once paper trained..now not ?????

Question
QUESTION: Hi,

I have a 7 month old male chihuahua.  i paper trained him pretty quickly since crate training isnt an option for me because i work all day and can not get home to take him out to go to the bathroom.  He quickly learned that the paper was the place to use the bathroom and almost all the time
went over to the paper when he needed to go.  i take him for walks as well...but i was satisfied with his paper training for when i couldnt take him out on time..or when i was at work.
now out of nowhere..he has stopped using the paper.  he's going by it(a few feet away)...but not on it like he was...or he is going in places that are not even near the paper that he never did before.  im not sure why or what to do.  i had other female dogs stay at my place for a week+. i made sure to completely mop and clean the floors incase the other dogs were leaving behind their scent or going to the bathroom in places they werent supposed to be.

im starting all over again.  retraining him and cleaning up after messes he hasnt made since i first got him at 4 months old.  :(  is this normal?"

ANSWER: Llona, is he lifting his leg on things? If so, you might consider getting him a pee post, and putting it on the papers.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: He isnt lifting his leg yet.  Sometimes he does when i walk him outside if he finds a bush or wall he wants to mark.  but for the post part he's still squating.

Answer
It's not really 'normal,' Llona, but sometimes it does happen that pups and even adult dogs will regress in their housetraining. I would recommend that you start confining him in some way when you are gone. Get an exercise pen to keep him in, with the papers on one side, so that he cannot 'go' on your carpets or elsewhere in your home. You might also consider putting the paper in a shallow cat litter box, and having a vet do a urine culture to rule out a bladder or urinary tract infection.