# How long does it take to housetrain an older dog?



## CaseLogic (Mar 28, 2007)

Some of you may remember that I rescued a 3-4ish year old dog from a rescue organization. He has previously been an outside dog, so he doesn't fully know his house behaviors, like not going to the bathroom inside.

Since he's 4, he has a fully-developed bladder and he can hold his business for quite a while. I keep him crated whenever I cannot watch him, and when he's out, he's usually in the living room with us, with a lead on that is tied to the coffee table so he can't leave our sight (can't leave the living room basically).

However, there are rare instances when I'm not watching him for a brief second and he'll go inside. If I catch him in the act (which is usually everytime because I have eagle eyes!), I put him in timeout (which is what I'm doing for every 'negative' behavior). I know some of you are going to object to punishment regarding house training, but this has been recommended to me by a dog behaviorist who is friends with the rescue organization. I am to only put him in timeout when I catch him in the act. Otherwise I just clean it up, take a deep breath and carry on. Everytime he goes outside, I say good boy, etc etc and praise him. Everytime I let him out of his crate, I immediately take him outside. So over the course of 2 weeks, he's only had 3 accidents, and 2 were within the first two days. So I've been pretty good at keeping an eye on him and letting him out before anything happens.

My question is, with the above routine, how long does it take for the dog to realize that inside is bad, and outside is good? I want to be able to trust him to roam the house more and not have to crate him all the time, but until I know he understands the distinction, I'm afraid he'll have to stay in his crate when I can't have my all-seeing eyes on him.

Thanks for your help


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## Inga (Jun 16, 2007)

The all seeing eyes is great. Really focusing on your dog is the best thing for potty training. I have had several outdoor dogs that I rescued and brought in. They usually train quickly. I would not give them the run of the house for at least a few months though. I have other dogs to consider though. As far as time outs. How do you feel that is working? I have usually just firmly said NO when catching dog in the act and rushed them outside waited until they finished their business outside and then treat and praise like crazy. They catch on fast.


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## CaseLogic (Mar 28, 2007)

It's hard to say how the timeout is working because I've only had him for a couple weeks and he doesn't get a chance to do anything bad, so I haven't had to do timeout very often. I don't know if timeout is the best method for potty training, but timeout is great for other negative behavior like jumping on the couch (which we decided here is not allowed).


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## Dutchie (Apr 18, 2007)

I have a 10/11 yo bluetick rescue . I got him when he was 8/9 yo. He learned very quickly and had been recently fixed. We do think he was an outside guy for awhile because of his multiple health isuues we found. But sometimes we think he was loved at one point and lived inside-who knows. He adjusted very quickly- took over the couch in a day  So it's hard to say. What we did was bring him out a whole lotta times day and night. He caught on - we didn't have to use a crate. I'd say it took about a week and only a few accidents.


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## Anela (Sep 8, 2007)

You have a dog that is 3-4ish and fully grown, but is till having accidents in the house, due to improper training in the potty dept.  

Consider that the dog is not going to be fully house trained until he has no accidents for at least 9 months (this should be your goal) being ill does not count when he just can’t hold it.

Given the issue, at this age, you should start to treat the dog like he is a 3-4 month old pup. This will get things off to a fresh start, and you will know beyond doubt that you are instilling correct potty training techniques in to the dog. If you do this, keep in mind that the training is only temporary.

Because dog is fully grown, the process should be quick, however, not all dogs are the same in this department. I recently trained a 4 month old pup in3 days, last year my rescue pup of the same age took 5-6 months (long story). Consistency and hard work is the key to potty training. I have a 5 step program that helped me and lots of others. If you want it, let me know and I'll post it. 

Anela


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## pet lover (Dec 4, 2007)

Try feeding your dog on a set schedule it might be easier to determine when it’s time for him to go out. Once you have idea when he wants to go take him out every 15 minutes for a few minutes at a time starting at least hour before. This worked with a dog I use to have. It did take two to three weeks before he began to get the idea.


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