Toilet Training

[scratchcat]

Hi everyone,

I have a 15 week old American Bulldog pup. She has been inside since 8 weeks old and is slowly learning that her "toilet" is outside and waits by the door to go out. If we are gone for a longer period she obviously can't hold on but while we are home she's pretty good in letting us know. This week we have put her outside while we are at work/out and she is doing well. We leave her with plenty of toys and so far nothing has been destroyed! We don't have a pergola so I leave the garage door open so she has shelter and her bed is in there. Over the last few days it has been raining and she has started pooping in the garage. I think I have worked out that she doesn't like getting her paws wet on the wet grass!! Is this normal?? Now when she goes out for the toilet she walks into the barked area which is dry and goes there. While we are not home she just does her business in the garage. Why is this and how can I stop it? I'd prefer to leave the garage open for her to have shelter from the elements and a dry and comfortable area for her to play but if she continues this behaviuor I may be forced to get a kennel and close the garage. I would welcome any suggestions???

[Faolmor]

It's common for puppies to dislike the feel of wet grass...it does seem to put some of them off "doing the deed" as it were.

It's also common for dogs to toilet somewhere nice and quiet and out of the way. This is what they would do "in the wild." It's not polite, in dog circles, to poo near where the pack socialises, sleeps, eats etc. Your puppy knows this instinctively. The garage is obviously nice, quiet and out of the way of the pack's social area, so it makes sense to your puppy, who doesn't like getting its paws wet, to go there to toilet.

You need to be patient and continue to reinforce the idea that toileting in the garden or on the grass is where you'd like the puppy to go. It will soon learn. Just be patient, and don't punish mistakes, set-backs or garage behaviour. The puppy doesn't realise that the garage isn't the place to go.

Good luck!

[Isabel964]

Duplicate post (sorry)

Edited May 18, 2007 by Sky

[Isabel964]

Mine hate going anywhere when its wet. They will go out the back and poo on the pavement right outside the back door when the rain doesn't let up.

I could be completely wrong, but if you said I had to predict the future, I would say that you would now put those puppy pads you can buy from the pet store to encourage puppies to go to the toilet on them... into the garage. Your puppy would then use them (with your encouragement and training). Then in time you will find that your puppy stops using them.

[Love my Sonny and Neko]

Hi there.

My puppy continues to poo in the outside laundry and she is 6 months... please let me know if you come across anything that works!

[Dozerblues]

You need to be patient and continue to reinforce the idea that toileting in the garden or on the grass is where you'd like the puppy to go. It will soon learn. Just be patient, and don't punish mistakes, set-backs or garage behaviour. The puppy doesn't realise that the garage isn't the place to go.

Good luck!

Congrats on owning an AB! Beautiful dogs they are!!!

Ditto to what Faolmor said. Your puppy will soon realise you want him to toilet on the grass. Just put him out on the grass when you want him to go, and after he goes.... He will soon get the idea.. Our AB was like this in the beginning also, and my bathroom was a disgrace, but they soon get the idea... Dozer hasnt been to the toilet anywhere but the grass in years.. and she is an inside dog!

Goodluck!

[Optimus]

My little 8 week Shitzhu-Poodle will wee on the training mat but goes to all corners of the house to poo. Is there anything I can do to encourage him to poo on the mat?? I am getting pretty tired with chasing him around the house. He is very quick too. Looks around at me guiltily, sniffs and circles around the house, finds a remote spot and then quickly poos.

[Her Majesty Dogmad]

I have two that will wee inside if the grass is wet!!!

[Optimus]

I have two that will wee inside if the grass is wet!!!

Sorry, didnt mean to hijack! Just a bit desperate but he is all sorted now. Toilet trained in 3 days

[Doghouse]

I have two that will wee inside if the grass is wet!!!

Same here, same here..

But.. Since the dew has been on the grass and the girls have been run down the park with the wet grass for a hour every morning, she has to pee somewhere and is getting used to it.. Also gating off the bedrooms and corners has worked wonders - seem to be going outside more now.. until it rains

[Ausmoz]

When we first got Emma, she would poo on the concrete or brick paving out the back under the veranda. It took a little while to get her to stop due to the fact that it mostly happened when we weren't there.

Still, always taking her out onto the grass to pee, and calling her away from the paving just a few times when she was ready to poo seems to have done the trick. She has gone from most of her "business" on concrete to not having done it there at all now for about a week. Definitely a relief.

As for the rain, it can help a lot to walk out there and call your dog to you. Luckily we have a tree that we can stand under that provides pretty good shelter and still has grass underneath, but if the rain is really light, we just stand in it. She needs to get used to the idea that the rain isn't a big deal.

[Dogsfevr]

Also remember this is her first week in her own big world,suddenly has a new place & it can be quite overwhelming.

Put a little time when home into the shed is for protection & its still outside for toilets but in all honestly the shed will be her source of shelter in winter & summer & far more suitable in the long term than a kennel.

Also maybe partition the garage so her area is smaller,make part of it her own hang out

[Missy]

Also make sure you thoroughly clean the area to get rid of their scent otherwise they will be drawn back to that same spot. I use vinegar and eucalyptus oil to clean and deter my guys.

[oakway]

Really is there much difference in picking it up in the garage as to

picking it up outside.

If your dog was in an enclosed area (kennel) you would have to

still pick it up and dispose of it like the rest of us.

People complain because their dog goes on the grass, some complain

when the dog goes on the concrete.

Your dog will get better as it gets older. When you put the dog outside

just make sure the garage door is closed. Your Bulldog will soon get the message.

Yes, it is perfectly normal for dogs not to want to go out in the rain.