Is This Something That Can Be Prevented?

SarahtheSniper

SarahtheSniper

Well-Known Member
So of course when I have to go places such as school or my job, I have to keep Chilli in his kennel so he won't mess up anything while I am gone.
I keep a little pee pee pad in there for him, just in case if he has to go potty while we are out of the house.
When I get back home, he has torn his pad up and has peed all in his cage, making him smell quite bad. :oops: Does anyone know or have any tips on how to train him not to chew up his pad while I am out?
I make sure that I keep plenty of toys in there while I am gone, and I try to make it as less boring as it can be for him, but he resist and tears it all up, and when he has to go use the potty, he doesn't know where so the ether uses it in his bed (which makes me have to wash it around 2 times a day) or just out in his kennel. :eek:
I aways make sure that he gets out all of his energy before I leave too. I jump around and play with him for around an hour every single morning to see if he will get tired and lay down for a bit while I am gone. He goes to bed when it is time for me too go, but I find him everyday when I get back with his kennel covered with the shredded pad.
All of my family members are out of the house, and I can't just leave him out since we really have no fence.
Does anyone have any ideas of how I could get him to stop chewing up his pad, or is it not really preventable, because that it what your puppy is going to do?
 
MaryK

MaryK

Honored Member
First how long is Chilli in his cage? He's still very young and really cannot be left too long alone, even with toys and all the play you give him (which is great), youngsters get bored VERY quickly and also their energy levels recover VERY quickly even after an hour's play.

Maybe you could try one of the doggy 'indoor' toilets. They are made from synthetic grass, with a tray beneath to capture the urine, the bowel movement stays on top. They ma be less chewable. I cannot say for sure as I've never used one but a friend reported good results when she had a young puppy.

Is there anyway you can get a doggy run?? They are a bit expensive but would definitely help, as Chilli would be able to run around, plus go to the toilet outside.

Someone may have an idea how to stop him chewing the pads too.
 
SarahtheSniper

SarahtheSniper

Well-Known Member
MaryK said:
First how long is Chilli in his cage? He's still very young and really cannot be left too long alone, even with toys and all the play you give him (which is great), youngsters get bored VERY quickly and also their energy levels recover VERY quickly even after an hour's play.

Maybe you could try one of the doggy 'indoor' toilets. They are made from synthetic grass, with a tray beneath to capture the urine, the bowel movement stays on top. They ma be less chewable. I cannot say for sure as I've never used one but a friend reported good results when she had a young puppy.

Is there anyway you can get a doggy run?? They are a bit expensive but would definitely help, as Chilli would be able to run around, plus go to the toilet outside.

Someone may have an idea how to stop him chewing the pads too.
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Thanks for the tip. I say one of those grass things you were talking about this morning, and it would be a great idea. I haven't seen a doggy run before really, but I bet I can find one online somewhere. Thanks :)
 
MaryK

MaryK

Honored Member
SarahtheSniper said:
Thanks for the tip. I say one of those grass things you were talking about this morning, and it would be a great idea. I haven't seen a doggy run before really, but I bet I can find one online somewhere. Thanks :)
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Try e-bay, they have them on e-bay here, so they're bound to have them in the States. I tried to bring up a USA site but only got the Australian ones. However, this url will give you some idea, though ignore the prices, as the States are generally a lot cheaper for doggy stuff.

http://www.google.com.au/search?q=dog+runs&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a
 
SarahtheSniper

SarahtheSniper

Well-Known Member
Amateur

Amateur

Experienced Member
at 4 months I think he should be able to last 3 hours ( but all dogs are different) but not much more.

What happens if you dont use the pee pad ?

Maybe if you dont use a pee pad he will hold it - and therefore doesnt have it to shred when he gets bored.

How long before you leave are you playing with him - point being if you dont allow enough time after play when he drinks a lot afterwards he is filling up soon after you leave - maybe make sure there is an hour after play - then last minute pee before you leave.

What kind of toys are you providing ?

I went through the puppy thing - and our little guy was ok without bedding or anything destructible within the crate. We provided nyla bones and kongs.

Make sure you take puppy outside first thing when you get home - and I do mean first thing.
If you can avoid any accidents the puppy learns faster. I was still taking the puppy out for frequent pees ( after eating, after play, after waking, if she looked at me .... every hour or 2 when active).

How does he do when you are home ?
 
SarahtheSniper

SarahtheSniper

Well-Known Member
Amateur said:
at 4 months I think he should be able to last 3 hours ( but all dogs are different) but not much more.

What happens if you dont use the pee pad ?

Maybe if you dont use a pee pad he will hold it - and therefore doesnt have it to shred when he gets bored.

How long before you leave are you playing with him - point being if you dont allow enough time after play when he drinks a lot afterwards he is filling up soon after you leave - maybe make sure there is an hour after play - then last minute pee before you leave.

What kind of toys are you providing ?

I went through the puppy thing - and our little guy was ok without bedding or anything destructible within the crate. We provided nyla bones and kongs.

Make sure you take puppy outside first thing when you get home - and I do mean first thing.
If you can avoid any accidents the puppy learns faster. I was still taking the puppy out for frequent pees ( after eating, after play, after waking, if she looked at me .... every hour or 2 when active).

How does he do when you are home ?
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If I don't put the pee pad in there, he goes on his bed and then he lays on it which I don't like. Once I get into the house, I put my stuff down and let him out. I leave right after I put him in his kennel. I have a few nyla bones in there for him and a rubber chicken that he loves.
 
Amateur

Amateur

Experienced Member
SarahtheSniper said:
I am not sure how old your dog is to be expected to be potty trained.
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After the 3rd day home ( 8 weeks old) our pup was "toilet trained" - we had maybe 3 or 4 accidents total after that - usually my fault for not noticing.

When I say toilet trained - I had that little thing on a tight schedule - kinda didnt give her the opportunity to have an accident. I was lucky and was home most of the early stages.

When you are home does he have accidents ?

I think you just have to find what works - and maybe try my suggestions - ie not sure he needs a pee pad - we never used one -- so I cant really comment on their use - but maybe it is cueing him to go when he can actually hold it.
 
Amateur

Amateur

Experienced Member
SarahtheSniper said:
If I don't put the pee pad in there, he goes on his bed and then he lays on it which I don't like. Once I get into the house, I put my stuff down and let him out. I leave right after I put him in his kennel. I have a few nyla bones in there for him and a rubber chicken that he loves.
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What happens if you remove the bedding ?
how long after you play with him and exercise do you leave ?
 
SarahtheSniper

SarahtheSniper

Well-Known Member
Amateur said:
After the 3rd day home ( 8 weeks old) our pup was "toilet trained" - we had maybe 3 or 4 accidents total after that - usually my fault for not noticing.

When I say toilet trained - I had that little thing on a tight schedule - kinda didnt give her the opportunity to have an accident. I was lucky and was home most of the early stages.

When you are home does he have accidents ?

I think you just have to find what works - and maybe try my suggestions - ie not sure he needs a pee pad - we never used one -- so I cant really comment on their use - but maybe it is cueing him to go when he can actually hold it.
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When he is home, I always normally have him out. We go outside around every two hours or so. It is probably the pee pad, because I read on the bag and it say something like "cues them to go" like it has a sort of sent.
 
Dogster

Dogster

Honored Member
Excellent advice, Amateur!!!(y)

I would just like to add a little sidenote/tip: Once your dog is more or less potty trained, he will give you clues when he needs to go. I would really watch him, to make sure he doesn't have an accident. The cues can be very subtle sometimes, so you have to keep your eye out for them.

Shivon usually stands right by the door and puts her head down, and stares at me when she needs to go. If she reeeally needs to go, she will whine softly. :)
 
MaryK

MaryK

Honored Member
I'm like Amateur, have puppies on a tight schedule, even through the night, and they're house trained within around three/four days (Zeus was a little slower he was about a week).

Only had one or two small accidents, again like Amateur, usually my fault not responding quickly enough to the puppies.

I've never used the pee pads, but do think they are probably causing your dog to be 'lazy' and may not, not sure on this, be good for him as he gets older i.e. not allowing him to develop a good strong bladder. Holding for a reasonable time isn't going to harm him at all.

All Amateur has said is very good advice. Dogster is right too, you have to really watch and observe a new puppy, they all have a different way of expressing their need 'to go'. Ra Kismet will run up to me and paw my arm to let me know, he's a 'physical/kinetic' type of dog, whereas Zeus will go very quietly to the back door and just stand there! It was his sister the late Tiger Lily and now Ra Kismet who 'alert' me that Zeus needs to go, otherwise I would be spending all my time on permanent watch by the back door, or checking around to see where he was:rolleyes:
 
Amateur

Amateur

Experienced Member
It sounds as if peeing is only a problem with crating. As when you are home you are very attentive.

SOunds like you understand what I am getting at.

SarahtheSniper said:
When he is home, I always normally have him out. We go outside around every two hours or so. It is probably the pee pad, because I read on the bag and it say something like "cues them to go" like it has a sort of sent.
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I was wondering that exactly - the pee pad is cueing him to go instead of holding it.
Maybe you can try not using the pee pad - obviously it isnt really working anyways so not using it wont be much problem. I would even remove his bed from the crate. ( beds are hard to clean and if there is any sent at all on it - even though you cleaned it - it will cue him to pee there again) This will start him fresh without things that "cue " him to pee there. - Dont worry - he will survive without a cushy bed. Make sure you allow at least a half hour after his last drink - before you leave for school - then you can quickly take him out to pee then leave him in the crate for a few hours.

Give it a try - maybe do it on the weekend and crate him only for a few hoursat a time and if he doesnt pee in the crate praise him a lot when he does his business outside. By shortening the crate time to an hour or 2 you lessen the chance of an accident and give the puppy the right idea that "oh I dont pee in the crate I get lots of kisses when I pee outside afterwards. THere is nothing wrong with crating a dog when you are home - its actually a good thing that they can settle even though they know you are there but it also gives you a chance to try and learn him new habits.
 
JazzyandVeronica

JazzyandVeronica

Honored Member
Just a quick thought...how far along is he in his potty training. By that I mean if you are home and you have a potty pad out, will he consistently seek out and go on the pad or ask to go outside? It seems like he doesn't know what's expected of him; which means I owuld start over with basic potty training.

I would either go with a crate where he has just enough room to lie down and no potty pads, make sure he potties before going in the crate and leave him in only long enough so that he doesn't potty and doesn't have the expereince of pottying in the crate and then build the time up; or leave him in a larger puppy proofed area with potty pads or newspaper (We had better luck with newspaper than the potty pads) but every second you are home you have to work to teach him to potty on the paper, be vigilent prevent any accidents.

Check out the link below; start on page 96 for housetraining:
http://codeazur.com.br/pix/blogs/CultureClash.pdf
 
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