# What am I doing wrong?? He just isn't getting it!



## BuddysMommy (Jul 18, 2011)

We got Buddy in July and he is approximately 3 years old. I got him from a lady who got him from someone else and she didn't know much about him. She only had him for 2 weeks before she sold him. I am starting to understand why she may have got rid of him! She told me he is housebroken but at my house....he is far from it! He has his good days and his bad days but we have been working with him for 2 months and he will still poop on the floor right after we let him out. He doesn't pee in the house much but does on occasion. Some days he prefers to stay outside most of the day because it is so nice out now that the weather is in the 60's and 70's and he will go to the bathroom in the house right when he comes in. I show him his poop and tell him he has to poop outside and put him back outside and after all this time it is just not working. I know he isn't dumb because he knows what his "toy" is and he knows what a "treat" is. He knows certain commands and acts like he understands when we talk to him so I don't understand what is so difficult about the command "potty outside". He doesn't even do anything to let us know he has to go potty...no crying or scratching at the door. I put up a bell and have been trying to get him to use that but he is afraid of it so if he ever uses it, it will probably be a while.

He refuses to go outside when its raining or when it's cold so would it be bad to completely start over and try pad training? I don't know if it would confuse him and I don't know how boys pee on a pad without getting it all over since they lift their leg and pee "on something". We have had a puppy pad in the house since we got him to see if he would use it and he has used it a couple times but nothing consistent. We have never really pushed for him to use it either...I just put it out in case that is what he used at his old house. It seems like it wasn't.

My husband said if I don't figure something out with him soon we are getting rid of him because our carpets were brand new a year ago and we can't have an animal ruining them. It would break my heart to have to see him go because he has been bounced around so much already and we all love him but this problem is turning into a serious problem. I don't know what to do to fix it. I'm desperate for something to work with him. Any advice is appreciated. Thank you.


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## Canada (Jun 4, 2009)

BuddysMommy said:


> We got Buddy in July and he is approximately 3 years old. I got him from a lady who got him from someone else and she didn't know much about him. She only had him for 2 weeks before she sold him. I am starting to understand why she may have got rid of him! She told me he is housebroken but at my house....he is far from it! He has his good days and his bad days but we have been working with him for 2 months and he will still poop on the floor right after we let him out. He doesn't pee in the house much but does on occasion. Some days he prefers to stay outside most of the day because it is so nice out now that the weather is in the 60's and 70's and he will go to the bathroom in the house right when he comes in. I show him his poop and tell him he has to poop outside and put him back outside and after all this time it is just not working. I know he isn't dumb because he knows what his "toy" is and he knows what a "treat" is. He knows certain commands and acts like he understands when we talk to him so I don't understand what is so difficult about the command "potty outside". He doesn't even do anything to let us know he has to go potty...no crying or scratching at the door. I put up a bell and have been trying to get him to use that but he is afraid of it so if he ever uses it, it will probably be a while.
> 
> He refuses to go outside when its raining or when it's cold so would it be bad to completely start over and try pad training? I don't know if it would confuse him and I don't know how boys pee on a pad without getting it all over since they lift their leg and pee "on something". We have had a puppy pad in the house since we got him to see if he would use it and he has used it a couple times but nothing consistent. We have never really pushed for him to use it either...I just put it out in case that is what he used at his old house. It seems like it wasn't.
> 
> My husband said if I don't figure something out with him soon we are getting rid of him because our carpets were brand new a year ago and we can't have an animal ruining them. It would break my heart to have to see him go because he has been bounced around so much already and we all love him but this problem is turning into a serious problem. I don't know what to do to fix it. I'm desperate for something to work with him. Any advice is appreciated. Thank you.


Dogs can be messy, they are imperfect. Allthough, you can keep training him and try repotty training him. If you are both too frusterated to cope, and value your carpets more than him, then maybe a dog wasn't the addition to the family that you were expecting at this time in your lives. I had nice carpet too. Before I added three pups to the family. We bought a steam cleaner, a Bissell. I would take the carpet up, and find an alternate surface,but they wrestle a lot and I like that it is a padded surface. So maybe in the future I will think of a different floor surface. My kitchen was white laminate. White dogs are harder to see on a white floor. So we redid the floor brown. Flooring can come and go, my dogs stay.

He can be trained more, he may never be perfect at pottying. Is "better" okay, or does he have to be perfect? Could you try a belly band? I know you probably want to keep him and make it work, but his pottying habits have no bearing on his worth as a family member and should not be the deciding factor of weither or not he stays in the family. There are a lot of helpful members here that could give some great advice. And I really don't mean for mine to sound harsh, and I apologize if it does. Sure dogs can test your patience on occaison, and strength, but they are so worth it.


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## shellbeme (Mar 1, 2011)

BuddysMommy said:


> We got Buddy in July and he is approximately 3 years old. I got him from a lady who got him from someone else and she didn't know much about him. She only had him for 2 weeks before she sold him. I am starting to understand why she may have got rid of him! She told me he is housebroken but at my house....he is far from it! He has his good days and his bad days but we have been working with him for 2 months and he will still poop on the floor right after we let him out. He doesn't pee in the house much but does on occasion. Some days he prefers to stay outside most of the day because it is so nice out now that the weather is in the 60's and 70's and he will go to the bathroom in the house right when he comes in. I show him his poop and tell him he has to poop outside and put him back outside and after all this time it is just not working. I know he isn't dumb because he knows what his "toy" is and he knows what a "treat" is. He knows certain commands and acts like he understands when we talk to him so I don't understand what is so difficult about the command "potty outside". He doesn't even do anything to let us know he has to go potty...no crying or scratching at the door. I put up a bell and have been trying to get him to use that but he is afraid of it so if he ever uses it, it will probably be a while.
> 
> He refuses to go outside when its raining or when it's cold so would it be bad to completely start over and try pad training? I don't know if it would confuse him and I don't know how boys pee on a pad without getting it all over since they lift their leg and pee "on something". We have had a puppy pad in the house since we got him to see if he would use it and he has used it a couple times but nothing consistent. We have never really pushed for him to use it either...I just put it out in case that is what he used at his old house. It seems like it wasn't.
> 
> My husband said if I don't figure something out with him soon we are getting rid of him because our carpets were brand new a year ago and we can't have an animal ruining them. It would break my heart to have to see him go because he has been bounced around so much already and we all love him but this problem is turning into a serious problem. I don't know what to do to fix it. I'm desperate for something to work with him. Any advice is appreciated. Thank you.


Jessica, I completely understand your frustrations! I have a six month old malt who is so very close to being potty trained, however we still have a few accidents. Most of the time this is my fault because I take to long to respond to his warnings. By the way when a maltese warns you they have to potty, it has been my experience that it means " Mom, I have to potty NOW!". :thumbsup:

Rocky will be potty trained, it will happen. I do not want dog pee and poop in my house, period. I will make it happen by being more diligent in watching him, paying more attention and crating him when he can not be watched. He is my baby and will not be leaving our household so I am determined to make this happen. 

Feeding on a schedule helps. Rocky eats twice a day. He poops two to three times a day, and pees multiple times. We have a schedule, mostly, I know when he has to go. Also potty after naps and after rough housing with daddy. When I stick to this it works.

I honestly don't know how anyone does it without a crate. Rocky sleeps in his crate and is also in it when neither of us can watch him (don't worry, that's not often). When he pottys outside I still make a big deal about it and sometimes offer treats. Routine, routine, routine, you really need a consistent schedule. We go out in the morning, no poop? No problem, you go in the crate for a bit till we go out and try it again.

We don't have a fenced in yard here, we have to walk him on a leash. If you have a fenced yard I would suggest walking him anyway or just going out with him so you can reinforce the behavior you want.

Anyway I am no expert but this has been my experience so far.


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## Furbabies mom (Jul 25, 2011)

Are you training him like a puppy? Watching for signs like circleing or going to a certain spot? Is he in an x pen at all and taken out at intervals? Do you let him out after he eats? Most importantly do you praise him when he does go? I praise mine like they just won the lottery and give a small treat afterwards. They still look at me after they're done as if to say Aren't you going to praise me? You just have to be very consistent he'll get it. I'm a very clean neat freak and I will clean up from my fluffs( I have 3) any old day. They are so worth it. Good luck !


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## pammy4501 (Aug 8, 2007)

Read through these threads. Consistency is what will work in the end, wether you choose pads or outdoors. The problem you are having is giving too much freedom in the house to an untrained dog. 

http://spoiledmaltese.com/forum/54-maltese-training/92623-potty-training-tips-jmm.html


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## socalyte (Nov 15, 2010)

One thing I can add: Reward, reward, reward! I have a pom that, though I love him, I was afraid I would never train! Then, for a short time I made myself consistently reward him with a super yummy treat-- like chicken breast bits (I buy the freeze dried at Petsmart). I also verbally rewarded him and made a huge fuss when he did go. Confining him to a room with me also helped, and a crate when I had to leave.

As far as the carpets go, I love ChemDry. If the dog goes back to the spot, or the spot shows up again, they'll return and clean it for free.


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## jmm (Nov 23, 2004)

Here is a link with detailed instructions
House Training Puppies & Dogs. Easy Steps to Potty Training

Some of your problems are:
1. You are leaving him to his own devices. Do not leave him outside unattended. You need to go out with him each time to potty so that you can be there to reward him. Each time your dog goes potty without you rewarding is a huge loss. 
2. If you don't know that he just went potty, do not give him freedom. 
3. He needs a strict schedule.


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## lyndy (Jul 9, 2011)

I will basically echo what everyone else said. Crate or use a pen to confine him. Be consistent taking him out frequently, and feed on a schedule. Praise and reward him for doing his business outside every time.

As far as the cold/rain goes just get him a sweatshirt and or coat. Daisy will "ask" for her clothes if it is raining. You can find them at petsmart or petco, and of course your local independent pet store. 

This was the most helpful thing I read on potty training...If he has an accident you need to figure out what you did wrong. It really is not the dog's fault.


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## BuddysMommy (Jul 18, 2011)

Thank you for all your advice! We do have a big house and I don't have any rooms gated off for him...and I know I should. Like many other things in my life I think I can watch his every move and of course I can't! I do watch for his signs and if we catch them then he goes out but we sometimes don't and he doesn't bark to let us know he has to go out. That is something else we need to work on. He does get treats when he goes potty outside but I don't always go out with him so he thinks whenever he comes in the house he gets a treat...I have been going out with him every single time the last couple days to make sure he goes and he gets a small treat when he goes. I will continue to do that. 

I guess I will do the crate training....as much as it will break my heart to keep him in there. I should have done it from the start but didn't because I feel like such a meanie keeping him locked up. I have also been told from other sources, as well as on here that it is the only way to go if you want them to be trained right away. Thank you for all your help and advice! I do greatly appreciate it!


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## BuddysMommy (Jul 18, 2011)

Today is the start of day 4 of crate training Buddy and I have to say....he is doing great! At first he didn't want to have anything to do with the crate but after giving him treats in there and telling him he's a good boy when he's in there, he doesn't seem to mind it now. There have been a few times when he was out after going potty outside that he actually just went in on his own and layed down! I about fell over the first time I saw him do that! His bed is in there so I imagine it's pretty cozy but I never thought after only a couple days he would actually enjoy being in it. He had one accident over the weekend but that's it. We are doing really good with it.....thank you to all who suggested it! It's working out so much better than I anticipated!


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## Bonnie's Mommie (Mar 2, 2006)

BuddysMommy said:


> Today is the start of day 4 of crate training Buddy and I have to say....he is doing great! At first he didn't want to have anything to do with the crate but after giving him treats in there and telling him he's a good boy when he's in there, he doesn't seem to mind it now. There have been a few times when he was out after going potty outside that he actually just went in on his own and layed down! I about fell over the first time I saw him do that! His bed is in there so I imagine it's pretty cozy but I never thought after only a couple days he would actually enjoy being in it. He had one accident over the weekend but that's it. We are doing really good with it.....thank you to all who suggested it! It's working out so much better than I anticipated!


 :chili::chili::chili:

That's GREAT news!! YAY Buddy!


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## Summergirl73 (Sep 18, 2011)

Go Buddy! Congrats


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## shellbeme (Mar 1, 2011)

I am glad to hear its going well


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