help with housebreaking

Question
Hi Kristen

We have had our puppy for 2 weeks now, she is 4 months old. We are having a nightmare of a time paper training her.

Initially we wanted to teach her to poop outside. So we used the crate training method, as many have recommended. The idea is to confine her almost 24/7 till it was time to poop, after meals etc. That was quite successful, but sometimes she couldn't wait long enough. We were told to allow her some playtime after her pooping outside as reward, but this was where the problem began. Because she can poop about three times in a row, I have had the unfortunate task of cleaning up her pee and poop during her playtime.

Someone else suggested paper training her, as she may be too young to control her bladder. It made sense, so we tried. She has been quite good when she is confined, pooping on the paper if we can't take her out during the night when she has to go. But when it's playtime, she can't seem to remember that the paper is her toilet. She pees and poops again indiscriminately in the house. If I notice that she has to go and take her outside, she will pee at the lift lobby while we are waiting. (i'm on the 2nd story of a 3 story building so it's not a long wait. I've tried using the stairs with her in my arms, but it is not a feasible method in the long term.

I am really at the end of my rope and I just want a good housebroken puppy. Any ideas? I really hope you can help me.

Answer
You may have to continue to crate her when she cannot be watched until she is a year old or more. Two weeks is not enough time for her to 'get it.' She should not be left in the crate for more than 3 1/2 to 4 hours at a time during the day, but she should be able to go all night without needing a potty break. If she can't then you'll just need to get up halfway through the night and take her out. The general rule with puppies is that they should be given a potty break at LEAST as many hours as they are old in months. She's 4 months old, so she should not be made to hold it for more than 4 months. If you want to take her out every hour, that's perfectly fine! If you want to take her out every 2 hours, that's fine too! Just don't go LONGER than 4 hours between potty breaks. The more opportunities she has to potty in the right place and be praised for it, the fewer accidents she's going to have in the house, and the faster she's going to learn.

You didn't say what breed she is; is there a reason you carry her down the stairs instead of letting her walk? Right now, carrying her is not a big deal, because once she figures out that pottying is only acceptible outside, she will hold it until she gets out there and you will not have to continue carrying her out for the rest of her life.

If you want to continue paper training, instead of going outside to potty, I recommend putting a wee-wee pad in a large, shallow cat litter pan, with papers on top of the pad if you wish. This helps avoid 'missing' the papers, and also makes cleanup easier.

When you cannot watch her, put her in her crate. If you're working in a certain room, use baby gates to block her in that room or keep her tied to you so that if she does start to potty, you can immediately catch her and whisk her outside as quickly as possible. If you catch her starting to sniff, circle, or squat, you should make a loud sudden noise to startle her, and that should make her stop. Say something like, "Need to potty?" or "Go outside?" and take her (on leash) out. Walk her around until she potties, and praise praise praise praise praise! If you think she might go again, then stay out there a few minutes before going back in. Every time she potties outside, she should get LOADS of praise.

Another solution is to let her wear a doggie diaper when she's loose in the house (when you're home but cannot keep both eyes on her at all times). The downside to this is that you will have to keep the diaper washed, and wipe her down if she does potty while wearing it. What the diaper does, though, is 'correct' her for pottying in the house AS she's doing it, even if you don't catch her doing it. Pottying is self gratifying, so if you make pottying uncomfortable, she's going to be less likely to want to do it because it won't be gratifying anymore. Make sense? Diaper wearing would be a last resort for me.

Good luck and please let me know if there's anything else I can help you with!

Kristen