We have a 14 week old puppy that we've had for 3 weeks now. She is doing fairly well with house training. She will go to the door when she needs to go - OFTEN! The problem is when we leave that has completely stumped. We are using Ian Dunbars book as our guide for crate training. Today we were out of the house for 3 hours (10am - 1pm) so we set up the "long term confinement" arrangement which is her crate with the door OPEN and in an x-pen with a pad. We took her out right before we left at 10am. When we got home at 1pm she had peed IN HER CRATE. This is the part that completely baffles me. Why would she go in her crate and stay in there when she has an opportunity to step outside her crate an go where she is not sleeping? This goes against everything we have read. We have a crate pad in there - one of those fleece ones. This is the third time this has happened so we are totally stumped. Anyone have some suggestions? We do have a vet appt tomorrow.
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Rookie housetraining - help! Peeing in crate!
- Thread starter amgejg
- Start date
Daisy's Mom
Well-known member
It's frustrating, isn't it?
I suspect she peed in her crate because it was the only place where she could pee on something absorbant? They don't like to pee on hard surfaces, probably because it could spread and get on their foot. I also think that their inhibition about peeing in their bed/den does not really work unless they are confined in that space itself. In fact, if you have a really large wire crate, they recommend putting a divider in to reduce the space so that the dog will be reluctant to pee where they have to lay. We did this with Daisy's crate when she was a tiny puppy and we were working on housetraining. Otherwise, they think they've done the mannerly thing by peeing in the vacant end of the crate.
Those are just some ideas, but also remember that 14 weeks is VERY young and even though they fool us by being perfect for a couple of weeks, relapses are the norm at this age.
I suspect she peed in her crate because it was the only place where she could pee on something absorbant? They don't like to pee on hard surfaces, probably because it could spread and get on their foot. I also think that their inhibition about peeing in their bed/den does not really work unless they are confined in that space itself. In fact, if you have a really large wire crate, they recommend putting a divider in to reduce the space so that the dog will be reluctant to pee where they have to lay. We did this with Daisy's crate when she was a tiny puppy and we were working on housetraining. Otherwise, they think they've done the mannerly thing by peeing in the vacant end of the crate.
Those are just some ideas, but also remember that 14 weeks is VERY young and even though they fool us by being perfect for a couple of weeks, relapses are the norm at this age.
gocamping
Well-known member
I have to agree with the above post. When I ran into this issue with our lab, the vet suggested taking the blanket out until she was completely trained.
Also, make sure the space is small too. Otherwise, you will have the issue of them going on one side and staying on the other side. They should be able to stand up, turn around and sit back down.
The rule of thumb is one hour for every month of age, but every puppy is different.
Be patient and consistent. She will get it.
Also, make sure the space is small too. Otherwise, you will have the issue of them going on one side and staying on the other side. They should be able to stand up, turn around and sit back down.
The rule of thumb is one hour for every month of age, but every puppy is different.
Be patient and consistent. She will get it.