# 4 month old puppy doing his business on rugs



## Potato123 (Feb 25, 2018)

Okay where do I start. Well I’m going to give u a background story of how I got this puppy. So I had a lady keep the puppy in romania until I could go get him when I’m on holiday there so he stayed in a cage for 4 months which was covered in the puppy pads. I get him and he’s a total sweetheart and didn’t get scared in the car or anything. I get home he pees and poops on the pad and everything is fine. But now he only does his business on rugs and doesn’t do it on the pads at all. I tried the whole ‘make a noise when u catch him in the act and move him on the pad’ method but when I do that he ends up going back on the carpet and carrying on his business. I tried making him go outside but he doesn’t know he’s allowed to go there so he holds it in until we come back inside (I’ve stayed 2 hours outside waiting for him to do his business). I bought him some treats but he is too small for them and can’t chew those treats so that doesn’t work. Can someone please tell me what to do?? Thanks


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## Aviannah's Mom (Apr 28, 2017)

:Welcome 3: I can not be of a lot of help never having had issues like yours  but regularly taking him out or using a Xpen with potty pads to put him in and be patient using as much praise as possible and treats too when he goes where you want him to. :thumbsup: I can only assume being in a cage that long with potty pads all over going where ever he wanted to go has him a bit confused. :blink: It sounds like you just got him home not long ago so he needs some time to adjust to his new family, home, surroundings and schedule. Give it some time this breed is so very smart and responds very well to praise and love. :thumbsup: It definitely takes time and a lot of patience but is so very worth it. B) Since he is small you will need treats that are small enough and safe for him to eat. I used fresh blueberries cut at least in half and small "soft" chew treats that I broke into even smaller pieces with Aviannah. I am sure others here will have more helpful advice for you as well. :w00t: I can't wait to see pictures of him!


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## Potato123 (Feb 25, 2018)

Aviannah's Mom said:


> <img src="http://spoiledmaltese.com/forum/images/smilies/Welcome 3.png" border="0" alt="" title=":Welcome 3:" class="inlineimg" /> I can not be of a lot of help never having had issues like yours <img src="http://spoiledmaltese.com/forum/images/smilies/unsure.gif" border="0" alt="" title="" class="inlineimg" /> but regularly taking him out or using a Xpen with potty pads to put him in and be patient using as much praise as possible and treats too when he goes where you want him to. <img src="http://spoiledmaltese.com/forum/images/smilies/thumbsup.gif" border="0" alt="" title="👍" class="inlineimg" /> I can only assume being in a cage that long with potty pads all over going where ever he wanted to go has him a bit confused. <img src="http://spoiledmaltese.com/forum/images/smilies/blink.gif" border="0" alt="" title=":blink:" class="inlineimg" /> It sounds like you just got him home not long ago so he needs some time to adjust to his new family, home, surroundings and schedule. Give it some time this breed is so very smart and responds very well to praise and love. <img src="http://spoiledmaltese.com/forum/images/smilies/thumbsup.gif" border="0" alt="" title="👍" class="inlineimg" /> It definitely takes time and a lot of patience but is so very worth it. <img src="http://spoiledmaltese.com/forum/images/smilies/cool.gif" border="0" alt="" title="B)" class="inlineimg" /> Since he is small you will need treats that are small enough and safe for him to eat. I used fresh blueberries cut at least in half and small "soft" chew treats that I broke into even smaller pieces with Aviannah. I am sure others here will have more helpful advice for you as well. <img src="http://spoiledmaltese.com/forum/images/smilies/w00t.gif" border="0" alt="" title=":w00t:" class="inlineimg" /> I can't wait to see pictures of him!


Okay I will try the blueberries thanks! 
Here’s a picture of Tobi
View attachment 256576


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## wkomorow (Aug 26, 2011)

Denise is right consistency is so important. I would never try to startle a dog when it is doing its business. What I would do is get some pee pads and put them near the door. Then take one or two outside with you and put them on the grass. Overtime removed the one you take outside. It is a gradual process.


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## pippersmom (May 21, 2012)

Four months is still quite young so he still has a lot of learning to do and he's probably confused. If you want him to go outdoors here is what I did and it worked quickly.
Take him out every half hour at first because that makes it easier to figure out when he has to pee and always use the same phrase like "go pee". It's a lot better once you can get him to pee on command. Take cheerios out with you and as soon as he finally does what you want then immediately give him a cheerio and praise, praise and more praise. They love to please. Always take him out right after eating and as soon as he wakes up. As long as you're consistent he should catch on quickly and then as he catches on to what you want him to do you can lengthen the time in between potty breaks.


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## unicorn1098 (Oct 3, 2017)

Hi there! Congrats on your new baby! As you can see, you've come to the right place for advice.

Just to echo what many others are saying... small spaces and consistency! Unless you are actively watching or playing with him, I'd keep him in an x-pen with a bed, a few toys, and water. This way he doesn't have access to anything you don't want him getting into. I've done this with all my dogs and it really works wonders. I also make a point of picking up anything that might be confused as a potty pad. Even now, Dolly is a year old and she will occasionally pee on a bathmat or a towel thats been left on the floor. Because she is potty pad trained, I feel like it's not fair to confuse her with rugs hahaha. 

Just make sure you are consistently taking him outside and giving lots of praise when he does it. He'll get the hang of it!


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## Potato123 (Feb 25, 2018)

wkomorow said:


> Denise is right consistency is so important. I would never try to startle a dog when it is doing its business. What I would do is get some pee pads and put them near the door. Then take one or two outside with you and put them on the grass. Overtime removed the one you take outside. It is a gradual process.


Okay thanks a lot!! )


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## Potato123 (Feb 25, 2018)

pippersmom said:


> Four months is still quite young so he still has a lot of learning to do and he's probably confused. If you want him to go outdoors here is what I did and it worked quickly.
> Take him out every half hour at first because that makes it easier to figure out when he has to pee and always use the same phrase like "go pee". It's a lot better once you can get him to pee on command. Take cheerios out with you and as soon as he finally does what you want then immediately give him a cheerio and praise, praise and more praise. They love to please. Always take him out right after eating and as soon as he wakes up. As long as you're consistent he should catch on quickly and then as he catches on to what you want him to do you can lengthen the time in between potty breaks.


Okay I will try that thank you so much! I will post updates if it works 🙂 he occasionally pees and poops outside when I take him and I give him a treat and praise him but he still peed on the rug and even last night he peed in my bed and pooped in his little bed! I hope the method you suggested works


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## Potato123 (Feb 25, 2018)

unicorn1098 said:


> Hi there! Congrats on your new baby! As you can see, you've come to the right place for advice.
> 
> Just to echo what many others are saying... small spaces and consistency! Unless you are actively watching or playing with him, I'd keep him in an x-pen with a bed, a few toys, and water. This way he doesn't have access to anything you don't want him getting into. I've done this with all my dogs and it really works wonders. I also make a point of picking up anything that might be confused as a potty pad. Even now, Dolly is a year old and she will occasionally pee on a bathmat or a towel thats been left on the floor. Because she is potty pad trained, I feel like it's not fair to confuse her with rugs hahaha.
> 
> Just make sure you are consistently taking him outside and giving lots of praise when he does it. He'll get the hang of it!


Okay thank you! I will definitely try that 🙂


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