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May 17, 2011

Our new pup is only having accidents on carpet. Is the carpet creating a problem for her? What can we do about it?

Full Question:
Hi,



We just got our 23 week old papillon. She took to the crate right away and for 2 weeks now has not had an accident in the crate. She even seems to enjoy her crate time. There have been numerous times that she has gone in during her play time when the crate door was open.



My question is this: She is only allowed in the family area of the house which includes kitchen (which is tiled) and family room (which is carpeted).?We have caught her in the act of relieving herself in the family room (carpet).?Fortunately, we have caught her in time to stop the process and get her outside and all but a time or two she has completed her duties outside. Last week, my husband and I took her camping with us. The camper is all vinyl flooring. For five days and nights, she didn?t have a single accident. However, as soon as we got home yesterday, she almost pooped and then almost peed on the carpet. We got her outside in time but I would like to know if the carpet might be creating a problem for her? If so, what can we do about it (other than pull up our carpet and replace with hard flooring)?



Thank you,
Nanette
Cindy
Cindy Cindy's Answer:
Dogs are stimulated to relieve themselves by the surface they were originally trained or raised on (i.e. gravel, grass, newspaper, concrete). The feeling of the carpet under her feet is the trigger to go to the bathroom.



It sounds like your puppy was allowed to use carpet or soft bedding as a bathroom. If this was my puppy, I would NOT allow any access to carpet at all until you’ve established really clear cues for elimination. At 23 weeks old she has had a lot of practice using the wrong surface before you got her. It’s going to take a lot of time to reteach her. 



When you do finally allow her access to the carpet again, keep her on a leash attached to you and pay close attention. Actually she should always be on leash anyway, since she’s not fully trained. You don’t want any more rehearsals of the wrong behavior.



I’d recommend these 2 videos:
Your Puppy 8 weeks to 8 Months
Pack Structure for the Family Pet



I hope this helps.



Cindy Rhodes

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