I would put her in a crate that only has enough room for her to be comfortable but not able to move around very much. If your crate is larger put a box or something to minimize the room. Don't give her room that she can go to a corner and poop/pee and get away from it. Towels may be a trigger for her since she is used to using them to potty on. I would put something else down or nothing at all. She should cry/bark when she has to go potty. Place her outside or on a pad (what ever you want to use) if she does her business praise and give her a treat. If she doesn't go, place her back in the crate. If she does her business she can come out and play for a while. After a while place her back outside/pad, tell her to go potty. If she doesn't, place her in the crate for 15 minutes and try again. She needs to learn to "hold it" not just go when it suits her. When she wakes up from a nap/night - potty, after feeding her-potty
I have a 4 mo old pup and he sleeps in a small cat crate at night in my bedroom. Wakes me up when he needs to go out. During the day he is in the family room, where I am most of the time. He will now go to the door when he needs out. (most of the time :) You have to learn to read your dog. They will let you know when they are thinking of going potty, you have to be able to read the language of your dog. (going to a spot they have used before, sniffing, going to the door) If Jax heads for "the corner" I yell "outside" and he stops and runs to the door. For the Labs I raised (assistance dogs) we would tie their leash to us so they were always with us and we knew what they were up to. I don't know how this would work for you. There is nothing harder than making a puppy/dog sit in a crate for a long time while housebreaking them but it should only take a few days and worth it in the long run. Kay ________________________________ From: skyforme1970 <[email protected]> To: [email protected] Sent: Thursday, November 29, 2012 7:56 AM Subject: [Chihuahuas] Re: At my wits end..... Yes! You are right - and there in lies the problem. Those first few months are formative, but it was something I figured she'd grow out of. The family who first had her were not exactly "high class" and she was lucky to get out of there. Husband always comments on what a lucky dog she is. The worst part of all this is trying to stop her from peeing in her kennel bed. I put old towels in there for bedding and she soils them every night. I have to start a load soaking in bleach all week to get them all washed (as a full load) by Friday. This is inconvenient if we need to do a load of our own clothes between then. Plus we are rural and on a septic and I don't think bleach good for septics. This, and her peeing all over the house is the main reason why I thought she would take to the litter box. Since I can't be there all night to make sure she does not pee/poop her bed, I am perplexed as to how I am going to get her stop doing it. As I said before, she has free access to the "pottybox" all night and all day, yet she still messes her bed and the floor. I thought dogs were "fastidious" and clean about their "den" but this one seems almost to like it.I have a pee pad with a paper towel that has some of her pee on it in the pottybox and she still does not get it. Thanks for your suggestion! Kelly --- In [email protected], Mommabear7772004 <mommabear7772004@...> wrote: > > Hi , it sounds like since she was outside as a baby she learned to just drop > anywhere and pee. If pee pads are too costly right now ( and I totally get > that ) how about newspapers ? You can usually get local free papers at any > store. Put her in smallest room totally > Lined w papers , may take quite a while > and gradually remove them a tiny bit at > a time to see if she "gets " where to go. > Worth a try ! > > Sheryl > > Sent from my iPhone > > On Nov 27, 2012, at 6:08 PM, "skyforme1970" <skyforme1970@...> wrote: > > > 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. > > > > >
