how much problem is "couldn't be housebroke"? - adopted, now pics!

[patandchickens]

Need to decide by this evening, preferably, or tomorrow morning at latest.

Looking at 5 month old yellow lab pup in shelter, excellent temperament and very 'people-y', does not seem any *more* hyperactive than your average young lab, am seriously seriously interested.

Puppy was an owner surrender on account of "could not be housebroken, kept peeing on the bed and other places". I *think* his neuter surgery has been since shelter intake but am not certain, if that matters

How much of a"project" is this likely to be? Is a someone-sort-of-tried-to-housebreak-it-but-not-really dog tougher to housebreak than one that's totally unfamiliar with the idea? Is it likely some innate feature of the dog's personality making it difficult to learn this lesson, or is it (as shelter staff suggests) almost certainly just that the previous owners did not really get off their butts and approach the problem properly, and as long as I am diligent it should be no different than any other dog?

What do you think?

 

[redhen]

I wouldnt do it unless you are ready for a lot of stress and a pissy house for awhile.
Can it be trained? Yes, i'm SURE that it can be, as labs are very smart and want to please thier owners...
but in the meantime...

Also.. you have children? Make SURE that dog is mentally "sound" before you take it home..
Can you do a trial placement?? To see how he is when hes actually living with you..
He may act all kissy and waggy now... but with a shelter dog... there is just SO much of their past that you just dont know....
Good luck! I love labs..

(well once they are done being spazzes at around 2 yrs old..

..)

 

[rodriguezpoultry]

Sorry, but all the labs I've ever had were the easiest dogs I've ever had to housebreak.


That being said...Marley was a nut-job. Kept pottying EVERYWHERE in the house. One day, my dad had enough and walked outside with Marley after all the dogs had eaten. Marley usually just ran back to the door while Thunder, Vida and Pogo went and did their business. Dad grabbed Marley's face in his hands and made him WATCH Thunder. As Thunder did his thing, Dad said "Go Potty".

It was like a lightbulb went off in Marley's head. He has never had an accident since.

Thunder was innately potty-trained. The stray female we adopted housebroke easily...all of them we were able to housebreak.


Go ahead and try it! Worse comes to worse, it can always be an outdoor/indoor dog! (Or you can give it to me!!

)

 

[Wynette]

A dog breeder friend has told me more than once that if a large breed is spayed/neutered before reaching sexual maturity, there is a chance it will never truly be able to housebroken in some cases (but, I would venture a guess that it's surely not a huge percentage).

 

[Katy]

Several years ago my folks adopted an adult rat terrier from the shelter that had been adopted out and then returned because they said she wasn't housebroken and kept messing in the house. They brought her home and she's never made a mess in their house in all these years that they've had her. I don't know what the issue was with the first family that adopted her.....did they leave her in the house for hours and hours expecting her to hold it forever.....were they just looking for an excuse to return her, I don't know, but she's a very sweet dog.

The one you're considering is still a pup and some of them just take a lot longer till they can control it. I thought my housedog would never mature enough to be able to hold it for any amount of time, but she finally did. I think a lot of times people just aren't willing to invest the effort to get past that puppy training stage....turns out to be a lot more work than they had anticipated.

 

[Roy]

IMO there is no such thing as a Lab that can't be housebroken, just takes time and patience...

 

[rancher hicks]

Well now I have a friend who paid big bucks for a Gordon Setter. They finally had to surrender her to the "rescue" cuz she just could not be trained. She to peed on the bed, dug the sheet rock off the wall trying to get past the gate. They had other dogs but Gwendelyn just could not be trained.

I say if your home 24/7 and can devote the time to train the dog fine, if not don't do it.

Hope you make the right choice for you and the dog.

Rancher

 

[Ema]

OMG really!!!! I've had my share of problem dogs but I can honestly tell you ALL dogs can be housebroken, if the dog is already 5 or 6 months old I can honestly tell you its going to take a lot of understanding and patience.

rule of thumb is, if you give your dog food and water about 30 minutes later take the dog outside to relief him or herself. I would give food and water at the same time. this routine has always worked for us, and we have all labs except for one German sheppard/st, bernard. I kept my dogs in a room where the floors could easily be cleaned and mopped. Remember any pee scent will cause the dog to keep peeing in that area. so each and everytime wipe the area with bleach water. I have a spray bottle mixed with a bleach solution just in case the dogs have an accident. which barely ever happens.

once the dog learns the routine he or she will sit at the door or whine to go out. If the dog has an accident in the house tell them its not acceptable and clean it up in front of them. I know maybe sounds weird to some, but I would take them in the same room and I would act upset no yelling or anything but I would talk tot he dog and would say things like...NO you can't do this, this happens ourside, after cleaning it I would take the droppings outside withthe dog and I would tell the dog, here is where you go. and would leave the dog outside for 10 to 15 minutes. I have a dog pen so I could do that.

bottom line is all dogs are trainable, they just need someone to show them, be patient and love them. If you need to get pee pads, Olderly pee pads for the beds are cheaper than the ones for dogs, trust me!!!!!

if you want the dog, get the dog, trained the dog, love the dog and turn that dog into your baby!!!! Good luck with your decission!!!

 

[Redyre Rotties]

Quote:
This is not a dog that cannot be trained. This is a dog that was not managed. Dogs who are properly confined and exercised do not dig sheetrock off walls. Dogs that are properly supervised, confined, and trained do not pee on beds and etc.

Most of the time most dogs can be housetrained. There ARE some who are very tough cases. Sometimes if a puppy was raised on wire, or forced to live in dirty conditions, or taken away from his littermates way too early, they simply do not grasp the concept of keeping the den area (your house) clean.

The most success is had by strongly rewarding the dog for all outdoor elimination, TELLING the dog what the action is as it is happening (for example, say "Go peepee" while the dog is peeing), and careful confinement and supervision while inside the house.

I think you should get this dog understanding that it can be VERY HARD to housetrain some dogs with the above mentioned background issues.

 

[snewman]

I agree that the dog was probably improperly trained. Have you had dogs before? Are you familiar with crate training? In my opinion this is the easiest way to quickly house train a dog. The premise is that when the dog cannot be supervised (ie, you are at work, taking a shower, running errands, etc, the dog goes in the crate, where they will not want to pee or poop because it's a limited space. EVERY time you let the dog out of the crate, he goes immediately outside to pee and poop, where he is praised for doing so. Essentially, the dog should not be inside unsupervised at all until he starts to get the idea. The only appropriate correction for peeing in the house comes if you catch him in the act. If he's unsupervised he can pee in the house and have no consequence, which will make it harder for him to learn where and when it is appropriate to relieve himself. The caveat of this is that, to be fair to the dog, you spend a lot of time supervising him outside of the crate. He doesn't just get shut up inside all the time. As you and he get to know the routine, he will have to be in the crate less and less. The problem with closing a dog in, say, a garage, kitchen, bathroom, whatever, is that there is enough space there for him to relieve himself and still have plenty of clean space to lie down, providing no incentive not to relieve himself. The crate is large enough to be comfortable, but small enough to naturally discourage the dog from peeing/pooping in there. Keep in mind that young puppies should not be expected to hold their bladder and bowels for very extended periods of time. As dogs mature they are more capable of holding it for longer periods. Using common sense, making sure the dog has had plenty of opportunities to relieve himself before crating, and making it a nice, solid routine will all help to quickly help housetrain this dog. You have to keep an eye on him, catch him in the act in the house and get him outside. Ideally you catch him just before the act in the house and get him outside, and praise him like crazy. Good luck, I say go for it!