Future problem? Due to elderly mom.

[MarilynBanister]

Hi again,

I live in the mountains with my elderly mother and have a half acre of fenced in land.  When I leave for work I have to shut the doggie door and leave Bella with my mom in the house. My mom is scared to let the pup out when I am gone due to coyotes, bears, etc. for now Bella is to small to be out there alone.  My mom is not healthy enough to run outside in case of emergency.

Bella is trained to go on the potty pads very well in the house.  When I am home and the doggie door is open she will go outside and sometimes go to the bathroom.  But more often she will go outside, come in and go right to the potty pads. 

How can I train her that if the doggie door is open, outside is the main place to go?  I will be taking her to other peoples houses overnight sometimes and I would not like to take potty pads with me.

P.S.  The info you gave me on her recall skills off the leash is working GREAT!!!!   TY

[Adrienne]

Hi Marilyn,

I am glad that she is improving her recall skills, kudos to you for working so diligently on it!

If she goes outside and then comes back in and goes to potty straight on the potty pads, that suggests to me that she has a strong substrate preference to using the potty pads. Puppies around the age of 7 1/2 to 8 1/2 weeks tend to develop a preference for a surface on which to potty and this preference sort of tends to "stick" with them so that they'll prefer that surface to potty compared to other places. This can be because the breeder used pee pads when in her care or you may have inculcated a preference for them by praising and rewarding her for using them and of course it can be a combo of both. This is, of course, a good thing, as it helps pups throughout the potty training process as they learn to not soil around the house. 

It also can be though that when she's outside, she doesn't think much about going potty because of the many distractions (smells, sights, sounds) and she remembers she has to potty only once she's back inside. It can also be she doesn't feel too safe to potty outdoors especially if there are scary sounds or maybe smells of other animals around. 

However, on the plus side, it's actually great that she goes on the pee pads once back inside, because many pups will pee/poop right on the floor once back inside and many owners struggle with this! So this tells me that you have done a great job in getting her to use pee pads. 

Now, if you want her to potty outside, when given the opportunity, you can try the following and see how it works:

-You can try to take a pee pad with some urine on it (so it she can smell and recognize it as her bathroom area) and place it nearby the door and see if she'll use that while out. You can praise her and reward for using it. This may or may not work depending on how safe or unsafe she feels outdoors and whether she can generalize using the pads indoors to outdoors. 

-You can schedule her outdoor trips to when she's more likely to go potty (when she hasn't gone for some time and you're pretty sure she has to go) to to up her chances for success. First thing in the morning is a good time to start training her to use a different substrate. 

-Another option is to train her to go potty on command so that you can remind her to potty regardless of substrate. This takes time to master, but it can turn advantageous in many ways:

https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/potty-on-command/

Consider though that sometimes, things can get confusing when dogs are trained both indoors and outdoors and it may happen that the dog may stop wanting to use the indoor pads in preference for the outdoors. 

 

[MarilynBanister]

Interesting you mention feeling safe to potty outdoors.  My older 12yr old lab is very protective and makes sure deer, and other critters stay on their side of the fence lol.  It is though Bella and Harley have a code.  I notice when Harley barks, Bella will run back towards the house...depending on the bark she will run up to the hill (next to house) and stop and watch him...other barks she runs all the way in the house. Many times if he is out there barking she won't even go outside.  If she is out alone she stays close to the house, I watch her through the windows.  Also...the snow is pretty high here on the mountain and I would not want to squat or stick my butt in it to go bathroom.

I am pretty sure she knows when I say potty what it is because when she would go on potty pads, I said potty over and over.  At night before bed I tell her to go potty and she goes over there and does her thing.

I will start going out with her again and praising her more when she goes outside.  I just didn't want to do the wrong thing right off the bat to where I will have a harder time later on.  Thanks again for your GREAT advice.  I have been telling my friends and family about your training on Facebook!!

 

[Adrienne]

Dogs living together do tend to develop such relationships. There is generally one who sounds the alarm and takes the more alert role, while the other one acts more as a back-up as needed. This may change though with time as your pup develops and gains more confidence.

It does sound like she feels more secure in the home, and many dogs find going potty on snow somewhat aversive or intimidating. On top of the cold sensation, when it snows, it's as if the world has transformed overnight from a dog's perspective. Its surface and its smell, has been altered which some dogs may find unsettling. They may also no longer readily smell where they have pottied the day prior if there is a large accumulation of snow overnight.

It's great that she goes potty when you tell her to go on the pads, this suggests that she has made the association between your cue and going potty so that you can use cue that to your advantage as needed. With several reps followed by praise and reward, you should see an increase in going potty  when asked to, eventually regardless of the surface.