Today is day 3 with our 9 month old rescue pup. She is doing brilliantly.
The only hitch is where to wee and poo. I would like her to go in the garden. She doesn't realise this. I don't speak Dog and she doesn't speak Human
My plan was to either happen to see her weeing in the garden and to praise her effusively for this, or to notice her squatting in the house and to race outside with her to finish off in the garden and praise her effusively for that.
The problem is that she is going to extraordinary lengths not to wee when I'm watching. No one has seen her wee or poo yet, but we have found the puddles and piles of poo. I don't say much about the accidents when I clean them up - no praise obviously, but no getting cross either.
She last had a wee 6 hours ago, has walked, played, eaten and had a few drinks of water since then and STILL no wee. I have spent hours in the garden with her, surreptitiously watching - nothing. She MUST need to go.
I am wondering about blotting up the next wee and putting the towel in the garden and praising her when the towel of wee is on the grass. Would that work?
Or... I don't know what else. I think she'd be much happier if she knew where to go, and I wish I could communicate it to her.