Potty Training, Need Help!!!

[Curt Jr]

Ok, Max is 11 weeks old and 2.5 weeks old living with us. We take him out to potty after each meal, after he wakes up and after he plays with us. He goes everytime outside but if you let him out of sight for a second he will potty in the house. He does not go to the door and does not show any signs that he needs to go.
We tried the bell on the door and that did not work. It became a toy that he loved to play with.
Another thing we notice he sometimes fight us taking him outside. I'm blaming it on the Ohio weather, cold and snow.

Anything you can suggest to help him & us make his potty training more affective? We are running out of ideas and I think he should atleast be going to the door by now.

Thanks

 

[maddensmomma]

Madden is now 5 and a half months and still has the occassional accident in the house. (about once every week or two) He didn't take to the bell either. Sometimes he will tell us when he has to go out by stading by the door-but more often than not he doesn't. I read somewhere that you can't expect them to do that all the time until almost a year. It's a big deal when he does go to the door and then go and I give him his favorite treats and make a huge fuss. I just take him out on a schedule and have gotten really good at reading his signs. Also, when he does have the odd accident it's usually in one of two rooms (even though I clean with Nature's Miracle) so if he hasn't been out in a while and is in that room that's a sign he has to go out for me.

Also, I live in Buffalo and the snow we've had has set him back a bit and caused a few extra accidents too. Madden has a spot where he goes and can't seem to find it under alot of snow. Plus, 11 weeks is really young-we didnt even get him until he was 11 weeks!

 

[Just-A-Clown]

Max has a ways to go before he will be potty trained so just stick to it. Make a big deal each time he goes outside, treat and praise. Keep a close eye on him so you can avoid accidents. I always felt like each time he has an accident in the house it was my fault, not his. And each time that I caught him about to go and interrupted it, big win. Because then you can get him outside and when he does go praise. In that case you stopped him from going in the house which shows him this is not what you want. Then getting him out and he goes shows him what you do want. All in a very short period of time. Just stay at it, it will come together for you.

I know at times it seems like he will never be potty trained. But each day you are making progress, you just can't see it. Be consistant and diligent, it will happen.

Boxers are fair weather dogs. Heat, cold, rain, and snow may cause your pup to resist going out. You have to go with him and make it fun. Most dogs are treat motivated, you can use them to coax him out if need be. Good luck!

 

[gmacleod]

That's pretty much what you'd expect from any normal 11 week old LOL - it is completely unrealistic to expect a baby puppy to be toilet trained, or anywhere near it, by this age. Where the pup relieves himself is 110% down to your management,vigilence and anticipation of his needs.

I think you misunderstand bell training also. That is not a housetraining tool, as such, but merely a means for the dog to let you know that he wants to go outside (whether it happens that he also wants to potty is beside the point). It becomes a useful tool only *after* the puppy understands housetraining - but that's not taught by ringing a bell, it's taught by housetraining.

Anyway, I don't think you should be despairing at this stage. There's no way in the world the pup is capable of understanding yet, but it doesn't mean you give up on training. He *will* get it in the end, but not in 2 weeks. The bell training is quicker - as long as you are consistent in opening the door for him, then he's likely to catch on in about 3-4 weeks. But that is an entirely different thing from understanding that he should potty outside. Bell training is a means for the dog to let you know audibly that he wants outside. Nothing more, and nothing less. It has absolutely no relation to the dog understanding where you want him to potty (it just makes life a lot easier for both of you once he does understand that).

At 11 weeks old, he should be taken outside every 20-30 minutes or so PLUS after every meal, after waking from naps and after a playing for a few minutes. That all adds up to around 30 potty stops per day. And in between, you've got to keep an eagle eye on him or else he's going to potty on the floor. When you absolutely cannot be watching, he should be crated. It's a simple formulation, even if a lot of work. But that's what works. It's only with time, massive repetition and continual excited praise from you when he gets it right that he's going to figure out what it is that you want. You're going against his natural instincts, after all. And it all takes time He's not Einstein, but a baby dog. Until he does properly figure it out (which is likely to be around 5-7 months old), being accident-free is completely down to you and your good management.

 

[Curt Jr]

yeah we are working with him. I just assume he would be a little more potty train by now since they are smart dogs LOL

I'll keep working hard and hopefully he will learn it a few more weeks

 

[ELubas]

Both my girls hated to go out in the cold. I got them coats-fido fleece is great-easy to put on and warm. Might make the outdoors less awful for your pup

 

[ewiley]

We just got our new pup yesterday (6wks old) and had an awful time trying to catch him at first because he doesn't squat or anything, he just stands there and pees! Today we started taking him out every 1-2 hours, plus after naps and meals and we haven't had an accident yet!!! It's snowy here too and he shivers :o( but found a strip behind our bushes that he uses every time. Each time he goes out he does both things he needs too and I make a huge deal and then play with him when he comes back in. I know it's just day two but man the difference!!

 

[kayboxer]

We had to dig a path out to the yard and then a big circle in the yard for our babies. They did NOT want to go out in the snow, and I can't blame them, I wouldn't want my rearend touching something freezing when I pottied either!

 

[sophieDad]

I gave sophie great praise and treats when she went, when the snow came....all bets were off. But a keen eye, patience, and a snow blown potty area, and she did great. She was about 4 months when she would whine to go out, sometimes just to play. Now she goes before she gets in the truck, and i didnt even try and teach her that, Boxer's are so smart. I thought she would never potty train, now i cant even remember the last accident....well the pee on the outside steps as she was running out was a close one!

 

[MajorSpencer]

Training

Well i live in Northern Ontario Canada and i know my Major will NOT go if there is to much snow outside he will pee but i have to pat down the snow for him to poop . As for the cold we get -30 c and ya he might not wanna go out but sometimes u gotta suck it up and leave them for a minute just so they can do there job. We got him at 7 weeks ya he had his share of messes but we took him out often even if he didnt have to go. if he did make messes we put him out after he made his mess told him OUTSIDE TO GO POOP LOL .... he is 3 months now and we did train him to ring a bell and he does whine .... takes time and persistance lots of persistance ... but they do learn, i find them to be very quick learners ..... althought now my only problems is chewing EVERYTHING ..... LOL