Toilet training

bunyip123

Hi there, we recently got a rescue dog and he is settling in well. I just have a question in relation to toilet training and would love to hear some ideas/opinions.

he is about a year old and i dont think he'd ever lived in a house till he came to us. he is such a good character and happy in himself now, much more relaxed, but i get the feeling he's a bit confused about inside/outside/toilets etc.

anyway we have had 1 or 2 accidents in the house, and did make too much of a fuss as i didnt see him do it - i just 'tut tut' and talk seriously so he knew it wasn't the best thing ever he did, but didn't give out....i know that if you catch them at it the best thing is go 'OI' or whatever and help them learn at the time.

now i notice outside i am not getting the 'warning' signs of a number 2! (Circling or sniffing) he kind of sniffs all the time on a walk, in a bit of a scatty way, and seems to just crouch and out it pops! There is no circling to give me warning to get in to some grass or anything.....so we have had a few poops on paths in really awkward places, where its difficult to pick up after him (in terms of safety and tripping people up- not that i leave it in the grass!!) and keep him in off the road at the same time - although i am always very particular to pick up everything because i really hate ppl not picking up after the dogs and practice what i preach..

Sorry for length of post BTW. But basically my point is - he seems 'scatty' about the toilet outside on walks, and there is no pattern as such - so could anyone advise how to help get a routine going or something?

thanks in advance.

snowwhite

I don't know if this will be any help but I had a similar situation with one of my dogs at home. He used to defacate on the pavement in the back garden. Even though I regularly pick up the poo in the garden for a cleaner look I wanted him to go in the grass so when he went on the pavement if I didn't see him do it I would pick up all the poo and put it in the grass or if he was about to/in the process I would move him to the grass. A dog will normally urinate or defacate in the same area or around the same area so after a while of doing this he automatically started going in the grass. I am no expert but I think that your dog has the habit of going on the path either from his previous home (which may not of had grass) or from the kennels which are generaly paved/cement, so this is where he is used to going. Maybe if you start by training him to go in the grass at home first and then move onto going in the grass at walks when he takes to it. If you do not have a garden at home and this is why you go for walks then it may involve a bit of standing around in a grassy area until he has defacated and then continue with your walk when he has done his business. Always remember that giving a dog praise when he does something right can work wonders and speed along any training. Praise him when he goes in the grass, make a big fuss about it, most dogs love to please their owners. I hope it is of some help to you and good luck with the training.

bunyip123

Snowwhite, thank you for your reply. That is such a good idea, i never thought of it and it makes sense! (leaving the poo back in the grass to get him in the habit)

He actually had a little accident in the house again on sunday, and i think maybe it's us being a bit slack about not bringing him out to the garden right away in the morning and i think he got caught short then. i think we need to get more strict with ourselves to get his habit going.
I made such a huge fuss of him when he went in the garden today though, so i guess just time and patience.

Is it a bit more difficult to train older dogs? He is about a year and he was in a shelter for a few weeks, and we've no idea where he was before but he was neglected. I have a feeling he might have been just left to his own devices in a yard/shed.

snowwhite

Hi bunyip, there will be accidents but as you said you just need to stick to a routine until he figures it out. The good thing about training an older dog is that they will have a better attention span than a puppy and their bladder and bowls are able to last longer than a puppy so even though you have the difficulty of trying to eliminate his habits from the previous home you have a more attentive dog. It's a little bit tougher because you don't know his habits from his previous home but patience and routine are key. Try to use the same method you would use for a pup i.e. bring him out every morning, after meals/drinks, after play...etc. Don't clear up the poo in the garden so he can smell it and will be more willing to go in the same area. If he goes inside than clean it up asap with an odor eliminator so he doesn't get the scent inside and will be less likely to go there again. Also before you open the door say the same thing like "Out" or "Want to go out" and then open the door. For my first dog I hung a small bell on the door and rang it each time before I opened the door, now he rings it by hitting it with his paw when he wants to go but that may not work for every dog (my second dog wont ring but will cry when he needs to go). It is all about patience and routine for now and maybe alot of standing around outside but luckily the weather is a bit better this time of year so it will make it a bit easier. You sound like you are doing a great job and your dog will love the attention you are giving him for going outside. Hope this helps.

redroisin

anyway we have had 1 or 2 accidents in the house, and did make too much of a fuss as i didnt see him do it - i just 'tut tut' and talk seriously so he knew it wasn't the best thing ever he did, but didn't give out....i know that if you catch them at it the best thing is go 'OI' or whatever and help them learn at the time.

Hi. This would be the worst thing you could do as any negative response you give will make him think going to the toilet is wrong, not that its just in the wrong place (dogs dont reason like us) plus, he will not want to go to the toilet in front of you for fear of reprisal, which I strongly suspect is why he gives no clue but just waits till he absolutely has to go and cant hold it any more. So even if he does it right at your feet, DO NOT RESPOND, exept maybe to gently take him outside and say "wee wee" or whatever your toilet word is. Apart from that just take him out after meals and on waking plus regularly throughout the day..say your key word (always the same) and wait with him (very important) once he does something get as excited as possible and make a huge fuss of him. This will take time as you are undoing someone elses bad training but if you are consistant it will really pay off and he should eventually toilet on command.He is a lucky boy.

bunyip123

redroisin wrote: »

anyway we have had 1 or 2 accidents in the house, and did make too much of a fuss as i didnt see him do it - i just 'tut tut' and talk seriously so he knew it wasn't the best thing ever he did, but didn't give out....i know that if you catch them at it the best thing is go 'OI' or whatever and help them learn at the time.

Hi. This would be the worst thing you could do as any negative response you give will make him think going to the toilet is wrong, not that its just in the wrong place (dogs dont reason like us) plus, he will not want to go to the toilet in front of you for fear of reprisal, which I strongly suspect is why he gives no clue but just waits till he absolutely has to go and cant hold it any more. So even if he does it right at your feet, DO NOT RESPOND, exept maybe to gently take him outside and say "wee wee" or whatever your toilet word is. Apart from that just take him out after meals and on waking plus regularly throughout the day..say your key word (always the same) and wait with him (very important) once he does something get as excited as possible and make a huge fuss of him. This will take time as you are undoing someone elses bad training but if you are consistant it will really pay off and he should eventually toilet on command.He is a lucky boy.

thanks gang for your help on this

ooh good point redroisin, when u put it like that it makes sense, i think I saw that 'OI! if you catch them' technique on some dog advice website online, so i will scratch that. Thankfully I don't think i've had an episode where i actually said 'oi' to him while he was 'in progress' (lol) because I haven't actually caught him in the act indoors anyway. It was always done by the time i got there. And i think when i said i went 'tut tut' i dont think he paid any heed to me as i was really muttering to myself and just probably came across as mildly ignoring him, hopefully. Anyway, I'll make a note of that and just keep the big fuss going when it all goes right.

This week has been great, he's been in the house alone during the day for about 2 hours, then at night downstairs and not a single accident. And doing the business out on walks and last thing at night in the garden. On the walks, when we hit grass, we had a big celebration lol.

I just have another question, he never circles outside before he does a poop - do all dogs do that or is it just some of them? Our old dog (who passed away) always circled religiously.

Call me Socket

redroisin wrote: »

Hi. This would be the worst thing you could do as any negative response you give will make him think going to the toilet is wrong, not that its just in the wrong place (dogs dont reason like us) plus, he will not want to go to the toilet in front of you for fear of reprisal, which I strongly suspect is why he gives no clue but just waits till he absolutely has to go and cant hold it any more. So even if he does it right at your feet, DO NOT RESPOND, exept maybe to gently take him outside and say "wee wee" or whatever your toilet word is. Apart from that just take him out after meals and on waking plus regularly throughout the day..say your key word (always the same) and wait with him (very important) once he does something get as excited as possible and make a huge fuss of him. This will take time as you are undoing someone elses bad training but if you are consistant it will really pay off and he should eventually toilet on command.He is a lucky boy.

Well put:)

redroisin

This week has been great, he's been in the house alone during the day for about 2 hours, then at night downstairs and not a single accident

Well Bunyip I would say this is because you didnt actually say oi and have been doing it right so are now seeing the results of your efforts. Keep up the good work and he will be clean in no time....oh, and dont worry about the neighbours thinking you are mad for getting SO over excited about a dog pee, just go for it! he he The fact you have never caught him do it in the house is just more confirmation to me that he was most definitely punished for getting it wrong (prev owners fault not his) in fact, last week I went to do a dog training job with a lovely family that WERE using the "only positive reinforcement" method for their 2 labradoodles but when they took them for their vaccinations, their vet told them to be sure to "rub their noses in it and FLING them outside"!!!!! I was appalled and saddenned by this as like most of us...they took the vets word as the most knowledgeable and changed training techniques! Needless to say, the dogs were now having the same problems as your boy and being totally confused and dirty in the house. Re: the circling thing...its only some dogs that do it....most will do the whole sniffing busily looking for "the spot" but none of mine do it except sometimes the whippet and occasionally the gsd (who I had since he was 5wks old so did all his training. :-)

bunyip123

Hi again! Just a little update - Himself is doing *so* well and the positive vibes and "mad praise after going" is working a treat! Thanks to you all again!

that's awful isn't it about what that vet advised redroisin, as someone said before, you dont want them thinking they've done something wrong, as well as it just being plain nasty, cruel and disrespectful to do that to any animal.

Anyway, we'll keep it up. We've seen a big change in him generally though, he was a bit mad hyper as if he didn't know what to do with himself when he came and now he just seems cheerful and chilled out and really 'yeah I'm the man' and confident in himself. He can stay on his own in all the rooms and all and loves his walks. And we have got so fit keeping up with him ha ha.

redroisin

I`m THRILLED to hear how well he is doing bunyip. Keep up the good work!!!! :D