As most of you know by now I have a 3 1/2 month old white german shepherd puppy that I am training up to be my service dog.  She is doing well in all her training except one thing is worrying me. 

She house trained really quickly and just as quickly learned to go potty just in the puppy pen.  The puppy pen is in the corner of our yard that my husband built a low fence around with an opening for the dogs to slip through to go potty but to deter children and others to go in.  Sheena will play and then stop playing to run to the puppy pen and go then go play agian.  This is all great when we are home.  Clean yard and so on.  But the problem is when we go out to parks or businesses.

For example we took Sheena out on Sunday to two businesses where she was perfect.  No barking or leaving my side and sitting wonderfully by me when people pet her.  Then we all went to a park to have lunch where she also got lunch and water.  We were at the park for a little over 3 hours.  She was wonderful with all the dogs and children she met.  At one point a little boy around 2 came up and used her as a pillow while she was lying down.  She didn't budge the whole time.  When he got up I got him to give her a treat and just as we taught her too she licked it out of his hand.  So she is doing well in everything except this one problem. All told we were gone from the house for 5 hours.  She never once went potty.  We tried everything to get her to go even taking her over to spots where others had gone.  She still won't go.  As soon as we got home she rushed over to the puppy pen and went.

I worried that she had injured herself by holding it so long and being so young but my vet assures me she is fine.  So as you can see my problem is not that she goes where she shouldn't it is that she won't go when I want her to.  She needs to learn to go when I tell her it is ok for the time we can't get home till a certain time. 

Any suggestions would be very helpful.

Watch her in the pen and when she goes use a lot of praise and a word that she will associate with doing the business.  Get her used to the word then use it when you're out and about and you want her to go.  I have a rescue and it took me three years to realise that 'hurry up' was the signal for a wee!  Much easier with yours as you can chose the word!  My mate uses 'empty' but you can use what you like - as long as she associates it with toileting and praise.

No doubt I will be shot down as I'm no expert, admittedly.  But it worked for me. Good luck. :)

Thank you so much for your reply but she knows the command word.  We use "Hurry up".  And we will tell her to do this some times when we are out in the yard and just before we are going in or going out for a car ride.  When she hears it she will run immediately to the puppy pen and go.  So she knows the word the problem I think she is having is that whenwe give the command and her puppy pen is not around she doesn't know what to do.  She looks at us and will whine but not do anything.

There are two possible reasons that I can think of for this. One is that she is not confident enough away from your home to relieve herself, especially if the place smells of other dogs; or that she has associated your command 'hurry up' not just to 'weeing' in general, but specifically 'weeing-in-the-pen'. You may have to think about teaching her another instruction that means 'weeing-away-from-home'.
:)

I think you hit it right on the head with the second one.  I know it is not a confidence thing.  She has no problems with new places, people or dogs having been socializing her like crazy.  I honestly think she knows "Hurry Up" means to potty because whether on or off leash you tell her to "Hurry up" and she races to the puppy pen and does go.  Everytime never fails.  So I think she is looking for the pen when I give the command.  I got one suggestion from a friend on line about taking some of the leaves she has eliminated on, putting them in a baggy and taking them with us when we go out so when we get to a place I want her to go her scent can be put down.  I am hoping this will work.

It's not unusual for a dog not to want to wee or poo away from home. The dog I have now would not go outside our garden until her hormones started to kick in - and then the urge to leave her scent took over. I've gone from worry about her not going outside our garden, to annoyance that she not only will wee but will poo three or four times just out of enjoyment from doing it somewhere different. :-)

I have had an intact GSD bitch who didn't like to go away from home, but she would eventually go when she had no other choice.  She was a show dog, so we were often away from home longer than she could hold out.

If you are truly worried about it, I would take some of the "scented" soil from her area in the garden and deposit it wherever you generally take her for a walk.   Take her for a walk when you know she would normally have to wee or poo and make sure she gets a whiff of the scented soil.   If she does anything, praise her.

Stacey

Had to laugh at your first paragraph, Stacey. I have a friend who admits to being fascinated with other people's loos as a child!

If this continues to be a problem as she gets older, then could you put a square of carpet in the puppy pen and use that on walks etc. so she has a familiar place to go?

Lol, a lovely theory, and having the same problem too, I am interested in the tips and advice, but I would feel such a wombat carrying a bit of carpet to the park and putting it down for my dog to wee on!!!:-)

As long as she empties herself in the morning before you go out I really wouldn't worry. 
Bitches in particular are very fussy where they go, it won't do her any harm not to go for 5 hours.  If she was really desperate, she would go.

Sandra

Chelsea was like this until she was 8 or 9 months old.  We would walk for AGES and she would refuse to go till we were back in her own garden.  We went on holiday and had to BEG her to go!!  She worked it out eventually.  Believe it or not this is exactly what I thought your post would be about LOL

Wendy