travel problems

[sarah83]

So, about 2 weeks ago my tyson and i went down to Florida to see a friend. we drove from St. Louis MO. My friend also owns a boxer. The two of them got along great. But there were a few problems. Tyson is six months old and he is house broken, but he kept peeing and pooping all over my friends apartment. he really knows better. Also whenever we left to go somewhere i would put him in his kennel, like i do at home, but he would bark and throw a fit non stop. one night he barked for 6 hours. the reason i know this is because the neighbors come down to tell us the next morning. Im just wondering what the problem is. he is never like this at home. is there any way to avoid this problem in the future. im planning another trip down there and i really want to take him again because he really liked playing with the other boxer. Any suggestions on the problem or solution would really help me out.

 

[K8IE]

He was probably just stressed out being somewhere else. That is not uncommon for a pup that age. I know it is frustrating, but being somewhere else where everything is different, and there is so much stimulation and confusion for him, it has to be hard to remember what he needs to do. He probably wasn't sure where to ask to go out in a different home, and just was too excited and worked up by the time he had to potty that he just went where he was. And if he was left alone in a strange place he may have just had some anxiety and that was why he barked so much. I would just try to keep him on some sort of schedule when you go next time, watch him really closely or keep him on a leash in the house so you can take him out more often to potty, do several short traninin sessions with him during the day, and if you must leave him alone give him a stuffed Kong or some other goodies to keep him entertained. Maybe leave on the radio or TV for him too. Good luck!

 

[gmacleod]

Very likely it was just the stress of being somewhere different. Being put in his crate "just like you do at home" actually isn't just like at home, when it's in a strange place. Just like human kids, boxer puppies can get stressed by being alone in strange places. You'd probably find that he would settle down much better if the crate were wherever YOU are (ie. in the same room). Obviously, that only works when you're actually home.

Same goes for potty training. Very few dogs are actually housetrained until around the 6-7 month mark. And I think you can say with some certainty now that Tyson actually isn't fully housetrained. He may not have accidents at home, but that may simply mean that he gets the idea that the proper place to potty at your house is a particular spot in the back yard. That is a different thing to actually understanding that he must never eliminate indoors. And so, when he's elsewhere than your home, and his particular place outside isn't available - he doesn't know where to potty.

That's not that big a deal, and it's fairly normal for his age too. But it does mean that when you take him other places, you have to understand that he *does not know* where he is supposed to relieve himself. So you've got to show him, and take him out on a regular schedule, just as you would if he were a much younger puppy. Eventually, understanding will dawn, but it isn't going to be by osmosis

Btw: Please take the time now to introduce yourself to the community in the introductions forum. Per the site rules, that is supposed to be the first post you make on this site, before you start participating to the rest of the forums.

 

[Jill's boxer]

I agree with the others, it is probably the stress of being in a new environment that is not his home. Gracie is absolutely flawless with her housebreaking at home--no accidents since December--however, every single time we go to my MIL's house (which is about once a month, give or take, she lives 2 hrs away) to spend the night, etc, Gracie will have an accident in the house (only #2 for some reason, never pee!). It is confusing to her, I am sure, the different layout of the house (where's my door and bell? why do I have to go down stairs?!) and the added stress of my MIL's dog and 2 cats (and I am sure previous pet "accident" smells from her animals!). I do my best to watch her closely and make sure to show her each time where the door is to alert me ( I should bring my bells next time!) and take her out often so there isn't time for her to have an accident.

 

[catcrazy56]

We just came back from a trip for 2 days where we stayed in a hotel busy area so Foreman had to be leashed the whole time he was the opposite he was so stressed he wouldn't eat and didn't pooh the whole time I just wanted to get home so he would relax and eat and pooh first thing we did when we got home he jumped out of the van and poohed. Poor guy I was wandering if we had kenneled him would he have done the same.