Multiple puppy questions... I'm really upset, please help!?

Question

I got my dog Sunny one month ago when he was 8 weeks old. He's a Golden Retriever, now 3 months old, and I love him SO much. He's my first dog, so I'm learning as I go along, although I read lots of training techniques to prepare for bringing him home! We decided that crate training would be the most effective method for house-training. He also sleeps in there at night. He was doing really good, not many accidents, and then went almost a full week with no accidents. Then today, he friggin peed ALL over the floor. I didn't notice because he didn't squat and pee like usual. He must have peed while he was walking, because when I got up I noticed it, a LONG trail of pee across two rooms. He also managed to pee on my couch, which he isn't allowed on. I usually bring him with me when I go upstairs to the bathroom but didn't today since he was doing well... I guess he did it then. Anyway, I'm really upset, I feel like I've failed him and done something wrong. And my couch is wrecked! It's old, but still, it sucks. Am I doing something wrong? When he DOES have an accident, I interrupt him and say "NO!" in a firm, disappointed voice, then take him outside where he always finishes, and praise him like usual. In a high pitched voice, with pets, and an occasional treat. At 3 months, should I be concerned that he hasn't caught on yet? My other question is: so far he knows the commands Sit, Down, Come, Shake a Paw, and we are working on Stay. However, when I get a treat out, and say Down, he goes down and then immediately pops up again. Even if I hold him down, or if I don't have a treat, he stills does it. Also, sometimes when I get a treat, he does all his tricks without waiting for a command and then looks at me expectantly. How do I correct this? All advice is much appreciated! Thanks!

Answer 1

First, calm down! lol Don't be so hard on yourself. Realize that he is a puppy. It is the same as potty training a small child. It takes many many months for puppies to understand that what you want is for it to pee outside all of the time. Dogs aren't born with the ability to understand humans and sometimes when we think we are communicating well, they really don't understand yet. If you are not there to take the pup out after drink times at normal pee times during the day for a good six months or more, it will go ahead and release its bladder. It takes quite awhile before your pup will understand that there is a schedule for you to take it out so that it will hold it or indicate to you that it needs to go. You need a potty schedule that you stick to, that falls after drinking and eating so you pup knows what time to wait for. It isn't natural for a dog to go in a crate to pee, especially if it sleeps there. If it already has any wetness or mess then it will naturally choose to go elsewhere. Use a protein based cleaner to get the urine from your couch and floor or the pup will still be able to smell it and will think that it is a good place to pee.

My pups do the same when they are going to get a treat. It just wants to please you and get the treat out of excitement. If you just patiently wait until the pup settles, then give your command. Wait again to see if it follows. Then calmly give your command again. If your pup is too excited to listen then I suggest you walk away to show your dislike of the behavior and try again later. You can also try the 'look at me command' to help your pup focus better on you and what you want. While saying 'look at me' quickly bring the treat up beside your face near your eye. This is something used by dog trainers and will help your dog to start paying attention to your commands instead of just focusing on the treat.

I hope that helps. I have lots more but don't want to write a book! You can find me on messenger.

Answer 2

calm down hes only a baby my puppy is the same age and has accidents, they cant control there blatter .. its not your puppies fault that he peeded on your couch being so young he doesn't know any different and you should be happy he knows so many commands at such a young age my puppy only knows sit and down and he does the same thing ur puppy does about getting up to fast, there minds are not mature enough to comprehend on how long to stay down also my 12 yr old schnauzer took months to learn those commands and he still doesn't do them, dogs learn at different paces so just calm down and stop trying to correct your puppy hes only a baby and is still learning about the world  

Answer 3

Calm down!  He's only 3 months old!  You have LOTS of time to work with him on these things.  It sounds like he's making great progress for his age.

What exactly was going on when he had an accident in the house?  Could he have been excited or scared?  Have you ruled out a Urinary Tract Infection?

What it really sounds like to me is.... he's just a baby.  That's it.  You seem to be doing well with positive training -- it's just going to take some time.  My boxer was nearly 6 months before she was completely accident free.

As far as correcting the his "tricks.."  just don't give him a treat.  He'll learn soon enough that he only gets them if he's told.  But sitting is actually a GOOD thing for him to do without being told.  Also, if you have a habit of going through ALL of his commands and THEN treating him at the end.... well, then he's gotten into the habit of doing them altogether.  Unfortunately out of all the things that Caney (my boxer) has learned, her favorite is "speak."  You can imagine how that could get annoying.... ;)

Add:

About the bell training -- go ahead and try it if you want to.  True, some playful pups become "bell abusers" -- if that happens you'll just have to train him NOT to abuse (lots of people have solved this problem, so the answer is out there somewhere) ;)

Answer 4

Dog potty training isn't quite like human potty training.  Because dogs have such a short memory/attention span, telling them "NO" in a stern voice is just too confusing for them.  Most pups get a hang of potty training when they are about 2.5 to 3 months, so I wouldn't worry about it.  If he didn't pee like usual, in this case, he could have been overexcited (little boy dogs will pee when they see someone they like, etc.) or maybe he has a little bit of a urinary infection.  If it only happens once or if it does coincide with someone coming to the house, don't worry about it.  If he keeps it up, then maybe pay a visit to the vet.

As for him being unable to master the "Down" command, try:

- Bringing the treat low to the ground

- Instead of holding him down, use a form of intimidation dogs are familiar with.  Get in his space and tower over him so he gets that you are not kidding.  My dog always popped up after barely hitting the floor and I attribute it to the fact that she could walk all over me...and that she was desperate for treats!

Answer 5

you should get these little mats that are small that u can put in a house for dogs to learn to go in a certain area. u should take it outside often so it gets the idea plus when  its had an accident and u take it outside it wont go because it just did. lol.

Answer 6

maybe you have slacked on taking him out and making sure he potties . and maybe you need to limit water a bit .  

Answer 7

don't worry about the potty training. i trained my beagle mix and it took about a month for her to be TOTALLY trained.once in a while they have "those days" that they forget some of the training. i trained my dog and then she took a pill and then she peed 5 times in like an hour! so if he took a pill today or yesterday, maybe he is just a little loopy! my dog also does the no command tricks thing. i do this: when she does the trick i DON'T want i dont give her the treat and then make her do the correct one. after a while she learned not to do ALL the tricks at once! :-) hope this helped! :-)

Answer 8

To be honest. Never train your dog to go in your house; puppy pads or not. I had the same problem with my dog. (She is 1 now)

We trained her to use a bell. We hung it on the door and everytime we went out we would ring the bell as a signal. Eventually she caught on.

Another method is just watching for signs. Does your dog get anxious or grab a certain toy? It could be a sing. Just keep a close eye and dont get frustrated.

Answer 9

FIrst of all, as much as you would like to think he is fully potty trained at three months, it is normal that he isn't and has accidents. It sounds like you are doing all the right things to be consistent in training him.

Maybe he was upset that you didn't take him with you upstairs like you usually do. Dogs are excellent at remembering things, and maybe this made him mad at you, not that it is acceptable! Just an idea...

On the subject of training- wow, you are on top of it! Make sure you differentiate "down" and "stay", somehow. I recently attended an obedience class with my dog, and that was a big lesson. Dogs simply want to be with us, and when you give them attention- even in training and giving commands, telling them to stay somewhere and walking away is a hard concept for them to grasp. Try losing the treats and using another type of positive reinforcement. Use a toy your dog likes, or give him a good scratch on the head.

I am no professional, I am just relaying some of the things I learned.

Maybe if it is in your budget, look into some puppy classes. I found it is not as expensive as I imagined it would be- and it is a great way to understand how your dog thinks. Some colleges offer puppy training classes at a pretty low rate.

Good Luck, and try not to get discouraged... Dogs are a lot of work, but are SO worth it!