Am I screwing up my boxer's potty training? (long)

[courtney323]

TramendousJ -

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[apollosdad]

remypal,
as far as i can see, the worst that will happen is that your pup might get a bit confused between going outside and going on the papers. however, from your thread it sounds that remy is doing just fine so far. by confused, i mean that remy might just take a bit longer to make the final jump into becoming completely housebroken, due to the pee pads. but in your situation i think you are doing the best that you can to ensure that your pup remains stress free. a pup should not be left alone in a crate fo the length of time. it's nice to hear that you've done some research with your vet in regards to that. also nice that you set up the pee pads near the door so that way remy is at least still being made to make an effort to get as close to going outside as possible. all of those things should make that final step even closer. when remy is about 7 months old, she should be able to hold it for that length of time, and since it is only for three days out of the week, it shouldn't be too much of a problem.
is there any way that you can have a relative, family member, or neighbor come by and let remy out for an hour during the three days that you and your husband are gone? that might help in crate training her, and would also allow her some exercise. the break would also allow her to remain in the crate for the duration, since the break would most likely come in between the 8+ hour duration.

 

[Remypal]

Update on Remy

Hey, everyone:

Thanks for responding and the suggestions. You guys are certainly much nicer than people on some of the computer boards I read. It makes me and Lori feel a little better that we're not alone in this situation.

TramendousJ: From what I've read, it's best not to encourage the dog to eliminate at all in the crate. You want it to be their safe, comfy little house. If you are in the same boat we're in, try confining her to a small area with papers or a pad to pee on.

Having said that, we've been semi-succesful with this. The first day Remy hit the pad three times. The other two days he shredded the pad completely. However, he did go in the same spot near the door that goes outside. I'll take it as a minor victory.

Apollosdad: I'm leaning towards hiring a petsitter for the days we won't be home. A guy I work with did that with his bull mastiff and said it did wonders towards helping with house training. There's a local company that's been doing it for over 20 years that we're looking at.

Thanks again, folks! We'll keep up updated.

 

[apollosdad]

glad to hear that you got some helpful info from your post. i know that hiring someone such as an outside agency to come and let your dog out for you can get to be a bit expensive, but it is really worth it and assists them tremendously when it comes to housetraining. glad to hear that you have a company like that available to you, it will make a big difference. in the end, it won't be for too long. after 6-8 months she'll be able to hold it for the extra hours and you won't need to worry about by then. hope it all works out.