More general advice re Lucky Lola the wonder pup

wifeforlife

Hi guys

So lola is doing well after her fight against Parvo, we'll have had her home 2 weeks this friday coming.

I'm still a bit worried though. Her mood has 100% improved and she is eating well (James Wellbeloved dry food) Although I've noticed her poops are still runny and rarely hard, I'm not sure is this something I should be concerned about. The vet has given her the all clear and I am due back on Friday for her last bout of innoculations

Also I'm having a terrible time house training her. She is not picking it up at all. I've tried using paper, I've tried taking her out every hour and giving OTT praise with her, the only thing I havent tried is Crate training. I've read people on here say their pups picked up toilet training in days, and definately less than a week so I think maybe I'm doing something very wrong.

I'm ruining my floors with cleaning them, and it's getting to the point where Lola is going to be living outside very soon, which I never wanted

Can anybody give me any pointers at all, I would love to get this right before she gets too old (shes approx 13 weeks now)

Cate

pboae

Some people are lucky and their pup picks it up really quickly, but that is *not* the norm, it's not at all unusual for a pup to still be training at 13 weeks. Plus she's had a really rough start. Her bowels and tummy may still be very delicate and sensitive after the Parvo, and you missed out on a critical couple of weeks training while she was ill, during which time she would have been toileting in her crate in the vets.

You say you have tried various ways, but that is probably making the matter worse as it confuses the issue. For example, if you start taking her out every hour, trying to teach her that she is meant to go outside, and then switch to using paper in the house, she's never going to learn.

By all means try crate training her, but check with your vet first that there is no reason why she would still be having physical problems holding it, if she can't help herself it would be cruel to crate her. If she was toileting in her crate at the vets though, it's unlikely to help now.

In the meantime, go back to basics, take her outside every hour, whenever she stops playing, whenever she wakes up. Followed up by manic praise when she goes outside. Get her up in the night and take her out. You need to be absolutely 100% consistent with it. Every time she has an accident inside you go two steps back, so you need to arrange things so that she *can't* have an accident.

desperate_lou

cathy2702 wrote: »

Hi guys

So lola is doing well after her fight against Parvo, we'll have had her home 2 weeks this friday coming.

I'm still a bit worried though. Her mood has 100% improved and she is eating well (James Wellbeloved dry food) Although I've noticed her poops are still runny and rarely hard, I'm not sure is this something I should be concerned about. The vet has given her the all clear and I am due back on Friday for her last bout of innoculations

Also I'm having a terrible time house training her. She is not picking it up at all. I've tried using paper, I've tried taking her out every hour and giving OTT praise with her, the only thing I havent tried is Crate training. I've read people on here say their pups picked up toilet training in days, and definately less than a week so I think maybe I'm doing something very wrong.

I'm ruining my floors with cleaning them, and it's getting to the point where Lola is going to be living outside very soon, which I never wanted

Can anybody give me any pointers at all, I would love to get this right before she gets too old (shes approx 13 weeks now)

Cate

Hi

So glad she is doing well. I did type message when you first posted about Lola being so ill at vets about my puppy a few years back coming down with something very similar, she was at deaths door for a good week, she bounced back to health but her poos were still runny for a while after, i would mention it to vets just to be on safe side though.

As for the toilet training as our collie was at the vets for a two week period it did take us a while to train her, those first 14weeks are so important and when you have a very sick dog it is going to take a bit more time, but bear with it and she should pick it up soon.:j

Keep us posted on how she does.

Lou x

suki1964

I can only echo Pbaoe - excellent advice.

One thing about the poos. JWB can be a bit rich, esp for a pup thats been poorly. Id agree with getting her checked out first at the vets and then if there is nothing wrong, try her on a low protein food for a few days see if that settles her. chappie is ideal for sensitive tums, cheap and cheerfull, no additives or colourings to upset delicate tums. If the poo firms up then slowly introduce the JWB again, if she gets loose again you know JWB isnt for her and you might want to try another brand - Arden Grange, Burns are both good

RooBee

The JWB food may not be agreeing with her and causing the runny poo. Can you try her on plain boiled chicken or white fish and rice (boiled until mush) for a few days...if she is solid on that then you could try to switch her over to another dry complete if that's what you want.

Dogs with digestive sensitivity often often cope better on fish based complete food. Wafcol salmon & potato springs to mind. JWB also do a white fish variety and Fish4Dogs is another good one (you can order online or I can give you the contact for a local lady (you are in NI, aren't you...or have I mixed you up with someone else?) who supplies good quality fish based foods & treats.

You could also look at the wet complete foods like NatureDiet, Nature's Menu and Nature's Harvest. Very natural foods, high meat content, rice veg and a bit of bone meal...no additives. All are available from Pets at Home. Again, dogs with digestive sensitivity tend to do well on them due to the lack of additional extras. Basically, with dog food ingredients, less is generally more in terms of quality.

With regard to the housetraining, what are you using to clean up with? Any trace of scent left behind or any product that turns white in water (dettol, jeyes fluid among others) or anything pine scented will encourage the dog to return to the same spot. Biological washing powder dissolved in warm water breaks down the enzymes in the stain and will remove all traces.

Otherwise, it's back to basics...outside after every meal, nap, drink, play session and every half hour at all other times & praise like a woman possessed when she performs in the right place. Keep some good high value treats on hand as well for toilet training (like dried liver)...something that she doesn't get at any other time so that she can build positive associations. I know it's frustrating but 100% consistency is the key and you will get there sooner rather than later :-)

piratess

Hi ... I tried JWB on our pup and it didnt agree with him atall so we changed to Burns mini bites . Hes been fine on this poos all firm again! .. maybe like somone else said it may be a bit rich! ..... altho dont just swap! it needs to be done over a week or so slowly ...
we still have accidents with toilet training and ours is 6 months ... at first we used to try and look for the signs in the house i.e circling, sniffing the floor ... we would jump up and go out into the garden calling his name and then would say "go wees!" each time he did a wee .... then when he started to stoop in the house we would just say "ahh" .. and walk outside he would follow again repeat "go wees" ... lots of praise maybe a small "high quality" treat! until she learns to connect "go wees!" with doing it outside! ...
we also use paper but only at night! as he sleeps in the kitchen not the crate ... as this is what the breeder had done so we copied ! ... although have to say were going to be stopping this in the next few days .......

it does get better... as like kids their bladder control becomes stronger as they grow ..... being repetitive is the key even if it drives you crazy! you must as others have said take outside when she has woken from sleeping after eating after playing ... onto the spot you want her to use and again "go wees!" in a giddy voice because OOOOOO doing wees is the best thing ever in the world ! ...........

heheh good luck and stick with it xx

supermezzo

Ours is 9 months and an assistance dog in training and still managed, despite 'going' on command for months now and having 'been' this morning before we went shopping, to poo in BHS! :eek:
Accidents happen (I wasn't this philosophical as I cleaned up after her this morning I might add) and if she's been ill then you have lost some time anyway in terms of training, so she's probably not doing so badly at all.

I didn't buy the MIL's present this morning though...maybe the dog is trying to tell me something!:rotfl: