April 21, 2011
I have a 6 month old Rott. I followed the book on housetraining but he still poops on the floor when I leave the home. What can I do?
Full Question:
Dear Ed,I am the owner of a 6 month old rottweiler puppy. From the day I got him at eight weeks I followed the book on housetraining. I went out with him every time, praised him when he went outside, only scolded him when I caught him in the act of going in the house etc. My dog still won't stop going to the bathroom in the house. I am at home most of the day, but occasionally I leave for an hour or two, when I return there is pee and poo all over my living room and kitchen. I didn't buy my dog a crate because when I got him I thought I would be home so much that I wouldn't need one. Now I'm worried it's too late to crate him. I am afraid to leave him for more than an hour or two because of his lack of control. Also, when I am at home, unless I am in the same room with him he will go in the house. He has learned that if he leaves the room to go to the bathroom, he usually finishes before I can catch him in the act, and won't be punished. I thought these problems would go away as he got older, but they haven't. Please help me. If I can't correct this problem I will have to give up my dog. Any advice you have would be helpful. Thank you.
Sincerely,
Lauren
Ed's Answer:
I hate to tell you this but this is a handler problem. When you say that you "followed the book on house training" I would ask what book that is because I never heard of any professional trainer recommending allowing a 6 month old dog to be unattended and loose in the house.
You should be using a dog crate. I recommend that you read the article I wrote on housetraining and ALL OF THE Q&A sections. You can find this on the article page on my web site at http://leerburg.com/articles.htm.
I NEVER allow a young dog to be loose in the house when I am not home until it's 20 years old. I never allow a 6 month old dog to be loose in the house unless I personally have my eyes on him 100% of the time.
I would recommend you purchase the video I produced titled "Your Puppy 8 Weeks to 8 Months". I have owned and trained German Shepherds for 40 years. In the past 2 years I have bred over 300 litters of working bloodline German Shepherds. I give this video to all of my puppy customers and never get questions on how to raise a pup. Read the description of the tape on my web site. Dog training is not rocket science its simple common sense ideas on how to handle and train a dog. The VHS version has 2 hours of excellent information, the DVD version has 2 ½ hours of training information along with 15 puppy training articles that I have written.
You should be using a dog crate. I recommend that you read the article I wrote on housetraining and ALL OF THE Q&A sections. You can find this on the article page on my web site at http://leerburg.com/articles.htm.
I NEVER allow a young dog to be loose in the house when I am not home until it's 20 years old. I never allow a 6 month old dog to be loose in the house unless I personally have my eyes on him 100% of the time.
I would recommend you purchase the video I produced titled "Your Puppy 8 Weeks to 8 Months". I have owned and trained German Shepherds for 40 years. In the past 2 years I have bred over 300 litters of working bloodline German Shepherds. I give this video to all of my puppy customers and never get questions on how to raise a pup. Read the description of the tape on my web site. Dog training is not rocket science its simple common sense ideas on how to handle and train a dog. The VHS version has 2 hours of excellent information, the DVD version has 2 ½ hours of training information along with 15 puppy training articles that I have written.
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