Rita is testing my patience. Hardly a day goes by that Vince doesn’t say “Now we know why they dumped you!” She can be such an angel . . only when she’s sleeping!
Rita Sleeping
She is so bad about peeing in the house. Thank goodness there’s only carpet in the two extra bedrooms and I keep those doors closed but . . there are some rugs. She’s great if I take her out ever hour but she doesn’t bother to “hold it” if no one is here and even if we are here, she won’t tell us when she has to go. Old Speck can go all day if we’re gone and never do anything and, so can Rita because she’s done it a few times but for the most part, she just doesn’t bother. When I’m over in the sewing room, I have to come back every hour and take her out. She knows what to do when we go out . . I don’t know what to do with her but she is going to have to change her ways because I can’t live with her doing that.
Yesterday I thought . . she’s not going to like it but I’m going to put her pillow and blanket in the kitchen and leave her in there while I’m sewing. I came back to the house to find this:
Rita’s Mess
The pantry door must not have been closed tight, she managed to open it, climbed up on those plastic storage boxes and got beans off the bottom shelf.
Vince said “You can’t blame her! She remembers the days when she had to forage for food and the dried beans probably seem similar to acorns to her.” I’m not saying I blame her but I am on about my last nerve with her!
I expected her to have a belly ache but I guess she either didn’t eat enough of them or she has a stomach of steel.
wanda jordan says
maybe cage her for awhile when you are gone and force her to hold it. I’ve never had and inside dog so can’t help much. But did have a cat that did this. Finally figured out he got mad when we left. So he got put.
How are the bluebirds doing? How about and update on them?
Judy H says
My daughter’s yorkie doesn’t seem to know the meaning of “wait” either. We have managed to teach her to use pee pads when she gets the urge, tho. I just keep a few pee pads on each end of the house, and she uses them regularly. At first we had to praise her like crazy when she used them, but she figured out that using them was a good thing and peeing anywhere else didn’t earn her the same praise. Sometimes she runs to one of us to receive praise and we gladly give it! MUCH better than cleaning up pee all the time like before!
swooze says
No chance of a bladder infection or UTI?
Vickie VanDyken says
ROFLOL I feel your pain. We had to give away a dog once that would not stop pooping in the house?? I have a dog door and a fenced yard??? I guess dogs are like people, some never learn?? LOL
I think its just the personality they are born with??? Good Luck is all I can say 🙂 I sure hope it works out, I can see that Vince is not going to be amenable to letting her go.
Bernice Ramsey says
When you leave the house put her in the smallest crate she will fit in. Wait two hours and then take her out. When she goes potty out side she gets a treat. Then leave her out for a while then when you go back out, back in the crate for her. This will take time. She has been doing this for along time. I would guess she was never a house dog before coming to you. Any time you can not watch her she is in the crate. By doing this you are training her mind and body. You can gradually expand the time. She may always have to stay in the crate when you are not there but better that than the alternative. If you would like some more help email me.
Terri S. says
I agree with this. The only dogs I ever had problems with going in the house were the ones I did NOT crate train. It really works.
Sue in Scottsdale, AZ says
I agree. The dogs I have crate trained are great. The ones I did not use the crate with gave me nothing but grief. Several of my dogs are Chihuahua mixes and they were fairly quick learners with the use of the cage. The crate, lots of praise, and very tiny pieces of treat (don’t give her big pieces) will help with Rita’s training.
Marky says
I totally agree. A dog will not mess in a small space it is confined to, or where it has to sleep. When we got our first dog (a puppy) we were told the way to house train was to learn the dog’s habits (like wanting to potty after eating) and provide the opportunity to fit the habits, reward good behavior, and confine the dog to a small area when you leave them alone; their mess is just as distasteful to them as it is to you, so they don’t want it close to them. Only give them free run of the house after they’ve proven they are house trained.
sharon says
We have had several chi dogs over the years. We learned to kennel them when we couldn’t be right there to let them out ever hour. In fact once when one was pregnant, we kenneled her, then left for the afternoon. We let them out when we came home. We thought she went out, but no, when we did find her under our bed, she was there with 4 new pups.
PattiLynn says
I’ve heard crate training works, but I’ve never had to try it. I do know our beloved animals can certainly be a trial. Good luck, Judy.
sharon says
I also agree with the crate training – used it with my puppy and it worked. he is 8 months now and I am not using the crate, he is pretty well trained and goes to the door to go out. he has an occasional accident, but its when I am not paying attention to his ques.
PegD says
Oh Judy I have felt your pain. I had a dog once that was fine when I was home, but leave her alone (only in her later years after her companion dog passed away) and she had such bad anxiety she peed in my living room and in my extra bedroom. Locked my the bedroom door and she chewed up the bottom of the door (in one day) to get in there and pee. She tore the molding off the basement door to get to the laundry room and ate a bunch of laundry. She ended up having surgery to remove some laundry she couldn’t pass (twice). Those were only a few incidents over the course of about 4 years. After shampooing my carpet every night and trying doggie anti-depressants, as well as barricades, kennels, different food etc., leaving her outside (fence and back door destruction), I started dreaming about closing off my kitchen with walls so she was at least on the tile. It was in the planning stages when I had some x-rays done on her. She had lots big tumors inside of her. I made the decision to have her put down then.She was miserable and so was I. So very sad but I couldn’t stand living with the dog pee smell and the destruction. When I found out she was very sick, the decision was easier than normal. She was crazy when no one was around and had to be tranquilized constantly when kenneled which vet frowned upon. Good luck with your trials. I know what it’s like to try to outsmart a dog and have it not work constantly. I got so I didn’t enjoy having a dog because my life was so miserable with the damage she did and that is sad because most dogs are so wonderful. Happy ending though, I had my carpet pulled up, floor sealed to eliminate the smell and new carpet. My new dog happily spends his time in a playpen in the kitchen when I’m not home and life is good.
Theresa says
Sorry about your loss. You made the right choice; with the number of tumors your dog was probably already in pain, and it’s our job as their companions to ensure that they don’t suffer.
Ellie says
I agree with Bernice Ramsey. Training her to a crate and then taking her right out will help her understand that she must only go in one place. It helps too to always use the same location when you go out. Only kill the grass in one spot! LOL!
Theresa says
Our new basset house Elly, when she’s trapped inside the house, will just go whenever she feels the need, like Rita. Elly spent the first couple of years of her life in a breeder’s pen, but luckily for her and for us, she failed to produce large enough litters and was dumped at the local pound, very, very thin.
She seems to be getting better without us having to do much, when we catch her at it, we scold her, but otherwise, just immediately clean up what we find and treat the spots with enzyme cleaners. I think she’s figuring it out from the other dogs.
Erin says
My daughter has a little pug, same problem (he is 6) so she has to crate him when they are not around. He has a big pen to go in, his bed a chew toy and water. It works fine with that now.
Diana G says
I am sure you probably have .. but have you taken her to the vet to see if something is wrong with her bladder or kidneys? My adopted son’s cat had a kidney infection that none of us knew about when the cat was here. I just thought he was upset about his litter box only being dumped every other day. He took him to the vet and gave him pills for the infection (found out the cat has Feline Leukemia too).
Good luck in whatever your decision with Rita, its hard to keep up with a dog who was feral then in a household.
Bobbie Schneider says
Have you tried a doggie diaper? My girlfriend used them on her small dogs. They never messed in the diaper. She took them off to go outside, back on inside. She put them through the was every couple days.
Claudia says
My sister in law uses doggie diapers too. She has several dogs and has no trouble with any of them.
Nancy Parisi says
My lovely granddaughter ‘let’ her parents have her dog for a few days so she could get settled…..about three years ago….and they still have the dog, who is also part Chihuahua. She pees all over the house, even tho they take her out frequently. They have acquired two part boxer puppies. Lila thinks she is the boss. When they get enough of her, they sit on her, literally. Lila also ‘tells’ on them when they do something she doesn’t like. Unfortunately the granddaughter’s fiance doesn’t like her, so she will not be going ‘home’. I think her days are numbered, because the pups are growing and could hurt her badly in play. Lila also is a yappy, yappy, yappy barker.
Sandi B says
My parents got an 8 month old Cavalier King Charles pup whose owner were gone a minimum of 12 hours per day. She was left locked in the tiled laundry room. She would pee and poop at will in the house. We finally crated her,
Sandi B says
My parents got an eight month cavalier King Charles spaniel who had spent her entire life in a tiled laundry room. She peed and pooped in the house at will. We got a crate and potty trained her from there. As soon as she peed in the house at will, crate training started all over. We used potty pads. Set the timer to taker her out. It’s been three years now, and she’ll go for several weeks without an incident. Her are willful acts, or sheer laziness. Not accidents.