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housetraining indy---back to square one????

KimNIndy

Well-known member
hi everyone!

i'm really embarrassed posting this, but it's time to 'come clean' if our house is ever going to...

so indy is a year old now and over the past few months things seem to be going backwards with his housetraining. i'm so frustrated and am desperate for help!

indy was never perfect, but we were really happy with his progress apart from the odd surprise. however since october things have been getting worse---i attribute part of it to the fact that he marks a lot (won't be neutered for a couple more weeks) but we must be doing something wrong. i find little dried puddles a couple of times a day (thank god for hardwood floors) and a couple of weeks ago he actually started pooping a little.

we have an apartment and e let indy onto the balcony when it's dry (doesn't like to do his business there---that would be too easy) and he gets 3-4 walks a day. one before breakfast, one just after lunch and one before bed at a minimum, so it's not for lack of going out or a regular schedule.

as a last attempt, i took his old x-pen out and he stays in that now at ALL times that he is not supervised in the same room as us. i even put him in it now when i go to the toilet as he's proven himself to be that fast!!!! :yikes i'm hoping that this back-to-the-basics attempt will teach him not to go in the house.

also, i'm concerned that i'm not using the right stuff to clean it up---could that be the problem? house smells like potty to him? a lot of it is marking---DH and i have both had to throw away our work bags.

what do our irish/uk folk use? i can't find nature's miracle :-(

any suggestions or advice? please help! we are working on all of indy's training but this one really needs to be sorted out quickly for my own sanity!

thanks! k
 
Yup you are doing the right thing; back to confinement and walks, LOTS of rewards (I recommend small pieces of sausage or cooked hotdog for every single job and lots of praise so he really gets the idea). Whackers pet shop on Parnell street (across from ILAC centre) have the Fourpets cleaner in big yellow bottles over where the treats are -- that is good. Also (more cheaply) you can use a solution of biological washing powder in water -- MUST be biological -- say a dessertspoonful to a half gallon of water or so. Just as good. The Fourpets has a very strong scnet so some people prefer it as it really gets rid of any lingering smell. I buy the big bottle to keep handy for accidents -- one crops up now and then with either my cats or dogs -- these days, more with an senior finicky cat. :roll:

Petstop in Blanchardstown don't seem to carry any proper biological cleaner designed for use on rugs and so forth any more, most annoying. I have used Fourpets many times (more than I care to remember!) on my Persian rugs (these are tribal wool rugs with vegetable dyes, not silk, but we are still talking cherished items that ain't cheap! :lol:) and it works very well. I blot up all urine thoroughly with paper towels, really pressing hard to soak it all up, then soak in Fourpets, and lightly blot that so it isn;t soaked. Then I raise the rug from underneath -- a small box will do -- to let it dry thoroughly. Then hoover. Nature's Miracle I usually pick up when out in the US as it isn't so strongly scented and I hate chemical smells, they sometimes make me feel ill. But as I know Fourpets is safe on my good rugs and easy, I will use it anyway.

PS -- I highly recommend patterned wool Persian carpets to anyone. Beautiful handcraft and there are reasons people own them for decades and they can last over a hundred years. They are costly but they can handle wine stains, dog pee, baby vomit, cat hair -- always look great, clean easily, store easily. One of the best investments I have ever made. You have to look after them and get the stains out right away of course but my CHEAPER NORMAL wool mix carpet on my stirs, supposedly hard wearing, has numerous stains, and is fraying and gets pills easily after just a couple years. :x I should have put a persian runner up the stairs. Maybe I still will... the carpet needs replacing. :lol:
 
Kim, maybe he needs to go out a little more often. My cavs need to go out 5-6 times per day, especially Geordie, the male. :)
 
Oops yes, that is true too. That's probably not enough times out. Mine go out a minimum of 4 times a day as adults. When under a year Jaspar went out every 3-4 hours. Three times daily is not enough. He needs a walk right before bedtime as well.

I do:

before breakfast, midday, around 5-6pm, around 10-12pm.

Sometimes I get them out for mid afternoon wee as well, then maybe at 6-7 or so for a proper walk.
 
thanks karlin and cathy!

that's very helpful! so i'm going to add in an evening walk between his lunchtime/afternoon and bedtime one and see how we get on. i'm also going to encourage some little pees on newspaper on the balcony with treats as it would be great if he could just let us know when he needs to pop out.

i'm going to start with the bio-detergent mix (i'm also not a fan of strong chemical smells) and see how it goes....i have a feeling it will stop the sniffing around. i'm so paranoid about the house smelling and i keep finding puddles so it must be confusing for indy too! i'll be in america in march and will definately keep an eye out for some natures miracle. i'm assuming it will be at petsmart and the usual spots.

thanks karlin for the rug recommendation. i absolutely LOVE persian carpets and that just gives me all the more justification for the splurge!

hopefully things will be looking up in a couple of weeks---i'm already so proud of him for the difference the x-pen has made. i thought i would feel guilty for putting him in it, but he loves it and got so excited when we unfolded it.

k
 
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