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Many thanks for you help and guidance Ant

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> Hello Ant,

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Many thanks for you help and guidance Ant – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text –

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Ant, at 9 weeks she is still young and probably cannot control herself.  Don’t scold her, it will confuse her.  If she is relieving herself indoors, it is NOT her fault – she has to be taken outside and at 9 weeks, she has to go out often.  I have French mastiffs and have housebroken all of them.  Put her on a schedule, stick to it even on weekends, praise her when she goes outside, ignore her mistakes and do NOT scold her – it is not her fault..  It will take time. If your partner thinks the puppy can be housetrained in short order, he/she needs a reality check.  A puppy has trouble controlling itself before 12 weeks of age or more.  I do crate my young dogs at night and if the weather is too bad for them to be outside in the yard (fenced, of course), never when someone is home with them.  One more note:  my first mastiff drove me nuts.  She would go outside, come in and immediately pee again, every time.  I finally understood that she needed to pee twice and that was the end of that problem.   Stick with it, she can be housebroken, but it will take a little time. Susan – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – > Hi > We have an English/bull mastiff puppy (9weeks)  I would really appreciate > any guidance on the best way to housebreak her, we presently have a litter > tray which she is put on to if she messes on the floor etc.  She is scolded > (although not severely) when she messes on the floor,and praised if she uses > the tray. > My partner is starting to give me the " the dog will have to go if it isn’t > house trained soon" look.  So any help with speeding up the process would be > very much appreciated. > Ant

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> Hi > We have an English/bull mastiff puppy (9weeks)  I would really appreciate > any guidance on the best way to housebreak her, we presently have a litter > tray which she is put on to if she messes on the floor etc.  She is scolded > (although not severely) when she messes on the floor,and praised if she uses > the tray.

I think you are making a mistake to teach the dog to relieve itself indoors.   Start with this site http://www.learn2.com/08/0827/0827.asp then try this one http://www.uwsp.edu/psych/dog/lib-puppy.htm Stop scolding the dog. You may be thinking you are scolding her for messing on the floor but she doesn’t speak english.  All she knows is that you behave in an irrational manner in the presence of her elimination.  If she has not already done so a typical reaction will be to start trying to hide it from you – or eating it.  It will not help her become housetrained.  If she manages to urinate or defecate in an inappropriate place the reason is because you failed to properly supervise her.  Your job is to frequently take her to an appropriate place to eliminate, wait until she does so, then praise.  At her age she needs to eliminate at least every two hours.  IN ADDITION to that every two hours she will need to eliminate (1) shortly after eating or drinking (2) within two to five minutes of any play session and (3) immediately after waking up (no – not ten minutes, not five minutes, when puppy wakes up it needs to GO).  Puppies are pee and poop machines.  Let’s say you take the puppy out and it "goes" you then come inside and start to play.  You are playing for about three minutes and puppy suddenly runs five feet away and pees !right in front of you!  Is puppy being bad? no Is puppy being defiant? no.  You made a mistake. You forgot that playing stimulates the bowel and bladder. You should have stopped the game and taken the puppy outside.  Or when puppy bolted out of the game scooped puppy up and taken her outside. > My partner is starting to give me the " the dog will have to go if it isn’t > house trained soon" look.  So any help with speeding up the process would be > very much appreciated.

Sorry, but you have a long way to go before you can expect your pup to be housetrained.  Until about 12 weeks the puppy has only rudimentary control over bowel and bladder.  This problem is hardly going to be the most challenging you will be facing as a new dog owner.  If your partner is intolerant of this situation you might seriously reconsider your decision to have a puppy.  Getting a puppy, or even a dog, is something that all family members should be happy with.  If one is reluctant or against the idea it usually spells trouble for the dog, especially when it passes out of the cute puppy stage and into the rebellious teenage stage. Diane Blackman http://www.dog-play.com/  http://www.dog-play.com/TOTE.html "When classifying reinforcements as positive or negative, it is best to think of the terms as mathematical rather than emotional. A reinforcer is positive if it is added to the situation and negative if it is removed." "Smart Trainers — Brilliant Dogs" by Janet Lewis

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Hello blackman, You’ve got your own problems with your own dogs. You day board your dogs because they’re not trustworthy at home alone. Your own dog has pulled relentlessly for five years. You keep giving us these helpful web sites with all the information that has helped YOU so much. Let’s see what kind of advice you’ve got here… > Start with this site > http://www.learn2.com/08/0827/0827.asp

"Unless you catch a dog in the act, don’t scold him, especially if he’s very young. " So, "catching" the dog "in the act" and punishing him is GOOD? That’s not been my experience. In fact, THAT’S what causes dog behavior problems, and THAT’S WHY you don’t have trustworthy dogs. "When a dog has to go, he’ll usually let you know by circling and sniffing–unless he’s really desperate and doesn’t have time. When you see this happening, stop him with a firm "No" and perhaps a tug at the scruff of the neck." Yes, that’s what causes dogs to have anxiety about housebreaking. "Use praise, not blame," but when the time comes, just a little chin cuff, scruff shake, jerking, choking, and shocking, are APPROPRIATE??? "And when he’s been naughty? A very firm "No!" is far more effective than a rolled-up newspaper." Isn’t that contradicting koehler, who is adamant about NOT giving those "less effective" corrections??? Most of our Gang Of Thugs are koehler trainers. YOU defend koehler yourself, DON’T YOU? Are you saying koehler is WRONG??? Perhaps we should talk about it? See my thread "The Tough Questions." Tell your pals. Start by telling your pals at > http://www.uwsp.edu/psych/dog/lib-puppy.htm

That’s dr. p. of the U of Wisc. This is about the worst collection of mistaken, abusive, and useless information I’ve ever seen, except for your own and cindymooreon’s web sites. You’ve relied on them for years, and STILL you haven’t made any progress. You still defend hurting and confronting, and confining  dogs to train them. Why do you insist that hammering a square peg into a round hole is going to work any better TODAY, than it has over the past thirty years??? Why don’t you actually LOOK at the advice you’re giving people here??? Your pal, Jerry "The Phony," Howe.

whittled these words: – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> Hi > We have an English/bull mastiff puppy (9weeks)  I would really appreciate > any guidance on the best way to housebreak her, we presently have a litter > tray which she is put on to if she messes on the floor etc.  She is scolded > (although not severely) when she messes on the floor,and praised if she uses > the tray. > I think you are making a mistake to teach the dog to relieve itself > indoors. > Stop scolding the dog. You may be thinking you are scolding her for > messing on the floor but she doesn’t speak english.  All she knows is > that you behave in an irrational manner in the presence of her > elimination.  If she has not already done so a typical reaction will be > to start trying to hide it from you – or eating it.  It will not help her > become housetrained.  If she manages to urinate or defecate in an > inappropriate place the reason is because you failed to properly > supervise her.  Your job is to frequently take her to an appropriate > place to eliminate, wait until she does so, then praise.  At her age she > needs to eliminate at least every two hours.  IN ADDITION to that every > two hours she will need to eliminate (1) shortly after eating or drinking > (2) within two to five minutes of any play session and (3) immediately > after waking up (no – not ten minutes, not five minutes, when puppy wakes > up it needs to GO).  Puppies are pee and poop machines.  Let’s say you > take the puppy out and it "goes" you then come inside and start to > play.  You are playing for about three minutes and puppy suddenly runs > five feet away and pees !right in front of you!  Is puppy being bad? no > Is puppy being defiant? no.  You made a mistake. You forgot that playing > stimulates the bowel and bladder. You should have stopped the game and > taken the puppy outside.  Or when puppy bolted out of the game scooped > puppy up and taken her outside. > My partner is starting to give me the " the dog will have to go if it isn’t > house trained soon" look.  So any help with speeding up the process would be > very much appreciated. > Sorry, but you have a long way to go before you can expect your pup to be > housetrained.  Until about 12 weeks the puppy has only rudimentary > control over bowel and bladder.  This problem is hardly going to be the > most challenging you will be facing as a new dog owner.  If your partner > is intolerant of this situation you might seriously reconsider your > decision to have a puppy.  Getting a puppy, or even a dog, is something > that all family members should be happy with.  If one is reluctant or > against the idea it usually spells trouble for the dog, especially when > it passes out of the cute puppy stage and into the rebellious teenage > stage. > Diane Blackman > http://www.dog-play.com/  http://www.dog-play.com/TOTE.html > "When classifying reinforcements as positive or negative, it is best to > think of the terms as mathematical rather than emotional. A reinforcer is > positive if it is added to the situation and negative if it is removed." > "Smart Trainers — Brilliant Dogs" by Janet Lewis

Response:

Hi We have an English/bull mastiff puppy (9weeks)  I would really appreciate any guidance on the best way to housebreak her, we presently have a litter tray which she is put on to if she messes on the floor etc.  She is scolded (although not severely) when she messes on the floor,and praised if she uses the tray. My partner is starting to give me the " the dog will have to go if it isn’t house trained soon" look.  So any help with speeding up the process would be very much appreciated. Ant

Response:

Hello Ant,

> Hi > We have an English/bull mastiff puppy (9weeks)  I would really > appreciate any guidance on the best way to housebreak her, we > presently have a litter tray which she is put on to if she messes on > the floor etc.

Putting her on an authorized break area AFTER the fact, isn’t going to teach her where she should have relieved herself a couple minutes ago… > She is scolded (although not severely) when she messes on the > floor

That’s not the point. The point IS, ANY confrontation will cause stress and anxiety, and will teach her that all she’s got to do is make a mistake on the floor, and you’ll pay her 100% of your undivided attention. THAT’S WHY DOGS DON’T HOUSEBREAK. We inhibit them, with our inappropriate efforts to houstrain them. > and praised if she uses the tray. > My partner is starting to give me the " the dog will have to go if it > isn’t house trained soon" look.

I’d suggest a new partner. > So any help with speeding up the process would be > very much appreciated.

Tell your partner it’s either the dog or you. And then follow the advice below… > Ant

HOUSEBREAKING The more you try to "housebreak" her, the more she will do it, and you will never get it done. Here are directions that will quickly get you in good shape with her, but you must follow the directions exactly. Part of the solution is to teach the dog to relieve himself on command, so that the dog knows the purpose of his trip outside, and that he’s got two minutes to relieve himself. That can be done in a couple of days, with a determined effort to supervise and walk the dog as needed when appropriate breaks are necessary, or when the dog shows signs that he needs to go out. Two minutes of standing in one appropriate break area, without walking or talking (which would will only distract the dog.) The request to take a break, should be asked, and if the dog sniffs the ground he should be praised. If he looks around at the birds or other distractions, a second request to take a break should be given. If he sniffs the ground he should be told he’s a good boy,if not, he should elapse the two minutes without walking around and return inside. If he did not relieve himself, constant supervision will be necessary until the dog again shows signs of needing to go. When that happens, it may only be five minutes after having just been out, he should be offered another break, and the same procedure should follow. Two minutes, and that’s it. No more than two requests to relieve himself, and no unnecessary walking. He should be handled on a six foot lead, to prevent hem from wandering around, and getting distracted from his task. You may not have just a housebreaking problem, but also a behavior problem. Every time you react to your dog’s housebreaking mistake, you are reinforcing it as a negative attention getting device. Here’s what you need to do to end your dog’s ability to pull your chain: The behavior is being reinforced when you confront the dog about the behavior. This becomes a vicious cycle, the punishment or scolding only create more stress and anxiety, which may cause other behavior problems as a replacement, even though confronting the dog did seem to "work." Obviously, confronting the dog hasn’t worked, and that should not have been the recommended method to deal with this, or any behavior or housebreaking problem. Keeping the lead on you dog while you go about the house is often recommended, and might occasionally work. You can’t just tie a dog on your belt, and expect him to act like a key chain. The only time the dog should be on lead with you, is when the dog is properly on command. Otherwise, the restriction will cause stress and further promote other behavior problems. How can you deal with the dog tied to you, if you haven’t learned proper lead handling techniques? The pup isn’t a sack of sand, that can be dragged around and dropped anywhere you put it.  Any pulling on the dog’s collar will cause out of control behavior. It’s called the opposition reflex. Now, how do you deal with this? It’s real simple, but you have to not let the dog see your reaction, or he’ll still be "rewarded" for the crime. Ignore the incident. Walk right past the "mistake." It wasn’t a mistake, and you can’t call your physical or verbal attention into the problem without creating more difficulty for yourself. Prearrange a soda can with six pennies in it, in a convenient central location. The can must be picked up silently and unobtrusively, and as you casually, in the presence of the dog, walk by the "dirty deed," you should just ask, "what’s that?" as you subtly drop the can next to the spot, without saying ANYTHING further. Continue doing something else for a moment, and ask the pup if he’d like to do something, like go outside, or anything to get him out of the way, so that you may clean the spot and retrieve the can without him observing and hearing you cuss under your breath about the mess and extra work. When the dog returns to that room with you, he’s going to look at the spot, and look back up at you. You must tell him he is a good boy, and sound like you really mean it. This will blow the dog’s mind, and will render his negative attention getting device that he’s using against you, useless. With a couple of examples of this, the dog will begin to search for other ways to command your attention. Hopefully, he will pick a positive attention getting device. All dogs need attention. What you need to do, is give him that attention prior to the dog getting into trouble. Any time the dog makes even brief eye contact, or glances out of the corner of his eye at you, that moment requires prolonged (5-15 seconds) of non physical praise, unless the dog is right by your side. Is it any wonder that the following sig file has generated more complaints to my personal email than any other controversial post I have made to date, bar none?:                                             caveat If you have to do things to your dog to train him, that you would rather not have to do, then you shouldn’t be doing them. If you have a dog trainer that tells you to jerk your dog around, choke him, pinch his ears, or twist his toes, shock, shake, slap, scold, hit, or punish him in any manner, that corrections are appropriate, that the dog won’t think of you as the punisher, or that corrections are not harmful, or if they can’t train your dog to do what you want, look for a trainer that knows Howe. Sincerely, Jerry Howe, Wits’ End Dog Training http://www.doggydoright.com Nature, to be mastered, must be obeyed.                       -Francis Bacon- There are terrible people who, instead of solving a problem, bungle it and make it more difficult for all who come after.  Who ever can’t hit the nail on the head should, please, not hit at all.                      -Nietzsche- The abilities to think, rationalize and solve problems are learned qualities. The Wits’ End Dog Training Method challenges the learning centers in the dogs brain. These centers, once challenged, develop and continue to grow exponentially, to make him smarter. The Wits’ End Dog Training method capitalizes on praising split seconds of canine thought, strategy, and timing, not mindless hours of forced repetition, constant corrections, and scolding.                   -Jerry Howe-

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