Really need help with toileting problem

Raina is nearly 8 months now and she is still peeing and pooing in the house when we are not there. Its not everytime and not even dependant on length of time we are out. She shows no other signs of SA so i dont think its this either. My husband is at the end of his teather and says we either sort if out or she will have to have a kennel built outside.

Overnight she sleeps with us and is now going through the night without needing to go out. When we are here she shows little signs she needs to go out and we let her out. She then gets a click and a treat when she has done her thing.

The main problem seems to be the dinning room, she seems to think there is no problem with just going in there and will make no effort to hold if we are not about to ask to go out if in the dinning room. When we are in however she is fine.

Please Please help as i am out of ideas of what to do!

Hi,

I am wondering whether or not she has leaned that she needs to hold it. Do you let her out as soon as she asks? You say that she holds it at night, do you know if she sleeps through?

Sorry to just ask questions, but I am trying to work out could be going on in her head!

No worries ask away! I am at a loss at to what she is thinking. At about 5:30am 6ish she wakes up, wakes me up and gets a bit restless. Depending on how insitant she is she normally goes back to bed or has a play with ela until about 7-7:30am when i get up and let them out. She goes right outside and does a wee comes back for her treat and will go and do a poo sometimes. Other times her morning poo waits until after she has had brekkie.

What about trying to get her into a routine of going out a certain times rather than just letting her out when she asks? I think doing this gradually would be best ie. each time she asks you gradually increase the amount of time you wait before letting her out until you are only letting her out at certain times. I would try and make this every 3 to 4 hours depending on your routine.

I think maybe you need to go back to basics with her, I presume she is not crate trained, and that she has free access to the whole house. Perhaps confine her to a smaller area when she cannot be supervised, and definitely no access to the dining room. You are right I expect she thinks it is perfectly fine to use the dining room if she cannot access outside. Make sure to remove all trace of doggy odors in said room.

She will learn, but you need to be really on her case, not telling her off, but close scrutiny, perhaps also up the treats when she does go in the right place. Jackpot treats!!

Don't let her near the dining room until she has been reliably performing outside for some weeks, old habits die hard lol

Thanks for the tips so far, will try getting her to toilet in a rountine rather then on demand.

The problem i have though is the dinning room is the 'dog room' when we go out. There is no other safe contained space for all three dogs to stay in. If left in the living room i would have no sofa to come home too! We have a baby gate that sectioned it off from the dinning room . . .

I too feel you should go back to basics as somewhere along the line she may have misread what she has to do

The other thing to think about is that some puppies [and yes she is still just a pup] take longer than others to "hold on" and she may be anything up to 12 months before she is completely house trained. No ones fault, not hers either, she just has not got the "control" - she is still a puppy [liken her to a toddler] and when she gets the urge to "go" - she goes, simple as that

Tell your hubby to hang on [no pun intended!] a while longer, it will all come together

Crate her when you go out. Make sure she has been beforte you go and leave her with a stuffed kong or similar.

She'll get there, just needs to break the habit.

rune

Hi Rachel if I may add a little to the suggestions already given ...

Are you just letting Raina out? You need to be as sure as you can that she is 'empty' when you leave her and the best way to do this is to take her for a short walk rather than letting her out , the scent of other dogs and the exercises will stimulate her to empty herself. I would take some treats with you and praise/treat Raina the moment she finishes 'going' so it becomes a rewarding experience for her and one she will be eager to repeat.

Also are you thoroughly cleaning any previously soiled areas with a none ammonia based cleaner (like biological washing powder) to remove every trace of scent or Raina may continue to soil there and if possible restrict access to this room for the moment until she can be trusted to be clean.

The best solution to problem behaviors when you aren't around is the crate. It is only natural that a puppy resists its crate at first. What the puppy 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 puppy 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.

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.