# Accidents in the house



## Cindy3kids (Nov 16, 2010)

I haven't been around for ages but was just perusing the boards for some info on training my dog to have no accidents in the house. I did find a good thread on training a 2 year old dog and I read what I kind of already knew...I think I need to go back to the crate with Ginger. I know it was entirely my fault that she is not totally house broken. Yes I was one of those owners that let her roam the house too soon. 

Ginger is generally great when I am home and most days even when I am at work. I work 2 to 3 days a week and between my husband's schedule and mine she is alone for 6 hours on those days. I also alternate my work days. 

She can definitely hold her pee. I let her out as soon as I get home and she will always pee. But occasionaly she will poop when I am away. I should mention that I don't free feed her, she gets meals in the morning and at dinner time. She gets let outside or gets a quick walk before we all leave for the day. 

So I'm wondering if it's partially an anxiety thing. She is very attached to me

I put a baby gate across the stairs and close the basement door so she has access to the main floor which is tile and hardwood. She tends to poop behind the couch or on the fireplace stone. 

So now I am guessing I need to limit her roaming space. I haven't had her in a kennel since she was about 6 months old. She has been so good at nights that at that point I let her sleep with us. She will be 2 in November. 

I should also mention that if I forget to put the baby gate up, I will occassionally find pee on the carpet upstairs. Or if I take a shower she sometimes pees on the shower mat when I'm in there! 

I'm worried about putting her in a kennel. I know it's not mean! But I can't help but feel that way. I have tried to get her to nap in there but she doesn't want to even go in. Maybe an ex-pen would work better. Any suggestions to help us work through her potty issues would be greatly appreciated. I know she would learn fast if we had a plan and were consistent with her as she is a little smary pants!


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## lfung5 (Jun 30, 2007)

I feel your pain. I know I would have a tough time crating my guys after such a long time. My guys are 100% housebroken, but it took a lot of work. I think you need to nip it in the bud before she gets any older. I understand it hard to limit her space after all this time, but I feel it's your only choice. If I were you, I would use an x pen. That will give her some more space. 
My 7 year old had leg surgery about 5 months ago. I was so concerned about crating him because he hadn't been in one since he was a wee pup. He was in an x pen for 3 1/2 months! It killed me, but that's what was required. He was pretty good surprisingly!
It will be hard, but if you do it now, it will save you aggravation later. I don't think it will take that long either. Maybe only a couple weeks? Good luck!


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## Cindy3kids (Nov 16, 2010)

Thanks Linda I'll start looking for that x-pen today!


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## lfung5 (Jun 30, 2007)

Make sure you make it fun. Get in there with her. Put her bed, toys, and interesting stuff in there


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## ellieb (Oct 25, 2008)

I am reading about your situation and am hoping to get some help too.
My pup is 4 years old and being a city dog, is trained to use pee pads. We do go for walks outside and she loves to sniff and leave her mark everywhere.
She has been trained since we got her as a baby and only occasionally peed/pooped off the pad but it wasn't a problem. Now though, she doesn't want to use the pads at all and is peeing on the carpet and pooping too. 

I put her in her crate tonight because I didn't know what else to do. She usually roams the apartment freely but I can't let her if she won't use her pads. 
Based on what I just read, I will set up her ex pen. But how do I retrain her to use the pee pads again. Also, the carpet now has the urine scent on it, so even if I use the pads, will she forever want to use the carpet? 

Any suggestions are appreciated.


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## lfung5 (Jun 30, 2007)

I think it's back to the basics for her. All my guys regressed at about 8-10 months old. It was if they were testing me. At that point I went back to the basics. It only took a few days to get them back on track. My sisters Hav did they same thing at 1.5 years old and i told her to do the same thing and it worked. 

I never trained to a pee pads so I'm not sure exactly how to do that. I guess I would set up a potty area in your house. Maybe tape 4 pee pads together. Keep her in either crate or x pen when you aren't watching her. She can not have free roam of the house if she is unpredictable. Keep a pee pad in x pen too. When it's time to potty put her in potty area and tell her to go. Just like you would do with a puppy by taking her outside. Does this make sense? Once she is reliable, you can just use 1 pee pad again Good luck. Let us know if this works for you!


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## lfung5 (Jun 30, 2007)

PS. When she is out roaming around keep a close eye on her. If she tries to pee on the carpet, correct her before she does. If you catch them in the act I feel it has so much impact. 
Sometimes when I would take my guys to a new house they would try to mark. It hasn't happened lately, but it happened a few times after they spent time at my dog sitters house. Her house has so many accidents in it.....I would watch them closely when we first got to someones house. If they would mark, it would be within the first few minutes. When I saw them start to lift their leg, I would correct them. They haven't tried marking in anyones house in a long time, so I think they get it now.


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