# Pee problem with my toy poodle



## Lovemytoypoodle (Jan 15, 2020)

Hello
I have a 12 weeks old toy poodle girl. She is smart and she is being potty pad trained since we got her home when she was 8 weeks old. She obviously did a pee and a poo as soon as we got her to our home, then we corrected her and directed her on a pad and I must say she is quite good. She had only 3 poo accidents. She had more pee accidents and I feel is getting worse. Today she peed on the sofa, I removed her whilst she was doing it so it went on the floor and she finished on her mat. She uses her crate as toilet, she doesn't use it for anything else. We got her a play pen so she can continue using the crate lined with potty pads as her toilet. But then in the afternoon I didn't allow her come on the sofa so few minutes later she peed on the floor whilst I was looking at her. And now in the evening she was sniffing around near the table and peed on the floor again. I don't know what is happening. I feel so stressed out as I never had a dog, my husband did so he is much better with her. I know she is very young but she seems to be doing the pee and poo worse than before with too many accidents. Is this normal? We give her so much attention, she gets millions of hugs per day. She is allowed in the whole flat. She sleeps by our bed in her bed. She gets treats and every training. She can sit, lie down, stand up, roll over, lift her paw on command etc. so I know she is smart and she understands very well. She is extremely hyperactive though, but then she sleeps. Her sleeping is not very deep, she wakes up on every movement and noise made, she follows us everywhere, she doesn't like being on her own. In the morning we put her in the playpen with open door to her crate(toilet). We introduced the play pen a week ago because we couldn't have her all around the place, she'd destroy everything, she pulls, chews, digs and all that stuff. Do you think we have done it all wrong with her? Or is it normal the potty training gets harder and harder as weeks go by? She'll be able to go out in 3 days. Because of her vaccination she was not allowed. Sorry for my very long post. I am just curious if you had similar problems or any guidance how to toilet train her properly. Thank you


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

You need to start over from scratch on housebreaking since she clearly doesn't understand what you are trying to teach her. Two of our three dogs were housebroken without pads at all. We were diligent about scheduled trips outside (after naps, after meals, after play seesions). We made sure we learned their signals and took them when they told us they needed to go. Javelin never voided his bowels inside and only urinated inside once or twice maybe four times tops when we were in places that weren't familiar to him and he had not yet generalized that outside means always outside. 

If your pup has been willing to void in her crate the crate is probably too big and probably hasn't been well enough cleaned. They should always progress not revert.

As to not taking a pup outside for housebreaking related to immunizations I just find that to be very regressive thinking. You don't go to dog parks or have play dates in the street with random dogs, but close to your home (yard space) for the time it takes the puppy to go is really not a big deal.

Not to make you feel badly, but most housebreaking problems are the fault of the people, not the pups, for all sorts of reasons.


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## For Want of Poodle (Feb 25, 2019)

House training is challenging, for people, and for dogs. And most dogs aren't housetrained by 12 weeks! SInce it's your first time, do you have a reference you are using?

Might I suggest this reference, if you don't have one? Errorless Housetraining

I also HIGHLY recommend investing in a big bottle of enzymatic urine cleaner.


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## PeggyTheParti (Sep 5, 2019)

And I'll share my favourite resource:









Before and After Getting Your Puppy: The Positive Approach to Raising a Happy, Healthy, and Well-Behaved Dog: Dunbar, Dr. Ian: 8601200633603: Amazon.com: Books


Before and After Getting Your Puppy: The Positive Approach to Raising a Happy, Healthy, and Well-Behaved Dog [Dunbar, Dr. Ian] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. Before and After Getting Your Puppy: The Positive Approach to Raising a Happy, Healthy, and Well-Behaved Dog



www.amazon.com





Please read it cover to cover (or download the PDF, available at https://www.dogstardaily.com/files/downloads/AFTER_You_Get_Your_Puppy.pdf) and have your husband do the same. 

Your puppy sounds _very_ confused, which could have lasting repercussions at such a formative age....but you can turn this around if you act promptly! Don't be discouraged, but don't waste any time.

Your puppy is clever and adapatable, and simply needs clear boundaries and guidance. You did the right thing asking for help


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## Lovemytoypoodle (Jan 15, 2020)

Thanks for your replies. We live in the middle of London, in a flat, no garden so I can’t take her to the park as the vet said she is absolutely not allowed until 2 weeks after the vaccination because too many dogs on the streets of London who are not vaccinated and we would put her in danger. We have enzymatic cleaner, odor remover, every possible cleaning products, we scrub everything 3x before we let her back on the floor. Our flat is spotless and clean. She pees on the pads only once and I change it instantly. I don’t want her to roll in it or anything like that. She was very good until we got the play pen that maybe confused her. But not too sure.


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## Lovemytoypoodle (Jan 15, 2020)

I just wanted to add that from Thursday she will be going out to the nearest park and we start training her outside to potty.


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## For Want of Poodle (Feb 25, 2019)

May I gently suggest not immediately changing the pee pads? A lot of what dogs do is based on smell. I'm in an aparmtent as well, and litter box trained my spoo until she was 5 months or so. Very quickly, she only really made mistakes when her litter was fresh.

If there's a clean house, and only urine smell on pee pads, then the pee pads will smell like the "correct" place to go. I'd also highly recommend not putting her pee pads in the crate - you don't really want to set that up to be a long term habit! Confine her in her crate (no blankets/mattress pad needed, as it will just confuse her), and then let her use the playpen for her potty.


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## Lovemytoypoodle (Jan 15, 2020)

PeggyTheParti said:


> And I'll share my favourite resource:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Thank you so much for your reply and recommendation. I downloaded it and will read it now.


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## Vita (Sep 23, 2017)

Hi LMTP. I have a couple ideas. Buy doggie diapers, for toy breed females, either disposable or reusable. FYI for members with male dogs, you would use belly bands.

Next, take her to the potty every hour on her leash. Wait a few minutes and see if she goes. If she does, give her praise and intermittently, a small treat. 

Or, you can buy a clicker for under $5 USD, and click it when she pees. This is called clicker training and may come in handy when you take her outdoors. Say something like "go potty" as soon as you see her circling to do it and click as she does it. She'll hopefully connect that specific command with the click sound.

If she does nothing or after she relieves herself, put the diaper back on, and try again in another hour. Dogs do not like to soil on themselves, and hopefully figure out the way to avoid this is wait until taken to the potty pad, and it's only for a brief time until she's immunized... or a bit longer until she gets the hang of it. 

Good luck!


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## PeggyTheParti (Sep 5, 2019)

Lovemytoypoodle said:


> Thank you so much for your reply and recommendation. I downloaded it and will read it now.


Enjoy! I've read it cover-to-cover with each puppy, but also refer back to it occasionally when I have specific questions or concerns.

Our only challenge housebreaking Peggy was with soft things on the floor, like blankets. I suspect her breeder used pee pads at some point, so it was an understandable hiccup.

It's also very important that the crate is only large enough for them to comfortably stand up and turn around. Any larger invites toileting on one side and sleeping on the other, but you'll learn all about that in the book.

Good luck and keep us posted! We love stories and pictures, too 

I'm presently muddling through the chaos of adolescence with Peggy and love reflecting back on the puppy days, challenging though they were.


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## Dechi (Aug 22, 2015)

You should not correct a dog who has an accident. It is always the owner’s fault, not the dog’s. Correcting will get you nowhere, she won’t know what it’s for and she might become fearful of you.

You have given her too much freedom. No three months old puppy should be free in the house. She should be on a leash, tethered to you at all times, except for play time, eating and sleeping and only if she has peed before.

Here’s when she needs to go :


when waking up (pick her up so she doesn’t pee on the way out)
after eating / drinking
after a nap
after playing
before bedtime
at night, if she whines (pick her up, don’t look at her, don’t pet her, just say the command word until she pees, praise calmly , pick her up and bring her back in her crate - make it as boring as possible)
every 2 hours
At this age, you will be taking her outside about 12 times a day. Toys are notorious for taking a little longer to housebreak. It might take more than 6-9 months to do. You never give up, and you don’t give her freedom until she can hold it for at least 4 hours, or you will have to start over again.

If you don’t have a crate, I strongly encourage you to get one. All dogs should be crate trained.

Good luck and post pictures of your little one !


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## cowpony (Dec 30, 2009)

Other people have made some very good suggestions. I personally don't like pee pads. I think it can be a bit confusing for the dog to understand why one soft surface in the house is OK to piddle on, but every other soft surface is off limits. I prefer the dog believing it is never, ever OK to piddle in any location with a ceiling over it. However, I understand it's not always feasible for apartment dwellers to hustle a puppy outside.

I think you might find the situation easier to manage if you put your little girl on a schedule and watch her like a hawk. As Vita suggested, take her out hourly once you get vet clearance. She can't pee on your couch if she has an empty bladder. Don't let her onto the couch or any carpeted area unless she has just peed. Then only let her stay there for 20 minutes. More time than that, and her baby bladder will be starting to fill again. If you want to keep playing with her, move into an area with an easily cleaned floor until it's time for the next outing. If you are too busy to watch her, put her into her crate or playpen. Eventually you'll start to get an idea of how frequently she really needs to pee, and you can give her more couch time.

The other thing to watch out for is submissive or excited peeing. It's not the same as a housebreaking failure. My boy Pogo was pretty reliable in the house by 4 months. However, he would piddle whenever a stranger greeted him until he was 9 months or so. We just made sure to introduce him to new people outside. We also asked our houseguests not to play with him inside.


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## PeggyTheParti (Sep 5, 2019)

You can purchase dog potties that look and feel like grass. I wonder if that would be a better option when you don't have a convenient outdoor toilet spot?

Example:






PREVUE PET PRODUCTS Tinkle Turf System for Dogs, Small - Chewy.com


Buy Prevue Pet Products Tinkle Turf System for Dogs, Small at Chewy.com. FREE shipping and the BEST customer service!




www.chewy.com


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## Dianaleez (Dec 14, 2019)

For Want of Poodle said:


> May I gently suggest not immediately changing the pee pads? A lot of what dogs do is based on smell. I'm in an aparmtent as well, and litter box trained my spoo until she was 5 months or so. Very quickly, she only really made mistakes when her litter was fresh.
> 
> If there's a clean house, and only urine smell on pee pads, then the pee pads will smell like the "correct" place to go. I'd also highly recommend not putting her pee pads in the crate - you don't really want to set that up to be a long term habit! Confine her in her crate (no blankets/mattress pad needed, as it will just confuse her), and then let her use the playpen for her potty.


We pad trained our pup by leaving a lightly soiled pad for him to sniff. He smells it, then circles and does his business. Sprays that claimed to be urine scented did not work as well as his own scent.

He's 18 weeks now and has adapted to peeing outside with no problems. We still use the pads on rainy/snowy days. He has no problems using both.


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## Mufar42 (Jan 1, 2017)

I agree with what Lillycd has said. Whenever I begin housebreaking a pup I usually crate train & have a pen in which the crate sits. I for the most part take them outside to potty and if for some reason I would use pee pads they would be on the opposite side of the open as a puppy will not want to potty in its bed. I also have them on a schedule. example feeding time:6am/12 noon/4 pm, during these first few week puppy spends a lot of time in crate when I am not holding or hugging it. LOL I learn the puppy schedule and I learn to anticipate when puppy will need to potty and I take them outside. When your puppy is sniffing around or circling she is saying I have to potty. Pick her up quickly and say outside potty. Then take her to the same spot each time and when she potties praise her or give her a treat or both. (I also take my pups on a collar n lead outside to potty, the seem to anticipate that means potty time and not play time). When you bring her in play with her let her have a drink but by 20 minutes know she will have to potty again. At that young age she really does not have control so its going to take a lot of time but first she needs to learn what potty even means. Our last small dog has a 8x11 piece of paper taped to our back door, we wrote down what she did each time she went out to potty and time. For example 6am p&poo, 8am p, 11 am, p 12, p & poo, she she ate at noon too and like a clock she went potty 15 minutes later. I alway giavethem some play time or holding after potty time before I returned them to the crate/pen area. Before long we didn't need those p pads as we had a good schedule. With a small dog they need to go out more frequently as their bladders are small, your pup is pretty young. There are several on this forum with toys and they can give you a better idea of how often you should be taking her out. I do find a schedule is an important tool in learning when your pup will need to go. And we love pictures.


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## PeggyTheParti (Sep 5, 2019)

I still write out Peggy's schedule. Am I nuts? Probably. ? But I find it especially helpful when there are two or more humans in the household. Otherwise puppy might go out double or not at all! Same goes for feedings.

It's also been useful for connecting the dots with allergies or food intolerances. And marking Peggy's accidents down on the schedule immediately revealed a pattern, which was easy to correct.


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## Mufar42 (Jan 1, 2017)

I agree with what Lillycd has said. Whenever I begin housebreaking a pup I usually crate train & have a pen in which the crate sits. I for the most part take them outside to potty and if for some reason I would use pee pads they would be on the opposite side of the open as a puppy will not want to potty in its bed. I also have them on a schedule. example feeding time:6am/12 noon/4 pm, during these first few week puppy spends a lot of time in crate when I am not holding or hugging it. LOL I learn the puppy schedule and I learn to anticipate when puppy will need to potty and I take them outside. When your puppy is sniffing around or circling she is saying I have to potty. Pick her up quickly and say outside potty. Then take her to the same spot each time and when she potties praise her or give her a treat or both. (I also take my pups on a collar n lead outside to potty, the seem to anticipate that means potty time and not play time). When you bring her in play with her let her have a drink but by 20 minutes know she will have to potty again. At that young age she really does not have control so its going to take a lot of time but first she needs to learn what potty even means. Our last small dog has a 8x11 piece of paper taped to our back door, we wrote down what she did each time she went out to potty and time. For example 6am p&poo, 8am p, 11 am, p 12, p & poo, she she ate at noon too and like a clock she went potty 15 minutes later. I alway giavethem some play time or holding after potty time before I returned them to the crate/pen area. Before long we didn't need those p pads as we had a good schedule. With a small dog they need to go out more frequently as their bladders are small, your pup is pretty young. There are several on this forum with toys and they can give you a better idea of how often you should be taking her out. I do find a schedule is an important tool in learning when your pup will need to go. And we love pictures.


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## Mufar42 (Jan 1, 2017)

PeggyTheParti said:


> I still write out Peggy's schedule. Am I nuts? Probably. ? But I find it especially helpful when there are two or more humans in the household. Otherwise puppy might go out double or not at all! Same goes for feedings.
> 
> It's also been useful for connecting the dots with allergies or food intolerances. And marking Peggy's accidents down on the schedule immediately revealed a pattern, which was easy to correct.


This gave me a chuckle...we still have a paper hanging on the back door for our terrier. She is 8 years old now and fully trained but its really helpful since my husband wants to stay involved with her care (she is his dog). Otherwise he never knows if one of us has had her out or not as she will joyfully go out each time to run about!


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## Lovemytoypoodle (Jan 15, 2020)

For Want of Poodle said:


> May I gently suggest not immediately changing the pee pads? A lot of what dogs do is based on smell. I'm in an aparmtent as well, and litter box trained my spoo until she was 5 months or so. Very quickly, she only really made mistakes when her litter was fresh.
> 
> If there's a clean house, and only urine smell on pee pads, then the pee pads will smell like the "correct" place to go. I'd also highly recommend not putting her pee pads in the crate - you don't really want to set that up to be a long term habit! Confine her in her crate (no blankets/mattress pad needed, as it will just confuse her), and then let her use the playpen for her potty.


Thank you. Our fussy little thing doesn't want to pee there if there is pee already on the potty pads. Sometimes we leave it especially if she only peed little bit. We do have the spray to aid peeing but she doesn't normally need it. She's been very good but somethimg changed in the last few days but today no mistakes. She doesn't stay in the crate because it's only used as her toilet now. She seems to like her play pen now. So I think she will mostly use her playpen and not much of the rest of the house unless she is getting trained or during play time and we'll see if she still makes mistakes. Luckily we have wooden floors, no rugs. And we stopped letting her on the sofa.


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## Lovemytoypoodle (Jan 15, 2020)

PeggyTheParti said:


> Enjoy! I've read it cover-to-cover with each puppy, but also refer back to it occasionally when I have specific questions or concerns.
> 
> Our only challenge housebreaking Peggy was with soft things on the floor, like blankets. I suspect her breeder used pee pads at some point, so it was an understandable hiccup.
> 
> ...


Thank you for your kind help. Our breeder did not use pads, just let them do it in the small play pen and I think she was eating her poo when she was there. We clear up straight away now. Don't want to encourage her. Here are pictures of our little girl.


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## PeggyTheParti (Sep 5, 2019)

Mufar42 said:


> This gave me a chuckle...we still have a paper hanging on the back door for our terrier. She is 8 years old now and fully trained but its really helpful since my husband wants to stay involved with her care (she is his dog). Otherwise he never knows if one of us has had her out or not as she will joyfully go out each time to run about!


Not completely nuts then. ? My husband was actually the one who started the system with our last dog, during her last months when she required some extra attention. It's now officially titled "The Poodle Report" and he prints a fresh one out each week for us to fill in.

Okay, starting to feel a bit nuts again. ?


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## PeggyTheParti (Sep 5, 2019)

Lovemytoypoodle said:


> Thank you for your kind help. Our breeder did not use pads, just let them do it in the small play pen and I think she was eating her poo when she was there. We clear up straight away now. Don't want to encourage her. Here are pictures of our little girl.


What a pretty little girl! What's her name?

That was an odd method your breeder used. It certainly did you no favours. Happy to hear you're getting your little girl back on an appropriate track. Letting her toilet in the crate is not a good idea, though, if there's any chance she'll be in a crate in the future (vet, groomer, travel, etc.). I'd stop that immediately even though it's been a convenient interim solution.


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## Dianaleez (Dec 14, 2019)

Lovemytoypoodle said:


> Hello
> I have a 12 weeks old toy poodle girl. She is smart and she is being potty pad trained since we got her home when she was 8 weeks old. She obviously did a pee and a poo as soon as we got her to our home, then we corrected her and directed her on a pad and I must say she is quite good. She had only 3 poo accidents. She had more pee accidents and I feel is getting worse. Today she peed on the sofa, I removed her whilst she was doing it so it went on the floor and she finished on her mat. She uses her crate as toilet, she doesn't use it for anything else. We got her a play pen so she can continue using the crate lined with potty pads as her toilet. But then in the afternoon I didn't allow her come on the sofa so few minutes later she peed on the floor whilst I was looking at her. And now in the evening she was sniffing around near the table and peed on the floor again. I don't know what is happening. I feel so stressed out as I never had a dog, my husband did so he is much better with her. I know she is very young but she seems to be doing the pee and poo worse than before with too many accidents. Is this normal? We give her so much attention, she gets millions of hugs per day. She is allowed in the whole flat. She sleeps by our bed in her bed. She gets treats and every training. She can sit, lie down, stand up, roll over, lift her paw on command etc. so I know she is smart and she understands very well. She is extremely hyperactive though, but then she sleeps. Her sleeping is not very deep, she wakes up on every movement and noise made, she follows us everywhere, she doesn't like being on her own. In the morning we put her in the playpen with open door to her crate(toilet). We introduced the play pen a week ago because we couldn't have her all around the place, she'd destroy everything, she pulls, chews, digs and all that stuff. Do you think we have done it all wrong with her? Or is it normal the potty training gets harder and harder as weeks go by? She'll be able to go out in 3 days. Because of her vaccination she was not allowed. Sorry for my very long post. I am just curious if you had similar problems or any guidance how to toilet train her properly. Thank you


We've always found that when things get better in potty training it can happen fast - a light clicks on. But if a young pup gets busy and no one is watching, mistakes can happen. It does sound as though you're back on track.

If you even need to convince her that a particular place is her 'potty place' you can always place a soiled pad underneath a clean one. The scent will clue her in.

When we wanted to encourage our dog to defecate in the yard, we placed a few of his stools there and he complied.

Good luck!


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## Lovemytoypoodle (Jan 15, 2020)

Thanks. She didn't make any mistakes today luckily. I am always watching her. Maybe I am too obsessive about her peeing and pooing, but it is all so new to me. We took her to the vet today, she has a virus, she said something like a flu that humans have but puppy version. She got some drops. Maybe she couldn't hold her pee. She was coughing...
I am reading the recommended books and correcting things I have been doing wrong.


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## jojogal001 (Feb 19, 2019)

PeggyTheParti said:


> You can purchase dog potties that look and feel like grass. I wonder if that would be a better option when you don't have a convenient outdoor toilet spot?
> 
> Example:
> 
> ...


I use that “grass”. I have 3 of them. Zeke and Oscar use those for pee, and Stella uses regular pads. Everyone poos on the pads. (I’m disabled and can’t walk them around outside).

Because of the grass pads I use, now when I’m taking a dog to the groomer or the vet, they will go potty in the grass. Zeke used to always hold it until we got back in the house and run to the wee pads. I do believe that if I moved into a house with a fenced yard, I would fairly easily be able to train them to go outdoors. He had no clue about grass before I added those.


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## PeggyTheParti (Sep 5, 2019)

jojogal001 said:


> I use that “grass”. I have 3 of them. Zeke and Oscar use those for pee, and Stella uses regular pads. Everyone poos on the pads. (I’m disabled and can’t walk them around outside).
> 
> Because of the grass pads I use, now when I’m taking a dog to the groomer or the vet, they will go potty in the grass. Zeke used to always hold it until we got back in the house and run to the wee pads. I do believe that if I moved into a house with a fenced yard, I would fairly easily be able to train them to go outdoors. He had no clue about grass before I added those.


And I suspect they'd be much less likely to confuse the grassy-feeling surface with something you _don't_ want them toileting on. Pee pads feel awfully similar to towels and blankets. Even couches. Eek!


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## CSC (Dec 17, 2019)

Lovemytoypoodle said:


> Hello
> I have a 12 weeks old toy poodle girl. She is smart and she is being potty pad trained since we got her home when she was 8 weeks old. She obviously did a pee and a poo as soon as we got her to our home, then we corrected her and directed her on a pad and I must say she is quite good. She had only 3 poo accidents. She had more pee accidents and I feel is getting worse. Today she peed on the sofa, I removed her whilst she was doing it so it went on the floor and she finished on her mat. She uses her crate as toilet, she doesn't use it for anything else. We got her a play pen so she can continue using the crate lined with potty pads as her toilet. But then in the afternoon I didn't allow her come on the sofa so few minutes later she peed on the floor whilst I was looking at her. And now in the evening she was sniffing around near the table and peed on the floor again. I don't know what is happening. I feel so stressed out as I never had a dog, my husband did so he is much better with her. I know she is very young but she seems to be doing the pee and poo worse than before with too many accidents. Is this normal? We give her so much attention, she gets millions of hugs per day. She is allowed in the whole flat. She sleeps by our bed in her bed. She gets treats and every training. She can sit, lie down, stand up, roll over, lift her paw on command etc. so I know she is smart and she understands very well. She is extremely hyperactive though, but then she sleeps. Her sleeping is not very deep, she wakes up on every movement and noise made, she follows us everywhere, she doesn't like being on her own. In the morning we put her in the playpen with open door to her crate(toilet). We introduced the play pen a week ago because we couldn't have her all around the place, she'd destroy everything, she pulls, chews, digs and all that stuff. Do you think we have done it all wrong with her? Or is it normal the potty training gets harder and harder as weeks go by? She'll be able to go out in 3 days. Because of her vaccination she was not allowed. Sorry for my very long post. I am just curious if you had similar problems or any guidance how to toilet train her properly. Thank you


I believe your puppy has excess energy that she releases in inventive activity because she is smart. An 8 wk old puppy has very little control of her bladder. We know from experience that the more challenged and exercised a poodle puppy, the easier rhey are to potty train..


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## Mayalita07 (Jan 21, 2020)

Lovemytoypoodle said:


> Hello
> I have a 12 weeks old toy poodle girl. She is smart and she is being potty pad trained since we got her home when she was 8 weeks old. She obviously did a pee and a poo as soon as we got her to our home, then we corrected her and directed her on a pad and I must say she is quite good. She had only 3 poo accidents. She had more pee accidents and I feel is getting worse. Today she peed on the sofa, I removed her whilst she was doing it so it went on the floor and she finished on her mat. She uses her crate as toilet, she doesn't use it for anything else. We got her a play pen so she can continue using the crate lined with potty pads as her toilet. But then in the afternoon I didn't allow her come on the sofa so few minutes later she peed on the floor whilst I was looking at her. And now in the evening she was sniffing around near the table and peed on the floor again. I don't know what is happening. I feel so stressed out as I never had a dog, my husband did so he is much better with her. I know she is very young but she seems to be doing the pee and poo worse than before with too many accidents. Is this normal? We give her so much attention, she gets millions of hugs per day. She is allowed in the whole flat. She sleeps by our bed in her bed. She gets treats and every training. She can sit, lie down, stand up, roll over, lift her paw on command etc. so I know she is smart and she understands very well. She is extremely hyperactive though, but then she sleeps. Her sleeping is not very deep, she wakes up on every movement and noise made, she follows us everywhere, she doesn't like being on her own. In the morning we put her in the playpen with open door to her crate(toilet). We introduced the play pen a week ago because we couldn't have her all around the place, she'd destroy everything, she pulls, chews, digs and all that stuff. Do you think we have done it all wrong with her? Or is it normal the potty training gets harder and harder as weeks go by? She'll be able to go out in 3 days. Because of her vaccination she was not allowed. Sorry for my very long post. I am just curious if you had similar problems or any guidance how to toilet train her properly. Thank you


Listen to the excellent podcast playtime paws. You need to start from scratch. Crate has to be tiny, so he won’t pee where he sleeps. Crate, crate!!


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## Rose n Poos (Sep 22, 2017)

Hi, 

Dechi wrote of how often a puppy this age may need to void and she also wrote of how long housetraining may take. I didn't see mention of why it can take months, but I haven't reread every post thoroughly, so I apologize if I'm stating something already gone over. 

They usually catch on to what is wanted of them a month or more before their systems have physically matured to be able to hold their eliminations. 6-9 months will be typical for a toy. 

Also, I haven't seen it asked how much she's fed daily and when, and how much water is she drinking a day? The amounts and the times will affect her eliminations, naturally.


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## fjm (Jun 4, 2010)

If she has had an infection that would more than explain why she seems to have regressed a bit - she is still a baby and it takes very little to disrupt toilet training at that age. I actually think that for toy dogs there are many benefits in training them to use an indoor toilet, especially if you live in a flat without a garden. I would invest in a large, shallow plant tray, and gradually accustomise her to using a pad in that. If you have a balcony it could go out there, otherwise choose one that will fit into your bathroom when she no longer needs a pen. Encourage her to toilet outside once it is safe to take her, but at 3am on a cold and stormy night trying to hold a bursting puppy through getting enough clothes on, finding keys, traipsing down several flights of stairs, and managing locks and bolts will quickly convince most people of the benefits of pads! You can get grass like or other washable ones that may be more environmentally friendly than disposables.

As others have said I would not encourage toileting in the crate - you want her to think of her crate as a safe and comfy place to sleep and settle down. I would remove it from her pen altogether for a while, and create a poo and pee spot instead. Reintroduce the crate in a few weeks or months when she has more reliable control, and look at Crate Games online for ways of making it a happy place. 

And most of all don't stress too much about it. Put any precious rugs and cushions away for now, get some cheap washable throws to cover furniture, and accept that both you and your puppy have much to learn, but can have lots of fun in the process. Watch her carefully when she is out of the pen so that you can spot the first signs that she needs to pee, carry her to the right place, praise and treat her when she does it there. If you are too late be cross with yourself, not her, and resolve to do better next time. At three months she has very little control over her bladder, so routine and vigilance are the only ways of avoiding puddles in unanted places.


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## Garnet2020 (Jan 22, 2020)

lily cd re said:


> You need to start over from scratch on housebreaking since she clearly doesn't understand what you are trying to teach her. Two of our three dogs were housebroken without pads at all. We were diligent about scheduled trips outside (after naps, after meals, after play seesions). We made sure we learned their signals and took them when they told us they needed to go. Javelin never voided his bowels inside and only urinated inside once or twice maybe four times tops when we were in places that weren't familiar to him and he had not yet generalized that outside means always outside.
> 
> If your pup has been willing to void in her crate the crate is probably too big and probably hasn't been well enough cleaned. They should always progress not revert.
> 
> ...



LOL .. Training puppies really teaches new owners patients. If not you will fail. I find young pups void out of fear & submission. They are still not in full control of their functions yet. Ever notice when introduced to a strange person or another dog a pup will lay on their backs & urinate. Yes, start over. Patients .. Don't scream or raise your voice !! you are only confusing your pup more. Take a new puppy pad and scent it with a little of her mistakes. Every time you take her out of her crate .. Take her (carry) to the pad. SMILE, keep your voice low and soft ! When she does go on pad .. laviously praise .. with soft words (NO kissing needed). IMHO a young pup should not sleep with you or be on furniture unless they are in your arms or lap. Right now I am potty training 2 Standard pups ! But, outside to a scented area which is much easier. Unless one lives in a high rise & elevators.. all Poodles should be taught to go outside ! Again ..MHO Good luck .. her wonderful puppy days go too fast.

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## Lovemytoypoodle (Jan 15, 2020)

Thank you all. She won’t sleep in her crate, we tried that. She was awake all night crying for days. She sleeps in her play pen, small one and she likes it now. No more pee and poo mistakes. She eats regularly, 7am, 1pm and 7pm. We click her for all her pees, poos, we treat her when she does and for all her training. She is very smart. It could have been something to do with her being ill. Vet prescribed her some drops small dose. We stopped letting her on the sofa for now. We watch her all the time, as I can spot easily when she needs to potty. She can hold pee for 4-5 hours, poo even longer. She is very amazing little puppy and I have to be more relaxed. She probably will make a mistake when she is excited but I think as all you said it is not her fault.


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## Garnet2020 (Jan 22, 2020)

Lovemytoypoodle said:


> Thank you all. She won’t sleep in her crate, we tried that. She was awake all night crying for days. She sleeps in her play pen, small one and she likes it now. No more pee and poo mistakes. She eats regularly, 7am, 1pm and 7pm. We click her for all her pees, poos, we treat her when she does and for all her training. She is very smart. It could have been something to do with her being ill. Vet prescribed her some drops small dose. We stopped letting her on the sofa for now. We watch her all the time, as I can spot easily when she needs to potty. She can hold pee for 4-5 hours, poo even longer. She is very amazing little puppy and I have to be more relaxed. She probably will make a mistake when she is excited but I think as all you said it is not her fault.


Aww. . Glad she is making progress! A crate should be a safe haven. If she cries .. put a blanket over the whole crate. Put up with her cries. You know she is safe. If you let her out of it every time she whimpers... she is in control ! The crate is to be her cave .. safe place and where she should want to be ! I would disinfect that crate , make it small enough to be comfortable with a nice pad or blanket + a toy and stick her in it at night ! Put a blanket or cover on it .. And ignore! If you don't you will have created a spoiled brat! MHO


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## Dechi (Aug 22, 2015)

Lovemytoypoodle said:


> Thank you all. She won’t sleep in her crate, we tried that. She was awake all night crying for days.


That is to be expected. Not all dogs do, but a lot of them with scream bloody murder in the crate. My Beckie took three weeks before she stopped her high pitched, nerve wrecking barking. 

A crate is truly a wonderful tool for an owner to have and dogs who have been crate trained are lucky. You never know when you are going to need to use it (for example, if your dog has surgery and must be confined in a very tight space). If you want her to use a crate, she will but you need to persevere.


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## PeggyTheParti (Sep 5, 2019)

What Dechi said.

Look up crate games. Start slow. Keep it positive. I assume you'll be spaying her? If so, she'll be in a crate at the vet's office. Even if you don't use it regularly, getting her accustomed to the crate is a gift. 

She sounds like such a lovely little girl. I'm happy to hear you're feeling more relaxed and can focus on enjoying your time together.


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## Latte12 (Jan 3, 2016)

Oh my, your story is so sad. It seems to me that you are doing many things wrong with your baby. Please study up on how to raise a poodle puppy. The poddy problems will go away in a few weeks, but you have several other problems which might get worse down the road, especially if you continue your behavior towards the dog.


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## Lovemytoypoodle (Jan 15, 2020)

Latte12 said:


> Oh my, your story is so sad. It seems to me that you are doing many things wrong with your baby. Please study up on how to raise a poodle puppy. The poddy problems will go away in a few weeks, but you have several other problems which might get worse down the road, especially if you continue your behavior towards the dog.


Why sad? I haven’t killed or hurt anyone. What behaviour? I asked for advise not telling me how sad my story is and that I do everything wrong and my behavior towards the dog. Our puppy is so happy, full of life, excited and now that she can start going out even more so. Even the vet said she has never met a happier puppy. So no, my story is not sad. Maybe think about not hurting people, especially if they are new on this message board.


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## PeggyTheParti (Sep 5, 2019)

I agree. That was not very constructive. Let's build each other up.

Perhaps offer specific examples that concern you and offer solutions as others have? 

New puppies are overwhelming and it's easy to underestimate how much specialized knowledge they require. I think joining this forum is an excellent step and no one should feel punished for it.


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## Dechi (Aug 22, 2015)

This story isn’t sad, it’s a happy story of a new dog owner trying to do their best.


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## Cooperpoo (Jan 20, 2020)

Lovemytoypoodle said:


> Hello
> I have a 12 weeks old toy poodle girl. She is smart and she is being potty pad trained since we got her home when she was 8 weeks old. She obviously did a pee and a poo as soon as we got her to our home, then we corrected her and directed her on a pad and I must say she is quite good. She had only 3 poo accidents. She had more pee accidents and I feel is getting worse. Today she peed on the sofa, I removed her whilst she was doing it so it went on the floor and she finished on her mat. She uses her crate as toilet, she doesn't use it for anything else. We got her a play pen so she can continue using the crate lined with potty pads as her toilet. But then in the afternoon I didn't allow her come on the sofa so few minutes later she peed on the floor whilst I was looking at her. And now in the evening she was sniffing around near the table and peed on the floor again. I don't know what is happening. I feel so stressed out as I never had a dog, my husband did so he is much better with her. I know she is very young but she seems to be doing the pee and poo worse than before with too many accidents. Is this normal? We give her so much attention, she gets millions of hugs per day. She is allowed in the whole flat. She sleeps by our bed in her bed. She gets treats and every training. She can sit, lie down, stand up, roll over, lift her paw on command etc. so I know she is smart and she understands very well. She is extremely hyperactive though, but then she sleeps. Her sleeping is not very deep, she wakes up on every movement and noise made, she follows us everywhere, she doesn't like being on her own. In the morning we put her in the playpen with open door to her crate(toilet). We introduced the play pen a week ago because we couldn't have her all around the place, she'd destroy everything, she pulls, chews, digs and all that stuff. Do you think we have done it all wrong with her? Or is it normal the potty training gets harder and harder as weeks go by? She'll be able to go out in 3 days. Because of her vaccination she was not allowed. Sorry for my very long post. I am just curious if you had similar problems or any guidance how to toilet train her properly. Thank you


Hi! Potty training can feel so frustrating! There is nothing wrong with pee pads or letting your pup run free! Just like kids there’s no right or wrong way. Every pup is different! I have potty trained several dogs and I would say the key is taking them out as frequent as possible and rewarding them when they relieve themselves in the right location! Catching them before they ever go in the house is key. I have a 9mth old spoo now and i used a litter box for him as I couldn’t take him out always. I agree with not removing the pee pad immediately. It will give let her know the pee pad is where she goes to the bathroom if she can smell it on there. Keep your head up I’m sure you’re doing a great job! They are EXTREMELY smart dogs and she will get the hang of it!


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