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Post by jenandscott on Jun 23, 2006 9:37:58 GMT -5
We have a 4yr old Min Pin who has been kennel trained. He's used to being in the kennel when we are away, out when we are home. We recently got an 8X8 dog run but he won't "go" in it at all. We used to walk him, twice a day, but now put him in the run about four 30 minutes sessions a day. He only "goes" in his kennel, so we take his "kids" and put them in the run and show praise when he goes by them, but it hasn't worked. What would you reccommend we do to help him understand it's ok to "go" in the dog run, and to stop "going" in the kennel?
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Post by Aussienot on Jun 23, 2006 18:41:20 GMT -5
I had to giggle, from the title I expected this message to be about lure coursing, greyhound racing, or possibly training the dog to run along side a bike. In dog training terms, you want to housebreak your dog to eliminate in a different area. The first step is to understand the rules of housebreaking. dogden.proboards21.com/index.cgi?board=articles&action=display&thread=1074722872 You must go through the steps of housebreaking all over again. Take the dog into the dog run at all of the normal elimination times and praise and reward if you get a result. Keep trying to get the dog to eliminate in the run. It may be frustrating because for 4 years the dog has been programmed to go in the kennel, so it won't be easy to make the dog understand that now there is a new spot. A very important step is to thoroughly clean the kennel with an enzyme cleaner such as Nature's Miracle. Block the access to the kennel until just after the dog has eliminated in the dog run. Your dog cannot have free access to the kennel until he is reliable in the new spot. Watch your dog 100% of the time (not most of the time, not when you are cooking dinner, not when you can be bothered - 100% of the time. Clean the kennel with an an enzyme cleaner any time there is an accident, which there won't be as you are watching the dog 100% of the time, or preventing access to the kennel when the dog can't be supervised.
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Post by Nicole on Jun 24, 2006 7:01:33 GMT -5
In addition to following the steps that Aussie has stated, it may also help to put some of the dogs urine and/or stool in the run to help him to associate the new place with a potty place.
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Post by jenandscott on Jun 24, 2006 9:55:35 GMT -5
Thank you for your advice, I just have one clarification. For 4 years he's been going outside on our walks. Not in the kennel. The kennel WAS his place when we left the house, and that's the only time he was in there. Now that we have the run, we thought he'd eliminate in there. He won't, and since he's "housebroken" already, and we NEVER scolded him for eliminating in the kennel because we'd rather in there than on the carpet, his mind says it's OK to do it in there instead of the dog run? Does this sound right? Is THIS changable??? Thank you again for your help on this, we really love Jazzy, and want to help him work through this.
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Post by Aussienot on Jun 24, 2006 17:53:06 GMT -5
Yes, you have it right. He thinks the kennel is the toilet. To change him to a new toilet, you need to 'show' him what to do, and prevent him from using the old toilet area. If you do this consistently, eventually he will learn the new habit. I wasn't saying he isn't house trained, but establishing a new toilet area is exactly the same training process as house training the first time.
The things that make him think the kennel is the place to go are habit, and smell. Change the habit, eliminate the smell, and it will be easier for him to transition to the new spot.
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Post by jenandscott on Jun 27, 2006 12:15:56 GMT -5
SUCCESS!!!! Thank you very much, he finally "peed" in the run...now to get him to "eliminate" the other way........ lol.
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