New problem - dog won't pee outside because it's raining!

[Heavenly]

I have been trying for hours. It is cold, it is dark and it is very cold rain. The puppy will not pee out there. He just huddles in a ball and shakes. Up until this lovely rain he was doing fine but now he is going on the floor right near the door. What should I do? I really do not want to stand outside in the rain in the dark trying to convince him to pee. Would it totally set things back in the housetraining department if I put newspapers down near the door and just take him there to go for tonight? If not I think I will be outside freezing, soaking wet and yelling at the dog tonight! Thanks for any tips!

[ChristyMarie]

Two words: Golf Umbrella

[momto3bboys]

omgosh i had a dog like that, i would have to put a leash on her and take her and stand out there with her until she pee'd. One day she didnt pee from the early morning till late that night, i finally stood out there with her until she went and boy when she went she was there forever,lol. I would be afraid of going backwards in potty training, if the puppy is normally going outside and you start her going in while it is raining she might not get back to going outside. good luck

[Ola_]

We had the same problem and although an umbrella is an excellent suggestion it didn't work for us because the dog in question is also afraid of umbrellas. sigh!

The answer I have found is that you need to go outside with the dog. Yes, many don't like to be wet and cold out there, just like you don't. But in my experience if I go out there, dog on leash, and don't act miserable, it really seems to help. And no, yelling is not what you want to do. Instead act like you're having fun, throw a little puppy party in the rain. Walk in circles until he pees and then praise like heck! At least when you come inside you can change into dry clothes, your puppy doesn't have that advantage.

Another thing I've found is that the surface makes a difference for some dogs. So while walking on wet grass may be awful, walking on wet gravel may not be as bad, etc.

[Heavenly]

I was already going outside with him every time and using umbrella. He absolutely will not go out there and I am tired and need sleep so my friend picked up some potty pads for me and he went on there, right near the door. I am really not happy about having to use them but he just started outdoor training yesterday and I think he is still not sure of it. It is supposed to be rainy and very cold until Tuesday night so I will keep trying but if he won't go I will use the pads for now.

ETA: Forgot to mention I have severe fibromyalgia and it is not possible for me to stand outside in the cold rain for any length of time.

[BunnySlippers]

buy him a raincoat or crate him?

[Heavenly]

We are crate training him, but when it is time to go outside he is too scared of the rain and cold today. He just peed and pooped on the puppy pad right by the door and I am happy with that for now. Hopefully the weather will warm up again soon and we can get back on track.

[stardogs]

I'm kinda strict about this because I have very little patience for dogs that won't potty. All the dogs in my house, fosters included learn to potty quickly and outside only by doing the following:

1. Crate the puppy overnight/whenever unsupervised.
2. When the puppy needs to go out, take the puppy outside immediately, not even setting him down if there's the potential for an accident.
3. Give the puppy a set amount of time outside to do their business. I usually go for no more than 5 minutes, especially in the rain. I'm very boring - go to the potty area and pretend to be a revolving post with no talking or walking long distances.
4a. If the puppy potties they earn good things (playtime, breakfast/dinner, a walk, etc.) and have some freedom in the house.
4b. If the puppy does NOT potty in the allotted time, they are immediately returned to their crate, usually without setting foot on the floor just in case.
5. For young pups (<5 mo) I will repeat steps 2 and 3 in 10-15 minutes. For medium age pups (5mo to 8mo) I will repeat steps 2 and 3 in about 20-30 minutes. For older pups (>8mo) I will repeat steps 2 and 3 in about 45 minutes - 1 hour.

The keys here:
- Puppy NEVER has the opportunity to have an accident indoors.
- The amount of time given outside is very consistent
- Pottying is required for everything fun in the puppy's life during training

Yes, it's strict, and yes it can feel mean for the day or 2 it takes to get the pup on track, but it is sooooo worth it to have a dog that potties in 2-5 minutes and not having to spend hours in the cold rain whenever the weather is less than stellar.

[Heavenly]

That sounds like really good advice. The potty pads are not working because now he is peeing and pooing all over the floor (we have him contained in the living room and thank goodness it is hard flooring!). So just 5 minutes outside? He just sits on my feet and doesn't go. What about at night? If I take him outside and he refuses to go then I have to put him back in the crate and keep trying every 15 minutes? That would get tiring quickly! More input on your method is appreciated!

[Heavenly]

Oh, do you take the puppy to the potty area on a leash? I have a collar for him but I was told not to put him in the crate with the collar on so I'd have to be taking it off, putting it on over and over again. Can I just leave the collar on him?

[stardogs]

The first few days you are working with the pup can be tiring, so I suggest starting first thing in the morning so he's hopefully gotten the idea before bedtime.

I do pup my pups on a regular 6' leash and regular collar and I do leave the collar on in the crate if I'm home and within earshot, just not when I'm not there for safety's sake. I actually have safety collars on my dogs now so I can always have ID on them but not worry about them getting caught on something (we've used the KeepSafe and some custom cat style collars from Etsy).

The first few times the pup may not do anything, especially if it's gross out, but you just have to be patient (and boring lol - puppies are super easy to distract from the task at hand), keep to the schedule, and make sure they don't have a chance to potty inside.

Eventually they will have to potty and then you throw a big party and let them have some fun - the contrast between your response to no potty (boring human, no freedom, crate time, needing to potty) and pottying (happy voice, treats, playtime/walk, pets, relief from pottying) will really help them "get it".

eta: make sure you keep the crate time short with your guy since he's very young - so 5 minutes outside, if no potty *no more* than 15 minutes crated, 5 minutes outside, if still no potty *no more* than 15 minutes crated, back outside for 5 minutes, etc. until they go.

HTH!

[Ola_]

If it's a flat collar you can leave it on, just make sure it's not too loose. Don't leave on any tightening type of collar though. I think taking them out on leash is a great idea, if you want to make it quick you can you a slip-lead, that way it's quick to just loop it over his head and go out.

Once outside I'd wander around for a few minutes so he can sniff things. If he doesn't go by then (or gets too distracted) I'd start walking in slow and boring circles. The walking can really stimulate the bowels/bladder though so if he's just sitting outside and running around and playing indoors then that is when he'll need to go.

[Heavenly]

Thanks so much for the tips! Another question - what do I do if he falls asleep? I put him in there and I think he's fall asleep. Do I wake him up in 15 minutes or just assume he doesn't have to go??

We did our first outdoor trip in the pouring rain and he just huddled on my foot looking miserable. I hope when he finally decides to go he will do it outside and not in the crate!

[BunnySlippers]

Heavenly it helps (I think) to put your pups house-accidents in the corner you want him to go in.

Our corner is fenced, so we either guard teh gate, or shut it and keep an eye on things to release as soon as the deed is done.



I have a question for those with experience- we have a 13wk old pup that the previous owners had for a mere 2wks ; she said the pup came from a lady that had tons of dogs (I think I know who too, and I suspect she is a puppy mill) anyhow, the puppy definately has a preference for going to the washroom inside on hard floors.
We do as Stardogs does for house training, but there has been two incidents where we have been outside (like today, we went for a 1hr walk in the rain, in which she pee'd). When we got back I took her to the corner as she was showing signs of having to poop (she had to poo the entire walk- as per her bulging anus), she pee'd in the corner (big girl ) but did not poo, so I brought them in and was going to crate her so that she could not poop on the floor. I toweld her off, dropped the towe. Well, the little bugger pee'd on the towel I had just dropped on the floor. Not much, just a dribble.

The first incident like that was, she came inside after going to the corner successfully, she came in, immediately hopped up on the papisan chair and pee'd on it.

I think this is a territorial thing? but how do I prevent this kind of pee accident?

sorry, that was a bit longer than I expected.

[Heavenly]

Now I have a new issue - how can I tell if he's peeing? He's really small and it is totally pouring rain out there. He crouches to pee but he is so short I can't really tell if he's peeing, and he does the crouching thing when he is just standing there to so I have no idea. When it was nice out I was sitting on the deck stairs so I could see if he peed but I'm not doing that in a downpour! What do I do??

[Heavenly]

I let him out of his crate to eat lunch and he peed all over my floor, twice, in 5 minutes. I am getting very frustrated!

[rhiOrion]

Ugh, I have a dog who won't pee in the rain. Luckily she also won't pee in the house unless she's VERY desperate. i've seen her go 36 hours without peeing before. If it's raining she just won't go. If the grass is really wet then I have to go outside with her. This happened yesterday, and I had to go home at lunch and go outside with her (and I normally pump at lunch, so this was really annoying). So, no advice. Just commiseration.

[stardogs]

I replied to your pm Shawna, but I'll put a few notes here for anyone who needs them in the future.

Re: telling if they are pottying in the rain. Usually after a few weeks most owners can tell the difference between a squat to pee and normal standing, but in the first few days it can be hard, especially with little puppies. I recommend crouching down a bit or having the pup on a hill so you can see things more clearly and/or making sure the umbrella is covering him so you can tell the difference between rain and pee under the dog. Girl dogs usually do a low squat so ime boys are the only ones it's really hard to tell on.

Re: sleeping. It's really your own choice. puppies generally need to go outside immediately upon waking, so whatever you do (let him sleep or wake him up), make sure he is outside first thing after waking. Carry him to prevent accidents since you know he has no restraint about pottying on the floor inside yet.

Re: accident at lunch. If I were in your shoes Shawna, I'd have taken him out of the crate, carried him to the yard, and pottied him first. If he absolutely has to have a midday meal (itty bitties often are at risk of hypoglycemia) I might've hand fed him through the crate door if he didn't potty outside. There's a learning curve for everyone here, so try to tough it out - he obviously can hold it pretty well, so that's something you may need to adjust for, but at least you know he isn't going to mess his crate when he needs to go!

Bunny - Some pups may pee a bit in excitement or when intimidated by something, do you think that could've been an issue in your towel situation? If not, it may be that she got distracted mid-pee or the walking elicited more pee production so she wasn't fully empty by the time you let her back in. Some puppies need to pee twice to fully empty as well. At her age I would not suspect any marking behavior, though I have/had 2 girls that marked on walks. If she's peeing more frequently and in small amounts, a UTI could also be a possibility.

A note on accidents: Make SURE that you are cleaning any messes with a pet specific, bacterial or enzyme based cleanser, not just household stuff because household cleaners aren't very good at removing the scent markers that puppies will return to. Even if you can't smell or see it, their noses can find it!

[Heavenly]

One more question - I am probably driving you nuts! Anyways what if he continues to be stubborn and refuses to go? Do I just continue putting him back in the crate? I just had it and put him in the crate and went and laid for down for an hour and 20 minuts and when I came back he still hadn't wet the crate (yay) but when I took him out he STILL won't pee. I'm going to try one more time but I have to go pick up my kids and I'll be gone about 45 minutes (their school is almost 20 minutes away). So if he STILL won't pee he'll have not gone from 1:10pm to almost 4pm by the time I get back. My kids aren't going to understand why I won't let him play...I guess I'll just tell them he's in timeout! lol I just hope this doesn't make him hate his crate. And that he won't decide to pee in there.

[Heavenly]

He finally peed but when he was enjoying his out of crate time he pooped on the floor! So I took him outside, took the poop outside and told him Potty Here. Then I put him back in his crate (losing freedom for pottying in the house). Was that the right thing to do?