Hi,

I'm new to this forum and also to puppy owning.  I just picked up my 10 week old white westie on Friday.  She's gorgeous!  But although she's peed and pooed on the newspaper I've put down for her, she's also done it elsewhere!  I'm taking her to the newspaper every hour and saying "busy" to try to encourage.  I've also ignored the mistakes she's made and really praised when she's done it where she should.  How long will it take for it to sink in for her?  Am I doing it correctly?

Any advice would be much appreciated.

Thanks

i found that letting them out or putting them on paper every half hour worked best, then everytime they were actually doing there business i said my chosen word( in your case,,, busy) now i kind of controll my dogs, i say the word and it happens, it works great,,, also sometimes puppys can take ages to potty train, keep at it and it will come, ten weeks i think is still early, sami

yes definately every half hour, and after everytime that she eats or drinks

Thanks for that.  Just to clarify, do you only say the word when they are actually doing it, or do you say it when you put them on the paper and again when they are doing it.  And how long do you leave them on the paper.  And do you not give it attention whilst it's on the paper.  Sorry, so many questions?

i have a 16week old ridgeback, and when i got him at 8 weeks, i left newspaper at back door but immediately started taking him out into the garden, every half hour or so and especially after eating, drinking, sleeping or playing. he picked it up almost straight away. have you a garden or safe outside area? if so, why not take the puppy there, rather than training to the paper and then having to retrain outside. my puppy has been clean indoors since day 3 of me having him.
i would say the words be clean when i first went outside and then again as he done the toilet and then praise a lot afterwards.

Is there some reason to train to paper as its usually far better to start taking them outside straight away. By training to paper you are infact training them that it  is ok to go indoors. However yes say the word when you take them out and then when they actually go with plenty of praise and or treats.

But is it still ok to take the puppy outside to toilet in bad weather?  I have taken her outside a couple of times, but it was raining yesterday and wasn't sure whether I ought to.  Also, how long do you leave it for them to do it.  I mean, what if you take them outside every half hour but they don't actually want to go.  How long do you give it before you come back in?  And when do you reduce the amount of times you take her outside?  Is it every half hour for weeks?

i used to say it whils they were doing it, thenjust praise them afterwards, after about say 3 weeks just test her/him, by letting it out into the garden/yard and sayin (busy) he/ she may or may not do business, if not keep it up and occationally testing her/him. always praise when needed, there is no specific time lengh for them to be on paper, we never put ours on paper, we used an encouragement spray first, waited for them to do business where we sprayed, then put paper down, we never disinfected the area where they had been because they used the smell to direct them back to that area, try buyin this spray, any pet store, also buy some repellent in liquid form, wash floors and skirting boards ect, to remove any previous accidents so your not confusing him/her,

iv tried my best not to confuse you, if so ask again, lol

sami

i agree with garden too, i didnt want to sound cruel, but since everyone else said it i dont fool bad now,,, lol, lol lol,

sorry,,
feel

Ditch the paper because it only teaches the pup that they're expected to mess indoors - the exact opposite of what you want! So take her outside after every play, every feed, every nap, and at least once every hour. Go outside with her and watch her - when she 'performs' say your chosen cue-word in a happy voice (not too excitedly or she'll stop!) so that she starts to associate the word with the action, then praise her. It's fine to take her outside in the garden when it's raining so don't worry about that. :-)

Any accidents indoors are always our own fault for not watching the puppy carefully enough and missing the little signals they give that they're uncomfortable. Just clean them up with biological washing liquid and say nothing. In a few weeks she should be pretty reliable. :-)

the week i got my puppy was the week that scotland was hit by awful gales and storms, wasnt dry for days, and pup still got put outside. unfortunately in britain, its bad weather a lot, and they have to get used to it. (i sound like a right bitch now)  i was out with him, 6am in my pyjamas saying "be clean, be clean" lol
he usually peed each time i took him out, and if he didnt after 3 or 4 minutes i would bring him back in and try again after 15 minutes or so. within a few days i got into his routine and knew exactly when he needed out and the signs he would give me. now at 16 weeks old, he pees every 2-3hours or so, and always lets me know when he needs out.
my friend got a puppy a week before me and was soft hearted on her, didnt take her out if it was cold or raining (in january??) and is now having major probs, pup keeps peeing in kitchen where she was paper trained to do.
good luck, and keep perservering, will work out in the long term.

If you do a search on here for house training you will get loads of info :)

Not wanting to go against people with years of experience but I trained my pup to do it on paper/in a tray from day one and stuck to it. I never knowingly taught her to go outside too but she picked up without any effort at all that it is tray/paper or outside and that is it. I know this is definitely the case as whenever I have spent weekends at my mother's house, she has been 100%.