Oh the joys of a puppy!

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Clown9644

Oh the joys of a puppy!

Post by Clown9644 »

This is my 3rd Mini but first puppy that I was training. He is a very good boy of 3 1/2 months as long as he can chew chew and chew! He really wants to make me happy and really does not like to be away from me but I sometimes wonder who is the Alpha, no matter how much I assert myself, but that is not the problem, it is potty training!

He is a good boy in his crate from 11PM to about 6 AM, never an accident. I take him out immediately and I think we are successful. I wait a few minutes and then feed him and if I don't take him out immediately he will go in the house, and often does. He can be running full speed, stop for 2 seconds and run again and there will be a puddle or worse. I pick him up, ring the bell and take him outside, just like the books say to do.

I let him out about every hour or so and sometimes we have a successful time, others I will let him in and he will almost immediately go potty! I pick him up and put him out again.

I do not hit, I try not to let my frustration show. I reward with small treats when we do it right.

Part of the problem is the breeder raises pets only, she is not a show dog person. She raises her litter in the living room as they live in a rural area and there are a lot of hawks around. The dogs only know to void on the floor and seldom need to go near one of the several training pads, after all every area in the living room smells of that odor! She sprayed with a vinegar and water solution to help but I don't think that was getting it done. Of course part of the problem is probably me. I try to be attentive but like right now I am looking at the computer and typing and he is in the room, so far with no accident but he may at any minute.

I don't know if there is a fix other than being more attentive and consistant but I feel better having my whine. Thanks for listening but if anyone has a suggestion or even an encouraging comment feel free!

Dave
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Schnauzer Sam
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Re: Oh the joys of a puppy!

Post by Schnauzer Sam »

Hi David,

We had the same issue with Rosie. We'd take her out and use the phrase "hurry up" and praise her when she was co-operative. We had many an incident - mostly due to us not picking up on her signals but also some caused by the fact that she'd been used to living in a kennel at the breeders until 12 weeks old and there was no attempt made to house train her.

Like your pup, we had no problems when she was crated and had the playtime, immediate squat and back to playtime. You are doing the right thing; praise when successful and ignore the mistakes. Our toilet training took about 10 weeks until we were confident enough to give her the freedom of downstairs in our absence and we have had no issues since.
Country Girl at Heart (Molly) 8 April 2003 - 22 December 2018

You're never alone when you own a schnauzer

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zeta1454
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Re: Oh the joys of a puppy!

Post by zeta1454 »

As said above, the early environment at the breeder's premises / home are critical in establishing routines for a puppy and how they learn where and when to toilet. If no house training has been done before you collect your puppy and they have become used to go when and where they are kept then it will be much harder to get them used to holding on and using the outside as the best place to toilet.

Continue with what you are doing but try as much as possible not to give your puppy any chance to make a mistake. Take him out immediately when he wakes; before eating; after eating; before play; after play and any time you see the signs he may be looking to go. You have to be super vigilant and super fast in these early weeks to get him outside before he does go. If he is holding on overnight then he has the capacity to wait but has not yet learned to use this through the day. If you cannot watch him, make sure that he is in a crate or playpen or similar more confined area which may help to encourage him to hold on and, if he cannot, at least he is not soiling lots of areas in your home.

Good luck - I am sure that he will get there before long :)
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Oscar 12345
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Re: Oh the joys of a puppy!

Post by Oscar 12345 »

I had the same problem with Otto, he was trained on newspaper which I wasn't used to. What made a difference for me is setting my kitchen clock alarm on every hour and taking him out after 10 mins bring him back. Obviously if he is sleeping then leave it till he wakes. If you had a good result then reset for another hour if not wait 15 mins and do not let out of your sight and then out again. You will get there soon. It is frustrating and requires eyes and wits about you but they get it eventually.
Man cannot survive with wine alone...
we also need a schnauzer.
Clown9644

Re: Oh the joys of a puppy!

Post by Clown9644 »

Thanks for the encouragement!! I wish my breeder had not used her living room to raise the pups as I am sure Chewy lkes the convenience. All had some great ideas, I now am using a gate to keep him in the area I am in and am going to buy a cheap kitchen timer for the hourly reminders. Was going to use my phone then realized I am already having troubles with the battery.
I also saw the comment about using a play pen. I actually had a Puppy Playpen so set it up. Well it worked a month ago but Chewy has grown up too much. I walked down the hall and heard a commotion so turned to look. Chewy had turned the playpen, which is sort of round when set up, and was walking behind me IN THE PLAYPEN following me!. Well it is now put back in its box and will go to the local church to sell in their used stuff store. I actually had to stop, take him out laughing like an idiot and we played for a couple of minutes and then OUT to go potty!

Onward and Upward I go. Wish me luck.
Bodee
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Re: Oh the joys of a puppy!

Post by Bodee »

Clown9644 wrote:Thanks for the encouragement!! I wish my breeder had not used her living room to raise the pups as I am sure Chewy lkes the convenience. All had some great ideas, I now am using a gate to keep him in the area I am in and am going to buy a cheap kitchen timer for the hourly reminders. Was going to use my phone then realized I am already having troubles with the battery.
I also saw the comment about using a play pen. I actually had a Puppy Playpen so set it up. Well it worked a month ago but Chewy has grown up too much. I walked down the hall and heard a commotion so turned to look. Chewy had turned the playpen, which is sort of round when set up, and was walking behind me IN THE PLAYPEN following me!. Well it is now put back in its box and will go to the local church to sell in their used stuff store. I actually had to stop, take him out laughing like an idiot and we played for a couple of minutes and then OUT to go potty!

Onward and Upward I go. Wish me luck.
David, the only thing I would add and this is just a personal thing with me - I actually showed Milla by voice expression, I was disappointed when she went in the house.

Puppies do try to please and although I was never angry I did let out a disappointed "Aw Milla not here pet, com'on outside" (or words to that effect) I think they pick up on disappointment just as much as they respond to praise. We would probably be amazed if we could know just how much a dog picks up about our moods if we could ask them.

Interestingly I also never shut her cage after the first night where she understandably, I thought, fouled her bed, my neighbour who had gone through the puppy process with her miniature schnauzer gave me almost a full pack of puppy pads. I just used to leave one on the kitchen tiled floor at night and she went to it during the night. After about 2 weeks she would hold all night and actually play with the pads instead, that was when I stopped using them.

She trained pretty quickly doing it the way you are doing and also letting her know I was disappointed. She still had the occasional accident for a while but that was ALWAYS down to me.

After I take her out the back for a "last roundup" we go to our sep beds at 11.00 pm and I get up at 8:10 in the morning - we go straight out and she still wants to play until I tell her "do a wee wee" She does and I reward her. I then tell her to "do a jobby" (I know, silly but I was a big fan of Billy Connolly :) ) and she does it. Then we play.

Believe it or not I don't even take her water away now, after forgetting to lift it a couple of times.

Every pup is different and as far as I can tell you are doing all the right things so don't worry.

By the way I also used a set of small metal bells, hung on the handle of the back door and although I had no faith in them when I bought them she started ringing them herself to get out in about 3 days. I was amazed. She is 8 months now and still rings them, the only difference is she rings them about 10 times a day - she likes to go out the back play for 10 mins and come in again.

Your task as you say has been made a bit more difficult due to the breeder's set up but they are hell of a smart and they live to please so don't get down he will be trained before you know it.
All the best.
Clown9644

Re: Oh the joys of a puppy!

Post by Clown9644 »

Thanks for the encouragement Bodee. We seem to have the same thoughts, but Chewy doesn't. I have Training Pads and he will not go near them. The breeder had them all over her house and the pups did their stuff wherever they were. I tried 2 different brands hoping it was an odor thing, no luck. I had trained Bear, my last Mini by bell and we had fun with it. If he just wanted to go out it was a gentle ring, if he needed to go out it was more energetic and if he REALLY needed to go out NOW you would have thought a tornado was ringing it, but sometimes if there was a squirrel in HIS yard he went right to the power ring. So much fun.
Yes I agree on the mood thoughts, they are very intuitive and I think I am being set up for one of those disappointment events. We have had breakfast and we have been outside 3 times and all he wants to do is eat that Florida Sand and grass. Sometimes wonder if I got a cow by mistake! Not sure about this but am feeding him a very highly rated dog food so assume we are not in search of a nutrient. So far, no accident but they can take place in 2 seconds! What amazes me is that he has gone from about 10:30 to about 7 in his crate, had breakfast and water and we still haven't done anything and its almost 9!

We will stay the course and know eventually we will be ok.

Thanks to all for the advice so far.
Clown9644

Re: Oh the joys of a puppy!

Post by Clown9644 »

I'm dancing a jig! Chewy has not had any accident now for 5 days!!! He won't make any noise, will not ring the bell so I have to watch for him to sit at the door, take him out and he does his stuff.

I must get Chewy to respond when I call him to "come" I do the holding hand down near the ground as well as verbal and so far he considers it a challenge rather than a command. I worry about it as he will run right into the road if not on a line (he is quick and if I open the door for any reason he is out in a flash) but I worry more about when we are at the lake at the dog run. He loves the water which my other 2 did not. My problem is we are in Florida for another week at our winter home and if there is water in Florida there is also an Alligator!! I do not want Chewy to be some gator's snack. We will get past this too and will have lots of safe time in or fenced in back yard to figure out these commands in Ohio.
Oscar 12345
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Re: Oh the joys of a puppy!

Post by Oscar 12345 »

Oh my goodness, thankfully I don't have to worry about alligators, we don't get many of those here in the UK.... :) By the way David, a British garden tends to be made up of lawn plus borders for flowers and a vegetable patch if you are lucky. So when we say the dog is playing in the garden generally speaking that will mean playing on grass. A yard would generally refer to a hard surfaced area.
Man cannot survive with wine alone...
we also need a schnauzer.
Clown9644

Re: Oh the joys of a puppy!

Post by Clown9644 »

Thanks for the explanation. As I have heard others say we are divided not only by an ocean but a common language with several different meanings. Some day I hope to visit your beautiful country before I die!
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