Rescue dog - restarting toilet training?

[wheresmymojo]

I feel like I'm spamming this board since I got my rescue pup on Friday....

She is 8 months old.

Born in a rescue centre and then with previous family for 7 weeks.

When they first had her she wouldn't toilet outside, she'd hold everything in and then go inside. As she settled in she stopped doing this withholding outside.

She came to us on Friday and is back to withholding outside.

We can take her for several walks/toilet breaks but she won't wee outside even when I know she must really want to (e.g. when she hasn't been for a wee all day). Then she will toilet on our landing carpet 🙈

I understand that this withholding outside is related to feeling vulnerable.

Would you suggest being patient and waiting for her to settle in?

Do I need to re-start toilet training and, if so, how do you toilet train a dog that refuses to toilet outside even if that means holding themselves all day?

It's probably partly to do with spending her formative period in the rescue centre - she'd have got used to toileting in her kennel.

I'd suggest keeping her confined to start with - is she crate trained? Dogs don't want to toilet where they eat/sleep.
Take her out as soon as she's woken/eaten and regularly through the day. Don't worry about encouraging her on grass to start with - she might be more comfortable on tarmac/cement if it's familiar.

When she's inside keep her engaged or confined and take out regularly. If she goes outside then treat/reward (so be prepared) if she goes inside then enzymatic cleaner and ignore
If she's learned it once she'll get it again fairly quickly.
It's early days and she'll still be discombobulated so give her time to settle

It's just a case of patience and consistency. The pp has said it all really, use praise and rewards rather than consequences. He'll get there in the end.

I rescued a lurcher who was 4 years old. Always previously kept in an outside kennel, never toilet trained. He was an adorable dog, just not the smartest cookie in the jar, but he mastered house training after a while.

She came with a crate but really hates it.

She refused to go into it and when we eventually got her in she completely flipped out with anxiety

You'll have to start out from scratch. Oh and don't make her go in a crate that she hates, why would you do that?

Keep her close to you and confined to a room that opens to outside as much as possible. As soon as she starts sniffing the ground as if she’s about to go, take her out. If she doesn’t do anything, back in but out again after 5 minutes. Limit access to landing if that’s her preferred spot.

We used one of these for our rescue, lived in streets and kennels only, started off terrified of going outside. She used this and puppy pads. She did stress wee too so we worked hard never to tell her off and to massively praise her for peeing in the right places. Once she trusted us and got used to house/garden, she started going outside of her own accord. Takes time for them to settle, months not weeks. Now she is very good, no accidents whatsoever!

piddlepatch.com/

Tether her to your side all the time and as soon as she shows signs of needing to go, scoop her up and plonk her in the garden.

You just need to be consistent - all dogs can be toilet trained unless there are health issues like incontinence making it impossible. Generally if a dog isn't trained it's because the humans in its' life have done something wrong - so in your case it's because your pup was raised in a rescue and will have gone in its' kennel and not been taught to go outside in his formative months.

You just need to go back to basics and unfortunately that will involve a lot of standing outside in the wind and rain and waiting for him to give in and go

@Anotherlovelybitofsquirrel

You'll have to start out from scratch. Oh and don't make her go in a crate that she hates, why would you do that?

I don't

I tried her once on her first night and wanted to see if maybe she just didn't like going in but would be okay once in there.

She wasn't, so we haven't used it since.

Great, thanks for the thoughts everyone.

Makes sense, we will start again...

It is really hard with a dog who can hold on for hours and hours, but it still comes down to back to basics and restricting where she goes so that she is always close to you and you can scoop and run as soon as she shows signs - and then you stay outside with her until she does toilet and praise and reward.
Why was she moved on from her previous family?