my puppys behavior

Question
Hi I hope you might be able to answer my question about my pitbull/saint bernard mixed puppy. She is almost 4 months old now and still has problems with Pooping and peeing in the house. Some days are good and she doesn't do it all day, and some days it seems like she can't hold it or wants the attention by doing it or something. We have tried everything, and what gets me most is sometimes she will stand by the door and pee right there or she will go outside for awhile come back in and then pee or poop in the house. I just don't know what to do anymore. Also I was looking for info on how to get her to stop wanting to jump on people when they come in the house and to stop wanting to chew on our fingers, we have tried things for that too, but sometimes doesn't work. Thanks so much for any info you have for me.

Answer
Hi Amy-
The biggest thing to remember when house-breaking a pup is consistancy and repetition. She knows what to do, but needs the reminding to do it.  I would go back to treating her as if you just got her and taking her out every hour, to the same place using the same door with the same command.  Some dogs take longer to house train.  I have a client with a 6 month old pup who is just starting to be consistent.  It mostly depends on how dedicated you are to house-breaking.  I can generally have a pup house-broke in a week.  Again, I put the time into it and stay on top of it.  When they go in the house, I rub their nose in it (for 3 reasons: 1-they don't like the power you have over them. 2- they don't like the smell and 3- the nose is the most sensitive area on their body, so it sinks in faster.).

As for jumping on people, there are a number of roads to take.  If she's tall enough, you can put your knee into her chest as she's coming up.  It's like you getting hit in the diaphram.  A few times of jumping and getting knocked down will curtail it in a hurry.  The other option is to make her sit whenever anyone comes to the door...anyone meaning you, your family members and guests.  When she sits, she gets a treat.  If she's having problems retaining the house-breaking issues, I would try the knee in the chest first, however.

Nibbling can be ended by grabbing and pinching her lip when she does it. Again, a few times of getting her lip pinched will end that.

I hope this helps some.  If you have any other questions, feel free to get in touch with me.

Good luck!

Patty Lemke
Country-Side Breeders
www.country-sidebreeders.com