potty time

[chastity]

Hi everyone!
once again i need me fellow doodle members help. ok so it seemed like Charly was potty trained, saturday made a full week that i have had her and she hadn't had one accident! i would let her out as soon as she woke up, so from the crate to outside. she would be supervised thruout the day but free to play and explore around, sometimes she would let out a little cry and i knew it was because she had to go, so i would take her outside and she would do her thing. other times i would just follow the rule of thumb, after she would play, after she would eat or drink, and after she would sleep i would take her out. well sunday morning, i wake up, knew she had to go, she was in her crate, but i was pretty confident she would be able to hold it while i put on shoes, jacket, etc...so i let her out she ran to the living room i was right behind her and next thing i knew she was squatting in the middle of the living room!! Ughhhhh!!! so i told her no and took her outside. i figured this was my fault for letting her out b4 i was even totally ready to go downstairs. :( well yesterday evening we were home, my sister was over with her dog, they were playing around, finally stopped and b4 i knew it Charly was squatting!! i'm just so confused as to why she was kind of whining at first to want to go out, last week she wasn't letting me know every single time, i would sometimes beat her to the punch and take her out when i knew she would have to go which was better than nothing, with no accidents! and now she just doesn't even give me any kind of sign or notice! i know she's smart because she understands most commands i throw at her. i know we have to go down the elevator and all that, which she does just fine, she still doesnt go down the stairs, which i wish she did because this way we would be outside and downstairs so much quicker. taking the elevator means we have to go down, walk thru the hallway and yet another door! any suggestions!? am i doing something wrong? i always praise her and kiss her and make a big deal about her going pee pee outside! :(

[Lynda Kamrath]

That's a problem. Once they do go in the house, it becomes a territorial thing. They can usually hold their urine for quite a while, but once the house is marked (and especially if another dog is around) they will mark again. She is just claiming the house as her own. Best suggestion that I can give you is to never let the dog run around in the house until AFTER she has gone pee pee outside. Some dogs will still try to mark, but more so with the males than with the females. Some males do a squirt here, and a squirt there. They seem to save it up so they can mark more spots. Others just do it all in one place to empty their bladder. My dog that was neutered (maybe too early), empties his bladder all at once and does not lift his leg. The other dog lifts his leg and likes to do a little here, and a little there. Neither, however, have had any problems in the house and have never marked in the house. Good luck, but I think if you keep her on leash from the time she gets up until she has gone pee pee outside, she will break this habit. Make sure to clean the spots where she marked well.

[Sally, Echo and Emmi]

Hi Lynda!
Just curious as to why you mentioned that your neutered dog that does not lift his leg was maybe neutered too early? I was quite sure what you meant by that? Thanks so much!

[Lynda Kamrath]

Our goldendoodle, Groucho Too, was neutered before we took possession. It was at about 6 1/2 weeks, which I think is early for neutering. My vet said too early neutering can influence their growth, but that does not seem to be indicated as he is 30 in. tall and 85 pounds. However, he has never lifted his leg and does not mark territory. There are different ideas about the age for neutering, and that is just my idea.

[Leslie, Dexter & Kirby]

My advice is to take her out on a leash every time and make the trip just for potty. Praise and/or treat when she goes. Until she is reliable in the house, I would keep a leash on her so you can watch her. We did this "boot camp" with Dexter around 4 months and he was trained in 1-2 weeks. Good luck!