[Malsua]

That’s a very young dog, I doubt you will be able to get it mostly housebroken until it’s at least 9-10 weeks of age at the very earliest. Frankly I wouldn’t expect it to be entirely house broken(I.E. No accidents ever) until 20+ weeks.

The rule we use is that the pup will need to go between 5-30 minutes after consuming water or food.

At night, they can typically hold it about 1 hour per month for the first 4 months, then depending on the breed, they can often go from like 9pm to 5-6am without a problem. They won’t be able to hold it from 6pm to 9am or something like that until they are adults.

Use the cage! Get them used to sleeping in it. You’re going to have to get a small one for them to start with otherwise they will just go on one side.

After they comfortably sleep in the cage, you can expand it. We use a pen around the cage and put a puppy pad on the floor. With the cage open, The pup will typically wake up in the middle of the night if it has to go, go out to the pad, do the business and go back in the cage.

This does not relieve your duty to get up at 2-3am for the next month and let her out to go, but it will keep the puppy from being distressed and you won’t feel guilty.

After enough trips outside the pup will have a strong bias to want to go outside and eventually make the whole night without using the puppy pad.

Every dog is different, I’ve found labs to be fairly easy to train but even 8 weeks is too young to expect it to be entirely house broken.

[MrChips]

(1) The best carpet cleaner is called CAPTURE, a white powder that comes with a pre-spray. Use it liberally, so that it soaks up the urine (or whatever), and you let it dry 24 hours and then vacuum. All gone. It is usually available at Home Depot or Lowes in the carpet section of the store , not with the cleaning products section.

(2) Puppies will be puppies. Crate train for sure. But let them be puppies. They need a lot of play space and things to chew on. You can also buy anti-chew spray for furniture. But, then, you have to forgive. I have a prized cedar chest that my puppy chewed the corner off of, and today I joke that "It's OK; it's symmetrical because she also chewed off the other corner!" :-)

(3) Invest in some sturdy dog gates. You can barricade the puppy in the kitchen, or any room, and later use them to protect a chair or sofa when you leave the house.

(4) Give it 18 months. Puppies mellow as they age. Reward with dog treats appropriately. And buy the good food at the expensive pet food shop. Spend the money.

[Mister Da]

Puppies have a lot of energy. You are gonna have to play HARD with her to wear her out, which will calm her down. Long, brisk walks will burn that energy.

Puppies pee & poop after every meal & after any significant activity, as well as immediately upon awakening, so immediately after any food or activity, take her out to the area you want to become the dog's “toilet”. Grassy areas are preferred. Don't leave until she has done something, then immediately praise her for doing a good job. Get her into the habit of food/poop/praise.

Dogs also like to mark territory, so take her for walks around the yard & neighborhood, on leash, allowing her to sniff, pee, & poop/praise several times. By watching the pup, you will learn her “signs” as to when she needs to go outside. Pick a phrase like “good girl” & say it EVERY time she does good, & say it like you mean it - dogs know your emotions better than you do.

Note that puppies have small, weak bladders & bowels, which must be relieved frequently. She cannot hold it all night yet, so be prepared to take her out at night. Could that whining at night be a cry to go outside? Very likely. That's just how my dog tells me that at 3am, & he's 7 years old.

You're gonna have to scold her when she goes inside, but don't go ballistic, don't scream & shout, & don't rub her face in it; be calm but firm, & calmly take her to her mess & say “NO” several times, then immediately take her to her outside toilet area. She will get the message soon enough.

Your dog will emulate your behavior, so if you act crazy, she will act crazy, too. If you act violently, she will, too, & with a large dog, you do not want that. If calm, cool, & behaved is what you want, you must act that way around the dog. You are the teacher, she is the pupil. You are the pack leader & she will try to act like you.

If you start letting the pup sleep in your bed, you're gonna have a tougher time later breaking the habit. A whining puppy for a few nights is bad, but years of a whining, barking, scratching dog begging to get into the bedroom is a long term nightmare. Warm bedding, maybe a blanket she can crawl under, plus your patience will get her used to sleeping alone.

Lastly, dogs have a very good internal clock. My dog knows when it is 7am & 4:30pm - feeding times. He knows we sit outside a 7pm during the warm months. He knows it is Sunday - going to the park day. He knows if we have stayed up too late, & insists that it is time for bed. This is a good thing, making life easier for both of us. Be consistent, create a routine for both of you!

[MrChips]

Well, I know this sounds crazy, but, consider getting another one! Two will keep each other company. It will not only help with the separation anxiety, but the two will keep each other company all their lives, run together, play together, explore together. They are pack animals, after all. I have two golden retrievers, and I have experienced great pleasure in watching this bond manifest itself over the years.

[KGeorge]

I don’t know if this will work for you because I don’t know how big (stride wise) Lab pups are, but “wee pads” could solve your pee problem. Put her water bowl on it. She should drink, take a couple of steps & sprinkle. Our youngest house trained herself this way. Amazon has the best price we found (giant economy size box)

Congratulations on your new fur baby! That’s the last of the Good Ol’ Gal/ Boy sleep for a while, but it is sooo worth it. God made little ones (all of ‘em) so cute for a reason.

[Apple Pan Dowdy]

Julie, If you do this right you will have a best friend who will love you unconditionally and be ready to defend your life with hers.

May I suggest that you get copies of "How to be Your Dog's Best Friend" and "THE ART OF RAISING A PUPPY" by Monks of New Skete. (link to their books on Amazon) . They are amazing books .... "For more than thirty years the Monks of New Skete have been among America's most trusted authorities on dog training, canine behavior, and the animal/human bond."

About 15 years ago I found the first of these books in the library as I was desperately trying to understand how to train (and live with) our first lab puppy, Huck Finn. It was a life saver. I rushed right up to PetSmart and bought a huge lab-sized crate and the wonderful adventure began.

This is Huck Finn (all grown up) and our 2nd Lab puppy, Millie.


When Huck Finn went to Doggie Heaven, we got Morgan to be a companion for the then grown up Millie.

Another lesson, I learned the hard way....... Sometime after Morgan was old enough to be allowed to roam the house out of the crate all day, he would drag something out of my closet and chew it up when I would leave the house. After several shoes, I was so mad and mentioned it that afternoon at PetSmart when buying dogfood. Their trainer heard me and put her arm around my shoulders, comfortingly, and said, "Morgan is not doing this in anger. He is scared when you leave and he comforts himself by chewing on something with your scent on it." She then explained to me that each time I leave the house I need to say, I'll be right back" (same exact words every time, just like you do a command). Then leave for a few minutes and come back in and give a treat with good boy praises. Do this each day for a week with progressively longer periods of time. After that Morgan never chewed up anything again. He knows what "I'll be right back" means now and feels secure in that.

Best of luck to you with your new puppy and FReep mail me to keep me posted on your progress.

[Joe 6-pack]

WOOOF!

The Doggie Ping list is for FReepers who would like to be notified of threads relating to all things canid. If you would like to join the Doggie Ping Pack (or be unleashed from it), FReemail me.

[novemberslady]

Thanks for posting this thread.

I've been waiting for my next best friend to find me since last summer. I never pick the dog, they always pick me :)

It's been awhile since I've had a puppy and the advice here will help if I've become a little rusty.

[central_va]

[susan_wv]

Feed the puppy three times a day. Crate the puppy for 30 minutes after eating. Then take the puppy outside to do its business. Obviously, crate the puppy at night, and take the puppy out first thing in the morning and last thing at night. Labs are really smart. The puppy will learn. Also, if you see the puppy starting to squat in the house, immediately take the puppy outside. Tune out the whimpering. You have to be the boss, not the dog! (And never use the crate for punishment.)

[Mister Da]

I left something out important: Toys.

Your pup is gonna want to chew. She is teething & its itches & hurts. Chewing helps this. Gets some chew toys & get her interested in them by playing with them together. Tug of war or keep away or throw the ball, or whatever seems to interest her. Being a retriever, she should like retrieving the ball or frisbee. You can burn a lot of energy off her by teaching her to retrieve a frisbee. Buy a dog frisbee that she cannot chew up. A real frisbee will not last 5 minutes, & swallowing plastic is not good - big vet bill or dead dog.

Just beware the chew. Either give her lots of things to chew or she will find something to chew - your furniture, Ipad/Iphone, power cords (very common & obviously dangerous), doors, windows, the refrigerator.

Oh, & stop using the crate as a jail. If you are trying to stop her from messing in the house, then maybe she needs to go outside more frequently. Obviously, you want her to pee/poop EVERY time outside, so YOU are gonna have to make that happen. Until she builds some control, you should take her outside if you even imagine she acts like she may need to go.

[RegulatorCountry]

Labs have a well-earned reputation for being wild puppies, and puppyhood lasts longer for them, two to three years. Exercise, exercise, exercise, get a throw toy or ten, she’ll eventually know them all by name and even color.

The reward is the sweetest dog in the world and a smart one, once she settles into laid-back Lab adulthood.

Housebreaking, I’d suggest keeping her in an area with tile, a bath or laundry, with a “pee pad” when you can’t tend to her and take her out when the need appears to be arising.

Crates, never done it, I understand many have great success but it just seems isolating and distancing to me, I want to bond with my dogs. That’s just me, though.

I wouldn’t dream of keeping my dogs out of the bed at night, myself. They love it so, great company. Hope you have at least a queen sized one though, lol. They root their way around and manage to sprawl over most of it.

[beebuster2000]

try these guys book: the monks of new skete, they are the best

http://www.amazon.com/Art-Raising-Puppy-Revised/dp/0316083275/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1373810711&sr=1-1&keywords=monks+of+new+skete+dog

[beebuster2000]

not to worry bout the clock. go this website and put it on loop

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9eljNEwtJE4

[Mustard]

You need to get Cesar Milan’s (The Dog Whisperer) book and/or watch his show and adopt his training methods. We adopted a 3 month old Jack Russell that was nuts!! Took us about a month to get her under control and housebroken using Cesar’s philosophy.

Everyone now amazes how well behaved out little Cookie Lee is. She’s a pack MEMBER, not the pack LEADER.

[aubreys_mom]

Congrats on your new family member. I’ve crate trained all my dogs and my newest little boy, Buckley (Chi-Jack mix) still sleeps in his crate, I got him at 9 mos or so, we think someone dumped him. He is a such a sweetie and now at 3 years old, he still sleeps in his crate, it’s his refuge :) He just has to make sure there isn’t a cat sleeping in there before he goes in at night.

My border collie mix hated the crate, he would cry, the crate only lasted a week, but we were vigilant about taking him out a couple of times a night, and with tons of praise, he learned very quickly. My rottweiler LOVED the crate, he slept in it until he outgrew it and then he moved onto the bed. He had his own blankie and pillow. I lost them within 4 months of each other, at ages 14 and 12. I miss them every day but my little boy has been such a joy. I was 8 months without a dog, wondering if I could ever fill the empty space in my heart, but then my neighbor found my little boy wandering around the neighborhood. He was so skinny and dirty, just lost. But such a little love, we brought him into our home and we never looked back.

Just be patient. Tons of praise, if you think you’re overdoing it, bump it up a notch! They learn so quickly and all they want is to please you. Love her and you’ll have a faithful companion for many years. Best to you!

[sweetiepiezer]

Problem is that it is a Canadian Black Lab, eh?

[Sans-Culotte]

1. Crate training has always worked for my dogs.

2. Six weeks is young for a puppy. A breeder should not adopt them out at that age.

[sweetiepiezer]

Get a couple of these, should help.

http://safeshare.tv/w/PKYPTOarUx

[grellis]

Put an article of clothing that has a strong concentration of your smell on it in with pup at night. Make sure it’s something you don’t mind giving up for good. I’ve had one stubborn pooch with which this trick has not worked—with her, a very firm “NO”—the only response she got for her crying—worked on the third try.