Housebreaking Kennel dogs - Page 2

Our schutzhund club posted an article today on teaching your dog to heel. The trainer said one of the things to remember is dogs are situational learners. They don't generalize - they don't realize the behaviour you've taught them for one situation also applies to another.

So, I am guessing the dog didn't realize that not peeing on hard floors also meant not peeing on carpets.

IV. DOGS ARE SITUATIONAL

On the first night of beginner class, I teach my students that dogs are problem solvers, and that they are also situational. That means that when you teach your dog to do something in one location, under one set of circumstances, he may not perform in a new location or under a new set of circumstances. Just as the beginner’s lament “but he does it at home,” , if you understand this principle, you understand that you need to change your location or position and see if your dog still understands that a tug on the leash means pay attention.

Connie Cleveland-Nolan

Some people will use or introduce their puppy/dog to a "pee pad" which a puppy/dog can see a "rug" as being the same...So if this is the case then peeing on a "rug" is expected...but YOU must be consistent and not get mad about it but just take the puppy/dog outside immediately...Even if they do nothing outside...
You don't have to spend a lot of time outside with a dog to go to the bathroom...Just until they go...or in the case if they make a mistake...just take them out to let them know this is the place they need to go (spend a reasonable amount of time outside)...
I have also found that puppies in particular will have different time tables for how quickly they learn...a lot of it has to due with how they grow (mature)...
I agree that a lot of the time puppies are easier to potty train then to re-train some others...But I don't generalize on puppies/dogs...I take each one as an individual and do what they require...

~Bob~

I think pee pads are the WORST idea ever, especially for a large dog!

At the end it's always about how a dog was raised.

In case you got a kennel dog out of a kennel whose owner did give it's dogs the ability to potty outside of the kennel of a regular basis you won't have any problems. "Normal" dogs are clean animals, and an almost adult dog will understand a firm "no" - 3 - 4 days, and a dog like this will be clean.

In case you get a dog that grew up in it's own feces you will need way longer - not the dogs fault- I'd thank the person who raised the dog.

All the best!

Like Susie said.

I will take it a step further, though, and say it's MOTHER plays a role, and the breeder. Early imprinting is extremely critical. Dogs who were raised in unclean conditions and whose dams were lax on cleaning will have trouble- far more trouble than a dog raised in a kennel whose mother was fastidious.

I have never had an adult I needed to housebreak, even if they were kennel dogs. Good mothers produce pups/dogs who like to be clean.

I'm struggling right now with a one year old I imported as a puppy. I know how she was raised- I raised her. She is clean in the house but has no problem soiling her crate overnight. She won't even bother to alert me she needs to go out. In the house loose, she is fine. Her littermate is owned by a friend of mine and is the same, except worse in the house and will soil indoors as well. That's on the breeder and their dam, imo. Not on us- because that's a huge coincidence that both of us royally screwed up training to that degree. Why is mine clean in MY house and not in hers???? Early imprinting, for sure, and in my opinion, also a case of being "wound a bit too tightly."

Jen, thanks a lot for the better explanation.

A puppy learns from it's mother, a dog ( in case of the mother ) learns from it's owner...

Out of my experience: a litter of pups able to leave the concrete/wooden part of the kennel to potty "outside" will be clean within days, a young adult, able to leave the kennel on a regular basis = the same.
The dam ( whose behavior is the result of human education/training ) will play a role, but given a chance dogs are clean.

Housebroken a 5yr old kennel dog. Consistency is the key! 

Never had an issue with house training kennel dogs. There was only one dog that was dirty but she was just a dirty dog period. If their kennels are kept clean and they get plenty of time outside, they are actually rather clean and generally housetrained instantly or as Jennie said you don't have to housetrain at all.

 

 

I acquired a 7 month old male GSD that had always been in a kennel. He was very easy to house train. I treated him like an 8 week old puppy and was very consistent with him. I was just happy that I didn't have to get up several times during the night BUT I did get up at least 1x per night for the first few nights just to make sure he didn't have any accidents. He had maybe 1 or 2 accidents (at the most) in the house while we figured out what the other was trying to say. After that, he was great in the house.