Where am i going wrong? ( toilet training )

[woollyandtig]

Hi just over a week ago we got a gorgeous 12 week old puppy , and so far she has fitted in perfectly apart from peeing and pooing wherever she pleases. We have tried taking her out every 10 minutes ish and keeping an eye out for any signs but she still manages to do it :O we were in the garden yesterday for well over two hours and nothing she literally waited till we got in she has done it outside twice tough and got loads of praise, we have puppy pads but she prefers to chew them same with newspaper. Has anyone got any tips or ideas on what we are doing wrong im sick of wet feet :( .

I think in your situation a couple of things may have happened/be happening. As your puppy is older, it's possible that she has been told off or frightened at some point for toileting indoors and is now reluctant to go when human's are present. Or, the breeder didn't bother to toilet train her properly and she has got into the habit of toileting indoors and now sees it as the right place to go. Or she managed ot go a few times in a row indoors when you first got her (even if this was on pads/paper) and so has got it into her head that she is meant to go indoors.

Ian Dunbar suggests an 'errorless toilet training' method where you use a carrier or crate (depends how big your puppy is) and at first keep your puppy near you, but crated most of the time unless they have just been to toilet outside. It is very restrictive, but you might find it helpful temporarily in order to get the message to your pup she needs to go outside to toilet. I would normally suggest waiting outside until she does go, but if she's prepared to wait for two hours that obviously not much good. Ian Dunbar details this method in his book 'Before and After You Get Your Puppy'.

I would take up the puppy pads/newspaper, they will only encourage her to go to toilet indoors, which is the wrong place, or be fun to tear/chew up. Also, make sur eyou use biological washing powder with water to clean any accidents, disinfectant attracts puppies to toilet in the same spot again.

Thanks for reply I though it would be to do with her age, :( she is frightened of everything poor little thing, think you could be right as she tends to hide and do it. I will get rid of newspaper/pads I never even thought of that but probably confusing for her.I will try crate , she is a tiny little thing so crate is massive for her.

Thanks for tip about disinfectant I have been using that I shall stop that now. x

If she is tiny and the crate is huge, you might find she toilets in that. In which case, initially a smaller crate might be better for her.

If she is nervous/hides to toilet, have you tried leaving her in the garden alone for a few mins to see if she'll toilet outside then? Obviously keep an eye on her, but once she has gone a few times you can try being with her again, but praise or no praise, the place she toilets most will be the place she uses. Obviously ideally she should never go indoors (which is where a crate can help) but I know that can be difficult when you have other things to do and aren't used to seeing the signs of a puppy needing to go.

Good luck!

Clean every area with a dilute of bio washing powder and water, it will kill the smell of the wee & poo and she won't be attracted to it - especially if she tends to go in a similar place.
I made up a command when my dog was little, so everytime we went out I gave the command...over and over until she went, then LOTS of congratulations. I agree with trying the crate but don't put your puppy under undue strain if she is already nervous. Do you crate her at night, is she used to the crate? My dog still uses her crate, she sleeps in it with the door open now. Its actually quite small for her, she can just about lay out in it but she loves it!
Looking out for signs is a good one, puppy might sniff about or you might notice her tail in a certain position. Just don't yell at her, call her name and take her outside to perform that magic poo in the garden! Be gentle with her, she seems like a nervous little thing, it may take you some time to crack it.

Our pup would never wee in the garden if he was off lead - that meant playtime! Now, if I'm in a rush and really need him to wee and not play I take him in the garden with the lead on. He knows it's wee time not play time! I always take him to the same spot too. Also re the crate, if it's huge try making it cosy one end and put paper at the other end and hopefully she'll wee at the right end! HTH. My pup is 6 months now and toilet trained, but I'm afraid it did take quite a while so keep at it