Help! Overwhelmed Mommy Struggling w. Potty Training!!!

Hi there, everyone! I fell off the face of the earth the past few months, but I'm back and full of questions!

My beautiful, wonderful Blenheim Lucy is growing and thriving- she's the light of my days, the first face to great me in the morning, and the last I see at night. I love her very much- and I feel incredibly guilty that I've let things get this bad.

Lucy is 5 months old, now, and- right after I got her- I started struggling with a health problem.. I did everything I could, but, with all of the things going on, I am ashamed to say that Lucy is not potty trained..

I am horribly embarrassed that I haven't done that, because when she 'goes', of course I get upset, but I know it's not her fault, and she's confused as to what she SHOULD do..

To break down this tough situation, let me try to sum things up:

1.) We live in a house where dogs and cats have both... Done their business in naughty places in the past.

2.) Pads are an issue, as she turns in circles while doing number 2.

3.) It's gotten so that she doesn't 'go' when we're on walks- though I give her plenty of chances! She waits until we get home! Even if we're playing in the part for awhile..


Please- I know I've really let her down, and dropped the ball... But I need your help!

Anyone have suggestions?? Please, tell me what I can do!

You need to start from scratch with focused housetraining. Get rid of the pads. I'd use a crate as a positive training and management tool as well.

I'd immediately download Dr Ian Dunbar's free copy of one of his best-selling books, After You Get Your Puppy, and use his guidance. It's the last of the three free downloads here:

http://www.dogstardaily.com/free-downloads

You are right to want to focus on this urgently as the longer this is left the harder it will be to retrain her.

PS Get an enzyme cleaner like Nature's Miracle and clean EVERYWHERE she has gone. Add some to the wash for small items she may have peed on. You will need to throw out rugs/bedding etc if you cannot clean them or she will just keep returning -- same with cats BTW who will keep returning to a favourite spot. Also they will have litterbox problems when there are not enough boxes (one per cat in the house, plus one extra is the rule), if they are not kept clean, if they dislike the type of litter etc. Cats generally will not have accidents at all if they have a setup that suits them but they are meticulously clean animals and like clean boxes, litter, and enough boxes (I have 4 cats myself).

Don't kick yourself, life happens! Just start over as Karlin said. And I'll second the cat litter box thing. They are extremely picky about the litter box. My cats have me trained to scoop a couple times a day -- there is rarely anything in the litter box with all my scooping. And I change litter and completely clean the box at least once a week. It sounds like a lot of work, but it sure beats a cat deciding not to use it!

I agree to get rid of the pads and stick with one place (outside) for your dog to potty. Crate training is great and Ian Dunbar is the master!!! I wish someone would write a manual for human kids like the ones Ian Dunbar writes for dogs.