Just beginning housebreaking!

[mallorcasaint]

Hi all! We have just brought home our lovely Cairn puppy Skye who is 8 and 1/2 weeks old. She is a lovely little thing who has settled in really well and is not the slightest bit nervous. We have a crate and although she is out of the crate all day, except when she wants to go in, she sleeps all night in there. After a few whines she settles down and definitely sees the crate as her "den". We have begun house training her and take her outside frequently (usually after playing, eating or sleeping and while she has "gone" outside several times she still has plenty of accidents. I know it is early days but just wondered if anyone had any surefire tips! I am really looking forward to spending my remaining years with my beautiful companion who already shows me more love and affection than I could imagine! It is a wonderful feeling when she curls up at my feet and goes to sleep, giving me her trust that I will keep her safe.

Looking forward to learning lots about Cairns ( as they come from my family home, The Isle of Skye! )

[Lynn in TN]

I don't know of any surefire way to potty train except watch her constantly. If she is not in the crate don't take your eyes off of her not even for a second. Kelly is 22 weeks old. I am going to say she is 100% potty trained even though she had a bad week this week and had a potty accident twice in the house. It was the first accident she had in the house in a month, but she lost several teeth this week and it made her not feel that well so I could understand, as I am raising 2 sons. The fewer the accidents you can keep her from having the better. If you can't watch her put her in the crate. Some leash the pups to themselves to keep the pup with them at all times. I have been very fortunate with mine she has picked up quickly, but that is not always the case. For 2 days I kept track on a piece of paper every time Kelly went potty even the mistakes I would write down what time and what she done(pee or poo) That gave me an idea how long she could go without potting and I would take her out after that much time passed. It seemed to work great, accidents almost stopped. Each week I would add 15 minutes to the wait time. She eventually started going to the door on her own, if I am in another room she comes and sits at my feet and stares at me.

I hope this helps. Good luck! Welcome to the forum. There are a lot of great and helpful people on this site, and a wealth of information in the old posts.

[mallorcasaint]

Hi Lynn,

Thank you for your reply and kind welcome. We are indeed keeping a close eye on Skye and although she does have some accidents she is learning to go when we take her outside. The bigger problem at the moment is biting or nipping. What we are doing is when she bites we immediately remove her into another room for a few minutes but as soon as we let her out she starts again. She eventually calms down and it does seem to be just playing but I want to ensure I am doing the right thing by the puppy. She is very good with her crate and we never "punish" her by putting her in there. Any help is welcome!

[Lynn in TN]

Nipping and biting is something you will be dealing with for quiet a while if I am understanding everyone on the forum. Most of them say it doesn't stop completely until they are a year old. They are just playing at this age but when she gets a little older it will be because she is teething also. Some of the others including myself would gently hold the snout and say no bite, If she continues after a few times I would tether her to something or put her in a small place for a few minutes. This is what I do with Kelly. She has been doing better lately but still has days when she wants to mouth us. Kelly is now growing new teeth as she has lost all of her baby teeth. So just be consistant, it will get better. There might be times when you think you have a great white or a little devil instead of a cute puppy, I felt this way more than once and I know others felt like this too. Just don't get discouraged, it is normal. Good luck with this one.

She is a beauty! Keep us posted.

[Idaho Cairns]

Your pup will continue to have a few accidents until she figures out that she must go outside. When you see her start to squat, pick her up, with a firm "NO!" and take her outside to finish, even if she dribbles the whole way. It is my opinion that dogs prefer to go outside where all the smells are but it takes time to get them to do so. Profuse praise when she goes outside, every time she does helps to motivate her as well. Also cleaning up her messes inside so no smell remains will help considerably.

The biting is typical and can be cured by grasping the snout, looking the dog in the eyes and firmly giving her a "No bite!" verbal message. She will probably think you are playing for a couple of times but you will persist and she will stop. It is valuable because as you rough and tumble play with her, she will have a tendency to make biting moves at your hand and you will be able to stop it by using the command "no bite!" as you play. Others may disagree but I believe "No!" (or some substitute sound) is the first command a Cairn should learn from a human--it has so many valuable applications with these rowdy little cusses. It is your maternal "snarl" that these dogs are used to from their litter Mom.

[pindrop]

oh oh - another puppy!!! Skye is beautiful and such a cutiepie. Congratulations and welcome to the forum. Always happy to have a new member especially one with such a young one. The questions you are asking are typical for this puppy stage. Idaho is correct in teaching your dog THE most important word being "NO" - although at this age they don't have a clue. Had your pup stayed longer with the breeder, it's Mom and littermates would have taught them that biting is a no-no along with other socialization skills. Now you have to step in and be both. The biting stage may last till they are six/seven months when they get their adult teeth but you still have to try to inhibit them from biting as they don't realize how harmful those little nips are with their razor sharp teeth. Insofar as house training - Lynn has given you some excellent tips. It will be hit or miss for the next few months but slowly over time, they will get the message. btw...pictures are a must as we need our fix. Once again welcome and feel free to ask whatever you need.

[mallorcasaint]

Thanks for all the advice and we will take it all on board! She is indeed a cutie-pie, just as all pups are I suppose. We love her dearly and want to do the best for her. Here are some pics!

[Lynn in TN]

She just makes me want to give her hugs and kisses, cause she is so cute. I love these bigger pictures. She is a doll.

[_whits_]

Hello and welcome to you and Skye! This forum has been a great resource for Addie (5 months) and I. I hope it helps you, especially through the first few frustrating (but adorable!) weeks.

Everyone seems to have a different method when it comes to potty training, so figure put which on works best for you. I think the most important thing is CONSISTENCY with whatever method you choose.

I used this modified version of How to Housebreak a Puppy in 7 Days http://www.leecharleskelley.com/images/Housebreaking.pdf

It took about 2 weeks for Addie to get it, and about 3 for her to be consistent. As she got better and more reliable, i started giving her more freedom. Basically for two weeks we was either 1) in her crate 2) in her playpen or 3) playing with me with 100% supervision. Her feeding was also at specific times for specific times. That way, you have a general idea of when shes going to need to go potty so you can limit the mistakes. This method (the PDF really explains it well) worked for me.

Other tips:

1) always take Skye out the same door for potty. That way shell eventually understand that's the potty door and start going to it herself when she needs to potty

2) following a tip here, I removed all my rugs and put cheap linoleum (got at home depot) under her play pen so then messes were easier to clean

3) since shes only 8 weeks, shes not going to be able to hold it very long. Have patience as her muscles develop, although it might feel like she's always going potty

4) get a deodoriser so you can erase any scent of her accidents to prevent her from thinking potty inside is ok

5) only tell her no if you catch her in the act, otherwise shell think you're mad at the potty, not the location of the potty, and shell just start hiding when she goes.

Good luck! And enjoy little Skye!

Good luck!

[_whits_]

And please ignore my typos. iPhones are make correct typing difficult!

[Hawkeye]

Welcome to both you and Skye! Skye is beautiful, I just love the first picture.

You have received some great advice and really I would just like to add that cleaning up after them is very important. You should get an enzyme cleaner that will kill the odor otherwise they may go back to the same spot. On the biting I agree with holding the muzzle and tell them "NO BITE". I also yelled "OUCH"...it catches them off guard. With training a puppy whether potty, biting or anything you have to be persistant and more stubborn than the pup.

[hheldorfer]

Welcome to you and Skye. (Great name, by the way. ) I have nothing to add except that my personal preference for pee-pee clean-ups is white vinegar mixed with water. It's cheap, contains no chemicals, doesn't (as far as I've seen) harm floors or upholstery and you can prepare it and keep it handy in a spray bottle.

Can't wait for more stories and pictures as Skye grows up!