# problems potty training a 9 month old mini aussie!



## skahaguah (Jan 4, 2010)

Hi, 

I adopted two mini/toy Aussie shepherds three months ago, and they were 6 months at the time. They were not potty trained until I took them home, and I have been crate training them and they have been doing more or less OK, although they will go in the house just minutes after I have taken them out. Today, after taking them out and them both peeing, I left my place for 30 minutes and came home to a pee by the door. I don't really know how to approach this- shouldn't a 9 month old dog be able to 'hold it' ? I am assuming this isn't spite (based on an earlier post read), but could this be a form of separation anxiety?
Do you think with how late they were introduced to potty-training? I really would love to hear your advice and tips- I don't want to crate them every time I leave the house, and would much rather have them enjoy some freedom in the house... I have tried pee pads but they mistake them for portable beds!!

Thanks for your advice!

Sarah, Cacio and Pepe


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## meandean (Aug 31, 2009)

lol. we also had problems with the pad being enterpreted as a bed. well when we first got our pup he urinated in the house only twice. both times we were close by and rubbed his nose in it. ive mentioned the nose rubbing on here before and it went over like a lead balloon. lol. well he hasn't had an issue in the house since. my fiance also picked up some sort of spray from petsmart that you spray in places you want them to use the restroom. ie. a bush or something. so riley is only using the bathroom in 2 locations on our 1 acre property making clean up less of a scavanger hunt. lol.


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## DJEtzel (Dec 28, 2009)

i realize you want them to have freedom in your home, but until they have learned to hold their bladder completely and be stable at housetraining, it's best to leave them in the crate when you can't be there. from the sounds of it, the dog was at the door (we'll assume, waiting to go out to potty) when he had his accident, so it's not his fault no one was there to let him out. dogs don't always completely eliminate their bladders or bowels when they go outside, so this happens, and since they got a late start to housetraining, you can expect to have accidents occasionally.


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## NRB (Sep 19, 2009)

If I adopted a dog at 6mo who was not potty trained, and was having accidents inside the house, I would crate them whenever I was out of sight. Period. 

Never to late to re-introduce potty training. Just start over from the beginning.


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## briteday (Feb 10, 2007)

I would return to Potty Training 101...use a crate, take them out every 1-2 hours, not allowed free roam of the house unless they have just pottied and are completely supervised (an adult has two eyes on them the entire time...tether them to you with a leash or hold them on your lap). If they are not staying dry all night then crate the dogs and set an alarm for outings every two hours to start, lengthen time slowly as you find them in a dry crate.

Be sure you are feeding two meals per day on a regular schedule. Going in on a schedule makes eliminating on a schedule more predictable.

Lastly, if they haven't seen a vet recently have them checked out just in case. Worms, parasites, and illness can cause potty problems. You can't really chalk something up to behavioral until you have eliminated any physical reasons.


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## jkh389 (Dec 29, 2009)

meandean said:


> lol. we also had problems with the pad being enterpreted as a bed. well when we first got our pup he urinated in the house only twice. both times we were close by and rubbed his nose in it. i


Just curious, wouldn't rubbing his nose in it make him want to pee there again since it's letting him know that's the area I just soiled?


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## Ayanla (Jun 11, 2009)

meandean said:


> lol. we also had problems with the pad being enterpreted as a bed. well when we first got our pup he urinated in the house only twice. both times we were close by and rubbed his nose in it. ive mentioned the nose rubbing on here before and it went over like a lead balloon. lol. well he hasn't had an issue in the house since. my fiance also picked up some sort of spray from petsmart that you spray in places you want them to use the restroom. ie. a bush or something. so riley is only using the bathroom in 2 locations on our 1 acre property making clean up less of a scavanger hunt. lol.


Dogs don't find the smell of their own urine/feces offensive, so there's no punishment in forcing them to smell it/have it on their face. The punishment part is when you grab their head and shove it to the floor. Generally that's being done far removed from the original act of pottying and even if it's done right away they don't necessarily connect the act of going with the shoving of their head to the floor. So you're basically rolling the dice on what association your dog will take from that punishment. Maybe you'll get lucky and it'll have the desired result rather than just making the dog scared of your hands, but there are more reliable and less "mean" methods of achieving the same thing. To me it's like spanking your child for having potty accidents rather than rushing them to the potty. It might work, but at what cost?


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## meandean (Aug 31, 2009)

i understand your concerns for it rubbing their nose in it. in our case we did it twice to him the only 2 times he ever peed in the house. it worked in our case, that's not to say it will work for everyone.


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