Questions about housebreaking

 He would seem to be housebroken.  When you let him outside and it turns out he doesn't need to go, go back in the house and leave him there.  Watch out for him and when he comes to the door, let him in again.  Consider if you are spending enough time playing and exercising him on the days he tries to give you the hint. 

 I do take him out to play and such, but I think I need to start taking him on longer walks. It's weird though, I will take him on walks and then he'll just stop(sometimes in the middle of the street :-s) so I figure he's just cold and wants to go back inside. :-/ Stupid winter.

 If you take him out on a schedule, he shouldn't need to paw the door. My girls RARELY ask to go out, except at 3 am (Jewel, thank you, every morning). They're just hauled outside and told to potty. It probably works better for dogs that aren't really thrilled with being outside.

 Hmm thats a good point. Wow 3 am every morning? That's gotta be a pain! o.o

What I do with pups all the way through their lives, is FIRST we potty, THEN we play.  If he has to go inside right after he potties, that takes all the fun out of it.  Reduces the incentive to do his business since then he doesn't get play time.

When we were living in the campground DH used to laugh at me because we'd go for a walk and I'd tell them, find your spot and GO POTTY and they would.  Often I'd slide the pooper scooper under them and catch the poop without having to scoop!  THEN we'd play, a little off leash back in the fields and what not.

 I never let Tootsie tell me when its time, I tell her. Also, you must potty before any play.

 Good point. The problem with letting him just roam around after potty is that I can't. I have no fence, but I'll probably take him on a long walks every once in a while after he's done his business.

Darn condo living. <_< 

AFTER potty you can snap on the long line and let him roam a bit while still under control.

I'm gonna be nit picky.  I HATE houseBREAKING.  We don't potty BREAK our kids, we potty TRAIN them.  Same goes.....stepping off the soapbox now.....

 I live in an apartment, so Tootsie is always on leash. She potties on leash and plays in an enclosed tennis court.

glenmar

AFTER potty you can snap on the long line and let him roam a bit while still under control.

I'm gonna be nit picky.  I HATE houseBREAKING.  We don't potty BREAK our kids, we potty TRAIN them.  Same goes.....stepping off the soapbox now.....

Sorry long line? Like a long leash or something? :-s

 Haha! Yeah that's true, I'm just so used to saying that or jokingly saying potty training. :P 

 We have a tennis court here, though the people are anal and don't allow dogs in there. <_< Plus you have to have a key to get in and I don't really play so yeah...

 Yes! You can get 15+ foot nylon or cotton web leashes fairly inexpensively at most pet supply places. You can also use a Flexi, but personally, they get on my last nerve, and the tension is bad for the dog (teaches them that tension on the collar is ok). I also have a 50 foot peice of nylon rope that I tied around and melted to a carabiner to attach to harnesses, for long line work.

For walks I use a 20 foot horse lunge line from Tractor Supply.  It's sturdy, but more importantly the buckle is made for a horse so not near as likely to snap off as some of the poor excuses I've seen for long lines for dogs.

 Oh so I just hold onto that to let him roam around on? Hm that sounds like a good idea. Maybe I'll look into getting a lung line and we can go up to the baseball field so he can roam around. Thanks for the good ideas!