Toilet Training In The Rain

[violet]

hi everyone,

my 15 week old cav puppy is fantastic with toilet training, from the second week we've had her she has known to take herself outside to do her business. we always give her lots of praise, and we still give her the occasional treat for doing the right thing (and take her outside ourselves to remind her if she hasn't taken herself). however she hates getting her feet wet, and every time it rains or the grass is damp she refuses to go to the toilet outside.

last night for example, my family took it in turns, to sit outside with her for 15 minute increments, bring her inside for a minute, take her back out...then when that didn't work after a while we took her outside for 15 minutes, put her in her crate for 15 minutes, took her outside...

after 2 hours of no action (despite the fact she HADN'T gone wees since about 5pm and it was by now around 1130pm) i brought her inside to put her in her crate again, she started to run into it, i thought to myself 'well at least she's enthusiastic about going in her crate" and somehow, im not sure how, in that split second i relaxed, from being halfway in the crate she had suddenly dashed through my legs and was squatting to pee behind me.

doing the 'clap' thing and startling her, doesn't work. if she's squatting, Violet will just turn to look at you and give you a dirty look. if you pick her up after clapping, she just keeps peeing (probably because once she's started she can't control it, it was a very big one by then). we always spray the area with vinegar, so she doesn't go in the same spot.

HOW do i make her go outside in the right place when she doesn't want to? this has been an issue the whole time we've had her, and we haven't made ANY progress on it. even just a teeny bit of progress i would be happy with right now.

i know its my fault when she has accidents inside, but we are putting in a lot of effort so i don't really know what else to do!

any suggestions? (i do make her eat her dinner outside, regardless of weather, so she doesn't get dinner/breakfast if she is being too stubborn) and i also take her out there on the lead, and play with her out in the rain. she will lie out on the grass in the rain chewing the grass. she just won't go to the toilet.

[Gretel]

Not much help Violet but a lot of Cavs do not like toileting in the wet! I wouldn't feed her outside in the rain though

[violet]

Not much help Violet but a lot of Cavs do not like toileting in the wet! I wouldn't feed her outside in the rain though

oh if it was raining or pouring or something i wouldnt in a fit! that would be cold and very unpleasant for her. im thinking of the weather we've had atm, this morning for instance, its not raining but the grass is damp. she can sit on the dry brick part and access her food thats on the grass anyway. poor wording on my part, im just a bit wound up about the whole thing.

i know some cavs are fussy like that, and obviously Violet is one of them, but its not a behaviour that I want her to do when she's older. i don't want her to become a total precious princess!

anyway after an hour and a half this morning of waiting outside, crating, etc, Violet has gone to the toilet. then again, the grass isn't that wet, so i'm not sure if thats much of an achievement. maybe it is.

still any suggestions anyone has would be great.

[Karelea Aussies]

My 2 year old rescue still wont go when it is raining outside. We have had about 5 accidents in the house since bringing her home a few months back. All accidents have happened when it has been raining.

She is toilet trained and has a doggy door which she uses without problems, as long as it is not raining. :cool: Everyone in the house knows to watch her like a hawk when it rains, as she will toilet inside. It can be rather frustrating to see everything working fine and then something happens to spoil it. It is thought Cleo may have a bit of cav in her, whether that has anything to do with it or not i dont know. I have even tried putting her coat on before we go out but she still does not go.

I am going to start walking her in the rain and taking her on the grass to see if i can desensitize her from it. This is the only thing i can think of to try. We think in her former life she was kept as a yard dog. I have to wonder how she went about her business then.

Anyway, good luck and I hope you find something that works.

[Starkehre]

I apologise for what I am about to write up front, as I know it is not going to be of any assistance at all. More of just an interesting observation. One of my dogs, now nearly 6, still, to this day, when it is wet, will pee and poo on the concrete instead of on the grass. :p Sure it bugs me, but otherwise she is a fantastic dog in pretty much every other way, so I pick my battles, and pretty much tolerate it. Funny, as she will compete in the rain and wet grass, but when not in drive, she hates getting her little tootsies wet, (princess). Sometimes, if she goes on the wet grass, she even lifts one leg, like to say .."well, if I can atleast keep one foot dry???".. :p

The reason I am posting is because my OH and I were just talking about this same thing last night. I was making the point that pups that are around 8 - 12 weeks in the wet or Winter months are sometimes concrete foulers later in life. Merely an observation. Oh, and BTW, I am refering to a Rott, not a Cav She really has no excuse, bless her cotton sox.

Good luck.

When training my girl, I was up twice through the night initially, taking her out on to the grass, rain and all. I actually don't mind the rain, so it didn't bother me, but it certainly obviously was enough to bother her, to stay with her for her entire life. A real tricky one.

[Odin-Genie]

I had the same issue with my Elkhound when he was a puppy. Everytime it rained, he would poo and pee inside. This went on till he was about three months old. We were running out of options. We even tried standing out in the rain with peanut butter for treats but he completely ignored us.

Then we bought an outdoor umbrella, placed it so that it covered the dog door exit and part of the lawn. So he started going out in the rain and did his business under the umbrella. We would put the umbrella in place everytime it got cloudy. He stopped having any accidents within a few weeks. Now, at 15 months, he goes out in the rain by himself, though he still hates wet grass. Don't need the umbrella anymore.

[Melissa4]

Our pups are quite similar. They don't particularly like wet weather (well one doesnt mind it) but they both aren't too fond on relieving themselves.

I dont give them much of a choice, since they dont wee on the cement (only at the vet where every dog in the neighbourhood wees) I pick them up and put them in the middle of the grass and say"do wee wees" and 9 times out of 10 they do. Of course us as owners sit out there in the rain and get soaking, but it is so worth it when they wee outside.

Goodluck!

[poodlefan]

I'd suggest, if possible, that you introduce your pup to a dry spot somewhere under the eaves of your house. My toy poodle is a bit of a princess for this. After some convincing that toileting just inside the back door is not acceptable if its raining, she'll go out and track along the wall of the house to toilet in a garden bed under the eaves.