# Potty Training/Anxiety



## BritRN04 (Sep 15, 2013)

I am new and had posted this in the intro forum. I thought I would try in this forum to see if anyone has any input. Thanks

Hello,
I am new the forum and a new Maltese owner. This is my first experience with a small breed dog. I have the cutest little girl! I got her at 4 months and have had her now about 2 months. This forum has been a valuable asset over the weeks  So, I finally decided to bring my questions to the many experienced owners right here on this forum. 

My puppy was 6 months old last week. She adores me and follows me everywhere. It has been a challenging 2 months though. I crated her from the beginning and she sleeps in the crate for about 8 hours just fine at night. She has no bathroom accidents. When I crated her during the day if I was unable to watch her while cooking etc, she would pee or poop instantly even if she had just gone outside. She is outside trained now as long as I take her every 1.5-2 hrs...no pads inside etc. When I got her from the breeder she was going willy nilly where ever and it took me 2 weeks approx for her to pee/poop on command outside on the grass. So my puppy is perfect when I am home. She doesn't attempt to potty on my carpet etc. Although when out of the ex-pen I do watch her all the time. So here is my challenge. I do think she has a lot of anxiety. If I leave her I usually come back to a holy mess. I decided to put her crate in the ex-pen since she pee/poop in it anyway even with the divider in it and she just lays in it. So now the crate is in the ex-pen and she is allowed to get out in her confined space. The longest I have left her is max 3-4 hours, as I am home most the time.
She does a lot of pee and poop in the pen and basically jumps around for probably the whole time I am gone. I will come home to poop thrown everywhere, a dirty dog needing a bath, and a panting stressed little dog. Here is what I do:
She is fed 0600/1700 with Fromm, she is taken outiside every 2 hours or so, I give her a stuffed Kong and things to keep her busy(which are usually left untouched on my return), leave the radio on and lights etc. I do not make a production about leaving and she has to be quiet before I acknowledge her on my return! She has seen the vet and has checked out fine and the vet sends me home with a DVD on doggy prozac to consider!!! Does anyone have other suggestions? I have had her 2 months and would think things should be getting better! She is so sweet, but I have anxiety leaving her to be honest even for a short time. It is beginning to affect the family dynamics here and I am just really sad about the whole thing. I really just need some hope that things can get better, or I do not think she can stay!! She is also about to complete basic obedience training and follows basic commands easily. She is walked and socialized by myself and kids too! Thoughts?


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## Kathleen (Aug 4, 2011)

Welcome to SM! So glad that you joined!

She sounds like such a good little girl, except when you leave! You must be getting very frustrated having to clean up such a mess.

I recently went through this with our older dog, Buddy, when we moved. He developed separation anxiety and became very destructive and panicky. I have two suggestions.
First, have you tried DAP? Dog Appeasing Pheremones - it comes in a plug in dispenser and gives off a scent that it supposed to calm them. I was skeptical, but it really helped. We used it for about a month, and then didn't need to anymore. Some reviews say it works, and some say it doesn't, but it might be worth a try. Here is a link:
[ame="http://www.amazon.com/Comfort-Zone-Diffuser-Single-Refill/dp/B003E71E06/ref=pd_sim_petsupplies_2"]Amazon.com: Comfort Zone with DAP for Dogs Diffuser and Single Refill: Pet Supplies[/ame]
I think they also have it at Petco, but Amazon had the best price.

Second, I read that when you are home, you can try leaving her alone for a few minutes at a time, just by going into another room, and gradually increase the time so that she is comfortable being alone and eventually understands that you will be back.

I am sure that others will have some suggestions for you too. She is still so young - I am sure you will be able to find a solution.


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## BritRN04 (Sep 15, 2013)

I did wonder about DAP. The guy at Petsmart suggested it, but I was a little skeptical! I think I will try it. I have nothing to lose and am up for anything  Thanks!


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## eiksaa (Jun 8, 2012)

Is she ok with being away from you confined in her pen when you're at home? I would start at the point where she feels comfortable. Put her in the pen and sit next to her. If she is OK with that, sit a few feet away from her. If that's OK sit in the next room and so on. Find out where her breaking point is. Now work at that point and try to see if you can practice with her never reaching that breaking point. For example, does she freak out 5 seconds after you leave the room? Leave and come back after 4 seconds. Soon you will be able to increase that 5 seconds to 15 seconds, to 1 minute to 5 minutes etc. Progress is a lot faster once you start moving in the right direction. 

She needs to learn she will be OK even if you're gone and secondly, that you'll be back soon. Even during these exercises continue doing what you're doing i.e. ignore her and act like it's no big deal.

Gustave had some separation anxiety going on that is mostly gone now. I used to walk out my front door, walk back in. Then walk out, stand outside for 5 seconds, walk back in. Then in a week I was able to go for a 5 minute walk and come back. Btw, he is the same as your dog. He still won't touch his food or water while we are gone (even yummy kongs). But now he doesn't bark anymore and just sleeps right next to the door, even for 3-4 hours. It might seem like it's taking time in the beginning, but it's so worth it.

I would also try the things like DAP, thundershirt etc. to manage your puppy's stress, but ultimately it's best to work on the actual anxiety problem. I used a DAP diffuser in the beginning with Gustave but we have weaned him off it now.

I would also like to mention if she is used to going out to potty every 1.5-2 hours, she is not going to be able to hold it in for 3-4 hours. So while some of it might be anxiety, it is also possible that she just really needs to go.

Good luck! Separation anxiety is a very common problem. Definitely not worth giving up a dog for.


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## BritRN04 (Sep 15, 2013)

eiksaa said:


> Is she ok with being away from you confined in her pen when you're at home? I would start at the point where she feels comfortable. Put her in the pen and sit next to her. If she is OK with that, sit a few feet away from her. If that's OK sit in the next room and so on. Find out where her breaking point is. Now work at that point and try to see if you can practice with her never reaching that breaking point. For example, does she freak out 5 seconds after you leave the room? Leave and come back after 4 seconds. Soon you will be able to increase that 5 seconds to 15 seconds, to 1 minute to 5 minutes etc. Progress is a lot faster once you start moving in the right direction.
> 
> She needs to learn she will be OK even if you're gone and secondly, that you'll be back soon. Even during these exercises continue doing what you're doing i.e. ignore her and act like it's no big deal.
> 
> ...


I do leave her in the pen when I cannot watch her. If I am right in the kitchen cooking etc she will just sit and watch. If I am upstairs she will jump/dance and pace until I return. She may or may not use the bathroom in the pen if I am in the house. Gladly though she is not a yapper/barker with it. She just freaks quietly  
I will try more of the acclimatization when I am home. I do think she is capable of holding her pee/poop since she holds it 8-9 hours at night no problem and she will go pee/poop when put in the pen even if she has just been outside. Thats why I was wondering if related to anxiety! Thanks for your valuable input!


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