potty confusion
My daughter gave us an OES puppy and we love him to death, rotten as he is. He is thirteen weeks old. We crate him at about 9:00 pm and I let him out at 2:30a.m. when I get up for work. His crate is always dry. He is also crated for about five hours during the day until I get home at about 12:30p.m and he is usually dry, so I know that he can hold it for about 5 hours. When I do take him out, he immediately relieves himself. The problem is, tweny minutes later he is making little puddles here and there. When he is out of the crate, he makes no effort to hold his bladder. Can anyone shed any light on how I can help him understand what I need him to do. Ben's Mom |
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| That will come in time, and is common puppy behavior. The fact that he keeps his crate clean is excellent! It means he does indeed have clean habits. Maybe stay with him outside a little longer, let him pee a few times, and then come in. Also, make sure greetings and being let out of the crate are not excited greetings, but just calm, laid back, yeah I'm home let's go pee greetings, and save the excited voice for praise when he pees outside.
He will likely grow out of it, so just be consistent. I doubt it is a urinary tract infection since he keeps his crate dry, but perhaps mention it to the vet anyway when you take him for his check up and next set of shots. Welcome to the forum  |
| Welcome to the forum Ben's Mom!!! There are a lot of new puppies on the forum, so this may be a good time for all of us!
Do you have any pics of your pets and/or anything you can share with us? We love seeing everyone's kiddos (2 and 4-legged). Aren't you loving the attn. from strangers and friends who see your new joy?! My other adult maltese gets neglected now when we go to petsmart every other day. |
| It may have nothing to do with bladder control. Alpha dogs retain urine in their bladder to mark their territory.
See: The Dog Listener: Learn How to Communicate with Your Dog for Willing Cooperation, by Jan Fennell |
| True but no 13 week old puppy would consider itself an alpha in any situation, just not natural. |
| How often are you taking him out when he's not crated?
This "control" depends on how he was raised at the breeder - did they begin housebreaking there - or did the pups relieve themselves in their "area" (on papers or pads, etc.). If it's the latter, this will take some time to break him of this habit. Puppies learn alot during the 6-12 week - and some of those habits take a while to re-learn. Be sure you are letting him go completely when he's outside (sometimes they take a few tries) and then be sure to let him out frequently until he realizes that is where he's supposed to go. Try not to scold him or get upset when he has an accident. He's very young still - they don't know any better and getting upset or telling him NO is going to confuse him. Clean it with a odor enzyme cleaner and ignore it. When he does go outside make a HUGE deal of it telling him what a good boy he is and praise him (you can give him treats too). He will catch on! Good Luck - let us know how you make out! Kristen |
| Thank you, everyone, for the helpful advice.
If I catch him in the act, I say NO sharply and get him outside. I never get upset or scold him if I find it after the fact. I have been cleaning up adult puddles (strays and rescues) for years and I have my rug shampooer cocked and ready LOL. I guess I'm a little nervous because I've never had a puppy and I don't want to screw him up. I've taken in a few damaged dogs through the years, and I don't want to be the cause of any problems for Ben. As it is, the other two dogs don't like him and I am always closely supervising their interactions. I am reading both The Dog Listener: Learn How to Communicate with Your Dog for Willing Cooperation, by Jan Fennell and The Dog Whisperer: A Compassionate, Nonviolent Approach to Dog Training, by Paul Owens, Norma Eckroate but I couldn't find anything about this particular problem. But if you experienced OES puppy people say it's to be expected, that's good enough for me. I will just be patient and consistant. Thanks again. |
| Congrats on your new OES. I can understand your confusion. With Barney just 4+ months old, I've been there too. Barney hasn't messed or peed in his crate since he came home at 2 months. But the first month, he'd be let out after being crated for 4-5 hrs, go potty, then he'd come in, we'd be playing, I'd get involved in something and miss his signal and boom! a puddle. I knew that they have to go after eating and after playing; I had to learn that regardless of what I was doing, I had to keep an eye on him or an ear attuned to his activity constantly because if I missed his signal - usually stop playing with his toys, walking to the door, or any change in his behavior, it was time to let him out. Now its almost second nature: he will sit at the door when he wants to go. On the times I caught him in the act, I'd show him the puddle, say shame, and take him out. On the times I caught his signal and got him out and he peed outside, I praised him profusely. For me I learned I have to watch him like a baby and be consistent. Even now after playing, when he looses interest and sits at the door, I know he wants to go out. This may occur several times in an hour. Hope this helps. |
Ben's Mom wrote: Thank you, everyone, for the helpful advice. [Lord, let me be half the person my dog thinks I amIf I catch him in the act, I say NO sharply and get him outside. I never get upset or scold him if I find it after the fact. I have been cleaning up adult puddles (strays and rescues) for years and I have my rug shampooer cocked and ready LOL. I guess I'm a little nervous because I've never had a puppy and I don't want to screw him up. I've taken in a few damaged dogs through the years, and I don't want to be the cause of any problems for Ben. As it is, the other two dogs don't like him and I am always closely supervising their interactions. I am reading both The Dog Listener and The Dog Whisperer but I couldn't find anything about this particular problem. But if you experienced OES puppy people say it's to be expected, that's good enough for me. I will just be patient and consistant. Thanks again. |
| By saying "NO" or "Shame" you are scolding him. They don't understand what you are scolding them for and it will cause more confusion.
Ignore it - don't say anything. That's my suggestion anyway. Kristen |
| Saying NO (Not in an angry tone, more like a "I don't like you doing that here, young man!" tone) and getting him was OK for Lennon and Sofa. What comes next after that, is that you have to STAY OUTSIDE until they go about their business again, then super praise and use the "GO POTTY!" command so your pup starts going on command. After that, they can come inside.
That way they start understanting they have to go outside. Also, learn to read their body languaje. They start getting suspicious and walk in circles just before they are about to go. If you catch them and then thake them outside, they learn really fast. |
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