miss jessica

okay yall, i have a bit of a problem. my mom just bought me the most ADORABLE puppy ever, but, neither of us really know how to train her at all. her main problem is using the bathroom in the floor, even though i take her outside, and yes, she goes out there too. another huge problem is i was letting her sleep in my bed with me the past few nights, until she started going in there too, and shes too little to get down and get back up. last night i made her a little bed in the floor and she whined alllll night long, and i really had NO idea what to do with her. i really dont want to get rid of her, i love her to death and shes the sweetest thing, but what do i do about the night situation and the bathroom thing? im so horrible at this its not even funny.
this would be dixie

MacNCheezPleez

crate training is the most effective way of housebreaking a puppy. you'll want to buy a crate for her. you can get them at your local pet store, sometimes walmart has them. get the wire kind, not the plastic. if you get the plastic kind she will not be able to see you and will whine when she is in there. IT IS EXTREMEMLY IMPORTANT TO BUY THE RIGHT SIZE CRATE. It should ONLY be big enough for her to stand up, turn around, and lay back down. This will be her domain. When you leave the house during the day, lock her in the crate. She will not want to use the bathroom in her "space". Wen you get home, immediately take her outside so she can do her business. If she uses the bathroom in the crate, use a firm but calm voice to tell her "NO. OUTSIDE." There is also a spray available, called "weewee" (yes lol I know) spray. Spray it ONLY where you WANT the dog TO PEE. It works in most cases. Make sure to rewrd her with a treat, a bellyrub, and a "good girl" when she pees outside.

As for her on the bed, I had the same problem with my shepherd. I really don't have a solution to that. when you housebreak her she should stop going on your bed though. And you can always buy the little steps to help her get onto your bed.

I hope I helped a little. There are always plenty of puppy training books and dvd available. Feel free to ask me if you have any more questions, since I'm the resident future vet student/pet store worker/owner of tyoo many animals. lol. Good luck darlin!

miss jessica

thank you right now i have her in a clothes basket with a blanket in there, and she still whines like crazy, but im hoping in a few days ill be able to break her of that. tonight its not as bad as it was last night though, so its getting a little better. but i will try to get her a crate and a book or two on it as well.

Jane

Kalin is right about the crate training. I'm trying to remember how it works with puppies... they pretty much have to go to the bathroom every couple of hours. I think it goes by how many months old they are is how long they can hold their bladder (in hours)... or maybe it's however old they are they can hold their bladder for half of the time. Point is... they go like crazy, and crate training is what teaches them to hold it. Because a puppy is unlikely to use the bathroom if it has to sit in or lay in it during the day.

Dogs, especially puppies, are very reactionary creatures. You have to be VERY good about rewarding her for doing well and reprimanding her if she does something wrong, and it's important to do it right away and then just go about your business. Whenever you see her go the bathroom somewhere she is not supposed to, all you need is a sharp noise or tone to your voice. You could say "No" firmly, you could also clap your hands, snap your fingers or just make a sharp "Ay!" sound with your voice. They react to any harsh, firm noises. Whenever your puppy does something well, be very excited, use a soft, sweet, happy voice. You can reward her with treats or petting (like Kalin suggested). But make sure you reward her every time she does well going to the bathroom outside, and that you reprimand her every time you catch her doing her business where she shouldn't.

Training a puppy is about watching them as often as you possibly can and just staying consistent with your rewarding/punishing reactions. Puppies will eventually learn the behavior. Dogs are smart and they pick up on those things. The best advice is to just stay consistent with it and to crate her whenever you have to leave and can't watch her.