# How to Encourage Complete Elimination



## DapperTuxedo (Apr 15, 2013)

I know I've seen literature on this, but now I've Googled the crap out of it, and I can't find it.

Tux is playing some games with me. He'll whine to go out. We go out. He pees. He comes and sits at my feet and looks up at me with his beautiful sweet eyes. He gets lots o' praise. I wait to see if he needs to go more. We walk around in a couple of circles. He still looks at me like, "When can we go back in?" We go back inside. He's immediately antsy and aggravating. We go back out. He pees again. He comes and sits at my feet again. He gets lots o' praise again. We walk again. Nothin'. We go back inside. He's good for 5 minutes, then he's antsy again. We go back outside. He pees. He poops. He sits at my feet. He gets lots o' praise. We go back inside. He's calm for 90 minutes or so (bladder finally empty).

How in the world do I convince him to just get it all out in one trip?


----------



## RitaandRiley (Feb 27, 2012)

Uh Oh, sounds like me and Riley's almost 2! Let the dog out, let the dog in, let the dog out, let the dog in. I can commiserate but obviously can't help you. It's a fun game though!


----------



## DapperTuxedo (Apr 15, 2013)

Not a fun game.  I'm determined to figure it out.


----------



## Zarika (Dec 16, 2012)

How big are the circles you're walking around in? Maybe he just needs a little more time outside? Walking around for a good five or ten minutes should help. If you're already doing that, I don't have any suggestions!


----------



## DapperTuxedo (Apr 15, 2013)

Zarika said:


> How big are the circles you're walking around in? Maybe he just needs a little more time outside? Walking around for a good five or ten minutes should help. If you're already doing that, I don't have any suggestions!


We're walking around for about seven minutes at this point. I keep increasing it each time, but now I'm worried that he's playing me for more time outside.


----------



## davetgabby (Dec 29, 2007)

It's sort of a catch 22. I would keep doing what your doing basically, with more reward right after the elimination. Play right after elimination. Here's a quote from When Pigs Fly. 
"The most common housetraining problem I see is that people have unrealistic
expectations of how long a puppy can wait between trips outside. A young puppy
may need to go out fifteen times a day. A two year old rescue dog that has never
been housetrained also might need to go out fifteen times a day. The more predictable
you are about taking out your dog when he needs it, the more likely he is
to "hold it" until you let him outside. Every time you give your dog the chance to
go outside when he needs to, he is reinforced by being able to honor his instinct to
be clean. Every time you fail to get your dog out in time and he goes in the house,
you have damaged your dog's instinct to go outside and he is reinforced for going
in the house by the relief he feels. Remember the definition of reinforcement?
Reinforcement increases behavior. Thus, every time you get your dog or puppy
outside in time, you increase the behavior of going outside. Every time you fail to
get him out in time you increase the behavior of soiling in the house. Eventually,
you will not need to go out so many times a day, but with puppies or remedial
dogs you need to take them out often until the behavior of going to the bathroom
outside is a strong one".

If you're home all day this works well, it worked for me. If you're not, it still works except you need a backup , ie expen with toilet.


----------



## TilliesMom (Sep 30, 2010)

lol, oh I remember those days vividly... I bell trained Tillie and OMG seriously, I could not COUNT the number of times I was letting her in and out in those early months. (yes I said MONTHS.) BUT I KNEW that I HAD to continue what I started (with the bell training) and HAD to let her out every.time. she rang the bell. without fail. and I did. Eventually the novely wore off and winter came and she started really only ringing it when she HAD to go out... but man, it took the patience of a Saint to get through those months. 

ON a GREAT note though, he is already TELLING you he needs to go out!!!! :whoo:
This is FANTASTIC news!!! Keep up the good work!


----------



## davetgabby (Dec 29, 2007)

exactly Tammy.


----------



## DapperTuxedo (Apr 15, 2013)

TilliesMom said:


> ON a GREAT note though, he is already TELLING you he needs to go out!!!! :whoo:
> This is FANTASTIC news!!! Keep up the good work!


Thanks for the encouragement, Tammy! It's good to know that this is normal behavior, and not just something I'm doing wrong. Also, I agree! I couldn't believe it when I realized on Wednesday that he was already telling us when he still needed to go without any prompting or training on our part. :biggrin1:

Dave, thanks to you, too!


----------



## Atticus (May 17, 2011)

Yeah I remember this Atticus still sometimes asks to go out and doesn't have to go BUT at this point with a young pup learning to ask and the huge importance of giving him as many opportunities to pee outside as possible. I'd just go, don't turn it into a fun walk though just go to your place and stand there. NOW with Atticus (who is two and completely house trained) if he asks to go out and I really don't think he has to (more likely he saw a bunny hop by) I throw a ball and distract him. If he asks again out we go.I would NOT do that with a young pup though.


----------



## Atticus (May 17, 2011)

Just reread this and saw advice to walk around, I had Atticus on a long line and a good woodsy potty place so I just stood pretty stable. He learned the difference between a walk, and potty time, pretty quickly. I always try to get him to potty before a walk as I'd rather have him do his business at home (even now) anyway. I know many people take the walk for potty time. We all figure out what works for us and you will too! Found this puppy pic of Atticus, your Tux reminds me of him as a pup! ENJOY


----------



## jabojenny (Sep 18, 2011)

Hi Lindsay! I must say Tux is the cutest little B/W parti boy! Can you tell I'm impartial?ound:

I too was lucky enough to have a puppy who let me know he had to go out at a pretty early age. I bought bells to train Tim, but he started scratching at the door when he needed to go outside. I feel your frustration and actually posted once that I felt like a doggy doorman. I kept up with his requests and sometimes he never even did his business. :frusty: Tim is about 1 1/2 years old and I have just recently started getting a little slower letting him out when he scratches. Sometimes he turns around and does something else, but I found if he really needs to go his scratching gets a little more urgent and sometimes he gives me a bark. I know it's exhausting but hang in there and keep letting him out, you'll have a great payback. 

Jody totally agree with you on teaching them scratching doesn't always mean you go outside, but Tim and Atticus are older and I'm sure we both have learned their signs. Now that the weather is getting nicer there seems to be more "Let me out to play!" scratching especially if there's a bunny squirrel or Robin outside!


----------



## Momo means Peach (Jun 7, 2011)

My two pretty quickly learned that ringing the bell meant going outside - which they do all day and night long, just because they love being out there. The younger, Ume, started ringing the bell when he wanted me to play with him. He would ring the bell and then go to his toy and wait. The little stinker was trying to train me! :nono::laugh: I would just open the door every time he rang the bell. He eventually gave up because he thought I was untrainable. :wink:

In other words, you're doing the right thing by being consistent.:clap2:


----------



## Atticus (May 17, 2011)

I'm very eager to get to my summer house where I have a fenced yard, here going out means with me on a leash, which of course is what you need to do to train a puppy even with a yard. Atticus doesn't scratch, bark or use a bell, he MOANS! Too funny, I never taught him that!


----------



## misstray (Feb 6, 2011)

Atticus said:


> I' Atticus doesn't scratch, bark or use a bell, he MOANS! Too funny, I never taught him that!


Brody moans too!! It's not very loud though. His other thing is to try to psychically communicate with me by staring. ha ha


----------



## MarinaGirl (Mar 25, 2012)

Emmie sometimes paws the bells on the front door to let me know she needs to go out but lately it's been a LOUD bark at the door. I call it her *potty shriek*, which certainly gets my attention.


----------



## morriscsps (Aug 17, 2010)

Welcome to the In-Out Game. Enjoy! 


At least, he didn't go outside, do absolutely nothing, come in, and piddle right in front of you. Usually it happens when you have company.


----------



## sandypaws (Aug 8, 2012)

I once had a t-shirt that read, "Agenda for the Day" - Let the dog out, Let the dog in, Let the dog out, Let the dog in. At the time, that certainly was my "agenda". So even the 
t-shirt creators know how it works. Good luck. You will get through this and just be thankful you're not training him in the winter.


----------



## Laurief (Nov 7, 2006)

Isnt Tux still a tiny puppy??? YOu have to remember that he is only a few weeks old, just like a human baby. They cannot hold their bladders for too long, and do the best that they can. The more that you take him out, and have a potty party when he goes, the quicker he will realize that it is good to "hold" it till I get the party (or treat). 

Be patient - from sounds of it, it is not abnormal for a puppy!


----------



## HavaneseSoon (Nov 4, 2008)

My insights on this peeing and pooping stuff.....My boys probably poop, I know for sure at least 2 or 3x a day. Peeing all they want as long as there is a sign that another dog has been at a mailbox or those tall grasses disguised as mail boxes. 

Sometimes, it can be a good 3 - 6 hours that we go out, and they do their business. They have small bladders don't forget. My Boys are 4 & 3 years old. If I want great success, I will take them for a walk down the street and wait until both have done their poos and pees and I consider that a great walk!


----------



## DapperTuxedo (Apr 15, 2013)

I'm so glad to know that Tux isn't the only one!  When it's dark and scary or cold and rainy, he's very serious about his business. I've started taking him out for a couple of long, active play times during the day, and that seems to be helping a lot. 

We don't walk at potty time. Tux stays on the leash. I stand in the same spot every time and he gets a 6' radius in the back left corner of our yard. He's going on 30 hours accident-free.  

Also, to all the b&w parti mommas out there, our babies sure are cuties!  (Although I love the other colors, too. The color variety is so fun!)


----------

