Peeing in crate and growling question...

[animalvr32]

I have a 10 week old rescued yellow lab pup. We have had her for almost 2 weeks. She has not gotten me up in the past 2 nights and her blanket has been wet. HMMMM.... Maybe I just didnt hear her. Is this normal for her to do and will she grow out of it? She did ring her bell 2 times today to go outside. We have had about 4 accidents all OUR fault. Not seeing the signs.
Also tonight we walked and a lady and her son that I know approached us. The son likes to be in the dogs face and kinda ran up to us. She backed up and growled. When she realized who it was she was fine. IS this normal also?
Thanks so much.

 

[juliefurry]

My lab will do that as well. She will growl at people until she realizes who they are and then will usually be ok (depending on who the person is). The puppy may have just been scared by the kid running up to you guys but I would definetely get her into a puppy preschool and obedience class just for the socialization aspect alone! If it makes you feel any better my bernese mountain dog puppy is almost 4 months old and we still wake up to the occasional pee in the bottom of the crate. Try taking your puppy's blanket away usually dogs will want to go potty in something absorbent so that is why she will go in her blanket.

 

[Doberluv]

Yes, it's all normal. She's very young. You'll just have to take her out more often and watch her closely to prevent accidents. Try to keep people from rushing up to her like that and especially putting their faces in her face. That's threatening to a pup and can make them defensive which is what most likely was the case when she growled....not her fault. That's communication and you don't want her to lose that ability to tell people that something is worrying her. So don't punish her if she growls. Make sure to protect her from scary things. Let her approach people on her terms and get her out to see lots of friendly, non threatening people, kids, other pups, all kinds of places but prevent her from being frightened. Praise and treats to associate everything with good things, but don't fuss over her when she is frightened or anything or you'll reinforce that feeling.

Good luck.

 

[animalvr32]

Thanks so much. I was also wondering at what age can I expect her to get the potty training thing? I use a bell and yesterday she did touch it twice on her own. Just a question. Thanks

 

[Doberluv]

The average is about 6 months. But they all vary and it depends on how many times she goes in the house. The more accidents she has, the more that behavior is reinforced. So, you have to prevent accidents by super careful supervision, never taking your eyes off her, using her crate if you can't watch her, even if it's just for a couple of minutes. Literally, she needs to be watched constantly. It's difficult, but the more times she's reinforced (treats, praise, a big fuss) when she goes outside, the quicker she'll learn. Right now, she is very young and can barely feel it in advance and sometimes they get so busy playing, they don't feel it at all till it's coming out.

I don't believe in punishing a puppy for having an accident. It can cause all kinds of problems from a dog hiding it behind furniture to a dog being afraid to go in front of you to a dog who thinks it's a no no to pee at all and will hold it when they can until they can hold it no longer so they go behind furniture. Scolding a dog for going inside tells the dog that this one spot is bad, but there are many other possibilites inside which she might be able to go which are safe. Dogs see things as safe or dangerous, not morally good or bad. The more times she's reinforced for going outside, the more she'll want to try to go outside, she'll want to repeat that because that is where all the good stuff happens. One place to choose: outside. Not having to guess at which place inside (out of many) might work. If you catch her in the act, interrupt her, "Hey!"...maybe clap your hands and scoot her outside. But don't make her fearful or startled too much...just enough to try and stop her mid stream and get her out.

Some dogs take more or less time than the average. My Dobe didn't get it reliable till he was about 10 months old, other dogs have taken just a few weeks. So, be consistant, watchful and you can even keep a log of when she goes in relation to eating, drinking, playtime, nap time so you can get an idea when she's likely to have to go. But take her out often, at least every hour for now....even every half hour. Give her ample opportunities to be reinforced for going outside.

Good luck.