# How do you potty train in the rain?



## SandyPuppy (Aug 8, 2009)

Sandy is doing exceptionally well with potty training. But last night I listened to it rain ALL night long and I'm worried about how its going to go when it starts raining every day (I live in the Seattle area) and she has to go out in it several times every day. How are we going to manage? I know she isn't going to want to go out in that!!! Especially when the wind starts blowing too.


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## RubyLove (May 4, 2009)

I don't give Ruby a choice. The only other option would be to let her go inside, which isn't an option to me.

I would suggest boots and a good coat  And a towel waiting when you get back inside.


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## SandyPuppy (Aug 8, 2009)

I'm not going to give her a choice, I'm just worried she won't relax and will just stand there in the rain and not go.... and I will have to be standing out in the rain all day with her. 
Right now, she goes soon after she gets outside. 

Any suggestions on where to purchase a good quality doggy raincoat and boots? (that isn't expensive)?


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## RubyLove (May 4, 2009)

SandyPuppy said:


> Any suggestions on where to purchase a good quality doggy raincoat and boots? (that isn't expensive)?


I meant for you lol. The towel was for her


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## SandyPuppy (Aug 8, 2009)

RubyLove said:


> I meant for you lol. The towel was for her


haha, I'll be looking into a raincoat for myself also, but I definately think she will need one. I'm finding some on dog.com


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## skelaki (Nov 9, 2006)

If you want to get her a raincoat, check out the PetEdge site at http://www.petedge.com/ . Their prices are very reasonable.


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## AkiraleShiba (Dec 9, 2007)

I would not like to deal with putting on a rain coat on my dog every time it rains especially in a city like Seattle. Dogs are perfectly able to potty in the rain even if they don't like it!

Maybe you could go with your dog a few time in the beginning and give him treats if he does his job outside. However it's important to not let your dog get back inside until he has pottied. He will catch on pretty quick that he has to potty quickly not to get soaked


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## RonE (Feb 3, 2007)

I have not-so-fond memories of standing in the rain at 1:00 am with Molly. She didn't seem to mind, and Esther went along to lend moral support and demonstrate proper technique, but I was pretty happy when 
we didn't have to do that any more.


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## Bikhi Akhbar (May 26, 2009)

when i first got little Bikhi she hated going out in the rain and would just stand there looking miserable. 

finally, one morning it had been 6 hours since she had pooed and i knew she had to go so when she wouldn't i put her in her crate for 20 minutes and then would take her out for 15. after 2 hours of that i finally put her on a leash and stood out in the rain with her for an hour until she went. 

she hated it but doesn't seem to have a problem with it anymore.


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## Ludo the Monster (Jul 1, 2009)

I have some "great" memories of standing at 3am in the freezing snow and rain with Ludo waiting for him to potty. He loved every second. Me? Not so much.

Now that he is fully housetrained he looks at the rain and looks at me like "meh. I'll hold it."


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## SandyPuppy (Aug 8, 2009)

Thanks for all the advice and thanks for the website Skelaki


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## Adustgerm (Jul 29, 2009)

My dogs hate it when it rains. They hold it as long as they can when it's raining. But they will go out in it if they have to go bad enough.


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## Nargle (Oct 1, 2007)

Here's a good website for dog coats. I plan on getting Basil a green raincoat for the Fall 

http://www.dogsmartway.com/item_list.php?intClassIDDefault=1&intClassSubIDDefault=36


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## Northern_Inuit_Luv (Aug 26, 2009)

best thing to do is go out there with her on a leash and stay out until she produces. Sometimes an unbrella helps in the beginning, if its really scary, but she'll get used to it.


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## SandyPuppy (Aug 8, 2009)

I guess I'll have to do it that way. I went to the pet stores to try on some raincoats and they all fit horribly.


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## Rayne01 (Aug 31, 2009)

My dog wont even consider going out in the rain. She holds it.


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## SandyPuppy (Aug 8, 2009)

Problem with that is, here, it can rain for 3 days and nights straight.


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## MrsJohnnyG (Jan 31, 2009)

Ugh, I'm shivering as I remember housetraining my boys this past January when we had numerous nights in a row of freezing rain/sleet. Yeah, it was miserable for a couple of weeks, especially when I was taking them out at 3am or 5am.

For me, I first had to get them to be no longer scared of hard rain... which, for me, entailed enticing them outdoors with treats (during the day, not at night). 

After getting over that hurdle, it was just a matter of some unpleasant standing out in the rain with them until they did their business... having an umbrella definitely helped and I second the recommendation to have a towel waiting to dry off fur and feet!


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## LuvMyAngels (May 24, 2009)

Buster came home late spring, it rained the entire first week! I'd pull on a light rain jacket, leash the pup and we'd head out. I had a towel waiting to dry him as soon as we walked back into the house. He now LOVES to play in the rain...even though he wont walk through a puddle (he tip toes around them!)


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## Rayne01 (Aug 31, 2009)

LuvMyAngels said:


> Buster came home late spring, it rained the entire first week! I'd pull on a light rain jacket, leash the pup and we'd head out. I had a towel waiting to dry him as soon as we walked back into the house. He now LOVES to play in the rain...even though he wont walk through a puddle (he tip toes around them!)


Our pit bull will play in the rain and come in soaking wet. He chases the water from the hose when we water our plants too, but when it comes to bath time, his tail goes between his legs and he runs for the hills. I don't get it.


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## Bella's Family (Aug 1, 2009)

I'm wondering the same thing about when it starts to snow here . . . little booty (hers, not mine!) getting frozen when she squats in a snow bank. But I figure that as long as she's already used to going outside, and as long as we get a gradual snow a few times before the few feet at a time starts, she'll get used to it and will actually enjoy playing in it. I know the rest of the dogs in the neighborhood don't seem to mind, so hopefully she'll be the same.


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## InkedMarie (Mar 11, 2009)

You do the same thing, regardless of the weather. You dress yourself for the weather. For the dog, if you're potty training he/she, they don't need anything. You make sure the dog is on a leash. As you go through the door of your house, you use the term you'll use. We use "go potty". We go into a breezeway, then outside so we also use "go potty" as we exit the breezeway door. We stand outside until the dog goes potty, saying, "go potty". The dog doesn't come off the leash until they've done their business. If they don't go, you go back inside and watch the dog like a hawk. If you can't watch, they get crated or tethered to you. If they didn't potty the last time and you think they're do, you go outside often, til they do go. 
I live in NH and have housebroken dogs in the freezing cold and snow of our winters and with pouring rain. It comes with the territory. Dogs do sometimes hold it but IMO, not puppies


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## ValtheAussie (Apr 19, 2009)

I am having a little trouble with my 10 pound Jack-Chia. She is petrified of going out in the rain and had two accidents in the house today.

We are having a nor'easter here and the weather is very cold, rainy and windy!!

When I took her outside on the leash, she jumped and cried and then went inside and wee-wee'd.

I'd appreciate any help with this problem. 

PS. Pippi is about a year and a half old and she is a rescue dog. We've had her since early Sept., and she has been pretty good about doing her business outside until today.


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## Kevo (Sep 26, 2009)

Lol, Train the dog that is has to go potty the first thing when it goes outside. You let it out it doesn't go potty put it in the crate. It teaches them "Okay I need to go potty first thing when I go outside and then I get to play" beats your rain prolem. ;]


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## Mudra (Nov 1, 2007)

Raincoat and umbrella for you. And a towel waiting by the door.  Good luck!


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## txcollies (Oct 23, 2007)

It's really very simple, you just take them out and continue as normal. Very easy. 



Mine are expected to potty outside, regardless of the weather. I've housebroken puppies during rainy weeks, and weeks of ice and snow - it didn't take them long to catch on.


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## ValtheAussie (Apr 19, 2009)

Thanks. The only dog I didn't have trouble with regarding this was my dear departed Mathilda who passed away in February, 2009, after 14 years of wonderful dogness. She died of old age. She was my Aussie-Girl.


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## Dreadog (Jun 12, 2009)

I live in the Seattle area too, and I, like you listened to the downpour last night and wondered how the days would go. Hoku does not care for the rain, but will venture out to quicly potty then run inside. 

Good luck, and atleast the downpour last night was only temporary, usually we only have the constant drizzle, not those big drops...


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## ValtheAussie (Apr 19, 2009)

Dreadog said:


> I live in the Seattle area too, and I, like you listened to the downpour last night and wondered how the days would go. Hoku does not care for the rain, but will venture out to quicly potty then run inside.
> 
> Good luck, and atleast the downpour last night was only temporary, usually we only have the constant drizzle, not those big drops...


Thanks!! I can't imagine the weather you folks have in Seattle.....of course, here in NJ we have hot/cold/rain and terrible humidity, in South Jersey, it's like the "swamps of Jersey".


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## Labsnothers (Oct 10, 2009)

Getting a puppy in the fall is a way of life for us. Our next one will be a 7 week old female Lab the first weekend in November. 

Try to identify when the puppy needs to go out. Watch it, not the clock. Keep a coat where you can grab it on your way out. Once a young puppy gets the signal it need to eliminate, you don't have much time to get it out. 

Use a command.

If it doesn't go right away, walk it around. That can be quite important if you weren't quick enough and had to interrupt it. They can only walk and hold it so long. When it finally has to go, lavish praise on it.

You will get cold and wet. 

Good sticky here, but I will add this;

Much of housebreaking is not training the puppy, but making it easier for your puppy, you, and your carpet while its body to catches up to its instincts. At around 8 weeks when the puppy goes to its new home, the time from when it realizes it has to go, and when it can't wait any longer is a matter of seconds. Only time will fix that. You can hardly be expected to be attentive enough to avoid all accidents. There is no sense punishing the puppy for your inattention. It is not fair to punish you either, but you still have to clean it up if you didn't have the puppy outside in time.

Housebreaking starts before you get home with the new puppy. If you don't have a crate, buy one. I prefer the more enclosed, den like plastic ones. Skip the bedding. At first it gets wet, and later it can be chewed into choking hazards. A wire grid in the bottom will help keep the puppy up out of accidents at first. They are available with the crates, but expensive and hard to find. A piece of closely spaced wire closet shelving from a home supply place is cheaper. I am now using a plastic vegetable bin with plenty of holes drilled in the bottom. It helps block off part of the crate for the smaller puppy. If you already have a metal crate, covering it may help. Just make sure you use something the puppy can't pull in and chew. Dogs that start out in crates as little puppies, accept them very well. Never leave an unattended puppy loose in the house. If nobody can watch it, put it in the crate. I suggest letting the dog have its crate all its life. A crate needs to be just big enough for a dog to stretch out in.

Choose a command and spot you want it to use. The less accessible to strays, the less chance of serious disease. If it is a female, choosing a non grassy spot will avoid brown spots later. When you bring it home, take it to the spot and give it the command in a firm, but friendly voice. Keep repeating the command and let the puppy sniff around. Sometimes you need to walk it around to stimulate its body to eliminate. If it does anything, praise it. Really let it know what a good dog it is and how much you love it, and maybe a treat. Note, being out there not only means you can praise it, but it also keeps it from being snatched by a hawk. If it doesn't go, take it inside and give it a drink and any meals scheduled. A young puppy will need to go out immediately afterward. Go to the spot and follow the above routine. Praising it if it goes is extremely important. If it doesn't go, take it back inside and put it in its crate and try again soon. Do not let it loose in the house until it does go.

At first it is your responsibility to know and take the puppy out when it needs to go. It needs to go out the first thing in the morning, after eating, drinking, and sleeping. If it quits playing, and starts running around sniffing, it is looking for a place to go. Take it out quickly. You will just have to be what I call puppy broke until it is a little older. How successful you are depends on how attentive you are.

By the time most dogs are about 3 months old, they have figured out that if they go to the door and stand, you will let them out. The praise slowly shifts to going to the door. Some people hang a bell there for the dog to paw. If your dog doesn't figure this out, try praising it and putting it out if it even gets near the door. When you catch it in the act, give it a sharp ''Ah, ah, ah!'' and take it out. Clean up accidents promptly. I mostly keep the little puppies out of the carpeted rooms. Still I need the can of carpet foam sometimes. First blot up all the urine you can with a dry towel. Keep moving it and stepping on it until a fresh area stays dry. A couple big putty knives work well on bowel movements. Just slide one under it while holding it with the other. This gets it up with a minimum of pushing it down into the carpet. This works with even relatively soft ones, vomit, dirt from over turned house plants, or anything else from solids to thick liquids. Finish up with a good shot of carpet foam. Note, do not let the puppy lick up the carpet foam. Once the dog is reliably housebroken, your carpet may need a good steam cleaning.

Many people strongly strongly push cleaning up all evidence of past accidents. I am slower to suggest that. Dogs will return to the same spot if they can find it. When you see one sniffing the spot, that is your clue to run it out.


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## SandyPuppy (Aug 8, 2009)

Luckily Sandy doesn't just stand there and freeze up as I feared she would. She is actually pretty okay with going outside in the rain most of the time as long as it isn't pouring (but can still handle it when its pouring). Luckily she is pretty solidly built with thick fur so she isn't freezing yet. I still want to get her a raincoat for our daily walks. I plan on walking her even if its pouring out. I havn't been able to find one that fits her yet though (short legs and long body). I got a poncho for myself though.


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