# Desparately seeking some Help!!!



## Tessa's Mommy (May 20, 2011)

If you have read any of my posts, you know we have had a hard time potty training Tessa and it isn't getting any better. She is over a year old.

The other day I was using the facilities and she likes to come in, which I know a lot your dogs do. She sat on my lap for a few seconds, wanted down and promptly walked over and squatted on the throw mat on the floor. I yelled her name and she looked at me with her "what?" look. It was like she didn't even know it was wrong. I scolded her and gave her a "time out". The most annoying thing is that she had only come in from outside five minutes before this.

Well, today was bath day. After my husband took her out of the sink, she wandered around the family room for a minute or two and then squatted and piddled in her bed. The bed she sleeps in every day. I yelled her name again, and got the "What?" look again. 

The odd thing is she has never piddled in her crate and I work three days a week and she is in the crate from 8:00 am until 3:30. She also sleeps on our bed and never piddles on that. She even wakes us up if she has to pee.

I am at my wit's end. We have tried everyone's suggestions, from the ones I got from the trainer to ideas posted on the forum. We put her out in the yard everytime she wants to go. I don't know where to go from here. She is the most loving puppy and we love her to pieces and and wouldn't even think of returning her to the breeder or anything like that, but HELP!!!


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## gelbergirl (Jun 9, 2007)

Henry has pee-pads, but if I leave a throw mat on the floor, he will make a pee-pee on that (as if it is an option). I think in his mind, if there is a mat/pad/towel on the floor it is for pee-pees.

I have stopped leaving any small rugs anywhere, though, sometimes when we visit folks he will do it to their rugs. I believe it is a matter of differentiation and that he does not differentiate.

Not sure if there is anything that can be done.


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## TilliesMom (Sep 30, 2010)

do you go OUT with her and make SURE she has pee'd??
Tillie will ring the bell to go out and if I don't go out with her and tell her GO POTTY, she will wander around, sniff and come back in without ever pee-ing!! then 2 minutes later she is ringing the bell again! sheesh, dog!


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## Tessa's Mommy (May 20, 2011)

I have taken up all the rugs in the house, but the ones in the bathroom because, let's face, the floor is cold on the toes. I tried pee pee pads, but she ripped them up, you know, the shredding gene.

I try to go out with her but it was minus 10 to minus 20 (c) today and I really hate the cold, but you may be right. I think I will have to suck it up and go out with her or at least watch her while she is out. 

Thanks.


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## HavaneseSoon (Nov 4, 2008)

It takes time, I am afraid. Jack is still having accidents and he is two. Dh is not always the watchful eye as I am. If bathing...Potty prior and after. My boys usually have to Potty right after bathing (drying). If it is that cold outside, I would be training to use a pre pad for sure It just takes time, but, oh, so worth it.


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## shimpli (Mar 24, 2010)

Because of the 'shredding gene', I was unable to use pee pads with Ache. But I needed something for her to use inside. I use something like the Ugodog. I don't know how Tessa would react to it because she is older but it is so good to have an alternative for them to use inside the house... and more with those temperatures. brrrr
Maybe you need to limit her space again and watch her closely. When you see her peeing, move her to the Ugodog and praise a lot. Repeat, repeat... But definetely, you need to limit her space in the house while you get things under control. Here is a picture of what we use. Good luck.


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## Ruthi (Nov 10, 2011)

Hi, the way that I trained Gabby, I just took her to her pee pads really often, and made her get on it, and would stand there telling her go potty, over and over til she went. In the beginnning, it took a little while to get her to go, but, soon, she knew when I put her on it and told her to go potty, she best go, or she will be there a while. I didnt give her free access to the pads at first, cause I figured she would rip it up. She has a nice crate, and she got rotated from the crate, to go potty, and then a little play time, potty, and then back to the crate. She caught on quickly, and is now potty trained at 4 months. I really think it was consistancy and standing over her telling her to go potty til, now, she will go on command, even if she can only squeeze out a few drips, lol. I use the pads and the grass pad, she will use either. Good luck!


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## Suzi (Oct 27, 2010)

all I can say is it can take longer than a year with some pups. My two were doing so bad I was embarrassed to even talk about it. Most of my accidents happened in the middle of the night when I was asleep they would just jump off the bed. The rugs were cleaned twice but I think they could still get a sniff. Both of them have been trained on pads and the outdoors. What just happened in the last few weeks is amazing to me . I moved to a newer home that I don't think had any pets I was so afraid they would have accidents on the nice rugs that I build a xpin around my bed and put vinyl on top of the rugs. The first day I was their Zoey squatted in the middle of the family room rug . I was right there and said no and took her outside. Neither have had a accident now in about two weeks. Maddie is almost a year and a half and Zoe is three mo younger. I have no idea what finally clicked in for them the only thing I can think of is the carpets are just so free of any pee smell. Zoey was one to love to go on any mat the new house has several around by doors that she doesn't even try that. Any way don't kick your self just keep trying Is she spayed? Mine got worse when they were in heat.


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## rokipiki (Oct 15, 2010)

Go and check her bladder! She might have a problem with holding pee-pee. Peeing all around can be also a kind of revenge. Maybe she hates being crated for so long three days a week? If you think about crating a dog for so long you will probably come to the conclusion that being in confined space for seven od eight hours is not a nice experience at all. Go to Turid Rugas web page and read about her calming signals. She is top dog behaviorist and she thinks that crating dog for long periods is a big mistake. She says that crate is ok only for transportation! Maybe she doesn't like it and she pees as some kind of revenge. 
Roki hates blow drying an on bath days I know that I should keep my bedroom door closed because his revenge for blowdrying is peeing on my bed. He managed to do that yesterday! he also hates when I sit by computer more then half an hour. Two weeks ago he protested peeing on my bed. 
But generally I think that havanese could be hard with housebreaking. I cannot say Roki (two years) is completely housebroken. Here and there I find dryed puddle, mostly in kitchen. I know he goes to kitchen to drink during the night and probably he just lifts his little leg to relieve him (rubish bin) while half asleep. I also learned that harsh punishment is completely counterproductive.


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## TilliesMom (Sep 30, 2010)

wow. my hav was potty trained by 4 months and I think that most havs CAN be if started out right.... but still peeing in the house at 2 yrs old? my husband would NEVER have let that happen.
Also, I have to disagree about the dogs peeing for revenge. I don't believe that their brains work that way. just my opinion.


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## Lizzie'sMom (Oct 13, 2010)

I always go out with Lizzie to potty-and I mean always no matter the weather. (or one of the kids) That way I know when she has really gone. Lizzie will be two end of March and is finally now reliable. Her issue was pooping in the house. Also, you need to really be on top of her signals. Many many times Lizzie would come up to me and put her feet on my legs and I would think "how cute!" then she would potty. She WAS telling me, but I wasn't paying attention. We did use bells and they are great. You need to consistently ring them with her paw EVERY time you take her out and say "potty".

I have to agree with Rokipiki. Seven and a half hours in a crate is a lot. I am not sure about her peeing for revenge, but she may have a reason. Tere's set up is nice. I just gated off my kitchen but did not have pads or doggy potty system. You probably do want something down since peeing is a problem. It would not hurt to go to Turid's site. I know that Dave has posted an article of hers on calming signals. I think he titled it calming signals if you search the forum.


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## Truffles (Jan 11, 2012)

*Patience*



Tessa's Mommy said:


> If you have read any of my posts, you know we have had a hard time potty training Tessa and it isn't getting any better. She is over a year old.
> 
> The other day I was using the facilities and she likes to come in, which I know a lot your dogs do. She sat on my lap for a few seconds, wanted down and promptly walked over and squatted on the throw mat on the floor. I yelled her name and she looked at me with her "what?" look. It was like she didn't even know it was wrong. I scolded her and gave her a "time out". The most annoying thing is that she had only come in from outside five minutes before this.
> 
> ...


I am not having issues with this ( but everything else). Everything I have read says it's important to set up a schedule and take puppy to same spot ( like every morning I take my pup out to same area out front,she pees and poops 
first thing) Now she's been with me 3 weeks. Make a big deal, treats, high pitched voices "good girl!, all that. Take her out frequently, definitely after bath. And one thing I do is keep a pee pee pad in my potty area bc she wakes meuparound 3am, I put her on it and back in crate she goes till about 630 am. Also if I were having this problem I would consult a behavior specialist. My vet gave me a packet that included places to take puppy, trainers, and behavior specialists. I would also make sure she doesn't have any kind of infection that can be causing her to pee too often?hope this helped.


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## Tessa's Mommy (May 20, 2011)

Tessa was 4 1/2 months old when we got her. I think the breeder had started to pee pee pad train her and I think maybe Tessa can't differentiate between the pee pee pads and the throw rugs.

When Tessa first came home, we didn't crate her. We actually left her in our master bathroom, but she scratched like crazy to get out. The trainer (Tessa has taken both the puppy and the intermediate class) recommended we crate her and she never balks at going into her crate. She heads there each morning when I come out to go to work and often goes into it on her own when we are home so I don't think it's "revenge" piddling.
I realize that it's a long time each day but it is only 3 days a week and neither of us can come home at lunch. She never piddles in her crate so I know she can hold it during the day. She also goes from 10:00 at night until 5:30 or 6:00 each morning.

I have no rugs on the hardwood floors throughout the house, only in the bathroom and since I have a totally open plan house, I can't even restrict her movements unless I leash her to me and that seems just plain mean. She loves to run around and chase Cooper and my cats.

I think I'll just have to go out with her each time to be sure she goes (regardless of the weather). Thanks for the all the suggestions. Patience and perseverance is going to be my motto for the foreseeable future.


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## Suzi (Oct 27, 2010)

TilliesMom said:


> wow. my hav was potty trained by 4 months and I think that most havs CAN be if started out right.... but still peeing in the house at 2 yrs old? my husband would NEVER have let that happen.
> Also, I have to disagree about the dogs peeing for revenge. I don't believe that their brains work that way. just my opinion.


 Tammie I have always been very amazed at how fast Tille was trained. I was wondering if you leave her free in the house or crated when you leave? I started off doing things by the book with create training put I didn't last long. First I couldn't stand to hear them crying second Maddie would pee in the crate.I have absolutely no excuse for mine to not have gotten house trained because I have basically been a stay home mom.
Mine have had some worse set backs when I wasn't paying as much attention to them.Like sewing for two weeks or spending to much time on the computer. We are now going on our third week without a accident maybe they were affected by the stress in the house. I'm not sure if both but one of mine piddled on my bed while they were in heat about a month ago. The two got really sexual towards each other and did have to potty more. Another thing I was thinking may have helped mine finally catching on is maybe my sisters two house trained dogs have shown them by example?


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## TilliesMom (Sep 30, 2010)

Suzi ~ I am very OCD (obssesive) about certain things, one of which is cleanliness!! 
So when we brought Tillie home (granted she was 14 weeks) we did use the x-pen at times, but honestly, our house is very small and being who she is, she was never out of my site and had free roam almost right away when we were HOME. When I had to leave I would place her in her crate and give her a yummy filled Kong. She didn't exactly 'like' it and in the begining she did cry and dig at the floor. But I was never gone long at this point. Maybe 1/2 an hour in the begining ... over months I stretched that time out and now if she HAS to be in her crate for up to 6 hrs, she CAN, but it is VERY rare, maybe twice she has been in it that long. It IS a wire crate, in our room, which is where she sleeps at night too. With potty training, I was CONSTANTLY watching her and scooping her up to take her outside a LOT, it was exhausting! LOL While she was outside I would very encouragingly say "go potty, go potty, GOOD girl go potty" the WHOLE time she was peeing/pooping ... so now she knows what 'go potty' means! 
After we had her for about 3 weeks I discovered that she was nearly potty trained, but didn't have a WAY to TELL us she needed to go out! That was when I went to the Dollar Store and got the bells ... hooked them to a bench next to the door and the rest is history! LOL I think it really is just consistancy and the blessing that I WAS able to be with her and watch her every second of those first few weeks home!  
Besides, my husband might have not let me keep her if she wasn't potty trained FAST... so, that 'fear' had me very motivated! LOL


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## DonnaC (Jul 31, 2011)

Baxter is nearly 100 percent potty trained at 9 months. He pees in the house if 1) it is raining (but the last time it rained, he peed outside, so that may be over!) 2) I fail to see that he needs to go and wants me to go with him; 3) I have forgotten to gate my son's room, which he believes is his second go-to spot.

Unfortunately, that means that his slip ups occur when I have not been as diligent as I should have been -- mostly because of time. Right now, we are on a roll -- I am very on-task, and he is going outside every single time. We haven't had an inside potty in three weeks. :whoo: My mistake is always thinking I can let up. It's plain I cannot let up -- at least not for awhile longer, if ever.

I'm not lecturing, because I make mistakes in this area all the time. But, I don't think it's the dog (unless something's wrong with him or her). I think it's understanding the dog and being constantly vigilant.


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## lanabanana (Jul 2, 2011)

I also am one who watches my pups while they are outside, to make sure they go. I used to go out with them every time, but now that there is snow on the ground, they go out by themselves and I watch from the window. They have, within the past month, finally gotten to where they will go sit by the back door when they want out. When we are away, they are gated in the kitchen with a pee pad, but they only use that about 20% of the time. Mostly, they wait until we get home and go right outside. They are now 9 and 11 months and I must say, I'm happy we can be a bit more relaxed about this potty issue!

Alanna


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## rokipiki (Oct 15, 2010)

In my country most people who live in cities live in appartements and so do I. It is a big disadvantage for potty trianing because you have to put your shoes and coat on, go to the elevator and to the street. When I was potty traing Roki my neighbours thought that I moved to the street together with the puppy. Now I go out with Roki in the morning (45 minutes to hour), around 4.30 pm (15 mins) and in the evening - one hour in park with lot of dogs and lot of RLH. We are back home around 9 pm. I let him out to the balcony around midnight and he pees on the pad (just a little). Twenty years ago I had poodle and he was completely reliable, no accidents at all. So I really do not know what lies behind Roki's accidents. They are not numerousand they happen ONLY on certain spots (my bed and rubish bin in the kitchen). When he was seven months old I considered him completely reliable. Then we went to our seaside house and spent a month there. There he could get in an out and pee whenever he wanted. After we came back accidents started to happen. His target was armchair in living room. I fought a war with many hard battles, washed the chair many times, punished him, tried to retrain him... Last summer we went to the seaside home again. When we came back no more peeing on the armchair, but on the rubish bin (night accidents) and my bed (he did this three times since August). Otherwise, he is reliable - you can leave him alone in the house for a long period with all doors opened and he wouldn't pee, bark or destroy anything. Funny business, isn't it? In book Small Dogs, Big Hearts I have read that the problem with havanese is that they can be potty unreliable whole their lives! I don't mind him have a little pee on the rubish bin, but I do mind peeing on my bed. 
Living in house is big advantage because you can simply let the dog out when he asks to go potty. I was thinking about moving to a house, but gave up that idea because it is much more expensive and during recession and crisis i really don't want to spend more money.


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## TilliesMom (Sep 30, 2010)

is it possible for Roki to use the balcony pee-pad as his 'go to' pee spot on a regular basis?? If we lived in an apartment and we had a dog, she would definitly be trained to a pee pad or litter box!


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## rlewis (Sep 20, 2011)

Kobe is now 8 months old and hasn't had an accident for over 2 months. I took him out often and watched him like a hawk. At first I think I was more trained than him. But we have never used potty pads or anything in the house. We live in Nebraska and have cold winters so I bought a 20' leash and I hook it on and stand in the garage and he runs out the door and does his job. The hardest part was him telling me he had to go. He would stand by the door and if I wasn't there in 2 minutes he would just pee on the rug. Our house is fairly large and I didn't always notice when he ran to the door, so I started the bells when he was 5 months old. He caught onto ringing it the first day. Now, granted we made a lot of extra trips for the first couple of weeks. He really enjoyed watching me run for the door, but that has passed and he really only rings it when he needs/wants to go out.


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## Clair&Bear (Nov 24, 2011)

TilliesMom said:


> do you go OUT with her and make SURE she has pee'd??
> Tillie will ring the bell to go out and if I don't go out with her and tell her GO POTTY, she will wander around, sniff and come back in without ever pee-ing!! then 2 minutes later she is ringing the bell again! sheesh, dog!


I agree, I HAVE to go out with Bear, rain, hail or shine because otherwise she does exactly what Tillie does! I say "Go to the toilet" and she does now, but only if I'm there to watch her! She's 4 months old and pretty much potty trained (I think!). Maybe it helped that I had a lot of time off when I got her at 9 weeks old so I spent every single day taking her out every 2 hours until she got the point. Now after every nap, she walks out of her xpen, looks at me as if to say "Ok mum, you can take me out now" (even when the door is wide open) and we go outside for pee time.

Good luck, I hope your Tessa gets it soon!!


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## Clair&Bear (Nov 24, 2011)

TilliesMom said:


> Suzi ~ I am very OCD (obssesive) about certain things, one of which is cleanliness!!
> So when we brought Tillie home (granted she was 14 weeks) we did use the x-pen at times, but honestly, our house is very small and being who she is, she was never out of my site and had free roam almost right away when we were HOME. When I had to leave I would place her in her crate and give her a yummy filled Kong. She didn't exactly 'like' it and in the begining she did cry and dig at the floor. But I was never gone long at this point. Maybe 1/2 an hour in the begining ... over months I stretched that time out and now if she HAS to be in her crate for up to 6 hrs, she CAN, but it is VERY rare, maybe twice she has been in it that long. It IS a wire crate, in our room, which is where she sleeps at night too. With potty training, I was CONSTANTLY watching her and scooping her up to take her outside a LOT, it was exhausting! LOL While she was outside I would very encouragingly say "go potty, go potty, GOOD girl go potty" the WHOLE time she was peeing/pooping ... so now she knows what 'go potty' means!
> After we had her for about 3 weeks I discovered that she was nearly potty trained, but didn't have a WAY to TELL us she needed to go out! That was when I went to the Dollar Store and got the bells ... hooked them to a bench next to the door and the rest is history! LOL I think it really is just consistancy and the blessing that I WAS able to be with her and watch her every second of those first few weeks home!
> Besides, my husband might have not let me keep her if she wasn't potty trained FAST... so, that 'fear' had me very motivated! LOL


Yep, this is exactly what I did! And boy is it exhausting!!


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## TilliesMom (Sep 30, 2010)

But it TOTALLY pays off fast!!


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## Suzi (Oct 27, 2010)

We just bought bells today. One for every door do you think thats to many? We had about a half hour session with four dogs just looking up waiting for treats. My sisters Aussie caught on fast. It could turn out to be funny could have a dog waiting at each door. I think we should probably stick to one door.


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## TilliesMom (Sep 30, 2010)

awesome! yes, I think you should definitly stick to ONE door to start with!! LOL
good luck and keep us posted!


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## Suzi (Oct 27, 2010)

We just bought bells today. One for every door do you think thats to many? We had about a half hour session with four dogs just looking up waiting for treats. My sisters Aussie caught on fast. It could turn out to be funny could have a dog waiting at each door. I think we should probably stick to one door.


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## Luciledodd (Sep 5, 2009)

Potty training is the reason that I want an adult dog--fully reliable.


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