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Permalink Reply by Rebecca Marie O'Bryan on October 25, 2010 at 7:02am

The best way of dealing with this is if they don't go in 15mins. Put them in their crate as soon as u come inside. Wait another 15mins and try again. How old is your dog?

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Permalink Reply by Jane on October 25, 2010 at 9:04am

Are you taking him out on a leash? If not, I definitely would for now. Make sure he understands that this is "potty" time and not play time. I'd stand in one spot and give him ~5 minutes to do his business. If he refuses then I would bring him back upstairs and put him in his crate for 15 minutes, then try again.

When you see him start to go I would try to assign a word for it. I just use "go potty". It's very useful when they're older and you want them to pee before a car ride or something like that. When he's done make sure you praise the heck out of him and give him a little treat. If you're in a fenced area you could let him off leash when he's finished and play with him too as a reward.

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Permalink Reply by Bev Levy on October 25, 2010 at 9:27am

I always found a short walk gets everything moving. Also, I use the "go potty" it makes a huge difference if you take the time early to teach going on command. Just make sure you say it the second they start.

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Permalink Reply by Rachael & Waffle on October 25, 2010 at 10:19am

Waffle did this too. ... It was bad! The last time he did it, he started peeing then RAN THROUGH THE HOUSE while peeing. Oh my god. He knew he @$#%ed up coz I bopped him on the nose and screamed at him. He hasn't done it since. lol. After that, I tried really hard to teach him to ring a bell to let me know he has to go potty and it's helped with him actually going outside-- rather than walking outside, coming inside, and THEN peeing. Geeze.

Anyways, be sure you yell and scream when he does it again-- put on a big show and be very dramatic. Take him outside immediately and hope he finishes his business there. I like the idea of using a leash when you take him out if you aren't already. And yeah, about 5 minutes outside and if he doesn't go, 15 minutes in his crate, then back outside. It ought to do the trick. Best of luck!

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Permalink Reply by Nicola Porter on October 25, 2010 at 10:40am

aww Waffle got a bop on the nose, poor waffle.

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Permalink Reply by Rachael & Waffle on October 25, 2010 at 10:47am

He deserved it, he really did. It was the most awful thing he's done. haha.

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Permalink Reply by Nichole on October 25, 2010 at 11:45am

He's 8 weeks and 4 days old. ;) I do keep him on a leash and he does pretty well with that. It's almost like he just goes in spurts. We can go several days without an accident and then the next day, we're having to constantly clean up after him. I'm not sure what triggers the behavior. Typically, with me, I've been putting him in a laundry basket in the room I'm in if I'm not sure if he's going to need to go soon or not (usually when he's just roaming around, not playing with his toys) because he will fuss when he has to go potty if he's in the basket versus just going when he wants to if he's roaming. This gives me a better idea of how long it takes for food/water goes through him and about about how often he should go out. However, my husband likes to let him roam the apt. (which is when we have most of the accidents) I'd like to feel comfortable just letting him roam if he wants to, but right now, I just can't trust him not to soil the carpet when I'm not looking. And he really doesn't mind the laundry basket - It's big enough for him to play in, and I can easily reach down and play with him when I want to, also. So idk. Should I stick with the laundry basket method until he gets the hang of things, or is that teaching him to only let me know when/if he's in the basket? :/

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Permalink Reply by Kari & Quin on October 25, 2010 at 12:25pm

did you say 8 weeks? I didn't even get my pup until she was 8 weeks old. In my experience dogs are not even remotely potty trained until around 6 months. Until then it is you who are trained. Trained to know when to take them out. Living 3 flights of stairs up is a whole different challenge. Yes if you don't have a crate a clothes basket for now is a good alternative but soon he will be too big for the basket. you may want to get a gate and close of the kitchen or an area without carpet that is small enough that he cant roam. At this age you will want to take him out every 30 min or more cause they don't hold it yet. then you can work on teaching him to ring a bell that is hung by the door he is a bit to young now to actually know what it is all about but I would just hang a bell by the door and then every time you go ring it on your way out

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Permalink Reply by Nichole on October 25, 2010 at 3:02pm

yeah, he actually does pretty well at letting me know when he needs to go while he's in his crate or the laundry basket (I realize he will out grow the basket soon enough, but I would hope by then he's potty trained enough not to need it *fingers crossed*) so I know he knows WHEN he needs to go...he just hasn't grasped the fact that he needs to let me know when he's OUT of his crate just like he does when he's IN it. (Maybe I expect too much out of him just because he seems to do really well some days, so then I expect him to do really well every day. :1)

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Permalink Reply by Jane on October 25, 2010 at 8:55pm

You could get a long leash and just attach it to your belt loop when you're doing things around the house. I have an pen in my kitchen that I put my puppy when he can't be watched, it's probably 4x6' or so. Plenty of room to have some toys and chewies and a bed, etc. I personally wouldn't recommend the laundry basket as he's going to outgrow it super quick and he's not really learning anything from being in it. I'd just use his crate or babygate him if you need to confine him. But 8 weeks is very very young still so it's totally normal to have lots of accidents.

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