Puppy toilet training.

nikki2804

I brought home two pups at the weekend (8 weeks tomorrow) and I've been attempting to paper train them. They started off in the kitchen (open plan) and went everywhete bar the paper, I've since moved them into a smaller room (i thought a smaller space might confuse them less) and when in there they go on the paper but as soon as they are out they pee and poo everywhere they're not meant to.

If the door is open they go outside. I give them lots of praise and a treat when they go on the paper but they just can't seem to crack that they only go on paper. Any tried and tested tips I realise that they are still young so patience is required but I'm sure I'm doing something wrong. They are boxers in case that has any relevance.

Once they are trained I get to potty train my toddler. The joys :rotfl:

krlyr

Just a few points - firstly, yikes on 2 puppies at the same time! Do you have much experience with puppies? If not, please read up on "littermate syndrome" in dogs and ensure both pups are given plenty of training independently to avoid issues as much as possible. It sounds horrible, but if you don't have that much experience, now might be the time for a discussion with the breeder regarding returning one of the pups, it will make your life a whole lot easier if you've not had many dealings with puppies before.
http://blog.betternaturedogtraining.com/2013/07/18/littermate-syndrome/

Secondly, I would ditch the paper. You're teaching a dog to pee indoors with the end goal being to pee outdoors. IMO it's much more effective to just teach them to pee outdoors in the first place.

Thirdly, keep the door shut, or a babygate in its place if you want the fresh air. It's often found that an open door can be detrimental to toilet training - the dog fails to distinguish between indoors and out, because the garden is just another "room" in the house they have access to. Having that physical barrier that you lead them out through can help teach them that peeing is meant for pee breaks, not just any old time they feel the urge.

Lots of frequent pee breaks - at this age, I'd be offering several an hour, and especially after meals or when they've had a big drink, and immediately after waking up.

Do you have a second pair of hands in the house to help? Problem is, taking both puppies out yourself may lead to them just wanting to play - they'll forget they need to pee until they get back indoors and calm down. Or you may struggle to watch both and reward both at the exact time they're peeing. Yet if they're feeding and drinking at the same time, taking one out at a time may lead to the other having an accident in the meantime. Having a second person help, and keeping both pups on a houseline, should help minimise distractions and allow you both to reward the pups at the correct time.

The APDT do a good guide on housetraining, here - https://apdt.com/docs/resources/housetraining.pdf

I'd also recommend looking up APDT trainers on the site while you're there, you'll find local recommendations of trainers who've agreed to the APDT code of conduct - using modern, fair methods of training. It's essential, even moreso with two pups, to get them socialised and trained as soon as possible. Again, having two of you could help - I'd even be tempted to sign them up to two different courses, either on different days of the week or with different trainers, so they learn independantly from each other from a young age.

If you have any more specific questions, do ask, and I'll try to help. It would take a lot for me to commit to a puppy at the moment, let alone two - and especially Boxers! And all that with a toddler to boot..good luck!

nikki2804

I didn't want two, my OH and 6 year old did. I would have been happier with one. We're now a 2 kid, 2 cat, 2 dog household! Can't return one, FIL was the breeder or was playing at being a breeder, not sending them back there.

I have puppy experience but I was younger and it was my parents who trained them mainly. The pups always trained to paper and it seemed so easy. The paper moved closer to the door and voila they learned to ask out.

My 6 year old is now off of school so I'll get him to help.

What about at night? I'd rather that they went on paper than on the floor, can't wait until they get there 2nd jags and can be walked. Hopefully tire them out for the entire night.

krlyr

Set an alarm for several points in the night - there were two of us with my pup so one stayed up for the 11pm pee break, another up at 1am, the other doing 3am, 5am and then someone up by 7am. It seems tough, but after a week or two you can drop to every 3 hours, then every 4, then just once a night. Night breaks are definately much easier with pup on lead - firstly, it stops pup getting distracted and thinking it's playtime, secondly it's easier to see in the dark once they've been to the toilet.

I found this method much quicker than the paper method and with much fewer accidents, and it makes sense - pup is learning the clear boundary between toileting outside and staying dry inside.

In regards to their jabs - it's important that they're getting to see the outside world before this stage. There are some vital windows within a puppy's first few months, and their fear window runs up to about 11 or 12 weeks. It's important they've been exposed to as much as possible before this window closes - so make sure pups are being taken out and about. Trps in the car, being carried around petshops, meeting up with vaccinated, well-behaved adult dogs in 'safe' locations (make sure you choose calm, adult dogs - you want all their first experiences with other dogs to be positive, but they also need to learn they can't just play with every dog they see so limit interactions with other young dogs - this is why puppy parties at vets can be a bad idea).

Also, once they have finished their jabs, you need to be careful with the amount of exercise they're given. The aim of walking at this age should be exposing them to the outside world, and teaching good lead manners, not exhausting them. The general rule is 5 minutes per month of age, so at 12 weeks that's 15 minute walks. You can do a few a day, and you can go over this if it's gentle off-lead pottering (so a 7.5 minute walk to the park, 10 minutes just chilling with the pup off-lead, and 7.5 minute walk home would still be fine), but the idea is to be careful with exercise when the dog's joints are developing, to avoid long-term issues when its older.

You can tire out a dog without exhausting them physically - clicker training really works their minds, which can be just as tiring (sometimes even moreso!). Kikopup's channel on YouTube is fab for this, and she does quite a few videos on puppies specifically too
https://www.youtube.com/user/kikopup/search?query=puppy

catkins

I don't envy you with 2 puppies!! I got my puppy almost 3 years ago and it had been 12 years previous to that when I had a puppy before and I had forgotten just how much work they are.


Anyway, I would second the not using newspaper. In the past I have used that method but it is pretty oldfashioned now and with my previous dog and my existing one I didn't use it. It's really a matter of keep taking them in the garden and praising, praising and even more praising when they do something. Also trying, as much as possible, to watch them like a hawk while indoors and as soon as it looks like they are about to do anything, get them in the garden. Also after eating and drinking, again in the garden. At least you have your puppies in the summer, I had mine at the start of winter which wasn't fun keep going outside in the cold and/or rain!


Unfortunately, unless you are very lucky, for a while having a puppy will mean accidents on the floor. They are very young if they are only 8 weeks this weekend - normally a puppy doesn't even leave its mother until weeks if not slightly older.


Nights can be difficult. You could set your alarm, but it would need to be every couple of hours if not more frequently which means not a lot of sleep. With my puppy we crated him at night. His breeder used crates for the adult dogs so pup was used to them, not scared of them and pretty happy to sleep in one. Me and OH spent the first couple of weeks sleeping on the settee with pup in a crate next to us so that when he woke and whimpered we could speak softly to him and touch him through the bars. Quite a few times he would just back to sleep but if he didn't we took him the garden. After that we would just get up if he cried in the night. We were pretty lucky though and he didn't for long although he did cry early morning between about 5am - 6am. We are early risers anyway so it didn't bother us.


Crate training could be good for overnight and dogs won't normally soil their crate (you have to make sure that it is not too big) so will cry when they need to toilet. They do have to be crate trained though and reasonably slowly - no just putting them in the crate one night and leaving them to it.


I do think toilet training can be frustrating but it doesn't normally take that long. At least when they are young they don't do that much. I got a rescue dog at 8 months who wasn't house trained and every time he weed it was like a flood! I have carpet downstairs too!!!

MookieSnuffles

Yay for another boxer owner!!! You've made me smile! I totally agree with other posters! Get a puppy collar and lead (you can buy them in a set together and they're really soft) and twenty minutes after eating or drinking take them outside (in your garden if they've not been vaccinated yet) and get them used to being on a lead and plenty of treats and praises for doing it in the right place, we used this time to get puppy boy used to the phrases "go peepee" and "go toilet", dead handy for late at night rainy walks. And they will need to go out regularly at night still, so you will lose some sleep, but they will be toilet trained far quicker this way. Try clicker training to speed up the process a bit more.

There will still be poo art and puddles, you can't stop it, they're bladders and bums are tiny, don't rub noses in it, just think of it as a missed opportunity for training and try to catch next time, and if you see someone beginning to squat quickly pick them up and take them outside and praise to blazes! And they will pee at exciting things as well, not just when they need to go, so watching out for the squatting is a better indicator sometimes than timing.

You've got a lot of fun coming your way, take lots of photos as the tiny cuteness doesn't last long, although I don't envy you with double the trouble with the terrible teens coming up! Good luck!

You can start training sit and wait for meals and things like that now as well as the toilet training, boxers pick up things really quickly, but will sometimes pretend to be deliberately stupid or funny if they're bored of the session, just remember to keep sessions short but interesting and lots of yummy treats and praise, seeing a boxers face after they've worked out how to get the treat and do the easy thing you're asking them to do is magical! That said food, treats or toys are nothing compared to praise from you, boxers love their family pack.

Before I forget, don't forget to start socialising and seeing new faces, places, people, children and dogs as early as you can, we didn't do this enough as we had problems with our vaccinations so when something happened out of the ordinary (like a man chasing him or a big dog chasing him) he didn't have that experience to call upon and now he's scared stiff of everything and we're working through training now to stop him being scared, but it's a long process, prevention is better than cure, there is nothing worse than seeing your 20kg puppy boy flailing at the end of his lead, barking and trying to run away because there's a workman on the other side of the road, it's heartbreaking.

You're very lucky to have two boxer pups, there will be fun and troubles, but seeing those wrinkled faces and kidney beaning bums when you walk through the door will more than make up for it, I promise!

Mookie x

nikki2804

Thank you for the advice everyone. Our school holidays started so I haven't had much time to go online.

We are getting there with the toilet training, still some accidents and the occasional running in from the garden and peeing in the kitchen accident :mad: :rotfl:.

Socialisation wise, I have two cats already and two kids so they are getting used to them. They get to roam around the garden and have had to face a few loud noises etc from the neighbours and they seem to be faring well. Plenty of visitors to see them too.

I've managed to train both to sit, we are working on them doing it every time though and not just when they feel like it :rotfl:

A week tomorrow until they get their 2nd jags so we can practice walking etc and see how they fare with 'strange dogs'

Im trying to put a picture of them on but I can't figure out how

Person_one

Hi, I know this thread is a few days old, but hope you don't mind a bit of extra advice!

With littermates, its incredibly, crucially, vitally important that they spend a good amount of time around well socialised, well mannered adult dogs. Not just meeting on walks on leads, but unstructured time off lead too. They need to learn good 'doggy manners', and with two of them so young they're at risk of making up their own version and passing funny habits back and forth!

Do you know any other dog owners (with that kind of well behaved dog!) who you could invite round while the weather is nice? You guys have a drink in the garden and let the dogs interact? Going on group walks off lead is great too when they're old enough and when you've got a really good recall trained.