! I have had pups that took almost 4 months, (ok those were dachshunds and they are tough)..so keep at it. Good luck!

 

[IcansPotaFake32]

Thanks for all of the great advice! We can't leave him unsupervised because of our rottweiler...we don't trust them together yet. Sometimes the rottie plays a little too rough, etc. He went downstairs for 2 seconds (where my father was) and this was when the accident occured. He pulls a disappearing act when this happens because he's a curious puppy etc.
He does have a crate and I HATE putting him in there. I work out of my house for several hours a day and I leave him in there with his bed and blanket. My father has an opposite schedule than ours (he works nights because he is a musician). So when he wakes up (around 1 or 2) he let's Toby out. The thing about the crate is that he howls when he is placed inside and the rottweiler joins in on the howling. How long do you crate a dog for?
What do you all recc for when I am in my apartment part time? He is used to wee-wee pads but we don't use them at the house (my parents) because I take him for long walks and we have a backyard. I think wee-wee pads come in handy but they also seem kind of gross to me.

 

[aklein]

The thing about the crate is that he howls when he is placed inside and the rottweiler joins in on the howling. How long do you crate a dog for?
What do you all recc for when I am in my apartment part time? He is used to wee-wee pads but we don't use them at the house (my parents) because I take him for long walks and we have a backyard. I think wee-wee pads come in handy but they also seem kind of gross to me.

Our black lab would howl the first few times he was put in his crate. Now he goes in there on his own when it is time for bed. You just have to let him cry. He'll get used to it. I promise. I know it is really hard to get used to. You can try putting him in the crate for short periods of time when you are with him. You can just make sure you are in his field of view. It's kind of like putting a baby to sleep in their crib -- sometimes you have to just let them cry.
I personally am not a fan of the wee wee pads in the house. I think it sends a confusing message to the dog. If you can't watch him vigilently, into the crate he goes.
As for how long to crate him for, that depends on the size of the dog. Because your guy is little and still learning to hold it, I wouldn't leave him in his crate for more than a few hours.

 

[skyqueen]

^^Some dogs are crate trainned from puppies...they LOVE the crate, it's their home, they feel safe. They use their crate their entire life. Alot of the show dogs or hunting dogs live out of crates. It hurts the owner more than the dog. Just don't forget your dog...nothing makes up for love and kindness.

 

[tachikomatic]

I personally feel that disciplining a dog for going to the bathroom in the house AFTER he's already done it does nothing at all, except confuse/cause fear.

^Yup.
My puppy wouldn't use the pee-pads. She preferred the floor by the door. She'd sometimes give no indication that she had to go out, and suddenly run up to the door, turn around and look right at us, and pee.
She was very good about going outside once she stopped doing that, though.

 

[Couture Dreams]

i hate people who are overly aggressive with their dogs when it comes to potty training.

well keep him on a routine so he has a lot of opportunities to wee.

also walk him often. i know one days when i dont walk my dog he has more of a tendency of peeing in the house.

try to use a pee-pad in the house for accidents.

and dont forget hes a pup, accidents will happen.

 

[bagaholic85]

do yourself a favor and invest in some dog training books. from your op it looks like ur doing a few things wrong.

you've also only given him 8 days of attempts. cut him a little slack. hes in a new environment. also male dogs tend to be more difficult to train, and small dogs tend to have accidents, and hes still a baby. plus frenchies tend to be a bit headstrong.

 

[jen6292]

We used to have to take our boxer out every 2 hours when he was a puppy until he was potty trained. We also crate trained him! You might want to try potty training courses?

 

[kristie]

Elizat gave great advice.
I would just like to add that you shouldn't leave him unsupervised if he isn't housebroken. It just makes the process a lot more difficult and confusing for him. I would suggest that you use the crate training method with him. It is really simple and pretty much forces him to let you know when he has to go. The dog psychology of it is as follows: dogs are den animals and do not want to soil where they sleep. So he should be in a crate that is big enough for him to stand up and turn around in, not too much bigger. So when you can't watch him, he goes into the crate. The big thing is that you really need to pay attention to his signals that he is about to go. It could be a wimper or a look, but you'll eventually figure out what it is. As soon as you are cued, take him out. Keep him outside until he pees and poops. This may take a while. But the last thing you want is to bring him back inside and have him pee or poop in the house. Also, praise him like he is the best dog in the world when he goes to the bathroom outside. Use the sweet puppy tone and just lavish affection on him.
Just remember, accidents do happen. If you catch him in the act, give him a stern No and just pick him up and put him down outside. Then praise him for finishing up outside.
Whew! I think that covers it. Good luck.

You save me a LOT of typing! This is 100% accurate, it should definitely work with your pup.

 

[U88rln]

My Frenchie will be 8months old next week and I have had him for 5 months. He very rarely has any accidents in my house, but has them at my boyfriends house. He goes out frequently either with me or the other 2 dogs that my boyfriend has and I see him use the bathroom. When he goes to the door I let him out and he uses the bathroom. Occasionally though, he will just squat and pee, sometimes minutes after he has been outside. Could this be because he isn't nuetered yet? That is happening in the next 3 weeks. Or could it be that he is marking his territory? When this happens it is not a little piddle, it is a full puddle. It is also not in the same area. Sometimes the kitchen, sometimes the living room, and yesterday on a sleeping bag! Help, please