what should I do next time?

Being rather new to mothering a puppy right now, I cant imagine how I managed to raise 2 humans. They have growm up without the need for lifelong therapy, but I am convinced that I am going to ruin this poor puppy forever with every mistake I make.

Today, after she ate lunch, I tool her out several times, but she just would not go. I had to leave the house for 1 1/2 hours and was sick worrying that she would not "hold it" and she didnt. She messed her bed and her playpen. When I got home, I took her out, but she didnt go (evidently she had gone plenty during my absence.) I cleaned the playpen and washed the bed with enzyme cleaner. She was fine for a while. When I went to pick up the girls from school (15 mintes round trip), she went in the playpen again (the bed was still in the wash).

Are these just accidents or is she thinking that she can "go" in the playpen now because she did it 2x today? I really do watch her like a hawk, but what do you do if she just wont go and you have to leave the house for a bit?

Thanks again - you guys are SOOOO much help!

Don't know if this is any help...but are you using a crate at all? My two never messed their crates unless they were sick. If I left them for any period of time I'd put them in their crates.

Well, depending on how you're reacting to her messes, she may think it is bad to go potty at all. She may be having accidents when she just can't hold it any longer.

So what you need to do is catch her in the act of doing something good, and give her some praise and little treats immediately while outside, before bringing her in.

When she messes when you're away all you can do is calmly and quietly clean up after her, no scolding, etc.

When you catch her in the act of messing where she shouldn't, calmly pick her up and carry her outside where she should go. If she goes at all when out, praise her and give her a treat immediately.

i didnt scold at all. I just took her out first and then quickly cleaned up the mess while she played outside the playpen. She is treated for going pee outside and I made no deal of it at all when she had the accidents today.
I do have a crate, but only use it at night for her to sleep in. She uses the playpen all day for playing and napping.
I thought the crate would be too small for her to be in it during the day if ai have to go out of the house for a little while, so I have been letting her stay in the playpen.

How old is she?

I would put her in the crate as Cathy suggests for short times like 1-2 hours. Or put wee wee pads or newspaper in the playpen away from her bed. She may not be able to hold it longer, depending on her age.

At some point she will be on a schedule, and it will be easier to get her out in time.

she is 12 1/2 weeks. she came litterbox trained, but when I left her alone for about 45 monutes the other day (with a small litter box in the corner of her playpen and her bed at the other end,) she went in the bed and in the litterbox. i thought it was because she was confusing the litter box with the soft bed and couldnt tell the difference, so used them both. I took out the litterbox and she has done well, but I have been home almost constantly or have tekn her with me.
I know she is still so young, but I dont want her to think it is OK to "go" in the playpen

She needs to be more confined it sounds. With Wesley, his crate his 24 L x 18 W x 21 H". I have it at about 2/3's it's size right now. Otherwise they think they can wee in one spot and sleep in another.

Anyway, he sleeps in it all night with no problem. He takes naps in it. And he can be in it just fine with me gone for about 2 hours. I would never leave him in a play area while I was gone because I know he would surely pee.

If I'm just going to pick my son up from school, I will either put him in his crate, or I will take him in my truck with me in his kennel. Either way, I know he's safe from peeing where he shouldn't.

You need to make sure to take her out immediately when she wakes up, before and right after meals, and about every 30 minutes or so, depending on how much you keep your eyes on her. You'll feel like a hawk, but it is so worth it. Wesley is 9 weeks now and seems to be adjusting to everything really well. If I've made overly sure that he's done all of his "business" outside, then he gets to play in his xpen for about 30-45 minutes. He's only had a few accidents when we've lost track of time.

But I would definitely suggest a smaller confined area while you are gone.

Oh, here's what Wesley looks like in his crate...

Maybe the litter box training has confused the issue a bit, like do I go in here or outside or what ??? :?
Maybe try and go back to basics and remove anything you can that may resemble the litter box, Start from day one puppy stuff and try and establish a new routine.
Good luck with it all, you will get there.

I agree: it sounds like the pup has too much space unsupervised. Crate-training makes house training much easier, and if the pup is sleeping in a crate fine all night, then a few hours while you step out wont be a problem.

It isnt a permanent confinement everytime you step out; it's just part of house training. Think of it like this:

Dog naturally does not like to mess in it's crate space. When a little pup, you make the crate small, as in the picture above. As the pup gets used to this space and grows, the divider is removed and the crate gets bigger. As the pup improves while supervised and doesnt have any troubles in the crate, the "crate" is expanded with the use of a playpen (xpen). When the pup proves that it considers this larger space the same no-go space as the crate, that space is expanded to perhaps a single room. When the pup shows that it has expanded its no-go space to the room, another room is added to its unsupervised confinement area. Eventually, the entire house is part of the dog's "crate". This process can take up to a year.

If a dog has several accidents (like what you describe) it is a sign that the dog was given too much space before it was ready for the transition. So you go back to the smaller space.

So, with these accidents happening frequently, I'd reduce the amount of space available while the dog is unsupervised. Since a crate is available and working at night, that's probably the step back the pup needs.

What a way to explain it Cindy. I need to remember those steps myself when it's time to slowly expand Wesley's areas.