already housebroken 2 yr. chihauhau

Question
I have a 2 year old female Chihuahua. She was completely trained to potty pads until a couple of months ago. She started using her pads sometimes and using throw rugs occasionally. I picked up all the rugs and thought I had the problem solved temporarily. Also, I keep the bedroom doors closed because she has gone in there, too. I do not let her have the run of the house, she is only downstairs where there is plenty of room and she is with me. The only time she comes upstairs is when I am there or to sleep at night. Now she has peed a small amount twice during the night at the top of the stairs instead of going down to her pad. I came home from work today and found that she had pooped on the kitchen floor...she has never not pooped on the paid downstairs, only upstairs when I was not there. I am gone at work all day and since she is/was housebroken I don't want to close her in the kitchen but I don't know what to do. Should I close her in the kitchen and start over again and only let her out when I am home? I am at my whit's end!
Thanks,
Pat

Answer
Hi Pat...

Yes, I think that you should put her in a confined area (like the kitchen) while you're at work and start all over again and only let her out when you're home and can supervise her.  Please don't treat her like she's been "bad" as I think it's pretty normal for Chis to regress in their potty training.  I have three Chis and I can assure you that they have regressed at times, most especially my youngest which is a female and, if I recall correctly, she was about two years old when she really went through a period of regression.

But, even before you do that, I think you should have her examined by your veterinarian or a reputable veterinarian who is experienced with this breed.  Just to be on the safe side.  Anytime I hear of a change in potty habits like this, I think it's a wise idea to have the dog examined and perhaps have a urinalysis done and possibly some blood work to make sure that there's not a medical reason for what's happening.  For instance, my eldest Chihuahua was exhibiting some unusual behaviors and a blood test revealed that he has hypothyroidism which accounts for the changes in his behavior.  When you said that she peed a small amount twice during the night at the top of the stairs, this brought up a red flag for me.  Either she's got something medically wrong that is causing this or you need to put a pee pad upstairs where she has better access to it.  I'm also wondering if she has been spayed and, if so, when it was done?

If you get her cleared by the vet medically, then start the training all over again.  If there's no medical reason for her to be urinating and defecating in places other than her potty pad, it could be that she's gotten into the habit of "going" on the throw rugs and really has broken her pattern for using the pads.  This isn't unusual for this breed or many toy breed dogs. Unfortunately, many Chihuahuas are dumped at shelters all the time due to the difficulty in house training them.  

Are you of the opinion that she resents your being gone to work during the day while she's at home alone?  Google meetup.com and see if there's a Chihuahua meetup group in your area and go meet the other Chi moms and see if you can't find someone that you trust that would let you take your girl over to their house during your work hours.  

Good luck, Pat.  Let me know if I can be of further help.

Jo Ann