Thanks for the response, Jennifer,

Rewarded with praise immediately.

Out 5 - 10 minutes (long enough to smoke a cigarette).

No special surface inside, grass outside. Same area where she is successful.

Code word - hurry up, get down to business.

I think I was taking her out too much at first and training her to think there was a 5 minute walk every 15 minutes. She is doing better with every couple of hours.

Maybe I am expecting too much too soon.

But my main question is still WHY THE BED?

Thanks,

Nora

If you has just scolded her for pooping on the floor or have scolded her for pottying on the floor it may be as simple as finding a new surface. Is she generally allowed on the bed? It could be marking behavior but I doubt it at this point with her having issues with housebreaking in general.

I have never scolded her for pottying in the house except for once when I caught her in the middle of a poo and instantly took her outside and today, when she began on the bed I scooped her up and yelled no and instantly took her outside.

I allow her on the bed, so that is my quandry, is she marking, being dominant, etc.?

Thanks.

I use a double ended snap to tether pups/dogs to my belt loop, that way I don't have to be holding the leash. A four foot leash is the length I prefer.
I have noticed that some dogs have a progression with house training, they start out bad, they get a little better and then have a relapse before improving again. The relapse may be due to decreased vigilance on my part, or just a natural progression in the new habit.
I wouldn't be surprised if your dog peed on the bed as a dominance demonstration or test.
If you apply the "nothing-in-life-is-free principle that Ed talks about you will establish/enhance your alpha status.

Thanks, Debbie. I suppose I am trying to figure out if the bed pee thing is a dominant/obedience problem or a potty/housebreaking problem.

I have been reading the e-books at this site and am trying to use the NILIF training. Makes good sense.

Also, maybe I am hoping the housebreaking will go faster. How long before she can be trusted, as in, if she is good for a week, 2 weeks, etc. then can she be trusted in the house? How long does it take before they know that the bathroom is outside?

I have never had this much of a problem with a large dog. This is the first small dog I have had in 30 years.

Yeap - what Debbie said. I probably shouldn't post when I am rushing. Dogs do pee on/mark beds, couches, special comfortable areas out of dominance. Pack structure should alwayys be in progress and part of the routine. For marking behavior you usually see some sniffing going on prior to the dog squatting or lifting the leg - they are looking for the target/prime area to leave their mark. Usually over the mark or strong scent of another pack member or animal. This is not a 100% always situation but scent marking is generally more calculated than just having to potty.

I was wondering if she was normally allowed on the bed as another indication of scent marking vs normal potty. If she is normally allowed on the bed, do you give her permission to be there or just let her jump up on the bed whenever she wants to? It is part of the pack structure "program" (for lack of a better word, brain doesn't like to function fully after work) to only allow pets on the furniture if they are invited by the owner onto the furniture. Dogs also scent mark with feces, so I am not sure how far away her poo pile was from the bed but she could very well have defecated as a scent mark and proceeded to scent mark the bed when you cleaned up the poo. They are quite observant and I have noticed a dog notices when its poo is being removed from the area.

So it is a possibility that this was scent marking behavior. Extra vigilence and implementing pack structure into your routine, with lots of patience should get you through this

To add in response to the post above:
It can take a while for dogs to be fool proof in the house. The more problems a dog has had with housebreaking the longer you want to wait before trusting them. I do not allow my dogs free reign in the house until they are over a year old and this depends on the dog, too. I don't stop tethering though I do lengthen the lead, for a long time though I will admit I let my guard down after a pup hasn't had any "Accidents" for several months (3-4). I am just extra watchful and prefer my dogs to be in sight at all times in the house, not only for house breaking times but in general to prevent any other accidents or misbehavior. Even adult dogs are tethered or called to heel from room to room quite often.

Edited by Jennifer Marshal (02/17/2008 11:48 PM)
Edit reason: add

Jennifer, thanks for the reply.

I was on the bed watching movie. She was on rug next to bed playing with toys. I had her onleash and glancing at her every few minutes/seconds. She went on the rug next to the bed. I looped her leash on the door knob 3 feet away from rug and went to the bathroom to get cleaning stuff which is about 6 feet away. Cleaned the poo, went back to bathroom to dispose of things, came back - then she jumped on the bed and without sniffing did the pee.

I let her on the bed often. I like to think I have invited her but she may think otherwise. She is small dog, so I have a stool to aid her on and off the bed. So, when she did the deed on the bed, she helped herself up there without invitation.

I have been doing ground work so far as making her walk behind, and attempting to make her walk on loose leash when walking. On outside walks she has a real tendency to pull forward.

Just wanted to say thanks to all these posts.

My little dog is now doing fine with the potty training. You were all right. It really helps to get all the different ideas.

It is mostly patience and learning her routine. I started raw feeding a few days ago and it looks like that may even make a difference. She awoke me at 5am this morning (extremely early) and when I took her out, she pooped and instantly wanted to come back inside, went directly to her crate and went back to sleep.

I still tether and will probably do so until she is 1-2 years, based on what I have read. Although, when I drop the line she will stay right with me in the house without being asked. I haven't tried it outside yet, too many distractions.

I hope that one day I will be able to let her on the bed, but right now I am afraid to. I have invited her up on the bed a few times, but I watch her carefully. I think the bed peeing was a pack structure problem.

If anyone has any ideas to prevent that, please post.

In the mean time, if any one else is potty training, there is good advice in these posts.

Thanks