Posted by Todd Biske on January 15, 1998 at 06:15:06:
In Reply to: potty training posted by Amanda Tester on January 14, 1998 at 17:48:46:
> My Little Big Man has became very hard to potty train since we moved into our NEW home. Then even worse since our 3 month old baby came. Lately he has decided that our bed is the main target. Please help. Spanking with the rolled up newspaper only makes him angry and snappy. I have almost had enough. Please reply soon!!!
Spanking with a newspaper is not a good idea. In fact, even yelling
doesn't work all that well. The problem is that you really have to
catch them in the act in order for negative discipline (spanking,
yelling, etc.) to have any effect. Most of the time they have no clue
what they've done wrong.
Positive reinforcement of the right behavior is the best idea. You
should go outside with your dog and praise him like crazy when he
goes. I suggest taking him out right BEFORE his meals, that way he
will begin to associate going outside and doing his business with
the reward of being fed. You should never keep his food away if he
doesn't go though.
One question I have is whether the dog is marking, or is he doing ALL
his business. If he's just marking, it may be because of the move
(new place, wants to mark his territory) and the new baby (trying to
get rid of that darn new baby smell on his territory). This can be
a very hard behavior to break. If he isn't neutered, I suggest doing
that, as it can reduce that urge. Otherwise, I don't really know
what to suggest, just because I haven't had experience with training
a dog with that problem. My parents have, and all they can do is keep
an eye on their dog. If they can't, he gets confined in the kitchen
where there's a doggie door to go outside and a tile floor, so nothing
will get damaged/stained/etc.
You may try getting a book on the subject. There are two books on
housebreaking available on this site at my pekingese bookstore. Go
to http://www.biske.com/peke/books.html for more info.