Housetraining rescue dog

[KarmanGhia]

We recently added a 1 year old rescue Cocker to our household (we have a 2 year old Cocker). We are trying to re-housetrain her. It's difficult because she only pees twice a day even though we take her out alot (the other female Cocker drinks lots of water and scratches the door to go out fairly often). We bought her doggie diapers which we use in the house. She doesn't seem to know she's supposed to go outside because after walking she will sometimes come in and pee. Is it normal for her to only go twice a day? Is it healthy? We don't know what her history is other than that she was returned to the breeder because an existing older dog did not get along with her. She's fitting in quite well here, just concerned about her.

[jessi76]

I would have her looked at by a vet, to rule out any medical issues before assuming it's just a training problem, only going twice a day would concern me too. Once she gets a clean bill of health, go from there.

[kayla]

Maybe you could try soaking up her pee in a cloth, then putting it out on the lawn or wherever it is you want her to pee. This way she will smell it and maybe get the idea this is where she should be going? Also, have you tried the umbilical cord method?

[jessi76]

as I said above, I'd start with a vet checkup, then tackle the training.

Originally Posted by kayla

Maybe you could try soaking up her pee in a cloth, then putting it out on the lawn or wherever it is you want her to pee. This way she will smell it and maybe get the idea this is where she should be going?

Puppy pee pads come with the a scent on them to entice a pup to pee on it. You can buy packs of these pads at a pet supply store. If you can get your dog to go on these, you can slowly move them closer to the door, then out to the yard.

Even though this dog is a year old, you need to treat her as puppy regarding the housebreaking. Take her out after every meal, after playtime, after sleeping, MANY MANY times a day. Praise her like she won the olympics when she does go outside.

Originally Posted by KarmanGhia

We bought her doggie diapers which we use in the house.

I don't see how a diaper is going to help matters. It's not teaching her where she SHOULD be going, and may actually encourage her to go whenever and wherever she wants. Personally, I'd ditch the diapers.

[KarmanGhia]

Thanks for the advice. Karman now goes more than once or twice a day, but she's difficult to catch. We take her out alot. We take her on long walks. We take her out of her crate in the morning and she doesn't go. We put a soaked wash cloth on the lawn as advised and she just sniffs it. I haven't been able to catch her body language...there doesn't seem to be any. She just all of a sudden goes. Not at all like Ghia. Ghia scratches, goes on demand (she even squeezes out more when we're all sanding there telling Karman to go! ) I've taken Karman out alone. I've taken her out with Ghia. There must be something I'm missing. She just looks at me like I'm nuts. Even when I make a big deal of it when she does go outside, she just wants to move on and it doesn't seem to register with her. Suggestions? We've only had her about three weeks. Maybe she's still getting used to the routine here? She is a cutie and has come a long way in a few weeks--is less fearful and more receptive...and she and Ghia seem to truely love being together.