housebreaking wolf hybrids

Question
I have three wolf hybrids...a 3 year old female, 2 year old male, and 1 year old male.  All are spayed and neutered.  But, none, it seems, are housebroken.  I say none, because sometimes it is difficult to know who has done what.  We have finally found a kennel that they dogs cannot destroy or escape from, for now, anyway.  Yes, they chewed every door and wooden surface in the house.  We keep them indoors because we do not have the money to erect the type of fencing needed and despite obedience training, they will each/all escape if taken outside without being on a leash.  We have put kickplates on every door bottom to hide the damage and stop additional damage, but the lack of housebreaking is driving me insane.  They will not urinate or defecate in their kennel, but the minute they are in my room, even if they go outside and do their business first, they urinate or defecate...just out of my sight, usually.  The few times I caught them in the act I told them "no" and took them outside but nothing seems to stick.  We have had all of them since they were babies...three years is a long time to take to potty train.  HELP! *I don't need a lecture about the follies of wolf hybrid ownership--I know them all now and besides, I have three and need to figure out how to make it work.

Answer
Hi Lacey,

Even though wolf hybrids have a natural inclination to mark their territory, that makes housebreaking wolves and high content hybrids extremely difficult, your problem doesn't sound like a house training issue. It sounds like your dogs are "marking", dispute the fact they've all been altered. (which isn't unheard of in multiple dog households.)

Marking can be distinguished from regular urination in that this behavior comprises a small squirt of urine rather than the flow normally released when the dog is genuinely relieving himself.

Whenever a dog is marking inside, not only is the dog making a mess, but he/she may be effectively pulling rank on you by "claiming" the house as his own.

In a multiple dog household, you should become more aware of the hierarchy that is present and take active steps to intervene when conflicts arise. Make sure your OWN position at the very top of this hierarchy is clear. If your dogs understand that they are, at best, second in command of the pack, this manifestation of their perceived dominance is less likely to occur. Clean and deodorize all soiled areas thoroughly, with an enzymatic cleaner such as Nature's Miracle, and restrict access to repeat targets if necessary, or make them less attractive by feeding and playing with your dogs in those areas.

Until you've gotten a handle on this problem, you should not allow your dogs to be out of your sight and have the run of your home. When you can't be monitoring them, they should either be crated, or allowed to stay outside until you can supervise them.

Enrolling in an obedience class with your dogs is a great way of enforcing your position as leader of the "pack". It would also help to take the attitude that "Nothing Is Free In Life" with your dogs. You can read about this method of gaining control over your dogs here:

http://thedogdude.com/using-nothing-in-life-is-free-to-become-the-alpha-dog/


Best of luck,
Patti