Who has a shih-tzu? Toilet training

[lanegirl]

Our pup is now 7 months and still pees and sometimes poos inside. (And then often eats it which is a whole other thread!) Luckily we have hard floors but oh my god it's really doing my head in now. He just doesn't seem to learn! I use simple solution to clean it up but it makes no difference. It's less than it was and he sometimes has days when he doesn't do it at all and I think we've cracked it then he will just pee everywhere and I feel hopeless again. I know they are notorious for it but was hoping to have got it by now.

If you have a shih tzu, how old were they when they were reliably trained?

We have a 18mo shih tzu who has been fully toilet trained for about 5-6 months. It took him much longer to click with it than any other dog we have had. We can never leave him without supervision in the garden even now, because he will 100% eat his poo if not watched like a hawk.

The only thing that worked was HUGE praise when he did his business outside. I was literally squeaking "good boooooy... good boy go pee pee, goooooddddd boy!" For about 2-3 mins and giving huge cuddles and two high value treats for it all to click. I am usually very strict with treats and daft amounts of fuss with our other dogs but this is the only thing that worked for the shih tzu. I still make a huge fuss with him at random times after he has done his business now, just to keep him on his toes.

Good luck, it's soul destroying when it just doesn't sink in.