Too old to get a puppy? update #44 Puppy has been sold

Males seems to always be harder to housebreak than females. Even as puppies, the boys just don’t seem to “get it” as quickly as the girls do. At least you got him before he started lifting his leg. Can you try keeping him in his crate at night, then taking him straight outside for potty business? And also taking him outside within a few minutes of him eating, drinking, playing, or napping - and praising him when he potties outside with only gentle scolding when he has an accident in the house. I am sure you know how to do this, and Bouvies are very smart - he will catch on. :smiley:

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You aren’t kidding, this Pyrenees mix has been the absolute worst dog to housebreak of my life. He’s 3 months shy of being two years old and I’m just now at the point where I’m pretty confident he won’t poop in the house anymore, he just did not mind in the slightest. Drove me nuts.

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There is a product called My Pet Peed. It is, bar none, the best I’ve ever used. If you’re on Facebook, they usually have a link that saves money over website. It’s not cheap, but well worth it. Use a black light to find spots you might have overlooked.

It works on all biological fluid. Pee, poop (diarrhea), vomit, blood (completely out of cream carpet). It draws out the enzymes, so smells wretched at first, but then ….nothing. Our mini poodle peed on our guest bed. It took maybe 6-7 applications, but absolutely no smell, and barely a hint of edge of stain.

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Rodeo was my winter pup.
He taught me to get my pups in the summer

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My goodness. I was not familiar with his breed but he looks nothing like I expected :astonished:

So adorable! I love the name he has and I hope and pray that you are far from any cockleburs…

My daughters puppy who was kept in a huge crate(with siblings while breeder was at work) was a potty training challenge as well. All our other dogs were so much easier as they had never seen a crate, let alone been put in one.

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The trick to crate training is to not leave the puppy in it so long that it has no choice but to potty in it. If the breeder was “at work” for a standard 8-hour work day, it is no wonder the pup developed a habit of pottying in the crate. The length of time a pup can be left in a crate varies with age, timing of feeding/drinking, as well as timing of playtime/exercise. Bladder and bowel control develop with age, and since a very young puppy doesn’t have a lot of control yet, it cannot be left in a crate as long as an older pup. This is especially true if the pup ate a meal or drank a lot of water or played a lot before being put in the crate (w/o being given the opportunity to potty outside first).

Also - contrary to what some think - crate training is not punishment and it should not be used as punishment. A dog should regard a crate as a safe haven and be very willing to go into its crate when directed to do so (many folks use a treat as a reward when beginning crate training). Proper introduction and use of the crate can make for a happy, well-adjusted and reliably housebroken dog.

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She worked close and came home at lunch to let the puppies into the yard to play and potty but yes if they have to go they go. I think that is why it took her a bit longer to " get it".

I don’t have the stomach to crate my dogs and there is no need.

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Got it. Still, depending on the age, 3-5 hours may have been too long. Also, if other pups are pottying in the crate, every pup is certainly going to think that is SOP.

As for having no stomach to crate dogs - if your dogs are older and have never been in a crate, then yes, it can sometimes be a bit traumatic. I personally won’t have a dog that is not capable of being crated for hours at time. It is usually the best way to housebreak a dog (unless as mentioned above, it has already developed a habit of pottying in its crate). And I always worry about what would happen during an emergency such as a natural disaster or house fire or whatever and we had to take shelter elsewhere. Also, if you have to leave your dog at the vet, you can bet it is going to be crated. A dog that cannot be crated without a high degree of drama is going to make everyone miserable. (We take our dog on vacations with us and because she is reliably crate-trained, we can leave her for several hours crated in a hotel room or other accommodation while we go to dinner or participate in other activities. She is perfectly fine with it - no barking or whining, and no potty accidents.) :grinning:

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We had a dog get badly injured years ago. Putting him in a crate in my car prevented a huge clean up afterwards. Lifesaver.

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My crate is in the mudroom which is adjacent to the kitchen/family room. I locked him in the first night but last night I left the crate open but closed the door. He was sleeping in his crate in the morning but was startled and momentarily frightened when I first opened the door but he immediately recognized me and was happy to see me.

First thing in the morning going potty outside was OK but later in the day when I took him out we didn’t stay very long as it was raining and I didn’t put my coat on. My fault, he peed as soon as we came back in. The floor is porcelain tiles which are easy to clean.

Right now he is sleeping here beside me. Tired after some play time and chewing on a large carrot which my previous dog really liked. I don’t let him have it too long to make sure his gut is adjusting.

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Enjoy !!! and take pics & short videos all the time ~ they grow up so fast ! ENJOY !!!

Thrilled you two found each other ~ Thank You Bentley ~

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I 100% agree with you on this @DownYonder
All my dogs have been crate trained, and they see it as their ‘place’ and safe haven, and will get up to go to bed when we do, or go in there anytime in the day when they want to…

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I’m so glad you’re settling in with him! Our poodle pup was very easy to house train (crate training was not as easy and he’s a real PITA about it which is going to be difficult as I want to do some dog sports with him. We’re doing crate games and he’s good for about 5 minutes if I’m nearby and will settle if I’m not there, but he has such bad FOMO that he doesn’t want to settle when I’m there. He did sleep in the crate the first couple of months (I think it really helped with house training). I also got him in winter in Florida, which is our prime pup-raising time (in the summer no one wants to stay outside because it’s so hot and training is a challenge; exactly the opposite of up North).

In contrast, one of my kids also got a puppy (she lives up in KY) and it was awful timing and she’s had a challenge with potty training her girl, although she’s doing super in other ways (she takes her to the barn with her and she’s REALLY good, even as a stubborn adolescent). She’s doing better now that she’s getting crate trained.

It sounds like you’re really enjoying the puppy stage, which is awesome, and that you’ve got a great setup for your pup. Also, I love the name!

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Potty training seems a real challenge with this one. Can’t remember any difficulty with previous dogs.

First thing in the morning yesterday was OK I have written down a schedule of all our accidents in the house but no matter how long we stay outside he pees as soon as we get back into the house.

Last night I locked him into his crate as I went to bed. Though I am upstairs I did hear him fussing in his crate. I finally got up to check on him and found a poopy mess in his crate. I cleaned as much as I could and then decided to sleep downstairs on the sofa with my clothes on ready to go out. He slept by my side all night.

First thing this morning we went outside immediately and peed. Not too much later he peed on the mudroom floor again. Numerous trips in and out of the house at each sign that he may have to go.

I had to tend to my horses at daylight so left him loose in the mudroom. I just fed and turned the horses out to hurry back to the house. Will clean stalls later.

More walks, a trip to the arena where he could run loose (he didn’t just stayed near me) and finally on the way back to the house he pooped. Now sleeping quietly beside me. I think he is too bonded to me now. He slept on my feet all evening while watching TV.

The plan is more walks when he wakes up, then back in the mudroom while I do stalls. Cancelled my classes today as I am too tired but do have to get groceries.

Again as I said before no time to get bored or depressed.

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There were some previous posts about stairs (now I can’t remember was that here or on Facebook). None of my previous Bouvs liked to do stairs. This little rascal managed to charge up a steep staircase to the second floor. I do not want him up there I have off-white wall to wall carpeting that is nice and clean. Though I love my wooden floors on the main floor upstairs I prefer carpeting.

On goes the saga.

I only post on Bouvier Rescue and Bouvier Appreciation group not on my home page. All except one I don’t want IRL friends informed of my saga.

I think it’s far too early to call it a challenge.

Making the assumption that the puppy knows absolutely nothing about when/where to pee and poop is a good start. Especially if he prefers to go indoors. It is likely to do with having been born in the winter. So to him - indoors is where you do it. It will get easier as the weather gets nicer. My easiest puppy was the one we got in July. Not a surprise.

I stopped trying to crate my puppies at night since my dogs sleep in the bed. It’s much easier to just take them out on your schedule and/or if you feel them stirring before you hear them fussing in a crate unless it’s right by your bed. But if you are going to crate overnight, I’d put it by the bed so you can hear him. As he gets older and more reliable through the night, you can move it further away.

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My crate is too big to get upstairs and as I said in previous post I have off white carpeting, steep stairs, no clothes and I would not be able to get him outside in a hurry.

I know in time we will manage.

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Does Colton have access to water 24/7?

I followed the Monks of New Skete’s timeline on how to potty train a pup with limited access to water.

Colton is also at an age when their bodies are growing faster than their brains can keep up. (I have only had male dogs as pups) and they always seem to have a few accidents in the house around this age range.

He will get the hang of it.

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The stress of the new situation is probably also contributing. Adjustments take time. I have high energy high drive dogs who even as young adults would sometimes (rarely) lose bladder control because they were playing so hard they didn’t realize they had to pee until it was too late. It was not a training issue. It was a self awareness issue. You set a routine to try to set this puppy up for success, he is probably missing the self-awareness part since he is adapting to all of the changes right now. Peeing inside right after coming in from outside is an indicator (imo, as a nonexpert)

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If he pottied in his area before, you are UN-training that AND training to potty outside. So, that’s a lot on a baby brain.

I am always very enthusiastic outside when they go. ‘Potty OUTside”, GOOD potty outside, hurry hurry. All while going potty. Then we do “run, run, run” back to the house, and get a treat. Of course you create monsters for life, but meh. My young GSD will pee as fast as he can, then wants a treat. But he gets his treat outside door, and is left out to poop.

He’ll get it. I always wonder, getting puppies now that I’m older, are they harder to train or am I less patient and expect too much too fast. This GSD May we’ll be my last puppy.

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