house training and crate training - Page 1

my 5 month old black shepherd recently arrived from North Carolina. she had not been crate trained nor house trained. i didnt encounter any problems crate training or house training my first shepherd which is about the same age. now, i'm having a hard time with the second one. if i put her on her crate, she can hold it overnight. once i let her out and bring her to the garden to do her thing, she wont do it there. no matter how long we wait, she just wont do it there. once i let her of her leash, she would go to the terrace and do her thing there. also, she has had at least 6 accidents inside the house already. my question is why does she seem to want to do her thing on hard or concrete surfaces? i know most dogs like to do it on grass and on soil. please help

 You have conditioned her for hard surfaces or the last place where she came from she was doing on hard surfaces not your fault. help her be patient work with her and if accident occurs if you can;t correct within 3 seconds clean up and move on

cheers

It seems you've answered your own question.  She's used to going on concrete, because she was probably housed on concrete for her short life and she is used to it.  You will have to out-wait her in the garden.  Take her out in the morning and if she doesn't go, bring her in and put her in her crate.  Take her out every 15 minutes and don't give her the choice to go anywhere but where you want her to.  When she finally goes, praise her like she just did the best thing in her life and give her a treat.  Continue this and it shouldn't take long, she'll catch on.  Do not let her loose in the house without supervision unless she's crated.  If she has an accident in the house, do not punish her.  You may startle her if you catch her in the act, but don't scream and don't hit her.  Just take her outside and repeat the crate/yard routine until she goes.

Forgot to add: If she has an accident, do not allow her to watch you clean it up.  Put her in another room or outside with someone else and use an enzymatic cleaner, such as Simple Green.  If she sees you clean it, that will draw her attention back to that spot.  So, if you clean it well and don't allow her to watch, it will not become a habitual spot.

She probably came from a concrete kennel like Vikram said. Glad to she got out once in a while. :( Like Vikram said, be patient. Keep her in the garden when you know she's really got to go. Like when she wakes. When she goes, make a huge deal about it! Get happy and share a beer or mix. Mine likes white russians for a reward.

As stated above it appears we have the reason why. Redirection. As soon as my girl hits the ground coming out of the house it's "break". Once letting her off leash you give her the choice and she only does what she knows. To take care of her busines the way she knows how. Like GSDtravels stated, wait her out. Direction. Won't take that long. Until the "breaking" is establish, no freedom indoors without close observation. 
Keep us updated, shouldn't take but a few days, Consistency!   

Forgot to add. Why's he gotta be black? You do know that, although "black shepherds" are smarter, they're also harder to potty train.

All the above and try also taking your GSD for a walk where other dogs may have marked a bush/ tree.  She might start finding all the scent quite interesting and start doing the same.  I assume your 5 months old pup had all the necessary jabs/ vaccination.

thanks guys for all your advices. i must admit i was a bit impatient for her to learn what i wanted her to learn. i'll try doing the advices you made and see what happens. thanks again

Not saying you don't already know but humans and dogs don't think alike. And the pup was either taught or self learned the deed. What took ? long to know where to go and has been happening for 5 mos won't change overnight because we as the master or humans think something needs to happen a certain way. The pup is only going to want to please, (and definately at this point shouldn't feel as though it is displeasing you) Give it time and soon it won't even be a thought.