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[Guest Tototoo]

We are still battling the potty training at 7 mon. He is just so subtle in his letting us know he wants to go outside. He gets just a little worried look on his face and if you miss it well...you'll find it later. He averages about 2-3 puddles a day and poo about once a day in the house. We take him out 10-15Xs a day and it is driving me crazy. I am so tired of other dog owners saying "Oh well it only took my Pookie 3 days!" Any help would be great!

Thanks!

[CarCarDawn]

Hi! All I can tell you is hang in there - - - -I too, went through the frustration you are going through. I took Riley out sooooooooooo many times during the day and would make special trips during the night to prevent an accident. Eventually they realize that they need to do their "business" outside.

Riley "just got it"!!!! - - and he will be one year old at the end of this month. Needless to say - - I am thrilled - - we have gone several weeks without an accident of any kind! Just keep doing what you are doing - - it will be okay.

[LORI]

You are right they just seem to get it. We had very little trouble with our first. When she was really little I pick her up and take her out right from the crate in the morning. We would go out with her and make a big issue of her going.

We are getting the new puppy and I hope this works for him too. It will also hopefully be spring time, God willing, and standing outside will be alittle easier than midDecember in Buffalo, NY.

[wags]

We got Wes in the winter. He was paper trained from the breeder's. But then he started playing with the papers and tearing them to pieces. So we had to take the papers out. And when we took the papers out, the inevitable happened. So we had to start from scratch.

We had him outside for a very long while until he finally did his business out there. But then he would only "go" in that very same spot for months, it seemed. Then one day, he became a regular dog!

[mOmOfaBe]

I agree with all the rest, it takes a lot of patience to train them, even the best ones!

The only other comment I would add is to watch for any patterns or routines in the times he goes, etc.....and make sure you work around those. This helped up more then anything. Plus we used the reward method. I know some disagree with this because you can't always be there, but it didn't take Abe long to figure out that IF he was a good boy and used the potty pad while we were gone, he got a special treat and extra praise when we did return.

So hang in there......I got tired of cleaning up the messes too......lol.......yuck!

[Guest Hogan's Mom]

tototoo,

Is your doggie in a crate when you aren't watching him/her?

When we weren't ACTIVELY watching Hogan, he was put in his crate. It's tedious, but effective. As long as your doggie is going inside on a daily basis, he has no idea it's "wrong". Hogan slowly earned the right to freedom in the house.

Good luck!

[bubba]

Cooper was born last June, and we got him in August. We went thru all the trials and tribulations house training brings. Then at Christmastime, my sister got a yellow lab. She hung a bell on her back door and was training him to ring it when he wanted to go out. So.....I got to thinking about how smart Cooper is and even though he was so much older than his cousin of sorts, he could learn to ring a stinking bell!

Off I went in search of what I wanted. I landed at World Market and back by all the windchimes they had just what I had been looking for! It is a string of five bells that resemble cow bells. I hung these on my back door knob and when I would take Cooper out, I would sit him by the door and either pick up his paw or use his snout to nudge the bells and say outside! It took about three days before he was doing it on his own! During this time, I used a baby gate to keep him confined to the kitchen. Of course, I was also giving him treats when he would successfully use the bells as they were meant to use, but you know how they can be.... ...he thought it meant, ring the bells, go outside, don't do anything, come in and get a treat! WOO HOO! So, I stopped the treat bit until he got it completely figured out. After about three weeks, he no longer had any accidents in the house! He has now turned nine months old, and I consider him house trained. He has the whole run of the first floor and still goes to ring the bells each and everytime he wants to go out.

It was funny the other day though....I sometimes put peanut butter in his kong before I go to work in the morning (did you know Skippy comes in a squeeze tube?!?), but this day, I thought I'd put in some Cheezwhiz, which he had never had before (and will never have again). As it was kind of gooshy, I put it in the freezer and gave it to him once the cheese was frozen. He thought he was in heaven! Apparently, this Cheezwhiz and Cooper don't get along, because pretty soon I hear the jingling of the bells. I wasn't getting there fast enough and soon I was hearing the bells on Notre Dame gonging! I rushed out, opened the door and he flew out in the yard, going from spot to spot to spot to spot to spot.....I don't think he knew what hit him! I know it was awful, but all I could do was stand on the porch and chuckle!!!

Try the bells, they might be the trick you are looking for!

pat.

[kropos1]

I just recently tried the bell thing with Holly too. She was very subtle and if we weren't literally watching her we didn't know she had to go. She got the hang of the bells right away and also rang just to go out and play. We haven't quite got the details worked out with thsat yet but if she has to potty she definitely rings. Kate

[Guest Tototoo]

He is crate trained at night and when we leave and is taken out first thing when we get home or first thing in the morning, plus on his really bad days he spends more time in there to help him concenntrate on what he is doing. Its really hard at our house cause we have a new modern house where its very open and you really can't block off a room its very flowing, nice but hard for training puppies. I think the bell idea is a good one and I think I have a old jingle bell from Christmas that might do the trick. Its just really hard sometimes, plus I'm looking at potty training my 3 year old little boy. Now which one gets the newspapers and which one is surposed to ring the bell? LOL

[wags]

Tototoo, you reminded me of a joke. I couldn't resist posting this:

A lady is having her roof redone and the worker comes in and says he has to go to the bathroom. The lady looks at his dirty shoes and says. "Wait. Let me put down some newspapers."

The worker says, "Look, Lady. I am trained."

[Guest Tototoo]

Sally,

I liked that one! LOL

[BrodeeKyra]

Keep up a good routine, and keep giving him many opportunities to succeed. We are second generation Cairn owners. My first cairn, a male, indeed was potty trained outside in a matter of weeks. Our second generation is with two Cairns [brother/sister], who gave us months of problems. It was well over a year before they were outside trained, and I suspect the female is not really trained now, she just holds it until brother has to go out.

They will eventually get it though, and give you a lifetime of immeasurable love.