how hard is it to house train one year old dogs?should i even try?

Question

jan of this year my jack russel terrior gave birth to three adorable puppies. they lived in my bathroom for 3 whole months. they pooed everywhere but the mommy cleaned her pups mess up nicely. when they got bigger we moved them outside into a little kennel. around may we built a bigger kennel. they have each other to play with. but the elements are hard. they have their fur to protect them but still we bring them inside when it rains, when the mosquitos were bad in mid july and when it was too darn hot to be outside. "inside" means, we put them in their pet carriers and place the carriers inside my kitchen. they never roam my house freely. but now fall and winter are approaching..and it's been raining and the temp is dropping. how can i housetrain all four dogs IF i chose to. or can these dogs do well outside? i hear of farm dogs, sled dogs, ranch dogs that have no choice to live outside and they do well. are my dogs just the same?

i have to add that the life my dogs live is pretty good. (i even put a wicker couch in their kennel). my kids (who are homeschooled and have breaks) are able to go outside every two hours to play outside with them. we feed them and give them lots of water twice , sometimes 3x a day. and when we went on vacation i hired our lawn boy to take care of them. they are family. so please dont think they are outside rotting with flies and fleas. they are NOT!!

there's always an idiot in the answering forum...oy vey.."lived" as in that's where the mommy nursed them and where they'd nap. but my bathroom door was always open. these were tiny little pups. jackrussel and chiquaqua mix..lol they were itty bitty hiding under my bed. i didnt think i had to explain their first three months of life in detail ..sheesh! but if i have to clarify fine. the poo, well my vet explained it as yes the momma will eat their poo. when she stopped "picking" it up, we did. and then after a week or two of that we finally built the first kennel.

Answer 1

If you have a nice big kennel that is insulated from the cold with lots of warm blankets and straw and have been outside all the time anyway, I cant see why they cant be outside.
You could always put coats on them as well

If you do want to house train them, it is possible but may take a bit longer and be a bit more hassle than if they were younger, because you will have to keep an eye on four of them.

Mind you, as you home school and take breaks every two hours it may be okay
Make them a specific place for their bed.
After eating take them all outside and give a command like ..(dog's name). "wee wees" or "poo time" .. (whatever you like, as they dont understand the words just sounds) and when they do as you ask, praise them highly.

Also when they wake up and before you put them to bed at night.

As I said it may take a while, but they are cluey dogs and will pick it up fine. Dont tell them off if they have accidents, they wont understand that. You will also have to watch them and as soon as they look like they want to pee or poop. take it/them outside and praise when they do as they are supposed to.

Good luck with whatever you decide to do.

Answer 2

In my experience (housetraining over 2 dozen foster dogs) adult rescue dogs are much easier to housebreak than puppies. Puppies can't really control their bladders and often can't hold it through the night, but adult dogs can. Get a crate and teach the dog to sleep in the crate at night. Have the crate in the room with you so the dog doesn't feel alone. Anytime you can't watch the dog, put him in a crate, or another small space like a laundry room/bathroom/kitchen. When you are home, watch the dog constantly. Use baby gates to keep him in an area you can watch him. Set up a routine and take him out first thing in the morning and as often as possible throughout the day. If he goes outside, praise him and give him special treats he only gets for peeing outside.

Answer 3

If it is going to get really cold where you live, like 40 or below, the small jack russel breed needs to be inside. They may seem tough but thier bodies are too small for extreme cold weather. I hate to tell you but you have waited way too long to start house breaking them, especially since there are four of them. But they can still be trained. I suggest sectioning off an area of the house using one of those kiddie barriers. The area that you section off should have access to the outdoor potty area with a pet door. Keeping sociable creatures like dogs locked in thier kennel all day is bad for them. You will have to dedicate like 2 to 3 hours of time everyday to housetraining. And by that i mean getting in thier "den" and working with them. Get yourself a dog training book. To be quite honest with you, you dont sound like you are really prepared to own 5 small dogs just from judging the way you have been keeping them so far. If you truly love those dogs then you will do what is in thier best interest-even if that means selling some of them.

Answer 4

Yeah, you can train them just fine. get them on a schedule, and keep it. like you say your kids go out and play with them every two hours? well let your kids have them outside. you can train a dog at any stage of life. i had a pup that was abandoned and wass only six weeks old, and i had him housetrained by the time that he was ten weeks. on the other hand my family and i adopted a dog that was thought to be two years old, and we house trained him too! so, yeah, you can definately do it, you just have to have the time and the patience. and about them being outside, larger dogs have thicker hair and are usually more capable for being outside in some extreme temps, but small dogs with less hair aren't really equipped with what they need to stay warm. that is why people usually keep small dogs in the house or in sweaters.

Answer 5

this may sound harsh, but it has worked with 2 dogs of ours (one from 6 weeks old, the other about 6 months old). Each time they pee or poop...take them to it, stick their nose very close to it, tell them "no" firmly, bring them to the door, take their paw and scratch the door with it and put them outside. Another way, other people told me they did it, just take them out every hour and when you do, scratch their paw on the door before you go out, if they pee or poop while you are out there, tell them they are a "good boy/girl"....I don't think it matters about the age, just how consistent and patient you can be (with 4...yikes!)

Answer 6

Yes it does sound like a wonderful life... living in a bathroom for 3 months. When you say mommy cleaned up the mess do you mean how they do in the wild? As in the mother eating the waste of her pups to avoid attracting attention of predators?


Some good information on this site http://www.terrier.com/rescue/rescuemenu.php3

Answer 7

When you take your dog for a walk, as soon as he does his business, take him home. It may take a while for the dog to understand, but, be patient.

It is not the dog that often needs training, its often the owner/master. When it comes to trying to house-break a dog, patience is fortitude.

Answer 8

it takes a couple weeks to house train your dog.

Answer 9

it is never to late to train dogs

Answer 10

Now to me it is easier to housebreak older dogs b/c they can HOLD it LONGER.
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