Hi everyone. I'm new to this forum and don't own a lab, I used to own a gorgeous Golden Retriever called Benji, but lost him last Aug aged 12.5. We were truly devastated. Anyway we now own two GORGEOUS cocker spaniel sisters. ( I know two sisters !!!!) Anyway they are called Bella & Bailey. Aged 15 weeks. I have recently bought Pippa's puppy handbook (wish I'd have bought it BEFORE getting the girls ) Any way they are doing well, recall is going great, walking also good, socialising well with people and other dogs. But can I ask about the toilet issue. The girls sleep in a crate together , which has a puppy pen attached for them to use as a toilet area. We did use pads and paper but they took to ripping them so we took them up and put a shower style mat down instead. They cry a couple of times during the night (usually about 3am and 5.30am) I get up and let them out and they wee and sometimes poo outside. They then are put straight back to bed. Is it best to get up during the night ?? They are getting better during the day but we still get an accident most days. Also is it ok to leave them when they 'play fight' or should we stop them if it gets too rough? We are walking them separately sometimes and also try to do some daily separate training but they do play together and are put in there outdoor play pen (weather permitting) if we need to do some chores. Any advice would be appreciated. I am a bit of a worry and just want to get it right. ;D Thanks in advance Nicki
Re: Advice on toilet issues for 15 week old cocker spaniel sisters. Hi Nicki - Welcome to the Forum! Two spaniels, wow! You like a challenge ;D I have pretty limited experience, but I think most folk get up during the night to toilet their pups, gradually extending the number of hours between night trips. I think one of the keys to it is anticipating their needs and not waiting until they cry to get out. Also, it you need to leave them alone for any length of time then having a toileting area in their pen may be a good idea, but otherwise, always encouraging an outside wee/poop is far preferable to setting up an inside area they deem as a toilet - might be more difficult to break the habit? I'm not sure about the play fighting bit I am afraid. The separate walking and training bit is something that has been mentioned before as good. Not sure if separate night toileting might be good too. Hopefully someone else with more experience can chip in! Particularly those with littemates! Enjoy the forum jac (and 4 year old black lab girl Lilly)
Re: Advice on toilet issues for 15 week old cocker spaniel sisters. Hi Nicki and welcome from me Helen, Hattie 6 years and Charlie 3 years. Hope you enjoy the forum xx
Re: Advice on toilet issues for 15 week old cocker spaniel sisters. I have a friend who has a puppy and her friend has a puppy from the same litter, they do stop it when the play gets too rough, both pups are playing more gently now because of this.
Re: Advice on toilet issues for 15 week old cocker spaniel sisters. Hi and welcome As Jac says, it's best to anticipate the times during the night when they need to wee and getting up to let them out before they cry So maybe if you set your alarm for 2am and 5am that'd be good. You can gradually make both times later as their bladder holding capacities seem to be increasing. With the play fighting, although they are probably perfectly happy and fine, I'd still separate them regularly, calm them down with soft pats and reward heavily for being separate and calm with lots of nice treats. After 20 seconds or so of that, release them to play again. Work on being able to recall them from play (you'll need to practise recall separately at first and you'll need to be really exciting and have great treats). Also, just before you release them again to play say a word (like 'free' or 'release' or 'play') that will come to mean 'ok, you have my permission to do what you like now'. They both sound lovely
Re: Advice on toilet issues for 15 week old cocker spaniel sisters. Hello and welcome to the forum. Two cockers, how wonderful! ;D Are they working cockers?
Re: Advice on toilet issues for 15 week old cocker spaniel sisters. Hi there and welcome, sounds like you have some fun times ahead. I think there are different views on housetraining. I am of the belief that you never give them the opportunity to wee/poo in the house. So no "toilet" area in a pen. We used a small crate and got up at regular times and gradually made the gaps between them longer. I think it does work with a toilet area but it takes longer. Meg now 6 months last 10ish till 6 but have spent lots of time wandering around in the garden in my PJ's to get there. Also I was a "helicopter" owner in the day. So out lots and constant hovering. We rarely had an accident and she was very reliable by 14 weeks. That said I do think so of it is due too bladder maturity and I guess a cocker will have a smaller one so maybe that's a factor ? I If you look on old threads on here there are loads of helpful Q and A's about housetraining. Years ago we had 2 Newfies and they did play rough but did self limit. I think Oberon's advice about teaching them to stop is excellent. Also stick to training them and walking them separately as together they will refer to each other and not you. They do sound lovely and you are making good progress. Can we have a picture? Emma
Re: Advice on toilet issues for 15 week old cocker spaniel sisters. Hi and welcome from me and Harley (1 year old fox red lab)
Re: Advice on toilet issues for 15 week old cocker spaniel sisters. I did the crate/pen thing - and didn't get up at night (but kept the nights short at first). My boy could go about 20 minutes without a pee at first, so even if I wanted to go to the shops I had to have a way to leave him (and was going back to work, so although I had a puppy care service, he needed to be on his own for a hour or so quite quickly). House training was fine. He got the hang of it without any trouble. I did put extra effort into it, and if I was home he never went out alone etc. I think you can manage with a pen and newspaper arrangement just fine if that's the way you want to do it. He has never so much as made a squeak at night or in the mornings so I do think there might be some advantages to starting off with a "humans are not around at night" routine.
Re: Advice on toilet issues for 15 week old cocker spaniel sisters. Here's my girls. Both show time cockers. Thanks for the advice. Bella is the black one and Bailey is the gold one. Nicki
Re: Advice on toilet issues for 15 week old cocker spaniel sisters. What a couple of little sweethearts
Re: Advice on toilet issues for 15 week old cocker spaniel sisters. Welcome to the Forum from Dexter and I ,my 2 year old ( nearly ) yellow lab. Your puppies are gorgeous xxx
Re: Advice on toilet issues for 15 week old cocker spaniel sisters. Hi Nicki We have two lab brothers, Jack & Barney, aged 12 weeks. We get up with them in the night, initially around 4am, then 5am and last night they slept until 5.55am! That was great as we get up at 6am anyway! Like having a baby sleeping through again lol. Ours playfight a lot, i use my judgement on the sounds they make to separate them, if it's playful growling and yapping I leave them, but if one cries or they get to 'teeth clashing' stage i separate them. barney in particular does not like to be stopped, and will nip me sometimes, so he gets time out. But on the whole we separate them and distract them with toys and treats, or just pick one up for a cuddle while someone plays with the other, and vice versa. They are walking quite well on their leads, very inquisitive for smells and keep checking the other is there. Once they are more confident near the roads, we will take them part of the way separately, but i don 't want to put them off going out at the minute as Jack was very scared the first time and his confidence is building, but he is taking a lot of that from how Barney behaves. Your girls are beautiful, and a little easier to tell apart than my two who are both black! But they have quite different features, and very different personalities. Lou
Re: Advice on toilet issues for 15 week old cocker spaniel sisters. Hi Nicki Your girls look adorable. I've done the opposite to you dog wise as my previous dog was a blue roan cocker spaniel. We lost our precious boy Sweep in December aged nine and three quarters after a brave battle with lymphoma. It was a traumatic time and we were devastated. Decided to have a different breed and are now the owners of a choc lab boy Milo who is 17 weeks. With regard to toileting we are facing similar problems as he is clean and dry reliably in the day but wakes in the night, usually at 3-3.30 and then at 5,30 to go out to poo/wee. Once he's been outside he goes back to sleep quickly though. He's in a puppy pen rather than a crate though. I'm not sure if he will just grow out of this as he gets older and as his bladder and bowel mature or if he's got into a bit of a routine with waking now. My husband is up before six anyway so the 5.30 waking isnt too bad for us.
Re: Advice on toilet issues for 15 week old cocker spaniel sisters. Just wanted to say how lovely your girls look. Oh you will have so much fun with them. Thanks for the photo
