Help OES Training Issues
Bina |
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| Nah, he's not being spiteful, he's just a baby. Some dogs take longer to housetrain than others. If he's doing it when you aren't watching, then maybe when you can't watch him, you could confine him to a crate or a smaller space until he's more trustworthy. At that age, they're not always sure that they have to go-- sometimes it creeps up really fast on them and, next thing you know, there's a pile on the floor. It's normal. Frustrating, but normal. |
oliver wrote: I have a four month old sheepdog named oliver who is being very stubborn about housetraining. He knows to go to the door to let us know and hes fine when I have my eye on him but the minute I take my eyes off him he poops in the house. Its like he sits by the door to let me know when he wants to and othertimes he doesnt care. I feel like he is being spitefull on purpose. Im not sure why because he gets so much love and attention. I think he knows to go potty outside so why does he sometimes go inside? Help. If anyone has any ideas that would be greatly appreciated. Thankx
Bina Hi, there and welcome to the forum. There is a thread on Housetraining that you might want to go through, as there is tons of information and tips on this particualr topic. Please remember that 4 months is still quite young for a dog to be totally house-trained, and it usually isn't really reliable before 6. Be patient and consistent and you will get there. Oliver is not being spitefull, or stubborn. He is still learning and just doesn't know all the ins and outs, yet. From your description of what is happening I think that Oliver is half understanding what is expected of him. He knows not to do potty around you, which is great for when when he is outside, but not when he is inside. So you need to make it better understood. If I were in your position I would go outside with him every time it was potty time, and catch him in the act. When he starts to go he gets a tiny, tasty treat. If he will not go when you are around it may be as a result of being "corrected" so he will hide it. Put him on a really long lead so he can get far from you to do his job, and then you can approach him and reward him. As for inside the house do not leave him unsupervised. Crate him or keep him tethered to you, or at least always in the same room, so you can keep an eye on him and watch for signals. If he happens to do something in front of you inside the house you can quietly make a sound like "un uh" , and take him out...but do not scold him or frighten him because he will just learn to hide from you to do his duty...which is not good. Again, refer to the section on this topic for more specifics. Good luck! |
| A 4 month old puppy is about the same as a 2 year old child in terms of potty training: a few are really trained, but most are only 'almost there' and not completely reliable. Also, around that age, there are sometimes some relapses. It's not spite--it's just not being grown up all the way.
Good advice has been given in this thread. It does take patience, but you'll both get there. |
| Good advice so far. Don't be discouraged just continue to be consistent with lots of praise & a treat for going outside.
4 months is still very young, and it is wonderful that he is learning to signal to you that he needs to go outside. Physically, they are able to control their bladder at a younger age than they're able to control their bowels. As someone else said, it sneaks up on them and he doesn't yet have the control to hold it long enough to tell you he needs to go out. He'll get there, in time. Good luck, and welcome to the forum! |
| I was in the same spot as you just a few short months ago. Simon just did not seem to "get" it. He was 4mo old and still piddling in the house. We put a bell on the door and trained him to ring it. Still piddling in the house. We finally took him out every fifteen to thirty minutes. Yes, that often. Yes, he did "go". Then one day I realized he did not "go" in the house. Then another day and another. Holy cow!!!!! This dog was finally "getting" it. My advice is NEVER let your dog out by himself, take him out on a leash. Praise him when he goes and take him right back in the house and give him a treat, all the time telling him what a good boy he is. Don't play with him outside, do that in the house until he learns what outside is for. Don't scold him if he has an accident, he is still just a baby. Don't turn your back on him for an instant, cause in that instant...well you know what will happen. Simon is now almost eight months old and housebroken. He rings the bell when he wants to go or just comes running with that look in his eyes. Hang in there. It won't be much longer until he "gets" it....Pam aka Simon's Mom |
| Hang in there! All good advice so far. What really worked for us with our sheepie was the positive reinforcement.....treats, treats and more treats! I took Oscar out on a leash everytime, and when he pottied, he got a treat immediately. Remember to give the treat right away, as dogs have about a 3 second window of association, especially this young.
Good luck, and remember, this too shall pass! Laurie |
| I can only reiterate what has already been said. He is not being spiteful at all and please do not scold him when he has the accident. It'll only make things worse. When he goes in the house, if you "catch him in the act" just say Oh oh, and scoop him up and take him outside. Stay with him and repeat a command, like potty, until he goes then praise him like crazy when he does. Do not just let him out alone. You need to be there with him outside each and every time he goes outside to giev him the praise or he'll never get it...
While in the house, do not let him roam free. Maybe use some baby gates to gate him into an area where he can still see what's going on in the house yet not be freely roaming about unsupervised. Maybe the kitchen....remember, when he goes potty, he is not doing anything wrong. He just has to learn from you where to go... Four months is still quite a baby...he may not be able to give you a warning before he goes. I found keeping a log very helpful... Also, keep in mind, clean the area in the house so the odor is gone. And also, he may go a few times in a row so don;t hurry him back into the house right away...good luck. |
| I know that some have already suggested having a bell. I thought I would add that this helped at our house as well. Sometimes Miley would sit by the door and other times she would not. We were missing her "I gotta go signal". I started ringing a bell, going outside when did her business we would treat and praise. It took only a couple of days and she began ringing the bell herself (which we really praised) and then going outside to go potty. We also have a fairly routine day that I think also helps. Wake up, go outside get breakfast, walk, etc.
Hope thhis helps. |
| The bell worked great for us, too. We only trained Clyde on it but Bear picked it up on his own. The one bad part: once they realize ringing gets them a trip outside, they start using it as a manipulative tool, whether they have to go or not! |
| London was about 6 mths old when I started realizing that we weren't having any accidents in the house and she was truly housetrained. |
| My babies are now 5 and 6 months old. At Christmas, they were still having a few wetting accidents, but then something just snapped and it seemed like overnight, they never had accidents again pretty soon after Christmas. It's easier with two puppies though, I think. I did teach the hearing puppy how to knock and we went through a few days of him getting a cookie every time he knocked to go out, even when I knew it was just a ploy to get more cookies, somehow it taught him; I also got very, very excited about it which made him very wiggle-butty. |
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