why wont my dog stop using the bathroom in my room?

Question

I bought my gf a dog for x mas we bought it from a shelter and have had it since x mas. all we have done was love it and do what we needed to do when it went to the bathroom in my house. I take it out every 3 hrs or so. or when we go to bed i take her out before we go to bed and also take away her food an hr or 2 before hand. i mean she has no reason for doing this. She has also a week ago or 2 weeks ago ripped up my gf's shoes. i am looking for some help.

thank you any idea's are wolcome besides something that would hurt the dog

thanks, sean

she is 1 1/2 or 2 yrs old female pitbull

Answer 1

sorry this is long but the answer is complicated
i tried to give thumbs up to those who suggested a crate, as long as you don't leave the dog in it all the time they do really work especially for shelter dogs it becomes their own personal space like a den { i suggest putting a blanket you have used over it so it'll smell a little like you ;) } and they really help with the potty training at least to begin with

*if possible don't leave her in it for more than four hrs at a time other than overnight

set her up with a schedule feeding her and walking her a specific times - jas my dog is crated overnight she goes out to potty as soon as i get up then after an hr or two gets a short 10 or 15 min walk, i take her about every 3-4 hrs through out the day and then she gets a longer 30 mins+/- walk later in the afternoon or evening she gets fed between 6 and 7 and sometimes gets another short walk before we retire for the evening she only has water down other than at feeding time and if the food is not gone after 30 mins it gets picked up ( dogs will naturally eat more than they need if you let them) and then put back in the crate after i take her out one last time just before i go to bed, while you're still working on it i would pick up the water about an hr after you feed her if you feed her in the evening

my dog was a rescue also, and for the first month +/- i basically kept her on a 6ft leash that a wore on my wrist or in her crate at all times so she didn't have a chance to potty inside and it helped her bond more closely with me then once i felt she had better control and like i could trust her i allowed her in a couple rooms like the kitchen and one other room (baby gates are your friend) gradually expanding to another room every week or so

as far as the chewing go to the pet store and get chew toys i suggest a kong (which can be filled with treats) and maybe a orca don't get anything that could ressemble a shoe in anyway ;) and try to make sure shoes aren't left out for her to chew on not only does it suck to lose that favorite pair of shoes it also can make her sick if she gets pieces off

remember it takes lots of time

good luck it does get better patience is required when transforming a shelter dog into mans/womans best friend ;)

Answer 2

Okay, I just got my dog from the shelter as well. WHen you get a dog from the shelter you don't know if it's been housetrained or not. Always assume it wasn't. (Mine wasn't and she is 3 years old) So, when she goes in the house, Tell her "NO, bad dog" or whatever you want to say, in a stern voice. ONLY IF YOU CATCH HER IN THE ACT OF GOING, punishing her after the fact, she wont know what you're talking about. Dogs need to be told where to go. Everytime she goes to the bathrom outside, give her a treat (While you are still outside) and tell her good dog, pet her, whatever. Pretty soon she'll get the idea. (It's been a month with my dog and she's only just now peeing outside, pooping is taking a bit longer) Go to the store and get special cleaner (i forget what its called) for pet stains. its an enzyme cleaner and she could very well be going there because she still smells it. As for the shoes, give her some chew toys. Pitbulls like to chew, as well as play, so make sure you give her all the excerise a pitbull needs, to tire her out and that will help with her not chewing on things shes not suppposed to because she'll be napping instead of causing trouble!

Answer 3

Where was this dog before you got her? I would pretend I just got apuppy and start from the begining. First off, she is still a kid even if she is one so I would limit bed time to a max of 4 hours then get up and take her out to potty until she can go 5 hours then 6 then through the night. Also, if she potty's in the house, show it to her and say No! Puppy has to potty outside! Then take her outside and stay out there till she goes potty. RIGHT after she goes throw a nice big happy fit and give her a treat "oh what a good dog, you Potty OUTSIDE!! Hooray!!" Also, make sure you are using one word for her to potty and always the same word - so she doesnt get confused.
Basically, dont reward the bad behavior and reward the crap out of the good behavior. If you're consistent then she will be too. For more info check out this resource

Answer 4

one thing when you get a puppy or a young dog you should get the dog for trainning not to chew on things . there are things you can do for youre dog is getting her some dogs toys that she can play and chew on . the second thing you shouldnt have the dog have any water before bed time cause will make the dog go peeing every where . for dog foods its find with giving it to the dog if youre dog feel hungery sometimes . and you also must have youre dog learn some traiining like potty train . if you cant figure out how to do that you can go to the pet shop and buy a bag of puppy diaper that you can use one on the floor or on the carepet whenver she need to go bath room . and there is place where you can take youre dog for house trainning its at the petsmart where they teach the owners how to train their pets . so try those for youre dog . will help both of you and wouldnt worrying so much about living in a smelling place .

Answer 5

What breed of dog is it? Some specific breeds have a really hard time potty training. It could be because she came from the shelter. I'm guessing that you don't know her history. Some shelter dogs have been abused. Sometimes abused dogs have a really hard time potty training. Has there ever been another dog in your house? She could be smelling another dog's "markings" and establishing her territory. My dogs did that when I moved into another house. Does she do it in specific places? It's tough work training dogs. If you can't seem to do it yourself take her to an obedieance school.

*edit*

My guess is that if she is a pitbull she was either an outdoor dog to begin with or was abused. Alot of people hurt pits for no good reason! :o(

Answer 6

Crate training completely eliminates any soiling in the house during the night. Use it as a management tool to prevent unwanted toiletting. Invest in a crate large enough for your dog to turn around and stand-up in, but small enough so that if he soils the crate he will be in his own mess (which dogs hate and will avoid).

Be sure to clean up any accidents with an enzyme-based pet urine cleaner. Bleaches and household cleaning products will not remove the smells that trigger dogs to urinate in places where they have urinated before. Ammonia based cleaners will actually make matters worse. Use an enzyme-based cleaner on it's own according to the instructions.

Your gf will have to put her shoes away. While pups do learn not to chew shoes and other 'illegal' things around the house, they don't learn if they have too many opportunities to make mistakes. Chewing shoes is 'reinforcing' for pups, so every chance they get makes the behaviour stronger. By picking things up off the floor, you weaken the unwanted behaviour.

On the flip-side, you need to be reinforcing chewing of 'legal' toys instead. This is how the difference is learned. This is all you need to do, in severe cases a bitter-apple spray on the shoes might help but that might teach pup to be wary of chewing anything. Pups chew for a good reason! It relieves stress, boredom, and provides exercise for the jaw, neck and front legs.

Answer 7

First of all I would take her to a vet to make sure her accidents are not a health problem.

Then if you catch her going inside, or show her, her accident and scold her.

When she goes outside, praise her like she has preformed a miracle and give her a treat

She should get the idea

Answer 8

whatever you do, don't scold her. all this does is teach her not to do it infront of you and to find a hidden spot. you should take her to the vet to make sure she doesn't have a health problem. and then if she doesn't you need to take her to training. the reason she does this is because she is trying to illicit a response from you and even yelling at her gives her some sort of attention. does she urinate anywhere specific?

Answer 9

Your dog is older, you need to crate train her. She will not mess in her crate. When you say take the dog out, do you let her out the door or walk her. My guys really need to walk to do their business.

Put her in the crate, and leave her in there for a few hours, as soon as you let her out, take her outside and walk her, do not let her pee or poop in the house.

After she comes back in let her play. Then crate her again.

At night, crate her for the night, then take her out fist thing in the morning.

Whenever she pees and poops out doors, praise her, give her a treat, let her know that this is a good thing.

SHe is older now, it could be tough, she may not hav been trained in the first place.