Hi everyone i have just picked up a Lovely 16 week old pure white Staff reason being ive been waking up to the idea of wanting a Dog for some now time also i have a friend who is a dog warden and this dog was soon to be put down (standard protocol for many Kennels dealing with stray dogs after a certain period of time if not homed), so i collected him today and i live in a 1st floor flat, really need guidelines on everything to do with toilet training as i obviously live up on one floor.

I always thought you had to house train in the house when he is just a puppy but is it safe for me to take him out in the garden for house training right from the start?

does the garden / yard get used by all & sundry dogs, as a toilet-area?

if not, YES! it's perfectly safe; it's only active-cases & any old virus they have left,
which is vanishingly unlikely in a house-garden, tho quite possible in a park.

ALSO -
dogs who've been vaxed with a modified-live-virus booster can shed virus in urine & stool for 90-days,
tho it's more likely to be only a few weeks before the popn is too low to be truly 'infectious'.

a certain amount of virus-per-milliliter is needed to be truly 'infectious', unless the pup EATS it.
ergo, don't let pups consume grass or herbs [clover, etc] in common areas... just to be safe.

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terry pride, APDT-Aus, apdt#1827, CVA, TDF
*wolves R wolves, dogs R dogs, + primates R us.*
tmp, sept-2007

I've never seen any dog pass through my garden so I assume it'll be safe, we have had cats pass through do they have anything that would be harmful for my pup? We have rabbits so they attract the cats, well 2 cats that live in our garden and sunbath on our fence

i'd only ensure the pup doesn't eat cat-stools - Nor bunny-droppings, which are less likely to carry
predator-specific parasites which cat-stools can, but will make for stinky breath & can carry bunny-parasites,
or if either the cats or rabbits are being wormed / medicated, the meds can sicken the pup, definitely.

basically, keeping him from eating poop is a good idea - altho dogs do love herbivore-droppings,
& IF THE HORSE WASN'T wormed, drenched, or otherwise medicated, horse-droppings
are rarely a concern. Deer, too, are highly-attractive to dog tastes, & not usually worrying.

WATERFOWL droppings are especially to be avoided:
ducks often ingest quantities of blue-green algae, which can make toxins that are extremely dangerous,
plus ducks, geese, swans, etc, carry bacteria which they can tolerate, but will give dogs [especially pups!]
ferocious diarrhea - sadly, duck-droppings or goose-poop smell delish to dogs, so this is a struggle.
but if U ever are in a waterfowl area, a leash & vigilant near-observation are strongly suggested -
if U ever have to share a house with a pup who has duck-doo diarrhea, U will never forget it,
nor the odor - Whew! - & the often explosive diarrhea.



Do police the yard/garden for CAT-KILLS:
small animals or their gut-piles! Don't let the pup ingest those, either: Toxo [Toxoplasma gondii]
is a little critter carried by many rodents, birds, squirrels, etc, & it's quite commonly in cats'
G-I tracts if they kill wildlife & eat any part of them. TOXOPLASMOSIS is the infection with the critter,
& it does truly bizarre things to mice: it makes cat-urine "smell sexy", plus it makes mice, who normally
avoid large open areas & stay to edges & cover, WALK ABOUT in the open!
Toxo in humans is strongly-associated with risky behavior:
over 75% of fatal or severe-injury auto-accidents that involve speeding, happen to people
who test positive for Toxo-exposure. Over 80% of fatal/serious motorcycle-accidents also happen to bikers
who test + for Toxo-exposure.

The classic Toxo-exposure for ppl is via eating undercooked or raw meats; garden-soil is another route.

CAT STOOLS & litter-boxes are unlikely to be exposure-routes for adult-humans; after all, U must
ingest the stuff! How likely is it that any adult would clean a litter-box, get poop on their hands,
& eat food without washing those hands?! [not very, LOL.] Any child who cares for
or handles a cat must be told specifically to wash their hands before eating, & no young child should
change litter-pans, handle cats with diarrhea, etc; put Kitty in another room with a locked-door, until Puss
is all better.

OTOH even adults who handle a long-haired cat who may have stool on their petticoats might be at risk -
but again, simply washing one's hands after handling pets, especially if U're pregnant or intend
to become pregnant, is an obvious & simple precaution.

__________________
terry pride, APDT-Aus, apdt#1827, CVA, TDF
*wolves R wolves, dogs R dogs, + primates R us.*
tmp, sept-2007

Hi,
I have a new Lhasa Apso puppy who is 13 weeks old,we got him at ten weeks old and are having a few issues with toileting. He will go out for a walk and poop but then will come home and pee on the floor.

I have got rid of newspaper and I have been taking him outside and staying with him while he toilets. I have read all the threads but would love to know if there is something else I need to try. He does not like the crate at all but when I am cooking etc he needs to be somewhere safe as he cannot always be watched.

Thanks in advance

Izzie
might be worth mentioning that when we visited the breeder ,the floor of the puppy area was completely covered in newspaper, I am no expert but surely this teaches them they can go anywhere on the floor?

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re-introduce the crate: Give him a reason to ENTeR ON HIS OWN, for a nice tidbit.

prop the door so that it cannot slam, pinch his waist, bump his butt, etc - a phone-book works well.
toss a few Pea-Sized treats just inside the door, so he can reach them from outside; put just one or 2
at the doorway, on the floor.
praise all investigatory behavior BUT don't go near the crate; he already is likely to associate humans
approaching the crate with being STUFFED INTO IT, hence stay well-back but use warm, sincere praise.

after the goodies are gone, give him time [minutes, a half-hour, whatever] to think about that, CALL HIS NAME
[not 'come', just his Sacred Name - which never is paired with scolding, bad events, unhappy things,
only with Nice Stuff] - let him see U put down more tiny goodies: pea-size bits of meat or cheese.
This time, they are all inside the crate, some near the middle, 1 or 2 near the door. Walk away, let him
approach on his own / praise any investigation & warmly praise EACH PAW entering the crate.

Give him time to consider this amazing event.

3rd time, 1 treat inside the door, 1 or 2 in the middle, 3 or FOUR in the very back... repeat, until the pup
happily prances in on his own, goes all the way to the back, eats any treats, U-turns & emerges, unhurried
and relaxed, eager for the rewards but in no panic to 'escape'.

Work up to closing the door WHILE U stand there, as he eats; then open it when he's finished,
don't make him wait till he's quite confident & happy in the crate. Then build duration.

See YouTube for many videos on happily introducing & habituating a crate.

__________________
terry pride, APDT-Aus, apdt#1827, CVA, TDF
*wolves R wolves, dogs R dogs, + primates R us.*
tmp, sept-2007

Thank you for your great advice,putting it into practise tonight. Have been working on the toilet training all day, we already have progress.

Izzie

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I am very soon collecting a 18 mnth old border collie dog, he is from a working farm in Cumbria, he didn't quite make the grade as a herder but has a lovely character. He has been kennelled at the farm but only as sleeping quarters, not with a run to use as a toilet.
When he comes to live with us he will live indoors with my other collie who is perfectly housetrained. Is there anything I need to take into consideration when bringing him into the house or should I just make sure he goes out enough and picks up the idea he waits until he is out to do his 'business'?

Laila will pee in the bathroom or bath if she is desperate and im not about, but Taiya is a rescue, she was abused and apparently locked in one area constantly, shes terrified of strange men, but she slowly learnt to trust me, she's 3 years old, and ive had her about 6 months, ive just got her out of peeing on fabrics, and my bed D: she's usually very good, and has recently started jumping at the front door if she wants to go out,
But at night she still very often pees and poos over the hallway, which ive noticed, Laila is now trying her luck with (without much approval) some nights she will wait til morning but often i have to let them out at 2am to get her to hold it til 9am, even though at times ive needed to be out from 8am and not returned til late in the night, not often i may add but each time she's held on til im back...
anyone got any ideas/suggestions? id love to wake up and not have to clean up mess before breakfast!