Puppy Training Q&As

Hi Cindy, I made a mistake with the potty training with my new pup. I had 3 ex pens for her, one outside for a potty area, one in the garage for middle of the night trips (necessary because I don't go out in the middle of the night due to wildlife and bear that visit our deck) and one in the kitchen area for containment. I either have my 9 week old tethered to me, in her crate or in the pen. I follow all the housebreaking rules as best I can. Here is the problem. Due to wetness...

Hi, My puppy is six months old, we got him over the summer and did not get a crate since I am off at that time. We used puppy pads and now I have a monster, he will go outside but not to potty. It don't matter how long I stay out, nothing happens, but as soon as we come in, on the pad he goes. Those pads cost a lot after a while, especially when the puppy already weighs 50#. Any ideas on where to start undoing this mess I made? Other than this bad habit, he is well behaved, just tr...

I have two pomeranians female & male around 5 months old. The male uses pee pads most of time-he's more calm & listens better than female. She uses pee pads sometimes but loves to chew them up. I went & bought natures miracle brand which did help her to pee on pad more but still they want to chew them up. I'm very tired of this. I've told them 'no' firmly & corrected them over & over & over! What can I do? I have used the treat method also. I'm exhausted. I've never had this type of pro...

Good morning, Ed. I read your site, and especially your article on crate training. I bought a dog 3 weeks ago - she was a rescue. Overall, I think her training has gone pretty well. She doesn't go to the bathroom in the home, but I believe that's mostly because I've been watching her constantly when she's not in her crate. I put bells beside the door, and have been training her to tap them with her nose when she needs to go to the bathroom. She's doing that MOST of the time ...

Hello Ed, I have a 3 year old Pitt/Shar Pei that I rescued about 8 months ago. About 4 days ago I was taking him out of his crate and before I could put the leash on him he urinated. He did that through out the whole day no matter how many times I took him out. After doing that for two days he did not go in the crate but went as soon as he got out of the it. Then the day after he goes when we are at the front door. I don't know why he just started it or how to retrain the habit any help wi...

Hello Ed, I had a few questions about e-collar training. Do you think it is a good idea to use an e-collar to house train a dog? Would you simply correct the dog with the collar when they are actually in the act of using the house to potty with a stern NO! command and then place them outside in the area they need to go potty (then reward when they do go in the right place)? I am figuring that this would teach the dog, if you go potty in the house, you will get a shock.

Dear Cindy, Warm Greetings from Maryland! I have a very specific question about Housetraining that only has to do with the time period in a puppy's life when it is very young from 8-12 weeks of age where it has very little bladder control. (I believe you said about 2hrs. or so is max. time between potty-breaks). I know your #1 rule is to teach the puppy to stay clean IN his crate and Rule #2 is for the puppy to learn to go to the bathroom OUTSIDE ONLY. Here is where I'm un...

Our 10 month old Cavalier is mostly housebroken. The problem we have is at other people's homes and when we take him to work. Even if he has just gone out, he will come back in and relieve himself within a few minutes. Michele

Dear Ed, I have a Pit, Shar Pei mix that I rescued who is about three years old who is still intact. My wife wants me to get him neutered because she is afraid that he will urinate (mark) in the house and on the furniture. Would getting him neutered prevent him from marking in the house since he is already in the habit of marking? Kind regards, Frank

Ed, Great website. I have a question that I did not see covered in the Q&A section. My fiance and I have a 10 month old King Charles Spaniel. Before recently moving in with me she lived on the 3rd floor of an apartment complex and worked long hours. Therefore she trained our dog to pee on the pads. Now they have moved in with me and while my backyard is somewhat small it does have grass and I would prefer the dog use the backyard rather than the pads. Also, the dog poops on my rug ...

Dear Cindy, My Dogo (born May 2009) has a poop problem. I've tried many things but nothing seems to work. 1. After eating between 6-7 in the afternoon, I take her to walk for about half a mile and after that I let her play in the backyard for about 1.5 hours. At that time, her crate is quite big, 1.2m x 1.2 m. In the morning, about 5:45, she pooped in her crate. 2. After that I tried to put her in crate with the door opened. For a few days she didn't poop in the crate...

I have spent a very large amount of time searching for answers to this particular issue, and so far I have not found the answers I have needed. I am hoping you can help me. I have 2 dogs that are approximately 3 years old. We adopted them about 6 months ago, and as far as we know, they have always been together, and it seems like they have very similar issues. They are fearful dogs, but once we started crating them and keeping them on a leash otherwise, they have started to become a littl...

I have a 3 yr old staffordshire terrier. He's housebroken but pees on beds and couches. What can I do? David

Hello, I have a 1 year old toy poodle and a 2 year old yorkie. They successfully use puppy pads during the day and they are gated in a sizable tiled area. When I am home, they have full run of the house and they always go downstairs to use the pad. However, if I leave them in the house for even 15 minutes alone or I am in the shower, I find poop and urine in my carpeted dining room upstairs. It seems as if they make an effort to go to the bathroom. I am also not able to figure out which on...

Hi Cindy, Thanks for all the great DVDs and advice. I wrote to you not too long ago praising how our dog had no problems or accidents in the house because we have been following your training DVDs religiously. We have a 5 month old Boxer that has been PERFECT (and I mean PERFECT). He is trained to go to the bathroom (on leash) on command in a specific area in the yard and has done so for the last 3 months without a hitch and will sometimes goes potty on walks, but not often. Yester...

Hello, I'm a first time dog owner, and have just recently purchased a Morkie (Maltese/Yorkie cross). As to date, he is 14 weeks old. A week after I brought him home (6 weeks ago), he was diagnosed with Giardia. Unfortunately, the vet I brought him to was incompetent, and gave me the wrong meds. After finishing those meds and not seeing any improvement in his diarrhea, I brought him to another vet, and that's when they told me he not only had Giardia but also Coccidia. He has 2 more...

Hi Cindy, My puppy, born Feb 3rd is a Rat Terrier. She can't seem to get through a meal with out having to go outside to do her business. I take her out before she eats. She starts eating and then has to go poop again in the middle. It's very frustrating as I have to stand in the area waiting or she'll go in the crate. She is on a raw food diet with Kibble on the side. She'll eat her meat, go the the bathroom and then want to finish her meal. I realize that she is s...

Hi Cindy, We are house training our G.S. pup (13 weeks old) and he is doing quite well. Now, while in the house, he is either on a leash with me or in his crate. He has not had an accident since we began this practice but I'm not sure how to correct him if/when he does. In the past when I have caught him in the act, I would sternly say 'No - Outside' and take him out to his potty spot. Should my correction be more firm than this or this appropriate? Thank you, Adam

Hi, I so hope you can help me. I am at my wits end and I have not been able to find any similar questions about this problem. We have a three year old golden retriever. She is housebroken and goes during walks and in the fenced in area of our yard. About a year ago, we got rid of the grass and replaced it with gravel. At first our dog was a little hesitant to urinate on the gravel but then she got the hang of it and did it all the time. We recently covered most of the gravel with p...

Hello, Your website is fantastic and full of so much information. I have many of your DVDs and have looked through many articles. You must be very busy but I was hoping you could help me with what seems like a very simple problem. I have a 6 month old mix and have had him since 12 weeks. He has been crate trained and has no problem going to the bathroom outside on command. In the past 3 weeks he has suddenly been going (once or twice a week) to the bathroom by the back door which h...