Help! 1 year old Maltese still not potty trained

[clarysagelavender]

Hallo, I have a 13 month Maltese dog, had him since 13 weeks from a reputable breeder.

We have been working so hard to potty train him: for months we've been super vigilant, taking outside regularly, loads of praise and treats for going outdoors.

We STILL get accidents. Maybe every couple of weeks, but it means a) I can't relax which is exhausting and b) he's only allowed access to one room in the house with laminate flooring.

This morning I took him out for a wee, now he's gone an hour later in the blanket in his pen area!! (Not shut in door is open). I think because it was raining... although he NEVER asks to go out. He has a bell to ring which he either doesn't get or doesn't like. The door was open today so he could have gone out as he often does. We had many many months of not having the door open as I know it's not the optimum for potty training but over the summer it has been. That hasn't made anything worse on the accidents front. And I'm dreading winter coming and going back to writing every wee on a sheet so we know what time to take him out for the next one.

He still wees a lot too... overnight he'll hold it 10 hours+, but in the day he goes every 2 hours minimum and then these other random very frequent times which are hard to predict.

For want of a better way to describe it I feel he understands very well that we want him to go outside, but he doesn't really care all that much! He's not averse to doing a poo inside but thankfully less frequently.

He's just been neutered 3 weeks ago.

Can anyone help? Will he ever be reliable? It's really getting me down 😓

Many many thanks for any help.

Has he been checked over by the vet for a urine infection? He shouldn't really need to go out every two hours at that age.

Thank you - he's back to the vet for post neuter check this week so I can ask them
... but he's always been the same so seems unlikely?

And he's also always gone 8-10 hours at night 🤔

It may not be an infection but it's always worth getting it ruled out just in case.

I wonder if the going out every two hours is a habit - do you go out with him and does he definitely pee every single time? Is it a proper pee or is he just doing a little wee to get a treat?

Over summer we've has the door open (I know this isn't recommended for potty training but it hasn't made the frequency of accidents every 2/3 weeks any worse and we needed a bit of a break).

If I pay attention he still take himself out every 2/3 hours and he doesn't always get rewarded for those.

In the past if we've waited longer than 2-3 hours he just goes on the floor.

He's only 2.6kg so all his wees are pretty small even after 8 hours but he's not doing literally a drop each time!

Thank you very much for trying to help me.

When he takes himself out, do you follow him to make sure he's actually peeing and not just sniffing about in the garden?

My beagle is five now but if we're not watching, he often goes out, goes around the corner and pretends to do a wee!

Have you tried catching him mid wee picking him up quickly and running to the door saying outside quite loudly , it was the thing that finally seemed to get my dog to get it . We also have a cue word which helps , he’s 13 now but still tries to have a wee if I ask him to .

@cinnamonfrenchtoast I can see him weeing, he does a funny squat thing, never figured out cocking his leg 🤣 So I think he really does go every 2-3 hours. He is very small, I don't massively hold that part against him just not on my floor 😭

@Floralnomad today he was witnessed and taken outside mid wee. But not always. He's quite clever really, I feel he does really understand the word OUTSIDE and he also will wee on demand if I ask him (and he feels like it). He just doesn't seem to care enough on these occasions when he goes inside 😓

Thank you both.

When he pees inside, are you cleaning up the accidents properly with pet enzyme cleaner?

Things like bleach or dettol will likely make his behaviour ten times worse.

@cinnamonfrenchtoast this is the one thing I haven't tried! I suppose with it being a couple weeks between accidents I was struggling to believe it was a scent issue. But do you think it might be?

Definitely. A dogs' sense of smell is much more powerful than ours.

Try getting some extreme strength Simple Solution and thoroughly cleaning all the places he's ever had accidents. If he's peed on carpet it may well have soaked through into the underlay too.

Potty trained? Since when has house training a dog been called potty training?

@cinnamonfrenchtoast ok thank you! I'm going to do this 💪

@saraclara haha I've got too many kids! Who were a lot easier to house train than this dog! Do you have any useful advice for me tho?

Hi I have Maltese dogs. Obviously all possibilities of a bladder issue must be ruled out first, but in my experience I would like to say that I find this issue is partially a bit of a breed trait!

Being that these little dogs were originally created as companion dogs designed only to live up noble ladies sleeves keeping them warm and company with absolutely no working instincts whatsoever it seems to me they need a serious amount of guidance and supervision for things such as toileting even when fully grown. Perhaps because their brains just aren't geared up in that same way as a dog designed to work or do a certain job are.

Tbh I've only found one way to successfully manage their toileting and that is that when they are indoors if they aren't on my lap or 100% within my sights so that If I see them sniffing I can get them out quickly, they go in a crate not a puppy pen, a crate that is roomy enough for them to stand up and move around in but I fill it with their bed so that the temptation to pee in this is less and should they do so, it's then not soaking into my floor can be quickly noticed washed and dried. I get way less stressed this way. Its not cruel, at the end of the day you would expect most dogs to be resting in their basket during the day and be settled not wandering around for scenting opportunities! If you have a dog that is peeing on his own bedding and items this suggests he might be slightly insecure and wanting the make the place smell of himself for reassurance.

Neutering him may or may not help but only time will tell, it takes at least 3 months for effects of neutering to kick in and for hormones to settle down. Alot of toileting issues are to do with territory lack of boundaries and the dog having too much freedom to roam around and pee inside the home which they basically view as one big den.

Use a crate the size of his bed and just make sure you take him out regularly. A dog of his size will need to go more frequently because his bladder is smaller I would personally do every hour at first unless he is in a deep sleep. Stand outside with him if he doesn't go, certainly do not let him then come back indoors and have free roam inside the home, pop him back into his crate and try again in a few mins. Only let him out and about indoors if you have recently seen him go and you have the time to watch him like a hawk!
He should learn to hold on this way
Good Luck

Yes a breed trait I think too my Malteser is a terrible devil he can go out and then come in and poo it drives me nuts. Only way to deal with it for me is to take him out on a lead first thing my rescue morkie on the other hand is a saint never put a paw wrong