puppy training

[sloppy-joe]

hi,i have a 4month old lhasa apso and i am having trouble getting him house-trained. any ideas please?
i am using spray puppy trainer at the moment (where you spray newspaper and move it closer to the door)this has always worked in the past.but not with this puppy!
thanks sj

[jules77]

no two puppies are the same, one of my bitches never ever did anything in the house from the day we had her at 8 weeks, my middle youngest bitch took a few weeks, and my latest puppy, being a dog, was clean night and day in just a few days. I tried the puppy spray and the pads, but to be honest neither of them worked, I also tried the crate method, but my puppy just pee'd in the crate then cried for me to get him out, and when I ignored him he tried to tip it up!

Is he actually weeing on the paper, if so I would be tempted to take it up altogether for a day to see if he gets the message that if the paper isnt there, he will have to go outside. I find leaving the back door open with access to the garden is the best way, taking puppy out as soon as he wakes up and immediately after food. You have to be patient and make sure you dont bring him in until he has done something, and using a word like wee wee time or someething usually helps as he will soon associate what you are asking him to do. And big hugs when he does what you ask.

[La Diva]

By teaching him that it�s ok to go on the paper, you're making it harder for both her and you. She doesn�t know the difference between a papered floor and a non-papered floor. I don�t know why these �pee-sheets� are even sold.

Take him out on a lead (that the very important part!) into the garden, after he wakes up, after feeding, after playing, and when he shows any signs of wanting to go (circling or sniffing at the ground, for instance). You need to watch him to pick up his signals.

For a 16 week old puppy, I�d take him out on a lead into the garden every couple of hours. Don�t just let him out � take him out on a lead.

When he�s weeing outdoors, tell him �be quick� or �wee-wees� or whatever you want to call it, and when he�s in full flow, give lots of praise and a treat. Get really excited about him doing it right and he�ll get the hang of it.

If he wees indoors, its not his fault � its yours for not seeing his signals - so don�t blame him. If you catch him at it indoors, pick him up with a �ah-ah� and carry him outdoors to finish � on his lead. Keep praising his good behaviour but ignore the bad.

And keep doing it � you need to reinforce his good behaviour. Don�t assume that just because he�s been doing outdoors for a day or two that you can say to yourself that "He understands now � no need for me to keep training him�. Believe me, it doesn�t work!

A crate is good � but don�t use it as a punishment cell. The longest you should leave him in the create is 4hours maximum. Its unusual for a dog to mess in the same place that they sleep.

Keep up the training - it does get better!!

[sloppy-joe]

thank you both for your answers
sj

[thugulike]

My puppy is clean and dry as long as I listen and watch for the signs. He squeeks when he needs to go outside or starts to sniff the ground. Both are indicators that we need to act I'm quite impressed with him as he's only 17 weeks old. And he slept right through last night. Yay! I've never used paper or sprays so I can't comment.