How do you house train a 2 year old dog? Have tried many different things. Any suggestions?

Question

My dog was almost a year old when we got him and he previously lived on a farm. The owner was a one time only breeder who just let the puppies run around the barn and do whatever they wanted.He can go to the bathroom outside when he wants to but he gets mad when I have to go to work. He will go inside even after he has just been outside for a while. I will greatly appreciate any suggestions. I have already tried things that others have told me to do, but none of the have worked.
p.s. The dog is a German Shepherd. Thank you

Answer 1

anytime he poo.ps inside, scoop it up and put it outside

Answer 2

Hi, I understand that you are looking for some advice or resources to help fully train your dog or fix behavior problems. If a professional dog trainer is not an option at this time, or if you want to trt training your dog on your own (a great way to bond), I'd suggest you https://bitly.im/aL2Vy

A friend recommened it to me a few years ago, and I was amazed how quickly it worked, which is why I recommend it to others. The dog training academy also has as an excellent home training course.

Answer 3

Crate training is always highly recommended for time he's inside and unsupervised or outside in secure yard. Restart potty training...whenever he is indoors and not in crate put body harness and a 5-6 foot leash on him. Tie end of leash to your belt, watch dog for signals/circling/sniffing that he has to go. Immediately walk him outside to appriopriate potty area. Use command word, give lots of praise, and treat immediately when completed. Make sure you have them handy, suggested you keep them in your pocket. Keep doing this until he is consistently dragging you to get outside to go. Once that happens you can untie the leash from your belt but leave it dragging behind him so you can grab it up quick if you see him start to motion. Once he's doing well for a week or so that way, than you can stop leashing him.

Since he's soiled inside before make sure all prior areas are throughly cleaned with a cleaner designed to break down enzymes not just an ordinary household cleaner. I use Orange TKO (bought online) or you can use Nature's Miracle for dogs.

Answer 4

I am an ex military k-9 handler and trainer so I think I might be able to help you. Hopefully. Dogs remember where they have went to the bathroom. Get vinegar and clean that area thoroughly. When you let you dog out to do his/her business, reward him with a treat. Say Good Boy, rub his head, and put the treat in your palm and feed it to him. It's called positive reinforcement. When your dog does go in the house, do not beat or yell unless you catch him in the act, otherwise they have no idea what you are so mad about. Go outside with him when you let him out so u can be right there to give him that positive reinforcement. When you leave, give him something of yours that will remind him of you. A dirty sock will sometimes do. I know, it sounds gross. German Shepherds are very smart dogs. You wouldn't believe what they can do. Contact me if you want.

Answer 5

German Shepherds are smart dogs and it seems it would be easy to train him. I watch the dog whisperer a lot and he really gives great advice. If you haven't watched that show before it could help you out. Here are a few ways to house train a dog.

First, never leave food or water out all day. Your dog needs to be on a schedule. When you do feed your dog be sure to mix his feed with hot water. Dogs were once wild till man domesticated them. Wild dogs eat, of course, wild prey. Since animals and humans are mostly made up of water, a dog would prefer to have his feed mixed with hot water. The hot water helps his digestion too, and it helps to flush his system. Once you feed him, take him outside as soon as he gets finished. Never let him play during this time. Put a leash on him and let him walk to where ever he wants to go to use the bathroom. Where ever that place is, take him there again the next day. (not the exact spot but somewhere close to it) The repeated routine of feeding, then outside to the same spot will eventually be a trigger for him to use the bathroom then. You may still have a few accidents before he gets trained but don't get discouraged.

When you leave your house, if you're keeping him inside while you're gone, put him in one of those small dog kennels. Get one that's only big enough for him to stretch a bit. No dog wants to use the bathroom where they sleep. And don't worry, he will be fine. After a few weeks of that he will be used to not going inside and will be ready to go when you get home. take him outside as soon as you do get home because he will be ready to go.

SUMMARY
(1) Don't leave food and water out all day.
(2) Mix his feed with hot water.
(3) As soon as he is done eating, take him outside.
(4) Always take him to the same place on a leash. This is not playtime.
(5) Buy that small keenel to keep him in while you're gone.
(6) Always praise your dog when he does something good. Like using the bathroom outside.

One last thing, if you had a small dog they would of course have a small bladder and would not be able to hold it for more than 3 to 4 hours. But since your dog is a German Shepherd he should have no problems holding it.

Good Luck.

Answer 6

I disagree with one thing police trainer guy said. They do know what you're mad about. I trained a stray red bone coon hound in less than a week, two days I think. Other dogs I've had problems with. The 24 hour thing is a good idea. Nothing beats catching them in the act, but with the problem dogs I've had, there is no way thety would do it in front of me. Of course, you have one of the smartest breeds and it could be a matter of will.

Answer 7

the first thing is to get a routine going then confine your dog when not supervising it the same techniques use to train a puppy should be use for an older dog but the time from start to finish will be longer for older dogs, just as loder people take longer to learn new things, so do dogs. this is a function of habit development. all animals are creatures of habit, thankfully habits can be changed.

for methods of changing the habits Read Don't Shoot the Dog by Karen Pryor

Answer 8

Two ideas.

1) when you clean up the mess he made inside, use paper towels or paper bags and deposit the soiled paper towel or poop in a place outside that you want the dog to go potty. Clean the spots in the house w/ white vinegar or a product sold at pet stores for pet soil/stains. When you go outside to go potty, go to that spot, let them sniff around and tell the dog to "go potty" or whatever command you want to use. When the dog goes potty outside, give lots of treats and praise. Do this everytime. When you go for walks, do the same thing.

2) OR, get a children's wading pool, keep it in the house, fill w/ dirth and sawdust. Train dog to use this. Use above method for training.

The above method has worked on all the dogs I have owned. You must be consistant, of course.

Answer 9

The only way to rectify this situation is to take a full 24 hours with the dog.
Be with it all of the time through the 24 hour period and as soon as the incident occurs deal in anyway you want but deal with it immediatley. This way it will learn from it's owner it means business.
The dog will respect you for it and the dog will want to please you for ever.

This worked for someone I knew..


good luck

Answer 10

what have you tried? i would reccomend crate training no matter the age of the dog or size. you can get a crate in many different sizes. there should only be enough room for the dog to stand up turn around and lay back down.

great site for crate training..........

http://www.purina.com/dogs/behavior/CrateTraining.aspx

Answer 11

We took in a 2 yr old stray 1.5 years ago and bought a crate like the one in the link below. When we were at work, he stayed in the crate. He liked it. It became his "safe" place and he still goes and gets in his crate sometimes when he wants to get away from everyone. When you come home from work, immediately take him to the yard from the crate. It won't take long for him to learn that the home is for comfort, not for peeing.