The honeymoon is over...

[XemaSab]

the puppy has been chewing on me for the last 48 hours straight, and I had to get up three times last night to let his ass out to go pee. He's gone after the philodendrons, chewed the furniture, and when we put him in his crate he SCREAMS like he's being murdered.

Right now he's in the other room eating the Sacramento Bee. But at least I know what he's doing because I can hear the ripping sounds.

Our old dog is really pissed because he keeps trying to bite her, and I can't blame her at all.

[kick-ass-bob]

1. DON'T GET UP AT NIGHT!

Oh, lord, we almost made that same mistake. Our vet said that dogs can hold it for that long and all you are doing is setting the stage to do that the rest of the dog's life!

Are you putting him in the crate at night to sleep? He won't pee in there when he can't get out of it.

We were so glad that the vet told us that.

As for the chewing... :shrug:

[XemaSab]

3. I put him in the crate the first night and HE SCREAMED

THE WHOLE NIGHT!!!!! :scared:

We're not talking whimpering, we're talking LOUD SCREAMING and I couldn't let him out because I didn't want him to think we'd let him out if he screamed loudly enough. :(

He's also a very little puppy, and he knows he's supposed to go outside, but he doesn't know how to ask to go outside. So we're trying to pre-emptively let him outside before he goes on the floor.

[Ariana Celeste]

2. how old is the puppy?

we didn't crate train ours because I don't work, so I was able to take her out whenever she needed it- just made sure not to give her any water before bed time, and after a few weeks she was able to hold it longer. We got her when she was 6 weeks old, and by the time she was maybe 12 weeks she started holding it all night.

anywho, probably not helpful to your situation, but, good luck!

[XemaSab]

5. That is helpful

He's 6 weeks old, and he has a teeny bladder.

But the no-water-before-bed is a good suggestion.

[Ariana Celeste]

7. here's a Petsmart article that may help

http://www.petsmart.com/global/articles/article_detail.jsp?CONTENT%3C%3Ecnt_id=10134198673267538&bmUID=1138134213747

And you're right... at that age they do have tiny little bladders and need to go out frequently, and being in a crate doesn't change that.

Now the article says not to withold water to control when the dog needs to go. However, we only withheld water for about an hour before bedtime, and I personally don't think that's a big deal.

Good luck, and I hope the article helps. :hi:

[XemaSab]

8. Thanks for the article

I think I'm on the right track.

Someone around here suggested feeding the dog on spots where they have accidents in the house (after clean-up, of course). That might be the next step.

[Oeditpus Rex]

4. Hey!

Sacbee's a good paper. Stick the R-S in there instead. :grr:

[XemaSab]

6. The Penlight?

I'll remember that for next time. :hi:

[Dangerously Amused]

9. Housebreaking dogs.

Ahhh, THIS thread! Gotcha now.


This has always worked for me when housetraining my dog or doing it for someone else:

Keep the puppy in the crate. Before you let him out, get him a little riled up and say "speak!" until he barks. Sometimes it will take me repeatedly saying "speak!" and then ME barking before they get the idea. :eyes: Anyway, as soon as he barks immediately let him out of the crate while heaping lots of praise ("good speak!") and take him directly outside to go potty. He should master "speak" pretty quickly.

Follow him around when he goes outside and give lots of praise and petting with whatever word you want to use re: the act, ie, "good potty!" immediately when he does it.

After he has "speak" down, you can stop using "speak" at the crate, but start using the potty word in conjunction with "speak" when you are standing with him at the door, right before you open it for him to go potty outside. So like, "Potty? Speak!" Wait until he speaks before you let him out.

Once he is speaking at the door to go potty outside you can start leaving him out of the crate. Then go to him maybe an hour before it is time to go potty outside again, but don't take him to the door. Instead put the words together for him wherever he is: "Potty? Speak!" Wait until he responds by speaking before you make a move toward the door. Then when he speaks, go to the door and let him out.

After that it won't take long at all for him to figure out that all he has to do when he wants to go potty outside is to find you and speak.

This sounds kind of involved, but it really works. The longest it ever took me to totally housebreak a dog this way was five days. My last dog took only three days.

Good luck!

[LeftyMom]

10. Wow. The Bee is good for something.

:shrug: Who knew?

[wildeyed]

11. Awww, he is still just a widdle baby.

He will get better as his bladder matures. But aren't puppies a pain in the ass? There is a reason my last two dogs were adopted when they were 2+ years old.

Have you tried putting one of those treat balls in the crate with the pup? I do it with my older guys when I first crate train them. They are so interested in getting the liver treats out of the toy that they forget they are in the crate. By the time they finish with the treats, they have forgotten that they hate being in the crate and settle down to sleep.

Another good rule of thumb, a tired puppy is a good puppy. Find something productive to do with all that crazy puppy energy, 'cause if you let the puppy decide what to do, you won't like it.

Good luck! Don't forget to post pictures.

[XemaSab]

12. I don't know about treat balls

but we sure need to find a way to get him to mellow out in the crate!

Oh BOY!

(I've never heard a mammal make that sound before. He sounds kinda like a cross between a shorebird and a pig, only louder.)

[EFerrari]

13. The whole crate thing creeps me out beyond belief but chewing:

Get some BitterApple gel (not spray, gel) and smear it on everything you don't want baby to chew up. He'll hate it, and will then only chew on stuff that has no BitterApple on it.

Be sure he has stuff to chew as he surfs his teef coming in.

[Elidor]

14. I feel the same way

The stray cat I rescued waited until bedtime to start bouncing off the walls. I got so mad I can't sleep. 2:30 in the ungodly AM and I have a twelve hour day ahead of me. I locked him in the bathroom, but he's still bouncing off the goddamn walls. If this shit doesn't end soon, he's going out in the cold for the rest of the night.

Little fucker is going to get his balls snipped REAL FUCKING SOON.