Teaching pup how to signal to go out

[anyeone]

I've had my 4 month old English Mastiff for about 2 weeks now and it has been surprisingly easy to housebreak him for the most part. He knows what to do when we go out, he goes almost immediately every time we take him. I've used "go potty" as the keyword and he responds well to it. Since we take him out about every two hours or so during the waking hours and he only has about 5 hrs in his kennel at night (which he can hold in without trouble) we usually have no incidents.

The thing is, he hasn't figured out how to tell me when he has to go NOW. 99% of the time he holds it til we take him out, but on the very rare occasions that we wait too long, he doesn't try to tell me to take him out but goes straight to the sniffing and squatting stage.

Anyone have ideas on how I can help him make the connection that when he really has to go NOW to either go to the door, or come to me or something similar? We always use the same door to go out so I don't think he's confused about that. I'd like us to get to the point eventually where we don't have to take him every two hours but can wait until he signals.

Thanks in advance

 

[tomcat]

Hi anyeone: Sounds like we are in the same boat. My Loki is about 5 months and we have had him 7 weeks.

He did great almost immediately and was sleeping all night (8-9 hours) within 3 days of coming home. BUT...like you said, he still doesn't fully communicate or signal when its time to go outside.

I have been reading Dr. Suzanne Hetts' book Raising a Behaviorally Healthy Puppy and she has some good advice, mainly on helping the puppy do the right thing. She says that you just have to keep watching and loooking for those "special" cues your puppy has. Of course, as you know, scheduling is a big important part of housetraining as well. Her advice is that you and the puppy will get your communications together...it just takes time.

Another important aspect is the use of enzyme cleansers when he does make a mistake. This will help minimize the attraction back to that spot.

With Loki, I am lucky enough to work from home, so I can take him out routinely. BUT...I have started putting him in his crate for periods of time during the day to insure that he doens't have accidents. I believe I am also teaching him some bladder control.

Dr. Hetts answers questions in the Ask A Vet forum and Behavior Forums at PetDocsOnCall.com. You might try posting your question there as well and see the answers our DVMs provide for you.

Good luck!

 

[JstLovesFilas]

It takes a while for dogs to be reliable in the house. Most can get the basic concept right away but still don't have the connection to "outside" or "potty" until much later.
I have a bell on the door that I use all the time to take them out... Ziva the little GSP cries and runs to the door and rings the bell (little girls are smarter...lol) and it's so much easier if you have older dogs to help teach them.
Bodacious walks back and forth to the door until we see him...
Ernie comes and gets me by the hand.... annoying but effective. LOL
Chipper just waits - but then he is 7 and there is always someone that needs to go out...lol

 

[anyeone]

Thanks all, he hasn't had an accident in about a week *knock on wood* but we're still taking him out every 3 hrs or so. He definitely tries to hold it if he can, so it's not a big problem, but sure would be nice to have him ask instead of us all having to ask each other when he last went out!

I saw a bell at the petstore, I may try that and see if he picks up on it.

 

[Mongo]

I have a GREAT tip! Put a small bell on the door knob and everytime you go outside tap the bell so it rings... and whenever he goes to "curiously" sniff the bell or taps it then let him outside... he should catch on pretty quick. Mongo picked it up in like a day!

 

[anyeone]

As it turned out I never really had to do anything. He hasn't (knock on wood) had an accident since I posted before and he will hold it pretty long, so we can take him out just every few hours now without a problem. In fact, we have trouble getting him to go anyplace OTHER than the backyard (i.e. the park, grass outside the vet's office, friends' backyards...) I finally got him to go in the front of our house by taking him there 1st thing in the morning and right after breakfast (since those "potty breaks" are part of his everyday routine already) but I have to keep working on him learning what "go potty" means specifically.

 

[MommaMorrison]

I've read a lot of recommendations on the bell trick. I'm right there with you, anyeone - Georgie (5 months old) will just wait till we take him out... but if we forget or take a bit longer, he'll go in the house. He does really well overall, but I think it will be a big (very helpful!) step if we can have him start ringing the bell to go out.

 

[Sadie"s Dad]

I have a similar problem/concern. My 11 week old makes no attempt to go to the door and if we wait too long, will find a place inside. When we do take her out she will pee every time but also seems to keep a reserve for the kitchen floor for 5 minutes after she gets back in. To complicate the issue, she has absolutely no desire to be outdoors. Going outside is usually part of the reward but this girl will turn into a sleeping cat when it's time to go out even though she goes when out then trots back to the door to get back in. I thought it was because we are in NE Ohio and the weather has been chilly but even during a seasonably warm day, she'd rather be inside. She is healthy and confident with no bad experiences outside so I don't understand. Any of you experience this?

 

[Mongo]

Sadie's Dad: Do you go outside with her? Stand in the yard instead of at the door?

I would bring treats with you. Give her treats the MINUTE she goes potty outside. Also play with her more outside... run around and make it fun.

 

[Sadie"s Dad]

Thanks for the info - I always go out with her but lately I've been staying on the deck when she goes into the grass. I used treats in the beginning but the last week has just been praise. I'll try going back to square one and see how that goes. As the weather warms up we'll be outside much more so there will more play opportunities hopefully creating an 'outside is fun...not just a bathroom' feeling. I'll keep you posted!!

 

[Mongo]

I do that sometimes and then kick myself for it.... Ill work with Zuko with treats and he will be doing great then I get lazy and find that he goes back a few steps. Consistency is training. Hope that helps

 

[acain37]

We have bells hanging on our door, our 10 month old English Mastiff, Abner, rings the bells when he needs to go out side. I love it! It was really easy to train him to do this. He very quickly learned that when the bells rang, we would let him out. It makes it nice, because no matter what room of the house we are in, we can hear the bells ring.