I am having so much difficulty this time around with house breaking.

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I am having so much difficulty this time around with house breaking.

Posted : 6/24/2014 9:21:25 PM

Although it is not a desired amount of dogs, I have 7 of them. Its a very long story about how I came to get this many, which I will save for another post on how to move some of them outside. However I do have 7 of them. The two newest additions are Bella and Abby they are 4 months old today.. They are sisters from the same litter and all of my dogs BUT them are either fully house trained or crate trained. Bella does well, but Abby leads her in the wrong direction. Bella will hold it.. Abby however,,she will not. Abby has a small crate, that does not stop her. She will go in her cage.. I know most of you will say she is left in her cage to long.. but I do not work so she is never in there more than a couple of hours. I let her outside, she does her business, I put her in her crate, went to the store and came home to a mess in the crate. It is this way every time she goes in it. She doesn't always defecate in there (but frequently.. yes), but she always urinates.. every time. What do I do?

JackieG

Posted : 6/25/2014 6:28:35 AM

Whenever housetraining breaks down I recommend going back to the basics. Makes sure she's on a regular schedule as far as eating. When you take her out to go to the bathroom, make sure you accompany her. When she goes, reward with a treat and praise. 4 months is still young and developing good habits takes time.

I don't know if you're aware of something called littermate syndrome. I mention it because siblings kept together often become very dependent on each other. They form such a tight bond that being separated from each other can cause them great anxiety. It may help Bella, in all aspects of her training, if you don't allow the sisters to spend too much time together. Spend as much time as you can training and playing with each of them, separately. Giving them confidence when separated will benefit them both greatly for the rest of their lives.

Here's an article that you might find helpful.

paws4udogs.wordpress.com/.../littermate-syndrome