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  1. #1
    Puppy
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    Puppy not housebreaking

    Hello,
    I have a 16 week Labrador mix that I have had since she was 7 weeks old. Both my husband and I are home all day and have devoted a great deal of time to trying to train her. We have had many other dogs and read several books since we got her but cannot get her to housebreak. We take her out about every hour and watch her go to the bathroom, then bring her in to play and she will invariably pee two minutes in. When we are in the house, she is tethered in our kitchen and has a blanket and her bowls there to be "home" yet consistently pees and poops there despite how recently she has been taken out. We often have her outside with us for long periods,only to have her pee on the floor once she is inside. It is very frustrating and we are at our wits end,finding her impossible to train. Any one had a similar experience or have advice beyond be consistent and feed her on a schedule? We have done those religiously to no avail.

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  3. #2
    Senior Dog Jollymolly's Avatar
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    Hi

    Sorry you are having this issue. I need some more information.

    Have you tried crating her?

    Also how long do you wait to take her out after she eats. Is the water bowl being picked up at all? Are you going in the back yard with her and rewarding if she does go outside? When you say tethered does that mean she is attached to something in the house all day. Is there someone with her all day and if not where is she kept during those hours? Also are you using a cue word?

    my schedule for house breaking was rigid. Feed out within 20 min do your buisness reward go in eyes on pup. so for the first week or so I was out around every 30 min and after feeding and the water bowl was lifted 2 - 3 hours before bed time. At night I took mine out every 1 hour then moved to two and so on and so forth. Nights took me longer as I was like a crazy woman if I heard a movement I would get out of bed and take her to pee.

    The only issue I had at first was tha my pup would noy go on the grass.

    Good luck

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  5. #3
    Senior Dog doubledip1's Avatar
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    I would take her out more often. Honestly, try every 5 MINUTES and then progress up from there. She's still a baby. Throw a HUGE party when she goes outside. I don't mean clap your hands and say, "good girl", I mean throw a legitimate party. Put your hands in the air, dance around, sing to her what a good girl she is, just go absolutely bonkers. The crazier you look and more ridiculous you feel, the better.

    Some pups are just slower than others to housebreak. Some pups aren't officially housebroken until they're 6 months old or even older.

    I would also bring a sample of urine in to your vet and have them check it, just to be sure she doesn't have a UTI or another medical condition like a recessed vulva. A recessed vulva wouldn't mean she can't housebreak, it's kind of a predisposition to UTIs. So might as well bring her in and get checked out, just to be sure.
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  7. #4
    Senior Dog Tanya's Avatar
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    if she is peeing frequently and in dribbles you may want to check for a UTI with the vet.

    when she is having accdients, where is she and wehre are you? Are you with her in teh same room or away? She should be under watchful eye or crated. If she is frequently going to "her area" to potty then it means she has adopted it as a bathroom. You may needt o rethink the area until she knows to be clean in the house (or better yet crate train).

    agree, reward reward reward still when she goes outside. Learn her schedule. feed her on a schedule so you shoudl know about when she should need to poo and thus know if she is holding back on you.

    I recommend crate training as well.

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  9. #5
    Real Retriever
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    Howdy and welcome to the forums!!

    Sorry it is taking so long to housebreak her. I'm no professional trainer but it sounds like your pup is getting the incorrect pattern down. You state you bring her in and two minutes later she goes. She regularly goes where you 'tether' her in an area. You need to break that pattern and start the proper one.

    You've had other puppies so must know what 'the look' is. The puppy will break off play, sniff the ground, maybe do a tight circle... Whatever the signal is, get her outside fast!!! If you KNOW she is going to go two minutes after you bring her in, watch her like a hawk for that two minutes and do the same, outside fast!!! Make it a 'business trip' and going poop/pee is the objective, nothing else. I repeat the word when they are going, "Pee, pee outside, good girls pee outside, go pee, pee, pee outside, good girl go pee....." THEN, the HUGE party afterwards!!! Get down on your knees and she gets all the lovin' she could ever what!!! YEAH!!!! Pee outside!!! What a good girl, YEAH!!! Then, back inside. You'll know if you are doing the praise party right as you will feel like a fool and the neighbors will peek over the fence wondering what the heck is going on!!!

    If you are both home all day, what is she doing tethered in the kitchen, out of your sight, where she can go as she pleases? She should be within your sight at all times as a puppy. If for no more reason that it is a puppy!!! Who doesn't want to have a puppy by them??? They don't stay really cute, little puppies for long, enjoy it while you can!!!

    If you work from home, tether her by you. Bring in her special blanket so she can relax there. If you move and do another project somewhere else, bring her blanket with you and put it down for her. She will learn that wherever the blanket is is 'home.' Great for traveling as you can put her blanket down anywhere and she always knows where she is supposed to be. If you move around a lot tether her to you. I used to block off parts of the house with cardboard boxes so my pup could roam a bit, but always be within my sight. Yeah, a pain as I had to step over them but all part of having a puppy to me. And Sunshine was fast! I could look, and she is sleeping... Type a sentence, look again... she is gone!!! LOL!!!

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  11. #6
    House Broken swanska's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by jester3125 View Post
    Hello,
    she is tethered in our kitchen and has a blanket and her bowls there to be "home" yet consistently pees and poops there despite how recently she has been taken out. .
    You are probably doing this but other than what others have mentioned, make sure that you are thoroughly cleaning the floor, walls, trim, blankets, etc. that might have received the slightest bit of pee or poop with an enzymatic cleaner like Natures Miracle. My dog has a bizarre separation anxiety issue where he will puddle on the floor. I have a spray bottle of N.M. and I generously apply it everything that might have been hit by his urine. I let it sit for a couple of minutes before wiping. If it is vinyl or such, I let it air dry. I had a cat with kidney disease and he liked to soil fabrics. I would pre-rinse those with water then soak them in N.M. before washing.

  12. #7
    Real Retriever KenZ71's Avatar
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    My newest addition doesn't seem to be house trained. He can go all night in his crate but around the house no more than 90 minutes.

    So, I am doing much like the above. Although even though I do work from home a couple days a week quiet often I have long conference calls. Solution: go outside 30 minutes before the call, play then come in & play for a few then into the crate till my call is done. Then repeat.

    Been doing this since Monday afternoon, no accidents since. Yeah, not getting as much work done as usual but I am working longer hours to make up.

    Keep at it, you can do it!
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    Lizzy - Terrier mix gotcha 6/29/2014 Born 2006?
    Zeus - Papillon mix gotcha 1/30/2015 Born 3/26/2014

    Avatar: Ziggy, my kitty who crossed the bridge a few years ago.
    He slept in the sink for years, silly boy.
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