Housetraining....Heeeelp !!!

[Candy]

Hi,
I realy need help ! I have a 8 month old Yorkshire(female).She was a gift for my 90 year old mother(long life dream) but,she realized that she couldn't take care of a dog no more ! So...I got it back ! I already have a 9 year old Bichon (female) and a 1 year old German shepherd (also female) and I love them all.But...my little Yorkshire pees all over the place even if I have peeing pads.I must say that I have been gone on vacation for over 1 month and am soon leaving for an other 3 weeks.I've had her now for 4 months.While I'm gone,I have a sitter at home since for a living,I keep intellectualy handycaped adult persons (3).I bring the Sheperd with me.The sitter tried also to housebreake the Yorkshire but with no success either.I have a backyard where the two other dogs go to do their (stuff).How and what must I do ? And should I wait till I get back from vacation ? I'm leaving on the 22nd of september and coming back on the 13th of october !!! Please heeeelp !!!

[KOPsRobyn]

Hi there,

Although house-training an older dog can be a lot tougher than when they were puppies, it can be accomplished with persistence and lots of patience on your behalf. You should take her to the peeing pads when she first wakes up in the morning and before bed at night, after any sort of playing or activity, as well as about half an hour after meals. In between these times you should pop her on them every few hours. She will tell you when she needs to go, by circling restlessly and sniffing the floor. It is important that she understands where exactly you want her to go, as ultimately she will want to do what pleases you. You can do this by praising her and giving her a reward when she goes to the toilet on the peeing pad. If you catch her in the act of toileting elsewhere, and only if she is doing so at that exact moment, you should say NO in a loud voice and take her to the peeing pad. There is no point taking her back to her mistake afterwards and telling her off as she will have forgotten about it and won’t associate you being cross with making a mess inside. It may take her some time to come to terms with what is required of her, so it is probably advisable to wait until you have returned from vacation to begin consistent intensive training.

I hope this helps and all the best with the training!