having difficulty housebreaking my pit!?

Question

She's an awsome dog and I love her to death, but I've had her for a month now, and she's not doing very well with the whole house breaking thing. I take her out every hour, and I try my BEST to keep a close eye on her (hard with 3 kids running around, lol) but she has one spot in my hallway (on the carpet) that she always goes on! Anyone have any idea's how to stop her from doing this?

Answer 1

Use a product like Urine-off to remove all urine odor. Make sure you get all of it, down to the subfloor, and in a larger area than just her "spot".
Try keeping her on a leash tied to you all the time for a while. (I know, you have lots of little kids, but it will be worth it in the end) She can't get away from you to get to the hall, and you can correct her right away when you catch her going. If you catch her shout, "No, bad dog" and take her outside then praise her as if she went outside even if nothing else comes out of her.
When you take her out say "go potty" until she goes then praise her and go into the house. No playing, you want her to know the difference between play time and potty time. Eventually you will have her going on command, which is much easier than trying to guess when she needs to go.
I hope this helps.

Answer 2

Most dogs give off signs. They will sniff a spot and circle. You can watch for tell-tale behavior like that, and immediatly scoop up your dog and take her outside to "do the deed". Each time you go outside, take her to the same spot and use a code word like, "Go potty!" when you want her to us the bathroom. Gently pet her and praise her in a normal tone when she goes outide.

I hope this helps you. I was so unsure when I got my dog...I read all the books and watched all the DVDs and bought all the best products. I can't imagine when I have kids!

When she does use the bathroom where you don't want her to, don't rub her nose in it or anything else like that. Rubbing her nose in poop can cause infections, especially if she has tapeworms or something like that. Just wipe up the spot and make sure (this is very important!) that you use a pet spot cleaner. You can buy the best stuff on the market at PetSmart or SuperPetz. A less effective brand (but it still works) is available at Wal-Mart. If you only wiped up the spot, your dog will go back to that spot and smell her "target", and decide that's where she's supposed to go next time. The cleaner removes all the doggy scent from your floors and furniture, so the puppy can't smell it, and therefore, it isn't a choice potty spot.

If you must leave your dog alone during the day, you may want to crate train or paper train your dog, at least for a little while. They're both extremely effective until your dog is housetrained.

Also, you could put your dog on a schedule to housetrain her. When I first got my Rotti-Shepard pup, I would take him out every 20 minutes. Most of the time, he wouldn't do anything, but it wasn't the point. It got him used to the idea that outside was where that happened.

You also may need to get up during the night and take her out. My dog is 6 months old and now goes outside every two hours during the day and every four hours at night. He is housetrained, though, so I can tell you that this works.

A puppy will need to relieve herself after playing, eating, sleeping or napping, or any other activity that takes her mind away from the task at hand. I would take my puppy out right after eating, drinking water, playing, sleeping, or just lying around. As soon as he would move, we would go outside.

Limiting your dog's water intake is also a possibility. It may just be that she is drinking too much water and her body can't use it all. Dogs should be provided fresh water with every meal, after playtime and sleeping, except at night. That wouldn't be a good idea. Your dog will not die of thirst or anything like that, if done correctly.

Answer 3

What did you clean teh spot with? Is it carpet or laminte? If your dog can still smell the urine in this spot your dog will continue to pee in this spot. The smell of her urine tells her that this spot is ok to "go" in. To clean the spot: 1 part dish soap, (Palmolive, Dawn etc.) mixed with 3 parts water. Using a sponge clean the area with the mixture. Take a clean, dry tea-towel and dab at the spot to soak up as much moisture as possible, Then sprinkle 1/2 cup of baking soda onto the spot, place a dry piece of paper towel over the spot, Let it dry over night. The next day vacume up the baking soda. The baking soda will absorb any odours in the carpet in that spot. It it is laminte floor you better check and make sure that no urine got under the trim.

Answer 4

I have two pits, one is 10 months and the other is almost three years old. I crate trained my puppy/dogs. Keep her in a crate/cage that is big enough for her to turn around in and can lay down comfortably. After she eats, give her about 30 minutes and take her outside, about once an hour, in between times for peeing. When I was training my puppy, I would let her run the house once she pooped outside. (The cage is for training purposes and to keep her safe while we are away from home.)

Reward and praise her when she does her business outside. stand out there with her or keep an watchful eye , if she does nothing for a short period of time, bring her back in and put her back in the crate/cage. Give her another 10 minutes or so, take her back out and when she goes, do the praise/reward thing.

Let her run around the house in a comfined area where she can be watched, taking her out frequently to pee. This is a repeated process until she gets it and she will.

Pits are wonder animals and they are very good with children. Don't let your kids tease or mistreat the dog (any dog breed) in any kind of way. That dog will protect them and you too. My pitbulls are lovable and they love my grandchildren. My grandchildren are taught to not abuse dogs and to be gentle and loving towards them. The breed has a bad rep and that is so unfortunate because they are great dogs.

You will have to firm with her while she is in training. Don't rub her nose in the pee or poop, hit her or be extremely harsh. You will have to raise your voice and let the dog that you mean business in a loving way. Always let the puppy know who is in charge and it certainly is not the dog.

You will have the get rid of the pee smell in the hall way. Soon she will go and sit by the door to let you know that she need to go outside. Always let her out because that will let her know that when she is by the door, she will be let out.
If you ignore her and don't let her out while she is at the door, then you will be going in a backwards direction and she will be peeing and pooping in the house.
Once trained, there will be slip ups, let her know you don't like that and she will get it together.
You might try sitting an object (milk crate, box, etc) on her spot on the floor to show her she cannot go there anymore, while you are training to go outside after eating.
Good luck!

Answer 5

She will keep marking her territory on the spot in the hallway. Best to keep her outside. Also Pitbulls should not be kept as pets especially with 3 children. Its like playing Russian Roulette. Pitbulls are banned in most countries

Answer 6

Ok, let's start from the beginning. A puppy is like a child in that when the pup eats, sleeps, plays, after each one of these activities, immediately you should be taking your pup outside to the area where he is to go potty. You cannot wait one second or it may be too late after these activites. Also, you must take your pup out inbetween these activites. As for where he's going potty in the house, go ahead and scrub it up; block your puppy from being able to get to this area. If you are unable to do that, put a collar and leash on the pup while he's awake and in the house with you. This way you will be able to supervise him and keep him away from this area. Having a full house to watch, here is something else you can do. I highly recommend this to everyone, that is crate/kennel train your pups. No, this is not a punishment time. I have 3 big dogs, 2 of them I have kennel trained and they and I love it. Dogs think of the kennel as "Their" den, no one else's. When they are in the kennel, they should be left alone, in otherwords don't bother them while they are here. This is their safe place. Kenneling should Never be used as a form of punishment. To begin training, you want to purchase a kennel that is just big enough for the pup to sit/stand/turn around in. Yes, this is plenty of room. You see a pup/dog will not go potty in their sleeping area. Yes, it's true. This is why is it so important to be sure to get a kennel just big enough for your pup to do only these activities, and not be able to get up and walk around in it. You have a Pit, he's going to grow. When you are ready to upgrade to a bigger kennel, look for the one's with a divider. These are great when your pup begins to grow, because it not only keeps him in an area for resting/sleeping, but it will also help on your budget from having to purchase another one too soon. One more thing, be sure you are getting your pup out on walks. Depending on how big/old he is, start him off with maybe 15-20 minutes a day, then gradually work up to 30 minutes everyday. No, letting your pup outside to play does not take the place of this walk. That is only in addition to it. Walking your dog gives you a chance to bond with him more and more eachtime. And, don't forget puppy class, and socialization. I cannot stress these two activities enough.

Answer 7

For the person above, I don't believe that the question had any relation to the breed of dog and your ignorant opinions would be better kept to yourself. Pitbulls can be lovely dogs when given the proper upbringing, as any other dog would.
I have found crate training to be very effective as most dogs will not soil their personal space. Take her outside as soon as you let her out in the mornings, after she eats, after she plays, and right after any subsequent crate sessions.

Answer 8

get her a kennal that she just can turn around in. the very 3 or 2 hours take her outside if she does do here stuff give her a treat and say she is a good girl and let her know that. then after a while take away the treat.

Answer 9

I had the same problem and so did some other people who had pits. I wondering if they just take a little longer to house break

Answer 10

Two things. Either she doesn't like something in that area or shut her in a small room and she'll learn to hold it since they don't like messing in their living space. I had a rotweiler that did that.