As a baby, I trained Emiliano to use a litter box, lined with newspaper onto which I had sopped on some of his pee. He used it almost immediately. Then if I was going to be at home for the day, I started taking him outside, when he got up, after he ate, and before he went to bed and a few times inbetween. I would tell him to go potty, stayed and watched him until he did, then praised him and brought him inside and gave him one of his favorite treats. Some people told me he was going to be confused using the litter box and going outside as well but he never was. To this day, he uses the box if I am going to be gone all day and goes outside when I am at home. At four years of age, he can hold off having to go for most of the day, often I come home to find the box has not been used but he runs outside immediately when I get home and does his business.
Gloria -----Original Message----- From: skyforme1970 <[email protected]> To: Chihuahuas <[email protected]> Sent: Wed, Nov 28, 2012 5:06 am Subject: [Chihuahuas] At my wits end..... Hi, I have a nearly 2 year old spayed female chihuahua mix. She is only about 5 lbs and very sweet. She came toddling up our driveway one rainy afternoon when she was only about 3 months old. No one claimed her so we took her in knowing nothing about chihuahuas. From what I heard from the neighbors, she was a litter mate escapee and the people who had her never let her or the other pups in the house, so they all stayed outside in the backyard. No matter what I do, I cannot seem to house train her. We had to lock her in her kennel at night so she would not tear the house up as we slept. As a result, she had gotten used to peeing and sometimes pooping in her bed since (I assume) she could not hold it all night. This is without fail every single day. She will pee anywhere she sleeps (her round cloth bed, her kennel bed and the kid's beanbags). She also has no issue with peeing on tile or rugs or carpet RIGHT in front of us all while innocently looking us in the eye. It's like she has NO concept whatsoever that this displeases us greatly even tho she has been scolded for it more times than I can count. It does not matter if we take her outside for potty right before bed or withhold food and water after 3 pm. She has no problem letting us know when her water or food bowl has gone dry or to alert us for her other wants and needs. Just the potty thing. I kept thinking she'd grow out of it, but she has not at nearly 2 years old. (born in Feb 2011) As a result, since she is so tiny (and smart, I think) I got the bright idea to try and litter box train her. I've tried using kitty litter, then a pee pad, then even cutting iceplant from outside and putting it into the box for her to pee on since that is what she usually does on it when we take her out for a potty break. I call the litter box her "pottybox" thinking it was best to give it a name she might identify it with. She has used it a grand total of twice in the last 6 weeks of trying to train her. When she has an accident, I take the soiled towels and put them in her pottybox so she knows/smells/sees what it is there for. I also tell her "go potty" like I do when she is outside. Recently we moved her to the laundry room at night and use a baby gate so she can still see out into the house. I now leave her kennel bed open so she has free access to the pottybox, but she still prefers to sleep in her own waste. She has no issue with jumping into the potty box, and will do so just by us telling her to, but she will just sit down and look at me like "what do you want me to do?" She is ruining our house and I've never been closer to giving up after two years of this constant messing with no end in sight. I cannot keep her outside as we live in rural area and she would not last an hour out there so a house dog she must be. I am not a quitter, especially when it comes to animals, but this (and her constant "glee peeing" even when seeing the SAME people over and over but that is another story) is turning in to a real deal breaker. I have never had such a high maintenance, and frankly such a PITA dog in my life, but we love her very much. I'm sure this has come up a million times, but if anyone has some suggestions that might help, I'd appreciate it. We are very low on money so buying yet more "training aids" is not possible right now. Plus, I feel that I have spent enough on all this and she has what she needs, except the message I am trying to get across to her. Breaks my heart to think of giving her up, but if we can't resolve this, I will have to re-home her to someone who understands the breed better than I do. Thanks for any help you can give us for this sweet little girl.
