Potty training

[Jodie]

I have a 8 month old male cairn. He is absolutely adorable, except I am having a hard time with potty training. He goes when i put him out and sometimes he will even tell me by barking at me, but about once a day he decides it isn;t worth it to tell me he needs to go out. Is this normal? If not, what can i do to fix the problem. Also, i can imagine that barking isn;t the best way to tell me he needs to go out, so I was wondering how I would being to train him to ring a bell to tell me he needs to go out?

Thanks for any advice,

-Jodie

[Senator Cody Wilson]

Jodie,

I would first recommend not wasting aminute on beginning your training. At 8 months, most pups are already trained.

My personal experience with a Cairn pup has been excellent as far as house training is concerned. When Cody was younger, we took him out at least once or twice an hour whether he did something or not. We took several peoples advice and did not scorn him if we did not catch him in the act. We were told that it is almost impossible for dogs to understand they made a mistake by going in the house if it is even a minute after they have done it. I think this enabled him to better understand where he needed to go as we praised him each time we returned to the house if he went (even a little PP). We also verbally told him "PP outside" every time we took him outside to go, no matter what he did while he was out there. We told him very clearly "PP OUTside" (inflcetion on the OUT when we spoke) when we took him out. Lastly, we literally took his paw and scratched a place on our back door for him every time we went out so now we can hear his scratching from anywhere in the house and know he has to go outside (he just picked it up after a while). We tried a bell but he ripped the string off of it making it useless. In order to protect our back door, I bought a small (6X6 inch) piece of clear plexi glass from a hardware store and some white velcro (our door is white) and attached it to the section on the door where he scratches. This protects the door and his nails from the steel in the door.

Whe he did have accidents (mainly when he was tired or when we did not follow a schedule), we used Natures Miracle solution which cleaned up the stain and removed all of the odor. We even used it diluted in water when we cleaned out kitchen floor as that was where he had most of his accidents. The key with training (in my eyes) is getting the pup to understand that inside is no place to go, rather outside. Lots of praise, a close eye on the pup for several weeks, the verbal command and quick and efficient cleanups of any accidents will go a long way in your training.

Lastly, all of the advice we received centered on making sure you take the pup out:

Immediately after they wake up

A few minutes after they have eaten or drank water

After you have been playing with them for several minutes

Just before they go to sleep

Good luck.

[bradl]

B-I-N-G-O

[CRSTFR]

The only thing I have to add...Make sure you take him out on leash, even if you have a fenced in yard. No play outside until he goes potty. If you do have a fenced yard let him off leash once he's done is business.

[Guest CarCarDawn]

Hi! I have a cairn puppy soon to be 8 months old. While he is not totally potty trained - - he is getting there. I believe that all dogs react to things differently and sometimes there may be other circumstances that prevent them from getting trained quickly. In my case - - Riley was a sick puppy - - had surgery twice - - and even tho I was vigilant in taking him out - - at least 4-5 times an hour - - even now - - he would become trained - - go into the hospital - - and forget everything. He has been home for about a month now with no interruptions - - he is almost there but every once in a while he will look me straight in the face and do his thing on the floor - - I believe this is the nature of the Cairn - - lovable and defiant!!! Good luck with your potty training !!

[Guest Liz]

Amen, defiant and so very loveable. I used a crate and it was wonderful. We just got him a little friend and are using the crate with him (and this time it's even easier because I don't worry about using a crate). Rebel was about 5 months old before I could trust him completely. I think his inquisitiveness causes more problems than anything. Rebel will be a year old next week. He puts everything in his mouth and "Leave It" only works when he wants it to.