Our baby (3 months old) has us well trained to let her out regularly and accidents are few And far between now. My question is how do we get her to let us know she needs to go out by giving us a signal such as barking. We are home with her all the time and do not use a crate and she never understood the concept of puppy pads.
Hi and welcome ! Three months is still very young for a puppy to really understand the concept of asking to be let out . Just keep on as you are doing, praise like crazy when she has a result and eventually , she will let you know by going to the door and looking to be let out . I don't really think that you can teach them to use a signal such as barking, but they certainly learn how to let us know, just by heading to the door . It sounds like she is doing very well indeed, for her age, well done
Twiglet (6 months) still doesn't ask! I think I trained her all wrong. (I put bells by the door, but let her play with them as well as me shaking them when we went out. I should have associated the bells only with opening the door. It did work for a week or so, but then petered out) But it doesn't matter. Her bladder is much bigger and, after her morning wee, she can easily wait until it's time to go out. She wees on command and will squeeze a little out even if she doesn't need to go - so we can go anywhere knowing she's 'empty'. This skill is more worthwhile training than an 'asking' skill. But I will try the bells again on the next pup! (Next time I will ring them every time I open the door and open the door every time he nudges them - but no playing with them)
Shadow never learnt to ask - he just took the opportunity if Willow asked, as well as us regularly letting them out when we thought they needed to go. Willow stands by the door and scratches at it if I don't open it promptly enough. She just picked this up without me really training it. Now they're older (15 months), they don't go out to go to the loo anymore (this is taken care of on walks), but Willow is a sun-bunny and will ask to go out and lie in the sunshine. I agree with Kate - just keep on doing what you're doing and it will come.
I agree with the others. Its hard to teach as they all find their own methods. I have had 5 dogs and they all have let me know differently. One would sit by the door and bark, one would sit by the door and paw/bash it, one barks from where ever he may be, one just never asked and expected me to know (which worked!!) and currently my first Lab comes to find me and bashes my leg with her nose. Wait and see and she will let you know Emma and Meg
My dog doesn't ask to go out, unless it's an emergency. Then he'll stand by the back door and sort of hop up and down, running back to look at me and going back to the door. It's hard to miss.... Apart from emergencies, he gets out plenty so he doesn't need to ask. I quite like it this way, because then there is none of that getting up and down to let the dog out when really he just wants you to get up (in the hope you'll divert towards the biscuit tin) or fancies a mooch round the garden.
Jake is 10.5 weeks, we give 3 treats every time he has a successful toilet visit, and give lots of fuss, when he doesn't do anything we just come back in saying nothing. These last 3 days he's been going to stand at the door sometimes when he needs out, not every time, he still zones into the kitchen and starts to sniff about most times, but we're trying to encourage the door thing by asking in an excited voice in he wants outside. It may not be successful, but worth a try.
I chuckled at Julie's response about not having to get up all the time because sometimes he is eyeing the biscuit bin! That is sort of the problem I have with Cooper....20 months old.....he will sit by the door and keep looking at me. I say "you want to go potty"? and he blinks....idiot me thinks his blinking means YES.....I get up, open the door and he takes a dive behind me to get a paper napkin or a dishtowel or whatever he has been eyeing......makes me drazy! I still, to this day, dont understand his signal for going out to do his business.....I am sure he has a REAL signal, but I still don't get it! When he was a puppy I hung christmas bells on the door know to go outside and he basically destroyed them playing and I was concerned he would swallow the bells, so discontinued that. Wish mine would wee on command like Twiglet!!!!
Generally the only time Juno may ask to go out is in the evening but that's quite rare, the rest of the time is when we are out on walks, training or specifically trips for toileting. When she does need to go she goes to the door and stands there, and the comes anew peeps round the living room door at us and waits for us to get up.
Interesting reading all your posts....Dexter has 2 walks a day and 2 toilet breaks which are actually mini walks across to the park as he won't toilet in the garden....so really Dexter never asks to go out as he's never needed He does go and sit by the back door but that is for his own agenda ....and I can usually tell the time by his requests for that.....I guess if he sat there at an odd time then I'd think he was asking for the toilet .......For his toilet breaks though we leave by the front door.....he NEVER goes and sits there! If he went to stay with anybody I wouldn't be able to tell them how he asks to go to the loo and he's 3!
I wish Tatze would too! The way to teach them is to start right from the beginning at 8 weeks old and say the cue word as they are weeing. Treat after every wee. Do this for about three weeks then say the cue word just before you know they are going to wee. Do this for another three weeks. Then say they cue word when you know they are 'full' and do it in a wide variety of places. The next stage is that they will squeeze a wee out any time, on lead or off lead.. Twiglet will poo on command too, but this has to be when I know she needs one! (She has to be empty on both counts before we go out working ) I have used this (tried and tested) method with Gypsy and Twiglet - it works and works well. Tatze goes out and takes forever to decide to wee even when she's not been for hours! Very annoying in this weather, but training her now would be quite an effort methinks, which I have been too lazy to do!
