Potty Confession- and advice needed!

[Peanut's Mom 6]

Sooo, we are still using pee pads around here. I know, I know:)....we had a vague idea of training Peanut off of them, but then we wound up moving in temporarily with my parents, and then my husband got a promotion at work, all of which is wonderful, but we have longer, more erratic schedules and no longer have a dog walker. We were fine with this as Peanut has been perfect for MONTHS on his pads, and really only used them when alone during the day. However, over the past month or so he has started peeing and pooping in the same exact spots in my mom's den and dining room. He will still go outside or on his pads, too (especially when home alone in his pen), so I'm not sure what's up with that. We even switched him over to a different "style" of potty tray that has a grid on top so it doesn't feel so soft-he will use it, but still also "use" the dining room rug. He is slowly ruining my mom's house, and I am VERY nervous this behavior will continue when we move into our new house in a few months. Is there any advice at all? He is currently confined to the kitchen for a lot of the day now due to his behavior. The only thing I could think of was maybe use a different brand of pad, switching them as soon as they get soiled? I am desperate here!

PS: Since I know I have been gone a while due to the aforementioned more hectic lifestyle, I don't think I ever shared a photo of Peanut's first birthday. Hopefully once I take my boards in a month or so I will get back to being a more regular poster:)

[Peanut's Mom 6]

Also, forgot to add-we have gone back to giving him a treat and praising lavishly when he does use the pad, however even minutes after that he will still go and use the dining room rug.

[Marlen 5,860]

What a cute boy! Now, as for the pads. I don't think that changing the brand will make a difference. He is using them, right? It's not like he refuses to use a specific brand. Rugs are our worst fear here in my household. Fist of all, buy an odor remover. If the rug smells even a little, he'll use it. Then, use some bitter apple, or I use slightly diluted vinegar. It repels them The praise and treat are good methods but do scold him when you catch him eliminating. And of course I don't mean hit the dog, talk to him sternly (no need to yell, dogs can understand the tone of our voice) and give him a 'time out'. I would put mine in a room and leave them there for 5-10 minutes. Dogs are social and believe it or not, removing them from your presence is a sort of "punishment"(only much more humane, you're not abusing the animal after all). Also, if it's possible, change the pads after he has soiled them. If he has peed on them, will he go poop on them as well? My puppy Jolie would only pee once and then if the pad wasn't clean, she'd soil anywhere. With the passage of time, she now poops and pees once and waits for us to change it. He might not like soiling his feet, so you'll have to change them regularly. And also, did you take him in your mother's house and establish the rules anew? Just like a puppy, don't let him have access everywhere and if you can, crate him/leave him in his pen until you can supervise him. I surely hope you'll be able to overcome this problem

[GMA 981]

What Markella said. You really have to make sure the spot does not have any scent of his business. Hopefully that will help him to stop. We had to do that for Bosco and it seems to work.

[Marley'sMom 60]

We had that issue too. Marley used the pads great and then started "expanding" his potty area. We had the carpets cleaned with a steam cleaner and nature's miracle, but I still didn't trust him, so....my husband built a "fence" out of cardboard that he attached to wooden blocks with a staple gun to fence off our dining room and our living room. Unfortunately, it's the first thing you see when you walk in our front door! But, we're hoping it's only for a little while. Then we'll try it out again eventually, but only when we can watch him closely. You really have to watch them like a hawk. It seems the minute you turn, they know it and go sleuth out a place to go. Gotta catch em in the act or when you scold them after, they look at you like, "What? What'd I do?"

[Marlen 5,860]

Anissa, my house is like that as well. It might not look really nice or pretty but it's functional, we even have painted the 'fence' in natural wood color and it blends in with the rest of the room

[Rteddy 628]

If someone else already mentioned this and I missed it, I apologize. But I wanted to mention also that washing the rugs or anything else they eliminate on in regular detergent alone often isnt good enough to completely rid it of the scent. Although we often can't smell it after washing, a small amount of the scent does remain behind and THEY can smell it. To completely get rid of it you need to get a product made for removing pet odors. I personally have not found a laundry detergent that does this and works well. Even most cleaners ( laundry or otherwise) you find at the grocery dont work well in my opinion such as Woolite. I have to go to the pet store and buy the bit more expensive products that you can only find at a pet supply store such as Petsmart. those work.

Edited July 23, 2013 by Rteddy