Litter Box Training

[BooBoo*TheKiddo*]

Heyy,

Long story short....after almost a year, I'm having a very hard time house breaking Mia. That's with 3 people working with her (like if one isnt here, the other is) Like if I'm not home, then I'm Mom watches her and such.
Anyways, shes house broke, but not completely. She still has numerous accidents and she goes to the door when get needs to go out, but shes wont bark or anything; she just sits there. If were not in the room and we dont see her, she just goes where she pleases.
We'll, I want to give litter box training a try, maybe. I want to try and get her to use a litter box in case no one sees her by the door, then she can go to the litter box.
I'm awre that if she learns to use a litter box, she might stop going to the door.

Here's my question...

Has anyone had sucess litter box training a dog?
*this is going to sound stupid* Do they make dog litter or do i buy cat litter?

also, any tips?

 

[Jenn]

maybe you should just make a habit of taking Mia out every couple of hours and big time praise her and give her a treat when she goes outside. Make a huge deal out of her success. If you see her by the door, automatically assume she needs to go out. My dog can go over 12 hours without having an accident, so it is all in the training. He knows not to go in the house, whether we know he needs to go out or not. I know there are puppy pads and some type of grass mat for dogs to use indoors. But I think if Mia is rewarded for doing her business outside, she'll get the idea. You might also want to test her for UTI and make sure that isn't what is causing her accidents. Good luck!

 

[Ash]

Don't let her in the other room if you can't be in it and take her out frequently.

 

[BooBoo*TheKiddo*]

We've tried taking out frequently.
She isnt allowed in the others rooms, but if were doing laundry, shower, etc...we cant see her. She'll go by the door, or in the laundry room (if no one is in there).
We tried the treat thing and praising her. After giving her a treat, it wasnt long before she go use the potty in the house. So we started taking out about 5 minutes after she came in. Nothing....come in and use the potty. No matter how long she stays outside. (she's a small dog btw)
The vet said there was nothing wrong with her. She's prefectly healthy.

 

[Jenn]

do you have any dog trainers in your area? When we first got our 7 month old rescue dobie, he lifted his leg and peed on a houseplant. We immediately signed him up for obedience courses, and he never had another accident, and follows a lot of commands as well as being great on the leash and is ok off leash. Maybe something to consider...it couldn't hurt anyway.

 

[BooBoo*TheKiddo*]

I dont think we do, but I'll look into it.

 

[fanofdmb84]

To answer your first question, yes you can litter train a dog. I did it with my Italian greyhound when we lived in a little upstairs apartment. I bought the biggest rubbermaid-type container I could find, cut a 'door' in the side, and filled it with kitty litter. You can use other litters or pee-pads, but I like cat litter for its price and ease of cleaning. You teach them the same way you would train them to potty outside.

The bottom line, however, is that she can't be unsupervised until she is completely housebroken. If she doesn't potty outside, come in and put her in a crate. If you shower, put her in the crate. If you go into the next room, take her with you or put her in the crate. Give her NO chances to potty in the house. If she goes and sits by the door when she needs to go, then it is YOUR responsibility to watch for that sign! Some dogs don't give any signs that they need to go (I have one dog like that) and because of that, I still have to take him out on a schedule like a puppy, because he won't tell me he has to go. But, you may want to look into training her to ring a bell to go out. If she's already going to the door, she would probably catch on to a bell, and that would alert you even better that she needs to go out. You can't ignore her even for a minute, though, because that will only teach her that she won't always be let out and she'll continue going in the house.

I train dogs every day, and yours is a common problem. The only way it will get better is if you are really really consistent about not giving her a chance to potty in the house. Every time she does, that habit gets a little bit stronger, and as we all know, habits can be really hard to break.

 

[mishellyshel]

my mom has a small dog, yorkie poo or something. a real cutie, but she had the same problem! you really, really, really have to be consistant and on top of the training.
it is a real PITA but it will pay off.
my dog can also hold her urine for over 12 hours. she has never pee'd in the house in almost 11 years.
the thing with litter training is that the effort and time you will be using on teaching that, should be used in training her to go outside. because now she will be doing her business inside instead of out. do you have the kind of home that you can leave the door cracked for her to go in & out of?? my mom had a sliding door and was able to leave it open.

 

[BooBoo*TheKiddo*]

@ Diana, can you give me tips on how to teach her to use a bell?

Michelle, we've left the screen door open for her so she could go out if she needed but she goes out and plays. Plays with the cats, the kids, sticks, leafs, or whatever else she can find. She just doesnt use the bathroom while shes out there. She'll even go out everytime the other 2 need to go out (they bark and tell us, but they learned from a dog that has since passed away), but even then she wont always use the bathroom, just a chance to go outside.

 

[fanofdmb84]

@ Diana, can you give me tips on how to teach her to use a bell?

Hang a bell or two on the door (the round sleigh-bell types work fine). Either hang it from the handle, or if its a glass door, use a suction cup. Hang the bell low enough for her to hit with her nose or paw. Then, every single time you take her outside, for any reason, ring the bell before you open the door. You want her to think that the ringing bell magically makes the door open. After about a week of that, see if you can get her interested in touching the bell, either with her nose or paw. You can also hold it in her way as she's going through the door, so she bumps into it on her way out. After a while, the dog makes the connection and will ring the bell to go out. Younger dogs usually catch on quicker, some in just a few days. Older dogs it may take a few weeks. Again, consistency is key. You have to ring that bell every single time or else she won't catch on.

I actually clicker train the behavior, and teach the dog to "touch" the bell on command. Once the dog will do it when asked, I make the dog touch the bell before I open the door for them. You can do this by holding the bell in front of her, waiting for her to sniff it, and then give a treat. Do that 50 times. Then wait for her to actually touch it with her nose or paw, then treat. Repeat 50-100 times. Once she obviously has figured out your "game", you can start using a word, like "touch" or "bells" every time she does it. Then you can transfer that training to at the door.

In the meantime, leash her to you or crate her or put her in a small play pen ANY time she's not directly supervised. It's going to be several weeks of hard work, but if you consider you'll have 10-15 years of excellent potty habits to show for it, it really isn't that bad.

 

[BooBoo*TheKiddo*]

Thanks Diana, I'm going to give it a try.

Man, well she love me after all those treats. lol lucky for her she just got some new bite size ones hehe

 

[ruoc]

Every one has already given good advice, my niece has a very small dog that is indoor potty trained, and no kidding he will hold it when he's outside till he gets to the litter box. Also, they don't bury their waste like cats so if your not home and he poops, it just sits in your house all day, not pleasant to come home to. If you crate her every time she's alone, even for a few minutes, she won't have the chance to pee in the house.