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Pup only "goes" behind the furniture - too stressed to cope

Posted : 5/23/2006 6:16:01 PM

Hi all, I'm Nova and a new owner of two Chihuahua puppies, Rio and Sydney, female and male. I've had them for 3 weeks, and they are 10 weeks old.

Rio has successfully learned to go potty on the paper, but Sydney developed a serious behavioral problem.

Sydney will only go potty BEHIND THE FURNITURE or when NO ONE IS WATCHING. He seems guilty when he goes, but when I do catch him, I take him to the newspaper, where he will hold in his poop and pee until I'm not watching, or until he's in his crate. It seems as if he's got the wrong idea, he seems to think that going to the potty at all is wrong.

Sydney will hold his bowels until I put him to bed where he relieves himself there, also.

I read somewhere that this would be caused from overzealous punishment, HOWEVER I am not harsh at all when I catch him going!!! He is a very excitable a sensitive puppy, so I'm guessing this would be why. But I have no idea how to correct this behavior and it's so severe that it's brought me to tears several times.

What should I do?!?!

Minty_Pups

Posted : 5/23/2006 6:57:25 PM

Potty training can be hard especially in small breeds, and I guess Chihuahua's epitomize the definition of small breed! Patience is key. My pom didn't get the hang of it till he was well over 6 months old! Each dog is different. Just because Rio caught on to potty training fairly quickly doesn't mean Sydney will or should. With puppies, I would keep a leash on them at all times. Since Chihuahuas are rather fragile, I would get a harness, or one of those jackets with a loop that you can hook your leash onto. This way, your pups are by you all the time, and if they have an accident, you'll know immediately.

When you say that Sydney goes in his crate, do you mean he goes immediately after you put him in there or you often find him with a messed up crate? Again, little dogs can't hold their bowels very long, and rarely through the whole night. You probably have to get up more than once at night to take them out if you dont want to clean dirty crates every morning.

Nova Marletto

Posted : 5/23/2006 7:22:48 PM

Hi Minty,

thanks so much for the response...I'm going crazy.

the leash idea is wonderful, I'm going to do that right away. I plan to leash him very near the newspapers but not directly on it, and I am always in sight so he shouldn't cry too much.

you asked for details on when he goes in the crate. Well, it's incredibly odd what he does with his crate. Whenever he tries to poop or pee behind my back, he will sometimes go into his crate,.sit down and pee, then come back out again. He's been using the crate and behind the furniture as places to go..... anywhere except the paper. He will hold everything in until he is OFF the paper. He doesn't go immediately when put in the crate, and he does have accidents at night, but lately i've been having to lock the crate door so that he doesn't use it as a potty.

loveukaykay

Posted : 5/23/2006 10:07:53 PM

Are you trying to train them to go inside? If so, some dogs are just afraid of newspaper so you may want to try pads or a litter box and start working with the leash that way. If not you still need to have him connected to you at all times and take him outside when he has an accident. Be patient you will get there, just remember every accident in the house is a setback so keep close watch and try to minimize those as much as possible. Again, I know its hard but just remember you will get there! Good luck and remember to enjoy these last puppy times (other than peeing inside of course)[

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Suzi

Posted : 5/24/2006 10:21:37 AM

JJ usually goes to certain spots of the house.
So what I did was put the potty tray there and at least she's going potty on the paper and not every where else.
She also don't like being watch while going potty and I think it's just cute, hehe....JJ like her own privacy, no problem with that. [&:]

Nova Marletto

Posted : 5/26/2006 2:33:21 PM

Thanks so much for the advice everyone.... I'm trying everything I can.

Sydney is demonstrating yet some more strange behavior.

He's been jumping into his bed and crate for the sole purpose of reliving himself there. I put him on the paper, he jumps off, goes into his bed to pee, then jumps out again. This is really driving me nuts. I thought dogs didn't like to go to the bathroom where they sleep! Apparently this dog loves it...eek.

I did try the puppy pads. For some reason the dogs don't like to go on them.

Just one more question..... When I begin to train them to go outside, their leashes get tangled and I rent my land so I'm not allowed to put up a fence. Is there any type of special leash for this sort of thing?

All advice and comments are greatly appreciated.... [

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Minty_Pups

Posted : 5/28/2006 1:15:52 AM

Try cleaning the crate and bed with an enzymatic cleaner for pets. You might have to soak them in the stuff for a while - especially the bed. And rinse it out thoroughly afterwards. Syndey might smell odor of her pee in her crate and think that it's the right place to go in.

I usually wouldn't recommand using paper or pads to potty train dogs, but I guess it's useful for smaller breeds, 'cause they have such small bladders. Try soaking paper towel with her pee then leaving it on the newspaper. It might help to encourage her to pee on the paper.

If the leashes keep getting tangled, you can try a retractable leash. But make sure you get one for their weight, because a larger one could cause them injury if retracted too quickly. You can also try keeping a shorter lead, just bundle up some of the leash in your hands. I've also seen some people use this thing that connects two dogs together to a single leash, kinda like a big Y, maybe that could help you as well.

spiritdogs

Posted : 5/29/2006 8:43:48 PM

"Way to Go - How to Housetrain a Dog of Any Age" by Patricia McConnell. Good little book to have.