You can buy a cheap baby's play pen at garage sales or the newspaper. I used it for my GSD when she wasn't in the crate and I couldn't watch constantly. Works great, just be aware they will still pee/poop in the pen if you don't get them outside on a regular basis, which is what GF is not doing. But, at least it's not the carpet.

my sister in law has a miniature dachshund, 2 years old and I still don't trust that little @#@%@# out of my sight for a minute in my house. Dachshunds are notoriously difficult to housetrain, so don't feel too bad.

I read this and had a brainfart...what about litterbox training the stinker? They sell them for dogs now, and from what I hear it is very easy and works great for dogs like this. Also one thing that I didn't see mentioned on here is DO NOT let your dog see you clean up his mess. Also Quinn not to sound like to much of a repeater but YES your woman needs to get with this whole puppy potty training or it will NEVER happen.

Litterbox training a dog is, IMHO, just a convience for the owner. If your going to put the effort in that, why not take the little extra time to do it right.

Gotta agree with Old E.... Who wants to come home to smell the dog litter box?

Anything that has to poop in a box does not live in my house. End of story.

Also, enlighten me as to why the dog is not allowed to see you clean up the mess? I have NEVER heard that before, yet my dogs are somehow housebroken.... <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" />

The bottom line with ALL of our post is the dog can't make a mistake if it's NEVER out of your site. If it does, it's not the dogs mistake.

hey quinn , sympathize with your problem , but....
i , too , believe that the crate is the key to solving this problem . as i understand it , dogs will not soil the place where they sleep . dogs are denning creatures . over time , they will transfer the feelings they have for their crate , to the whole house , and would no sooner soil the house than they would their crate . paper training , IMO , is totally off the mark , because they are still crapping in the house . errors in that method occur because you didn't happen to have the paper out , or in the right place .
your fiance needs to understand that the crate is the dogs home , his place of solace , where he will find comfort and peace . with time , he'll come to enjoy his time in his crate .
put the crate beside the bed . dog sleeps in there . wake up , dog goes out for relief . dog does that , comes in for breakfast , possibly in crate , play time , back in crate . out side for relief . back in , play time , crate . unless you or the fiance are doing something specific with the dog , he's in the crate or in the pen ( good idea ) .
you are not doing the dog any favors by letting him loose , crapping in the house , doing whatever he likes .
i totally agree with morris' bottom line . any one going to touch the bed sleeping thing ?

The housebreaking issue will never end if all the humans in the household aren't in agreement on how the dog is handled - and this is just the first problem. Many other, and likely more significant, problems are certain to develop if all the humans cannot agree to provide consistency.
Begin with the end in mind - do you want a dog who can call the shots through whining? My puppy (7 1/2 months now) wasn't too thrilled with his crate in the beginning - barking, whining, etc, even when he was there for short amounts of time. Very quickly (when it was clear that the whining wouldn't work) he became very comfortable in his crate. He has cool chew toys that he only gets to have when he's in there, and sometimes he gets to eat there. And he has NEVER done outdoor doggie things in my house. He never had the opportunity. That's my part of the job - making it impossible for him not to succeed.

And don't get me started on the whole dog-in-the-bed thing!
David - I think we all need t-shirts with your tag line!

I have a stinkin little wiener myself. He's 9 months old now still just as stubborn as his body is long but he NEVER (let me repeat NEVER)goes in MY house anymore - and this is how I did it.

1) For the first 3 months the dog was eating, peeing, learning, playing with me or in his crate. Nothing else.
He did NOT get to wander around the house (even with me watching him). He did NOT, EVER (and still does not) get to sleep outside of his crate.
2) For the next 3 months, he would occasionally be permitted to wander the living room but I put up baby gates and blockades in all but a small (5X5 ish) area and that way as soon as the little pisher squatted I could scoop him up and run him out the door. Other than that, he was eating, playing with me, learning going for a walk outside or in his crate.
3) Starting this month, I have him confined in a small (5X5ish) area of the kitchen while I am gone during the day and at night when I'm home, he's out; but NEVER (and I really mean NEVER) outside of my sight. He still eats and sleeps in the crate (he will ALWAYS sleep in the crate). He now sits next to the back door when he needs to go (and I always know he's sitting there, because I am ALWAYS watching).
There were 3 times he went in my house since I had him. All were within the first couple months.
Dachshunds are no more or less difficult to housebreak than any other dog in my opinion. They simply follow and give respect to someone who IS the boss, KNOWS they are the boss and ACTS like the boss.
A few other suggestions:

Start basic training with the dog once he gets to 6 months - it helps him see you as the authority.

Always clean everything he has inadvertantly peed on with Nature's miracle (or other enzyme based cleaner)

Always take him for a walk when he refuses to go outside in the yard. I figured out quickly that my dog only really likes to go when he's on a leash walking. He prefers not to go in his own yard (he will because I make him...but he prefers not).

When the dog is caught in the act (and ONLY when caught in the act) I screeched at him like a banshee and scooped him up and brought him to the backyard. This will cause the dog a lot of anxiety so you will then need to sit out there, talking with him gently, for as long as it takes for him to do something. Then, when he squeezes out even ONE drop - give him more loving then you've ever given to anyone. Dogs make the connection easy this way. Also, always scream NO and then follow that with "potty outside" or other such phrase so the dog can learn (over time - lots and lots of time) that it is not the potty that is the trouble but rather the choice of location. This is where the praise for going outside really helps.

Sorry so long, but I really hope this helps. My dachshund has been a great joy, one of the smartest dogs I've ever owned and I'd love for you to get the same joy from yours.

Shannon

Quote:Start basic training with the dog once he gets to 6 months - it helps him see you as the authority.

Can someone please stop spreading this crappy myth that you start OB at 6 months? Why in the name of whoever would you wait until a puppy is the biggest jerk that he will most likely ever be to start training????
You are now to be punished. Your sentence is to go out and tell 10 people this is a crappy myth and nonsense. Hurry, I am not kidding. Report back when you are finished. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif" alt="" />