Bichon Chiuauau cross - Potty problems !!!

Hi, my girlfriend has a Bichon Frise male dog called Dave.
Dave is a lovely dog and is nearly 3 years old.
The problem is his weeing in the house, i have only been with my girlfriend a few months and am trying to train him. We take him out fairly frequently around the flats and he marks every blade of grass he can. however my mrs lives on the third floor of flats so we cant just open the door and send him out.
We have tried training pads which half work, but still find patches of pee elsewhere. He sometimes pees on the side of his bed but i have also found some on her leather sofas and mainly in the kitchen.
We are planning on getting him neutered next month as have heard this can work, but we are at our wits end trying to stop him. He always pees in the house when were not looking as neither of us have ever caught him in the act.
Any suggestions would be welcomed as if we could stop him peeing in the house he would be the perfect dog.

Cheers
Lee

The trick is to never leave him out of your sight unless crated. The important part will be teaching it that if it goes to the door, you will take it out. You will need to learn to read the dog and learn its schedule, and when it needs to go out. Keep it in sight, closing doors and setting up gates. Some people even leash the dog to themselves. I have used a tie down at my computer desk.
If you catch it in the act, give it a sharp ''Ah, ah, ah!'' and take it out on leash. Walk around. They can only walk and hold it so long. When it finally has to go, lavish praise on it.

When you can't watch it, crate it. It is only natural that a dog resists its crate at first. What the dog wants more than anything else is to be others, you, anyone else in the household, and any other pets. In our modern society, even if we are home, other things distract us from the attention an uncrated dog must have. The only real solution is to crate the dog when you aren't around. The dog may be happier in its den than loose in the house. It relaxes, it feels safe in its den. It rests, the body slows down reducing the need for water and relieving its self. Dogs that have been crated all along do very well. Many of them will rest in their crates even when the door is open. I think the plastic ones give the dog more of a safe, enclosed den feeling. Metal ones can be put in a corner or covered with something the dog can't pull in and chew. Select a crate just big enough for the full grown dog to stretch out in.

Leave it some toys. Perhaps a Kong filled with peanut butter. Don't leave anything in the crate the dog might chew up. It will do fine without even any bedding. You will come home to a safe dog and a house you can enjoy. I never leave any dog alone more than 4-5 hours through the day, and advise against others doing it.

A dog that has not been crated since it was little, may take some work. Start out just putting its toys and treats in the crate. Praise it for going in. Feed it in the crate. This is also an easy way to maintain order at feeding time for more than one dog.

The "shut the puppy in a safe room" is a fallacy. Very few houses even have a safe room. How many of us have a room with a hard surfaced floor and nothing else? Most rooms have electrical cords to chew if nothing else. In addition to destroying anything a bored puppy finds to chew, it may choke or have intestinal blockage from the pieces. I had a friend that left her dog in a "safe" room. It ate a hole in the floor covering. The safe rooms fail to give the dog the comfort of the enclosed space their instinct requires. Nor do they restrict activity extending the time the dog can go without relieving itself.

Note, there are those here that feel that such ''not the way they have always done it techniques'' are abusive. I feel they don't have a good understanding of dogs and let their emotions rule over facts.

Can i ask has Dave ever been clean in the home? If he has never been trained that the place to toilet is outside the aparment, then you cannot blame him for toiletting inside.

If he has been clean in the house, and that has changed recently - that needs to be checked by a veterinarian.

If he is 'marking' then neutering may help, but you still need to look at why he is marking in an area where he should feel safe and settled (his home).

Hi thanks for the advice we will give crate training a try. The problem with Dave is that he shows no signs that he needs the toilet at all. He never really settles which is another strange trait. He will lie down on the carpet for a couple minutes then get in his bed for a couple mins then lie on the sofa etc etc. He just doesnt seem to settle down for very long at all. He never chews anything and doesnt seem to like to play. i have tried fighting with him but he runs off after about 10 seconds of playing and he never plays with toys.

I will look into crate training.

Do you think neutering him will help with him weeing ?

No he has always done this, my gf has tried to take him out as often as possible but to no real avail. She is a school teacher and takes him out before school about 8ish and then returns at lunch about 12:30 and then left again until 4. So he is left alone in sections of four hours.

I really dont know why he is marking inside as it doesnt make sense to me. I am doing as much research as possible.

[QUOTE=bcfclee27;1995972] The problem with Dave is that he shows no signs that he needs the toilet at all. He never really settles which is another strange trait. He will lie down on the carpet for a couple minutes then get in his bed for a couple mins then lie on the sofa etc etc. He just doesnt seem to settle down for very long at all. He never chews anything and doesnt seem to like to play. i have tried fighting with him but he runs off after about 10 seconds of playing and he never plays with toys.

QUOTE]

Sounds like Dave has some problems - the weeing/marking may well be a symptom. Dogs should be able to settle. Some dogs have to be taught to play. Has your girlfriend ever tried to play games with him? Fyi, lots of dogs do not like to 'fight' with people.

Some dogs mark/wee because of anxiety - neutering is not going to help that.

Sounds like Dave has some problems - the weeing/marking may well be a symptom. Dogs should be able to settle. Some dogs have to be taught to play. Has your girlfriend ever tried to play games with him? Fyi, lots of dogs do not like to 'fight' with people.

Some dogs mark/wee because of anxiety - neutering is not going to help that.[/QUOTE]

She tried to play fetch a few times but he didnt understand and got upset when she took the ball off him as he didnt bring it back. I think he was more interested in chewing the ball.

ANy ideas what "games" i can teach him and how do u do this ??

How do you tell if its anxiety problems as he seems a happy dog to me ???

Val brought up a good point. Neutering is more likely to help if the problem is at least partly marking. In some cases, neutering is all it takes and in others, it requires more training.

I don't like to guess about behavioural problems without seeing a dog, there are too many things that have to be looked at. But to me 'not settling' and marking (if that is what it is) in the home are a reasonable indication that something is not right.

It might be that he gets bored, he might be unsettled by a change of routine, he might be an anxious dog who has never had much confidence (in which case it is just as well he hasn't been neutered earlier), he might have the wrong diet. . . . and so on and so on.

Does he get exercise outside the home? Not just a quick jaunt to have a wee and poo, but a walk or a run in the park where he can sniff smells and meet other dogs etc?

Has he had any training? Running through some of his behaviours - sit, down, stand, touch, recall etc will give him something to think about. Some trick training might help. Success in training - understanding what is required of him - is great for increasing confidence with a lot of dogs.

He likes chewing? Chewing can be very relaxing for anxious dogs. How about getting him some chew toys? A kong which can be stuffed with his dinner and breakfast - instead of from his bowl. If he enjoys his food this can be a great way to encourage him to settle (while he eats his meals).

If he enjoys (or did enjoy) chasing things but then wants to hold on to them to chew I don't see a problem with that. Get him some chew toys that can be thrown for him. Or teach him to play hide and seek. Hide a chew toy (showing where you are hiding it to begin with) tell him to go find, and let him have the chew toy when he finds it. You can gradually make the game more difficult for him until you are hiding toys in other rooms, under the bed, whereever and send him to go find. Don't make it too difficult too quickly and leave him to play with the found toy in anyway he wants - which by the sound of it will be chewing. Get a few toys that he is really interested in and keep them for this game - rotating which one you hide for him.

If exercise, bit of training, kongs, checking his diet don't help then I would suggest you see a behaviourist. There are loads and loads of 'behaviourists' out there - some will cause you more problems than you have now! So please go to see a reputable one - APBC, UKRCB or COAPE - following a referral by your vet.

Hi Lee,

To me it seems that Dave has just never really been 100% housetrained and has now established ongoing bad habits, not from his point of view, he has it all worked out in his head where he can go, and when (i.e. when no one is looking)!

It is difficult in an apartment when you have to climb down 3 flights of stairs every-time, but as he is 3 years old, he should be able to hold on for 4 hours or so now, and go through the night too.

i think you need to go completely back to basics. It will take a little hard work initially, almost like having a new pup, but with perseverance I am sure he can re-learn A crate or puppy pen should help, as most dogs don't like to toilet in their sleeping area, but if he has built up bad habits already, he may be one of the exceptions. I understand though that it takes time to get dogs used to the crate idea if they have always had free run of the house.

First things first, get him checked by the vet to make sure there are no physical/medical problems.

If all ok, you need to make sure that all previous accidents are cleaned up, this will probably entail the whole of the apartment, as he has probably learned to find little spots where he is not seen, such as corners, skirting boards, underneath furniture etc. (not saying that this has not already been done) but it needs to be cleaned with something that will remove all traces of the scent. there are some things you can buy for this from pet shop, and also some household products, but certainly nothing ammonia based.

For now he needs to be supervised all of the time when your girlfriend is home, when this is not possible, crated or put into his pen, this is important. he should ideally be taken outside as frequently as possible at the mo. rewarded big time for toilet outside (treats/praise). I would also have a litter box outside the apartment initially with puppy pads so that IF he is caught in the act indoors, he can be told NO, and be given a place outside the flat to go. (temporary measure, until he starts to get the message, no pee indoors)

Another thing I'm wandering is about his routine, how many times does he get to go out, not just for toilet, but for walking/playing etc. Does he have a solid routine?