Beyond paper training?
by Lainie
ORIGINAL MESSAGE:
I have a six and a half month old male Maltese who was paper trained by his breeder when I got him two months ago. I prefer he go outside, so I put newspaper by the door, but walk him frequently to the same area outside. He is always happy to go outside and the trips are always productive. I have eliminated the newspapers now. My problem is he has now moved his morning relief period up...instead of waiting for me to get him outside at 6:30 am (my usual time), he has begun lifting his leg on my kitchen fireplace earlier. My first reaction is to take away his water bowl after 8 pm to see if that holds him off in the morning, but I'm not really comfortable withholding water from my dog. My other concern is that he never whines or cries to tell me he needs to go out. Is this typical of Maltese? I have had many other dogs and they always made it clear when they needed to get outside. I do not want to keep him paper trained all his life. Can Maltese learn to nudge bells or some such thing hanging off a doorknob to signal a message to their owners? I'd love to hear from other Maltese owners who have trained their dogs to go outside and not in the house at all. Thanks in advance!
DISCUSSION:
My baby stands by the patio door and paws at it. The clicking of her nails on the glass door usually gets our attention. I have heard of other people on the forum who have trained their babies to ring a bell by the door when they want to go outside. Hopefully you will get some good advice that will be helpful.
Sandee
Hi: I am the mother of the Bell Ring KoKo. When she was a puppy she didn't know how to let us know she had to go out. So everytime I took her out, I rang a small bell attached to the door frame. Rang it in her face for 2 days, than the second day her daddy walked out the door and she went over and rang the bell. I had her out so fast she didn't know what happened. That did it, every time she wants, out, to go upstairs (have a circular stairway they will not walk by themselves), empty water dish (she turns it over and rings the bell), you name it, if she needs something she rings the bell and tells me what she needs. Shayna on the other hand will not ring the bell, but if Shayna has to go, KoKo rings the bell for her. Also if KoKo rings the bell, Shayna comes running she wants out too. Which tells me she knows what's up. Good luck and let us know how long it takes your baby to get the concept.
Shelley
Hi Lainie, I am the proud owner of 18 month old Buster who barks when he needs to go out. Don't ask how I trained him to do it..he just does it on his own. He was newspaper trained also. But after a month he just started holding it all nite and then in the morning I took him out. I started out with him in our small bathroom at nite with the papers and he used them. I tried to keep to a schedule of taking him out when I was home. During the day he was in our big master bathroom, again with the newspapers. He used the papers but again started holding until I or my hubby got home from work. Then all of a sudden one day I was in the kitchen fixing dinner and he came up to me and barked. I asked him what he wanted and he barked again. I said do you have to potty? And of course he barked again and went to the door. He even sometimes makes a sound that sounds like the word "out".
So teaching them to go out for me was very easy. Good Luck
Libby & Buster
Hi Lainie, My sweet 18 month old maltese Tuffy was never
paper trained; he was crate trained to go outside. It was
a long hard job; I had to be constantly alert for his body functions! The process took four months. If tuffy needs to go out
he will scratch at the door window.....if I am not in the
kitchen or in bed he will come to me a make a small growling
sound! (at which point I take him out) He also has the run
of the house when we're not home; he always "holds" it,
sometimes for up to eight hours til we come home. 99% of
the time I am home, but when I'm not he's so good about
waiting! I trained him using only positve measures and love.
Chris
To Sandee, Shelley and Libby - Thank you for the encouragement. Would you believe Zed began barking yesterday to let me know he wanted to go out? It is too early to tell if he really gets it. It's been raining here today, so I have been taking him out frequently when there is a lull in the downpours. I am interested in the bell signal and may try it, if the barking isn't consistent over the next few weeks. I also just realized Zed has probably been taking his cues from our thirteen year old Newfoundland Samson. Sam is so old he sleeps most of the time and when he does finally get up to go outside, we can't miss him because he's so huge and goes straight to the door. Zed has probably been going to the door and not making any sound, just like Sam! By the way - the Newfoundland and the Maltese look amazing together! One huge and totally black and the other tiny and totally white. They get along very well together, too. Thanks again for the suggestions - Lainie & Zed
Lainie
| Please bear in mind when reading topics pertaining to health issues, that most of these questions were answered by helpful Maltese owners with no formal education in veterinary medicine. When in doubt seek a professionals advice. |
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