potty/crate training

[Princess_Dachshund]

i have a 7 week old minature dachshund. she does very well using the bathroom outside, but she still goes inside. we have had her for about a week and 2 days in we started crate training her, but if i dont get up every 2 hours throughout the night, she will go inside the crate.

as far as the crate. she hates it. she screams incessantly when we put her in. i know this is normal, but ive even tried feeding her in the crate, but she refuses to be outsmarted and unless she is super hungry, she wont go in to eat. treats dont really work either.

how soon should it be before i can expect realistic potty and crate training results? any advice is much appreciated.

 

[Herschel]

She's 7 weeks old--far too young to be away from her mother. If outside of her crate, she will need to go out every 30 minutes at least. If she is inside her crate, she can hold it no longer than 2 hours.

Unfortunately, this is the reality of having a "cute little puppy." You won't sleep a full night for close to another month.

For the potty training:
-Keep working with the crate. Try keeping a log and note when she goes #1, #2, and when she eats. That way, you will start to develop an idea of her schedule and you will see that she needs to go out every 20 to 30 minutes for the first 2 weeks. Then, she will be reliable for no more than 30-40 minutes. However, as soon as you leave the room, she is free to go to the bathroom as much as she wants, even if only left for 5 minutes.
-Dachshunds are notoriously hard to potty train, but it is definitely possible. Each accident that she has, either in your house or in the crate, is a set back to her house training.
-Clean up all accidents with Nature's Miracle, Petastic, or other enzymatic cleaner than will eliminate the scent to her.
-Every accident that she has is your fault. She should NEVER be punished for your failure to recognize that she needs to go out.

Crate training:
-It isn't normal for her to hate the crate at all. She should love it! It is normal for her to hate being away from you, though.
-Her crate should not be used as punishment. It should have a soft blanket, some stuffed toys, a nylabone, and a t-shirt or something that smells like you.
-Each time she goes in her crate, praise her like she's the best dog in the world and give her a high value treat. (Nothing too big, her stomach can't handle very much)
-Never take her out of the crate while she is crying. If you do, you're just reinforcing the screaming and she will continue to do it every time she is in the crate (just to get your attention).
-Don't give her the chance to outsmart you, she's an infant puppy! Don't give her the choice of eating or not. Put her food in the crate, close the door, and wait for her to eat and then fall asleep. (Almost all puppies fall asleep right after eating. As soon as she wakes up, take her out)
-Like I said before, no more than 2 hours alone in the crate or she will have an accident. (Set an alarm if her crying doesn't wake you up.)

It sounds like a lot of work...and it is. You signed up for this when you bought a puppy--it is your obligation to put your life on hold while she is growing, sacrifice sleep, and be as consistent as possible with her training.

 

[Dulce Pit Bull]

Everything that Herschel said.

Who gave you a puppy at 6 weeks??? I'm concerned about future health problems..

You can't expect sucha young puppy to ENJOY a crate, nor can you expect it to fully understand potty training.

Puppies need to be taken out every 30 minutes. Be prepared to do that during the middle of the night, for a long time.

 

[otch1]

Hi PrincessD... congratulations on your new puppy! As posted by Herschel, you did purchase your puppy approx. 2 weeks sooner than breeders should let them go and you will be doing more frequent potty breaks for awhile. If properly trained, your puppy at 12 weeks of age should be able to go from 11pm to 5am or so, sleeping soundly. Reccommend you get a good book, full of general information on puppys' behavior and habits at this age thru maturity. It will address bringing home the very young pup too. "Ain't Misbehavin" by Dr John C. Wright. Hang in there, it will get better very soon with consistent training, scheduling of food and water intake and exercise!

 

[Princess_Dachshund]

thanks for the positive reinforcement. im definitely dedicated to raising this puppy right.

im pretty shocked to know that she was released too early because we asked the breeder several times if it was too soon and she assured us the mother was growing weary of the pups and she was ready.

at any rate... i am where i am...

i didnt know i had to force her to eat... thanks. thats a big one. we have 2 cats and she has been trying frantically to find their food supply because apparently she likes that more than her own food. and yes i know its bad so i dont allow her to. she got a shot at it before i knew better.

is it too early to take her outside? and/or can it be too cold? winter is coming and the nights get cold quickly. we have a shirt we got for her, but is that enough?

what kind of health problems might we be looking at? we're pretty worried as you can imagine.

 

[Dulce Pit Bull]

Dogs like "fishy" tasting stuff. You can get Salmon Oil to put on her food. To convince my dog to eat, I drain the juice fom my cats canned food into her food and she goes nuts!

Be careful where you take her outside. Don't worry about the cold, as long as you don't leave her out there unattended. (Which I don't think you do)
Take her out to potty, and quickly bring her back in right after.

If she goes, LOTS of praise, maybe a treat. When you take her to potty, say,
"Potty!" When she starts going, say "Good potty!" over and over again.
Use tons of enthusiasm, get excited, and reward her.

Go to www.dogchannel.com and get some Puppy books, and training books.
There's a good one called "Puppies for Dummies" and it's very helpful. THere's several books out there about how to raise a puppy.
You can also go to www.barnesannoble.com

 

[otch1]

Many breeders will let puppies go sooner than 8 weeks, but it is ideal to keep them until they are 8 weeks. For Toys and small breeds, some breeders will keep them for 10 weeks or so. You don't have to worry about health problems if you purchased a healthy puppy. Keep you pup from other puppies/dogs until she's had her second and is approaching her 3rd in vaccine series. You shouldn't have to force feed her, but having purchased her at 6 weeks, you will want to use a very tiny kibble and soak it to soften it for awhile. A sweater or coat during night time winter potty breaks would be nice. Those Dachs babies are rather naked for awhile! And you're right, catfoods a "no-no". Good luck!

 

[Princess_Dachshund]

wow... thanks again and again for all the great info... we went out and bought some puppy milk and she went wild for it. we also got some semi-wet food and she loved that too. sleeping now, but seems happier. we will also continue to soften her food.

so with her being so young should we consider waiting a couple of weeks to begin crate training? the reason i ask is because last night we actually got those baby fences and let her sleep in the ktichen basically. we put down puppy training pads and she went on them just fine. she cried anyway as if she were in a crate so it obvious that she just misses us. is this a bad idea?

 

[Dulce Pit Bull]

Nope, keep doing what you're doing. The pen is the best way to go.

Good for you!

What food are you feeding?

 

[Herschel]

Wait! What is in the "puppy milk"? Why are you giving it to her? A lot of those products have sugar and other additives to make it more palatable.

What kind of canned food? If your dog doesn't learn to eat her food early on and you switch things just to make it more exciting for her, you're teaching her to hold out until you give her something new and exciting to eat. Be consistent! (Canned food can be very healthy, so I'm not opposed to that. I'm just scared that if you add too many things like puppy milk/canned food, you're going to either upset her stomach or get her accustomed to being picky)

One advantage you have with cats is that you can put their food out of reach for your puppy and your cats will still be able to get to it. (Put the cat food in a high location so it isn't an option for your dog)

It isn't too early to take her outside. The cold will help you with your potty training, as your puppy won't want to be outside to investigate and play around. She will get right to business and go to the bathroom quickly. (Watch her closely, though, you want to make sure you see if she goes)

 

[Princess_Dachshund]

well... god was on our side i guess... the milk is called esbilac and there are no 'ose'-'s on the back.... meaning there are no sugars in the ingredients. says its a food suppliment.

we picked two types of canned food. one can of science diet and the other is nature's recipe. the science diet is what we have given her so far. and with your advice, i think we are going to stick with that. is it ok to give her wet at one meal and dry at another?

we will be moving the cat's food to higher ground. thanks for that advice. initially we were opposed to putting their food on tables to keep them off of them, but we will make the sacrifice. she still hunts out their food!

i am happy to announce that last night she did incredibly well in the crate sleeping almost the entire night. i got up every 2 hours and had to wake her to take her out, but she went back to sleep immediately after. the last time i woke her at around 6am... she refused to go back to sleep but only because she was hungry so i guess her new morning feed will be then. should i feed her then take her out at 6am or take her out then feed her? just wondering.

thanks again so much for all the great advice. its helping tremendously!

 

[Herschel]

The Esbilac is for puppies that are much younger than yours. Why are you feeding it?

I absolutely don't recommend Science Diet! Feed at your own risk, but I think it is a terrible food. Nature's Recipe is a little bit better, but still mediocre.

Some foods that I highly recommend:

Canidae: All life stages--you won't need to switch foods as your puppy grows. I've had great results with it. Hormone-free, preservative-free, human grade. http://www.canidae.com

Innova: Same story as Canidae. The EVO line is grain free and great for small breed dogs, though it can cause upset stomach. http://www.naturapet.com

California Natural: Slightly cheaper than Innova, but just as high quality. A lot of dogs with sensitive stomachs do great on it. http://www.naturapet.com

Eagle Pack Holistic Select: Most people's dogs love this stuff, they put a lot of research into their foods, and their products are very high quality. http://www.eaglepack.com

Each website will have a store locator tool. For Canidae, search by area code for the best results (Zip code doesn't work at all). Canidae will be the cheapest of the foods I listed and Innova EVO will probably be the most expensive.

Congratulations on your success with crate training! If you stick with it, you should have a house-trained dog within a few months.

As for the 6 a.m. feeding:
-Take her out
-Feed her
-If she falls back asleep give her 20-30 minutes to digest.
-Take her out again

 

[Princess_Dachshund]

we fed her the milk because thats what the pet store recommended. ouch... making rookie mistakes all around. im assuming i shouldnt do that again....

we have the Eagle Pack Hostolic. that was what the breeder recommended to us so we bought it. Princess didnt take too well to it, (in other words... she just didnt eat it) but like you said, we can see what we can do about making her continue with it. does eagle pack make wet food? we will continue softening the eagle pack and trying to keep her on that in combination with the cat food oil mixture if you think thats a good idea.

 

[Princess_Dachshund]

another question.... if she sleeps soundly at night... do i need to wake her for potty breaks or should i let her sleep until she cries... then take her out?

 

[RedyreRottweilers]

Yes. Set your alarm and take her out every 3 hours whether she is awake or not, especially if it's 15 degrees outside.



Seriously, if the puppy is sleeping, thank your lucky stars, and NO don't wake her up to go out.

 

[otch1]

Lol! Liked that post Redyrerott, as I just spent all of last week hopping around in the snow at 4 am with a new puppy brought to me for a week. No Esbilac is required to suppliment your pups diet at this age. Try to simply soak kibble verses adding canned if you can help it. Be careful about leaving a puppy this age in a pen... only when you're home to supervise and ensure that slats or mesh is not wide enough to catch a leg/paw in. If your pups sleeping, congratulations, but make sure you can hear the baby the minute it wakes before it has time to stretch then squat, while still in crate. Waking it every 2 hrs is not reaonable. She's 8 wks old now and should be able to go for a longer period.