Re: [PyrNet-L] Frustration.......

["Tracy Bassett" <espinay@dynamite.com.au>]

<<I had 2 mos old Sam outside, I was with him, playing etc, hanging out
laundry while he played alone.... and he came into the house and pooped!  He
WILL NOT poop outside!  Help!!!!!!!!  Any suggestions? He'll pee outside
with no problem... we go in and out the same door all the time, he KNOWS
where to go..... but will NOT POOP out there! He picks approximately the
same place each time in the house, so I put papers down there...... but he
thinks that's for him to PLAY with..... then I brought him in, fed him and
about 15-20 mins later we went for our walk... and the same thing.  He had
plenty of opportunity to popop outside, but noooooooo......... had to wait
until we got home and did it right in front of me!  Any suggestions?
>>Merrilie


OK, here are a few tips for housetraining.  First rule at this stage is
NEVER leave your pup with unsupervised access to places you do not want him
to poop. He is either outside (and the door is closed so he can't go back in
without you seeing) or in a crate if you can't supervise him.  If he makes a
mess in the house and you don't see him do it, hit YOURSELF over the head
with a rolled up newspaper :-D  and clean it up without saying anything.

If he is going in the one area, I would suggest you clean this area with
either white vinegar (a solution of white vinegar, water and dishwashing
liquid in a sqirt bottle is a great cleaner for this) or a product that is
designed to remove the odour rather than mask it (don't know what brands you
have there - we have things like Bac-To-Nature and Bio-Zet).  Do not clean
it with disinfectant or ammonia based products as this only increases the
'toilet' smell for the dog (they can smell it even when we can't).

You now need to teach him the right place to go - at the moment he thinks
the right place to go is that area in the house.  Start, as I have already
said, by ALWAYS supervising him in the house.  The minute you see him start
to go to the toilet in the wrong spot say AAGGH! loudly and quickly walk him
outside to finish the job (not too roughly, just a 'quick march' with a
pleasant 'outside' command - only the AAGGH is 'harsh' sounding) .  As he is
finishing the job, praise him profusely (you can start to add a 'toilet'
command too if you wish - say the word as he is going as well as praising
him) and give him a treat/pat/game as soon as he finishes (make sure you
carry treats around with you for a while).  EVERY time you see him start to
go in the house, say AAGGH! and take him outside. EVERY time he goes to the
toilet outside where you want him to go, praise him and give him a treat.
If he goes in the house and you didn't see it, clean it up and say nothing -
endavour to keep a better eye on him.

One way you can keep an eye on him in the house is to use a lead to attach
him to you.  Get a lead or a rope and attach one end to his collar and the
other to your belt.  Make it long enough that you can, say, move comforably
from bench to bench in the kitchen while he is lying down, but he can not
get out of your sight.  If you have to go to another room, he goes too, if
you have to go to the toilet, he goes with you!! (just make the rope long
enough that you can close the toilet door and have him sitting outside :-D).
Everywhere you go in the house, he goes too - he has no opportunity to get
out of your site and you can tell straight away if he starts to poop.  All
you have to do is make sure you take him outside with you regularly so that
he has a chance to go in the right place (and you have a chance to praise
him and give him a treat for going there).

Hope this helps.

Tracy Bassett
Canberra, Australia
espinay@dynamite.com.au
http://members.dynamite.com.au/espinay/index.htm