Potty Training

I have a friend who has a 7 month old puppy and recently beseeched Facebook for any advice on housebreaking him. They had done everything we are all told to do: use a kennel, take the dog outside prior to leaving the house, give them plenty of exercise, etc.

This made me think back to housebreaking my dogs and what did and did not work and what I learned along the way.

1) Good rule of thumb to keep in mind is that a puppy can hold its bladder for approximately 1 hour for every month of age.

     I've read this in many places and have found it to be more or less an accurate means of judging how long you can leave your dog before he is inevitably going to pee in the house/kennel. My experience has shown that it is a bit less than an hour, but naturally this will vary from one puppy to another.

2) Choosing the right kennel (if indeed you decide to use a kennel for housebreaking) is very important. The dog should be able to turn around and lie down comfortably but not so big that he can pick one spot to use as a bathroom while lying comfortably poop free at the other end.

Probably should mention that some dogs have no problem lying in their own feces and some even make it a point to step in/roll in it whenever they get the opportunity. Some dogs are just gross that way.

If you have a puppy that is going to get really big really fast it is cheaper to get a cage that he can grow into and just section off the kennel to an appropriate size. Many pet stores sell kennels that are already set up to be sectioned off to grow with your soon be giant dog, but you could also MacGyver a partition if you're handy. Just keep in mind that dogs chew, so don't use something that will be chewed off by the time you get home.

*note on kennel training

In my experience kennel or crate training does not work for all dogs. A kennel can be a safe place to keep your dog while they learn to not eat the house, but for some dogs an enclosed kennel is a stressful place.

Remus hated enclosed kennels. By enclosed I mean both the solid airline kennels and the more airy wire kennels. I found he was calmest when he was in his "playpen". Yes, I bought the dog his own playpen. They sell them in pet stores. 

Like this one: http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=10939499

I was having such a hard time getting him to relax in his kennel that we thought it was worth a try. It worked. It kept him safely contained and calm. He enjoyed his playpen so much he went in it voluntarily to sleep every night. 

Remus sleeping in his play pen with his penguin.

 

So don't be afraid to think outside the box when it comes to kennel training. Just always use common sense and try to see the world through your dogs eyes. If there is anything he can get a hold of that looks like he may want to chew on it, assume he will and keep him away from it. 

3) If you've tried all of that and still have trouble getting him to not pee inside, look for other causes.

Since my friend had already had success at house breaking her puppy she found it frustrating that he suddenly seemed to forget that peeing in the kennel and around the house was not okay. 

One possible problem could be an infection. Bring the dog to the vet and make sure there isn't anything physically wrong with him. 

My dog KoKo has been housebroken for over a decade now, but just last month she peed in the house. This baffled me. Turns out she had an infection and when coupled with her Prednisone she was just unable to hold it throughout the night. 

If there is no medical explanation for your dogs "accidents", then take a good hard (brutally honest) look at your training methods. 

*Are you (and everyone else in the house) being consistent? Same routine, same rules, every time, every day. Dogs thrive on routine.

*Is your dog getting enough exercise? Walking your dog is good for you and the dog. So do it.

*Is your dog stressed out by the kennel? Try something with better airflow. Long haired, double coated dogs often get too hot in enclosed or airline style kennels.

*Does he stress out by being left alone? Separation anxiety a subject too complicated to touch on here, but if you suspect this is the problem, don't be too proud to hire a trainer.

Random Remus picture.

Always remember to be patient. Dogs don't understand English and yelling a command they don't understand doesn't help. You have to SHOW your dog what you want them to do. 

Frodo Lives!

Okay, so the title is a bit misleading. This post has noting to do with Frodo. But now that I have your attention....I've realized that I have sorely neglected this blog. I started it nearly a year ago and have very few post and even fewer followers. So I just wanted to post that yes, I am alive and no, I've not given up this blog.
Here's a quick recap of things so far.

Remus turned 1 year old on April 8th and now weights 108 pounds. When I brought him home he was 15.5 pounds. Crazy. Sometimes I still have trouble wrapping my head around the size of my dog and he's not even the largest of his breed. I remember the day my father and I drove two hours on a windy, two lane road through the podunk corridor of Florida to pick him up from the breeder who was located in a town known for sheep and an evacuation route out of the town.

After safely navigating this rather frightening path, we finally made it to the breeders home whose address did not exist according to my GPS. When we walked into her house and as she handed me my puppy my eyes bulged out of my head and I began to think to myself.."what did I get myself into..."

Afterward the breeder took us out to see the parents. She had four adult Pyrenees dogs; a retired breeding pair and then the dame and sire for Remus. As we walked out to the sheep paddock (where the dogs worked as guard dogs for the sheep) I saw four very large white dogs run to the fence. My stomach dropped to my knees and my heart stopped for a second. I was glad that the breeder had her back to us because I know the look on my face would have made her reconsider selling us one of her puppies. I began to have serious doubts for the first time since deciding that a Great Pyrenees was the dog for me. The dogs were positively giant. Despite knowing all the size stats on the breed I was still unprepared for the reality. It's one thing to know how big the dog will get and another to know that you're actually going to put one in your house.

When the dogs put their paws on the fence to greet their owner they stood as tall as I did. I quickly composed my expressions and asked all the usual questions. We then placed our giant puppy into the giant crate we had brought along and made the two hour trip back home, cleverly avoiding tractors, a slew of pickup trucks and a school bus that had been converted into a mobile fruit stand.


For the first few days at home Remus was afraid of the tile and refused to walk on it. As soon as you placed him on the tile he'd just lay down and look pathetic. Eventually he realized that the tile was the coolest place to lay and then promptly determined that the carpet was a good place to pee.

Fast forward one year:
KoKo has become so attached to Remus that she waits by the door for him when he's been gone all day, we've arranged furniture to suit Remus' cooling needs as well as installed window AC's just for him, and most importantly we no longer have carpet that smells like dog pee. Remus and myself have also successfully completed beginner dog training. We were the only pair that didn't miss a single training class for the two month duration. Far as I was concerned I paid the money for these lessons and I'd be damned if I was going to miss any material. It was probably the best $110.00 I've spend on him so far as he's reasonably easy to handle and well behaved. So much so that he's always on the invite list at family gatherings. Even the day care he goes to once a week love having him there. Yes. I send my dog to day care. I'll explain why in another post. I swear I have a very good reason. Promise.

And to close things out here are two pictures of Remus. Enjoy. 

Remus at 8 weeks

Remus 1 year