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House Training My Australian Shepherd Is Not Going Well

by Lester
(Wichita, Ks)

We have an 8-month-old Australian Shepherd that will not house train. He uses our living room to toilet, but not all the time. Tonight we let him in from outside, he wasn't in more than 10 minutes and disappeared for a short time. We called him and he didn't come right away and I went to check. He had gone poop and pee. We showed him what he had done and sent him back outside. I took the results of him pooping out, put it on the ground and praised him as a good dog and then disposed of it.

We are at wits end as how to stop him from going inside. I have gotten angry with him a few times in the past. Of course, this does no good. I have trained several dogs in the past and none gave me this much grief... I've read the book a dozen times and still don't know what to do. Re-homing is not in our plans but it is an option.

Does anyone have a viable suggestion?

We love our Aussie!

Comments for House Training My Australian Shepherd Is Not Going Well

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More Information on the Site...
by: Anton

Hi Lester, In addition to the ebook, Guide To Australian Shepherd Training & Care there are several articles on the site. Use the search box at the top of the page to search for "housetraining" or "housebreaking" and you will find articles on the topic. For example:

House Breaking Your Puppy With These Housetraining Tips

The Do's And Don'ts Of Housebreaking Dogs

If there is still a scent in the carpet or flooring, he could be drawn back to those areas. This article may be of help:

Using a Dog Urine Neutralizer to Clean Dog Pee Stains

In order to find areas he has gone in that you may not be aware of a black light flashlight might help.

Using A Black Light Flashlight To Find Urine Spots

Hope this helps. :)

Crate training WILL work
by: jcrply

Crate training will work and work quickly. There must be someone who can devote time and you must all be totally consistent.
Buy a crate that is large enough that your pup will be comfortable but not huge. It should be big enough that he can lie down and stretch out. Metal crates are nice because there is great air flow through them.
Here's the routine: Pup is in crate. Pup is taken outside to play and to pee and poop. Pup is brought back inside and immediately is put into crate. Repeat this often, as often as you can. For a young pup it can be every hour.
Your older dog can hold it much longer.
(When pup does pee and poop outside, he can then spend a few minutes playing with you inside the house before going back into the crate.) Never leave him alone in the house. Since the only time he is loose in the house is immediately after he has peed and pooped outside, he will not soil the house. Never give him the opportunity to soil the house. Give him food and water inside his crate only.
Dogs do not like to soil the place where they sleep, so he would not soil his crate. Aussies are smart. He will catch on quickly that he needs to do his business outside only.
Some people think crate training is cruel. It's not cruel. You are giving him attention and play and love. And he is not being punished or yelled at or confused.
Oh, and first you must remove absolutely all traces of the scent of the pee and poop he has already put in your house. Remember how amazing their sense of smell is.

Crate training WILL work (additional)
by: jcrply

I neglected to add how long the crate training will take. But I really don't know. It depends on your dog. It could be as little as one week. When he appears to have caught onto relieving himself outside, you can start gradually increasing his time out of crate in the house. I highly recommend then confining him to one area...the kitchen maybe for another period of time. Only when you can trust him should he be given access to the entire house.

Housetraining
by: Dianne

One idea that a friend of mine used was to keep the pup on a leash and have it attached to her belt loop so he was always with her. The minute the pup started acting differently, out they went, and if he refused to go out there after a few minutes, they came back in, but every time he started acting like he was having to go, they would go out. I know it sounds like a real pain, but my friend said it really worked for her since her pup was pretty stubborn. It showed him that he wasn't in control of the situation in a gentle way.
Beware of the pup turning it around on you so to speak as well. Our Festus who is aussie/heeler woke me up a few times in the middle of the night, oh he had to go so bad! I got out of bed and was getting dressed then couldn't find him...because he had jumped up on the bed and was snugged up to his daddy! Your pup might find that if he wants to go outside to play he can act like he has to potty. Always stick to just a few minutes outside waiting for him to go, then right back in the house.
It's a very labor intensive way to get it done but for the pups that are always thinking, it seems to really help. Good luck!

potty training
by: Anonymous

In addition to the guide and advise of others. If puppy goes in the house ignore it and take dog back outside. This next time they relive themselves outside have a party rewarding very generously and praising them. Any kind of attention with a behavior the dog will repeat, but especially when they are rewarded very generously. This can take up to 3 months so be patient, bad behavior is harder and longer to break.

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