Has anyone had potty issues with their dog when they moved?

[LoveMyCali]

My sister is actually still in the process of moving from one house to another and her 5-year-old boxer Mookie,

<a href="" target="_blank"><img src="" border="0" alt="Uploaded from the Photobucket Android App"></a>

won't poop at the new house. He has a staked tie out in the yard but at the old house he had a fenced area. My sister has tried walking him but he still will try to wait until they go back to the old house to do his business. He's had one accident and my sister is afraid that when she told him he was bad that he thinks he can't go at the new house at all. Anybody understand the mindset of a boxer?

[jtuck004]

1. Sure. He doesn't feel safe yet. Tell her to give him water,

a little food, and when he does his thing praise him for it. By the way, it wasn't an "accident". The dog had to go to the bathroom and a human had not taken him to a place where it was ok for him to go. The human should watch closer.

(I'm not judging, understand, <G>, though that doesn't always come across well in email. I just don't like to use euphemisms if I can avoid them, and people need to take responsibility for being the smarter one )

She may be in and out, moving and work, but tell her to be as comforting and available as she can.

The stake out is a major issue in his mind. He is tethered, and that can cause a HUGE problem with behavior. There is a hunting technique that tethers animals as bait. I am not sure dogs feel any differently. Even though there are no lions around.

I took one of mine on a cross-country road trip once, stayed in a motel in Montana. She would not go to the bathroom as I walked her up and down the streets, so I put some blankets on the bed, we went to sleep. I woke up early to take her out. She was laying on her back, so I reached over and scratched her belly. She peed straight up in the air. (This is why I ALWAYS cover the bed with blankets <G&gt

Her dog WILL go to the bathroom, on his own schedule. And when he does he will feel relieved, and that's an important feeling to a dog. Tell her to keep it light, airy, happy, and be sure he knows what good boy he is when that moment occurs. Having a high-value treat around close, so she can give it to him the moment he finishes. Usually the best time to reward is when they decide to do a behavior - very hard to see. Second best is when they are doing it, third is after. But that's usually - in this case you don't want to interrupt him, so you wait till after.

I sure do hope there are plans to get him a fence. I know in rental houses that is problematic (maybe a really large are bounded by chain-link panels?) but tie-outs can leave them vulnerable to a lot of hurt, and they aren't meant for long-term care.

He sure is a handsome lad.

[LoveMyCali]

4. He is very handsome

a bit of a goofball but very loveable and handsome.

[Curmudgeoness]

2. I would suggest

that she gather some poop when the dog does go, whether it is at the old house, or in the new house, and put it in the spot where she would like the dog to go. Maybe the scent of familiar poop in the new place will make the dog more comfortable. And please be patient. Moves are hard for any animal, including humans, and there is a time before the new place feels like home.

[LoveMyCali]

3. That's a good idea

He already is starting to seem calmer when inside the house. The first day we were there unpacking he was very anxious. Now he isn't whining and he has claimed his couch. It really makes you wonder what goes on in those little heads. (OK, he's a boxer his head isn't really that little.)

[TorchTheWitch]

5. poop and pee

You only need very little for them to catch the scent of their own "stuff". I did that with Yoshi when he first came here so he knew where he was supposed to go. Just took a couple of paper towels to catch a little pee when he went while we were walking and put it right in the area of the yard where I wanted him to do his business. I didn't even have to do that with his doodie because once he found the paper towel with his pee smell on it he knew where to do both "no. 1 and no. 2".

Even though he was potty trained when I got him he still didn't understand at first that my house was just like his old house in that going to the bathroom in the house was not a good thing. In the first few hours he was here checking the place out I watched him carefully, and sure enough, he started to go into the little boy tinkle squat in the dining room. I swooped in immediately to stop him and right away took him outside to his place in the yard for going to the bathroom. He got that figured out the first time that my house was just like his old house in that there was no going to the bathroom in the house. Then we just had to figure out his signal to tell me he needed to go out to the bathroom. But he never had another accident because I paid attention to what he was trying to tell me, and made sure he went outside often especially after eating or drinking. Never had another problem since. He just needed to know a) where he was supposed to go to the bathroom, and b) how to tell me he needed to go to the bathroom.

Even still, for a little while he wanted to go to the bathroom when we were out walking and was more hesitant to go in the yard. I think that's because it had only been a month since my previous dog had died, and his scent was still all over the yard. I believe what helped him the most was putting his own potty scent where I wanted him to go in the yard that was the biggest factor in helping him figure out where he was supposed to go and feeling comfy about it. I guess over a little period of time his own scent in that spot continued to reinforce to him that it was now HIS yard and HIS potty area.

And of course, praising him when he did his business in the right place really helped. I made sure in the beginning that I discretely watched him every time so that when he did go in the yard I could praise him every time for going in the right place. I still do that when I see him go potty in his spot in the yard... nothing like positive reinforcement. I had to be careful about watching him VERY discretely though (even staying inside and peeking at him through the back door window) otherwise if he picked up that I was watching what he was doing in the yard it totally backfired and made him too nervous to go to the bathroom.