Trouble With Four Month Old Pup

[Robinhuskylover2231]

Okay first of all as has been mentioned above, this puppy needs time. Majority of puppies sleep alot of the time. For the training I will repeat, make sure you are taking your pup out every 30-45 minutes even if you have to carry him outside. Wait until he goes potty- this could take a while, he doesn't know right and wrong yet and when he goes (even if it's just a dribble) TONS of praise and treats!! Make a huge deal out of it! I completely agree that you should not leave your pup outside, as you said this teaches him absolutely nothing about what is right and wrong in the house.

My puppy is very independent, she is 8 months old and when at home she often likes to sleep in another room on her own. When she goes outside though, she absolutely loves to run around and play. It is quite possible that your puppy whines and cries when laying down because he wants the attention, just is not sure whether or not he can trust you yet.

All puppies will pick up things off the ground and try to eat them, it happens and you just have to be consistent with taking it out of their mouth and telling them no. Absolutely everything with these dogs is time and consistency.

I think the biggest part of this is he still needs to get used to you and understand that you are the alpha. How much are you feeding him? A four month old puppy should be getting fed approximately 2 1/2-3 cups per day split into 3 meals (2 is okay but 3 is better) My last potential thing would be that your pup could be getting overly tired because of the amount of time spent on the walk. Try to keep it to 5mins/every month of their life so a 20 minute walk for your pup. There's so many other things you can do to get them tired and stimulated such as training. If he isn't treat motivated, try using something tastier like chicken or bacon.

I wish you the best with your puppy, and hopefully he will get better and you can come to enjoy your time with this amazing breed

[HalcyonDays]

You guys are right. I've only just met him, and I really shouldn't be getting this frustrated over this. Before he came to me, he's had no lead training whatsoever and was terrified of stairs. Now he walks fine on a leash (unless he sees something that is super duper interesting; he's only pulled me once over 10-15 walks), and now he goes up and down the stairs without being asked, albeit not that gracefully, so I am making progress, if anything. He also wouldn't play when I got him, but now he loves his toys, especially his blue doggy. He's been getting a little mouthy though, but I know he's not trying to hurt me as he'll let me shove my hand almost to his throat without any resistance.

You all suggest for me to take him out every hour, but I have not seen any progress. He was able to pee and poop earlier today in the backyard while some of my sister's friends came over for a small barbecue. He was very playful, and even ran around the yard multiple times and acted very puppy-ish. Although something that concerns me is that now he goes straight to the tree in the backyard. Of course, this would be a good thing, but there are lots of building supplies around there from when my family renovated the place and have been too lazy to clean up. Cleaning up all the debris and materials would take multiple people to do and at least two full days. I've caught Flint chewing on some kind of paper from one of the buckets and had to reach very far back into his mouth to pull all of it out. I'm afraid to take him back there now as he only tries to find these things to chew on it now. It's also the same for the walks too; he's much more interested in finding things to chew on rather than using the bathroom. Because he is fairly good with holding it in (he held it in for about 8 hours the first day home and through two meals and multiple bowls of water), maybe once an hour is too much. He also sees my room as a den and doesn't seem to have an intent to pee or poop in here as he spends 90% of his time in here right now. It's a good and bad thing-- good because it's sort of like a crate, except larger, but bad because I have to keep the doors closed so he doesn't go to the rest of the house and potty there. Would it be feasible for me to just take him out at longer intervals, say, every 4 hours and have him do his business then, as opposed to every hour? I'm honestly getting exhausted walking 20m or so for 6-7 times a day, and I am sure he is too, even if he isn't showing it.

Edit: A friend of mine suggested that instead of going for the walks that we do, that I should just take him out and hold him on the lead and stand somewhere and wait for him to do something then.

Edited September 4, 2012 by HalcyonDays

[Robinhuskylover2231]

You guys are right. I've only just met him, and I really shouldn't be getting this frustrated over this. Before he came to me, he's had no lead training whatsoever and was terrified of stairs. Now he walks fine on a leash (unless he sees something that is super duper interesting; he's only pulled me once over 10-15 walks), and now he goes up and down the stairs without being asked, albeit not that gracefully, so I am making progress, if anything. He also wouldn't play when I got him, but now he loves his toys, especially his blue doggy. He's been getting a little mouthy though, but I know he's not trying to hurt me as he'll let me shove my hand almost to his throat without any resistance.

You all suggest for me to take him out every hour, but I have not seen any progress. He was able to pee and poop earlier today in the backyard while some of my sister's friends came over for a small barbecue. He was very playful, and even ran around the yard multiple times and acted very puppy-ish. Although something that concerns me is that now he goes straight to the tree in the backyard. Of course, this would be a good thing, but there are lots of building supplies around there from when my family renovated the place and have been too lazy to clean up. Cleaning up all the debris and materials would take multiple people to do and at least two full days. I've caught Flint chewing on some kind of paper from one of the buckets and had to reach very far back into his mouth to pull all of it out. I'm afraid to take him back there now as he only tries to find these things to chew on it now. It's also the same for the walks too; he's much more interested in finding things to chew on rather than using the bathroom. Because he is fairly good with holding it in (he held it in for about 8 hours the first day home and through two meals and multiple bowls of water), maybe once an hour is too much. He also sees my room as a den and doesn't seem to have an intent to pee or poop in here as he spends 90% of his time in here right now. It's a good and bad thing-- good because it's sort of like a crate, except larger, but bad because I have to keep the doors closed so he doesn't go to the rest of the house and potty there. Would it be feasible for me to just take him out at longer intervals, say, every 4 hours and have him do his business then, as opposed to every hour? I'm honestly getting exhausted walking 20m or so for 6-7 times a day, and I am sure he is too, even if he isn't showing it.

Edit: A friend of mine suggested that instead of going for the walks that we do, that I should just take him out and hold him on the lead and stand somewhere and wait for him to do something then.

Okay well first off, for the progress you are making that is absolutely great! Any progress is good progress! The potty training issue... I would like to say that you definitely should be taking him out every 45-1 hour, this is crucial to your puppy learning. A puppy can't always hold his pee/poo as long as an older or adult dog. Plus part of the joys of having a puppy is going through this. I know it may seem like you aren't making any progress but this progress can be slow and as you have said; you just got him. Like I said previously, every single time he goes out; lots and lots of praise and treats, make it the biggest deal! You want your puppy to learn that he is a "good boy" when going outside so that he will learn that is the place to go. Another issue I have with waiting four hours in the den is that sometimes that is too long for a puppy and if he does perhaps have to go out and you don't notice the signs, you are setting him up for failure. At least if you take him out, he has the opportunity.

My next thing is that I don't think that you should be going on 6-7 20 minute walks per day, 2-3 would probably do it and this is most likely why your puppy is always tired and sleeping majority of the time... I'm sorry if you misunderstood from earlier posts, when I say to take him out every 45-1 hour, I most definitely mean go in your back yard with him on a lead and wait until he goes then praise, praise, praise!!

Lastly, if there are things that are a danger to your pup in your backyard then don't let him free roam in it until you have the mess cleaned up... there are other sources of exercise such as; playing in the house, training (10-15 minute intervals does wonders for tiring your dog out mentally and physically) and walks (which as said, should be cut back to 2-3)

Hope this helps!

[Circe]

Just an idea on the potty problem. Dogs feel at their most vunerable when they are going to the bathroom, mine will actually back up to a bush to poop so his butt is sheltered! Being outside if he is still scared may make him too nervous to potty. Once he sees you as his "safe zone" it may help him go outside. I think that's why mine follows me into the bathroom- he's returning the favor of standing guard while I go!

[HalcyonDays]

So the potty thing is coming along a little better. He didn't go at all last night (I fed him at 6:30 p.m., took him out for a walk every hour, until about 1am just standing in one spot for the last few trips as I was getting exhausted). He went this morning after waking up with a very loose stool and pee. I praised him tons, but he just sort of brushed it off and kept on truckin'. Something that I notice he's been doing a lot of is eating everything off the streets. We didn't have this problem until later in the evening yesterday. Now I have to stop at every obstacle, bush, corner, and anywhere else that might have something on the floor to pull it out of his mouth. If it were grass or something, I would ignore it, but it's things like small bones that people litter, cigarette butts, and even on some occasion, a few rocks. Is it because he's not getting enough to eat or something? I put a good amount of food in his bowl every time, but he only eats about half to a third of what's in there. It's currently Blue Buffalo, but his breeders had him on Purina Puppy Chow (Blue) before this.

I'm trying some training with him, but he's not food motivated in the least if he has to work for it. When I hold up the treat for him to smell it and back one step away for him to come, he'll stare at me, then at the food, and then just go back to lying down.

Edited September 4, 2012 by HalcyonDays

[Austinville]

As far as his rummaging habit on the street, I would teach him the "on by" command as well as the "leave it" command. While walking, at his first interest in trash on the street, give the command "on by" and give a gentle pull to get him to pass by the item. Praise him greatly when he does so and reprimand him by taking the item away should he get hold of it.

If you've somehow missed that very first indication of interest in the trash and he's gotten hold of something, then give the command "leave it" and if need be, remove the item from his mouth. My husky (now 2 years old) KNOWS without a doubt that should she pick up something along our route, I CAN and WILL remove it from her mouth. After a couple times of me diving down her throat to get something out, she knows when I say 'leave it' I truly mean 'leave it'.

They key between "leave it" and "on by" is strictly in the timing of when you catch the husky paying attention to an item he's not supposed to show interest in.

As far as potty training, the best advice I can give is to take the pup out and walk and wait until he goes. For example, my girl acted in a similar fashion as your pup. So, when she was taken out each couple hours, we stayed out until she relieved herself. Sometimes it was 10 minutes, sometimes a half hour, other times it was just seconds. Then greatly praise them and go back inside. Two hours later, repeat again.

You might also try a bell at the door. To begin with I rang the bell every time we'd go out. Then I began having Ryn ring it - even a slight push of the bell with her nose was considered her ringing it. You could literally see the lightbulb go on when she understood the concept and now, every time she needs to potty, she rings the bell to be let out.

The husky is a very stubborn breed. That's because they are thinking dogs - this isn't your typical lab who wants only to please you. This breed requires you to think faster than they do. They want to know what's in it for them. Keep on top of that and be consistent and you'll end up with a husky that will hold your heart forever!

[LittleLuka]

So the potty thing is coming along a little better. He didn't go at all last night (I fed him at 6:30 p.m., took him out for a walk every hour, until about 1am just standing in one spot for the last few trips as I was getting exhausted). He went this morning after waking up with a very loose stool and pee. I praised him tons, but he just sort of brushed it off and kept on truckin'. Something that I notice he's been doing a lot of is eating everything off the streets. We didn't have this problem until later in the evening yesterday. Now I have to stop at every obstacle, bush, corner, and anywhere else that might have something on the floor to pull it out of his mouth. If it were grass or something, I would ignore it, but it's things like small bones that people litter, cigarette butts, and even on some occasion, a few rocks. Is it because he's not getting enough to eat or something? I put a good amount of food in his bowl every time, but he only eats about half to a third of what's in there. It's currently Blue Buffalo, but his breeders had him on Purina Puppy Chow (Blue) before this.

I'm trying some training with him, but he's not food motivated in the least if he has to work for it. When I hold up the treat for him to smell it and back one step away for him to come, he'll stare at me, then at the food, and then just go back to lying down.

Luka is 6 months and would eat whatever he could find if i would let him. It has nothing to do with him being hungry, more curious. Go with the commands that have been suggested to get him to drop things.

As for the food you may be overfeeding him if he is still having diahrrea. At 4 months i had luka on 1 cup of food per meal and that was plenty. Huskies don't eat as much as other breeds and just a little too much food can trigger an upset stomach.

[Removed #5]

I think we missed something in the definition of "take him out". There's "take him out for a walk" which as others have said should be limited to five minutes for every month of age - so he should get a couple of 20 minute "exercise" walks per day. Then there's "take him out to do his business" from your description of your back yard, that really sounds like a good place. It's secure ( if not necessarily too safe at the moment ), there's nothing he can get into if you keep him on leash and select one safe area for him to use.

At his age, the excitement level of all these new things on the street may have him completely unaware of a need "to go".

Summing this up: The walks on the street should be for his exercise and for socialization; the walks out back should be for his "potty use". Let me stress, keeping him on-leash while you have him out for potty training helps to emphasize "why" he's out there, others have used "go potty" or "go pee" to good effect so that, after he learns these, he will really understand that he's going out for a reason (( and you don't get stuck in a rain / snow shower waiting for him to decide ))

I can appreciate that the back yard may not be the place to play, but would it take you long to clean a, say 10 x 10 foot area that was dedicated to him to potty in.

[Jay]

Looks like you got some great advice. I concur on the pee pads, I don’t think teaching them to potty inside is good, unless you live in a high rise and it takes too long to go downstairs. Be patient on the potty training, it will take awhile. Nikko took almost 4 months to completely housetrain. I would suggest that when you take him to potty, don’t go on a long walk, just go to a secluded area everytime you go out. Make the potty trips separate than the walks. Nikko only likes to potty in my backyard in the mulch. If we are out somewhere he will hold his poop until he gets home, and he would never potty on our walks. They are very particular where they go!

My suggestion on your training – enroll him in obedience classes ASAP! I was also a first time husky owner, and I would have lost my mind if I didn’t! I just took him to the PetSmart classes and within a few weeks Nikko would sit, stay, down and walk nicely on the leash.

Also remember there will be times that all training goes out the window when he is in a mood or sees something he really wants. Every now and then Nikko will get a wild hair up his butt and take off running around the house like it is an obstacle course! No matter how much I tell him to stay, stop, etc he won’t listen until he is done.

Patience and consistency is the key

[HalcyonDays]

Thank you all so much for your advice thus far.

Update on today: I took him on a 10-15m walk this morning after he ate, and again in the afternoon to a local "square' we have here that is mostly grass-- this trip took a good hour or so walking both ways unfortunately, but I gave him time to rest in between, and he ran around like a lunatic with me on the leash in the grass.

Thus far, he has peed and pooped about three times today, all outside, so the potty training is going at the least. I just took him back in from our last out in which he pooped, but he piddled on the floor of the living room as we were playing. I guess he still doesn't associate it as part of his den either. I don't know why he didn't just pee outside too, but I digress.

Al-- that's really clear advice, thank you. While I would love to take him out there, with his habit of eating things off the floor, I'm really nervous about it as something back there might kill him. It is a fairly large area, and I guess I could keep him on a leash. It would be like similar to us going outside and just standing around at places he's pooped before for about 10-20m minus all the stimulation with the streets. The only problem is that at night, it's almost pitch black, and because I can't see very well, would be very hard for me to supervise him at night.

Jason-- I actually have him signed up for puppy classes at PetSmart coming up this Sunday for about six weeks! I'm really looking forward to it. I've noticed that Flint only likes to pee near or on grass. He won't do it near.

I have two new questions now--

1) I live in a home of about 5-6 adults and two children. The thing is that although they all have no problem with me having a dog, they want pretty much nothing to do with him. They won't get near him, pet him, and the children tend to scream their heads off when he just wants to say hello. This is both very stressful for me and Flint as I am the only person and only place in this house he knows. I've spoken to them about possibly thinking of it in his shoes, and doing it for his sake, but they won't budge. I haven't left his side since he first came home with me, and when I just went to take a 10m shower just now, he started barking and howling and roaming for me. How can I possibly make him more comfortable without the other family members, or is it impossible? My mother is the only one who would be slightly willing, but again, she is not going to pet him.

2) Because I can not drive due to my vision, I take public transit all the time. I made a post about a combination sled/carrier earlier, but got no luck with it. The only way I can see resolving this is either by registering him as a service dog (something I may be able to do, but will need to talk to my counselor), or train him to pull me on roller blades. How would I go about training him to be a service dog? If he were to pull me, at what age can he start doing this? How should I start getting him used to it? How long and how far can he pull a 160lb adult male?

Here's a video of him playing today:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ScfL12JHPKs

It gives you a good idea of the small space he is forced into. I hadn't anticipated my family being this un-supportive. I feel terrible about it because he isn't getting the life he deserves despite me taking him out so often. Now that he's more puppy-ish, even today's combination of two hours of play and 3-4 hours of walking hasn't tired him out.

[Jay]

Good luck on the training classes at PetSmart! I really enjoyed them, and it gave Nikko some much needed socialization. You will have a much better dog once you get through the classes. Just remember to work with him daily on getting him to sit/stay, etc. I would also recommend taking the intermediate classes too.

Sounds like a tough situation regarding the other people in the household. I am sure your pup just wants to play with everyone! When I take Nikko to my roommate’s family’s house, most of them want nothing to do with him either, and he is not allowed inside. So I just stopped going there as often because I am not going to leave him tied up outside all day. Since you live with them, that presents a different problem.

Is he neutered? Sometimes this calms them down. I did not notice a difference a first, but Nikko is a little more calm than he was at 4 months. Nikko only gets an hour of walking a day and about 3-4 hours play time per day and he is fine. You could always take your pup to dog parks or find stores you can take him to so he can get socialization.

Also, get plenty of toys that will stimulate his mind. Puzzle toys that you can hide treats, Kong toys, and anything with squeekers are the best. This will help tire them out.

It sounds like you care for him a lot so don’t feel like you are not giving him everything he deserves.

[HalcyonDays]

Good luck on the training classes at PetSmart! I really enjoyed them, and it gave Nikko some much needed socialization. You will have a much better dog once you get through the classes. Just remember to work with him daily on getting him to sit/stay, etc. I would also recommend taking the intermediate classes too.

Sounds like a tough situation regarding the other people in the household. I am sure your pup just wants to play with everyone! When I take Nikko to my roommate’s family’s house, most of them want nothing to do with him either, and he is not allowed inside. So I just stopped going there as often because I am not going to leave him tied up outside all day. Since you live with them, that presents a different problem.

Is he neutered? Sometimes this calms them down. I did not notice a difference a first, but Nikko is a little more calm than he was at 4 months. Nikko only gets an hour of walking a day and about 3-4 hours play time per day and he is fine. You could always take your pup to dog parks or find stores you can take him to so he can get socialization.

Also, get plenty of toys that will stimulate his mind. Puzzle toys that you can hide treats, Kong toys, and anything with squeekers are the best. This will help tire them out.

It sounds like you care for him a lot so don’t feel like you are not giving him everything he deserves.

He is already neutered. The breeders prefer that their dogs are on a "limited" basis, or what have you, but I don't mind either way as I was only going to have him as a companion, and this would eliminate any humping he wants to do later on anyway.

The thing with me is that while I don't mind walking my dog for 2-3 hours at a time twice a day, I get fairly bored playing with him. I think it's because I have a cat personality. Ideally, and this may sound horribly selfish of me, I would want to walk him twice daily (eventually with the roller blades to _really_ tire him out, and only play once or twice for about 20m each time (for 40m), the rest of the time him just hanging out around me or watching TV next to me or something. I think I picked the wrong breed for this.

Do you have any toys he recommands? He doesn't like the nylabones very much, but loves a frozen kong with wet dog food in it. His favorite toy is a long blue squeak dog and a tennis ball with a squeaker inside. I ony have about 5-6 toys for him right now. I really need to get more.

He's dozing right now after I took him jogging through the local square we have here. He also has been pooping very regularly when I take him out. Three hours per out seems to be the magic number for him. He poops outside, but for some reason, he doesn't pee, and has had two accidents in the house since yesterday.

[Jay]

That’s good that he is already neutered, although that won’t stop the humping. I had Nikko neutered at 4 months old before he started humping, and out of the blue he would start doing it to my leg, and the other dogs at class. Now he humps the little pup. It has nothing to do with his “urges”, he is trying to be dominate.

I don’t believe that is selfish to want to have your own time, I don’t give my dogs my undivided attention all night or anything. Nikko is perfectly content lying on the couch with me watching TV. I believe that most dogs are fairly adaptable to your lifestyle.

I spoiled Nikko with toys! His favorite things to chew on used to be pig ears, but those gave him the runs so I stopped using those. He likes the Kong, but gets bored with it when the food is out of it. I will put the Kong treats or peanut butter inside of it. He prefers anything with squeaky things inside of them that he can rip apart. I bought these one toys at Target that were pretty cheap knowing he would rip them apart, which he did…but it kept him busy for awhile. I also bought him a Kong Wubba that he really likes. His absolute favorite thing tho are those rawhide dental sticks. I had to put those up tho because he got aggressive when the new pup tried taking it!

Keep working on the potty training, like I said Nikko was almost 6 months old before he finally got it. He would poop outside but liked peeing inside.

[HalcyonDays]

That’s good that he is already neutered, although that won’t stop the humping. I had Nikko neutered at 4 months old before he started humping, and out of the blue he would start doing it to my leg, and the other dogs at class. Now he humps the little pup. It has nothing to do with his “urges”, he is trying to be dominate.

I don’t believe that is selfish to want to have your own time, I don’t give my dogs my undivided attention all night or anything. Nikko is perfectly content lying on the couch with me watching TV. I believe that most dogs are fairly adaptable to your lifestyle.

I spoiled Nikko with toys! His favorite things to chew on used to be pig ears, but those gave him the runs so I stopped using those. He likes the Kong, but gets bored with it when the food is out of it. I will put the Kong treats or peanut butter inside of it. He prefers anything with squeaky things inside of them that he can rip apart. I bought these one toys at Target that were pretty cheap knowing he would rip them apart, which he did…but it kept him busy for awhile. I also bought him a Kong Wubba that he really likes. His absolute favorite thing tho are those rawhide dental sticks. I had to put those up tho because he got aggressive when the new pup tried taking it!

Keep working on the potty training, like I said Nikko was almost 6 months old before he finally got it. He would poop outside but liked peeing inside.

My little pup is turning four months this Sunday. I hope he doesn't start developing such habits.

I actually was curious as to whether dogs did adapt or not. My friend has a German Shepard who is nearing the end of her life (sadly... she's 14 or so now, and beginning to fail, mentally and physically), but when she was younger, she spent most of her time in the apartment and rarely ever got any exercise. Even so, she was the sweetest, loveliest girl you could meet. If need be, would huskies be able to adapt to being couch potatoes without being destructive as long as they got some stimulation?

Rawhide dental sticks sounds interesting. I'll check them out, but as he doesn't like chewing on the nylabone anyway, I don't know if it would work.

So today, while I was out with him to a supermarket that wouldn't let him in, I asked a stranger, who stopped to chat and pet him, to hold him outside for just a second for me while I got my things. The stranger had to physically wrestle him away from me and out the door, when I handed him the leash. Again when I left home for just ten minutes to go to the pharmacy and left him with my family (who agreed to watch him). When I came back, the entire house was full of howls and barks. When I came through the door, my family told me he was roaming the entire time looking for me. In addition to jumping on me and following me around while I did some things, he now is lying on my foot while I'm on the computer as opposed to normally just lying beside me. While I'm glad he likes me so much ( I think; it might be because I'm his main source of security), I would like him to not have so much anxiety while I'm gone. I'm gone for about 5-6 hours 3-4 days a week because of school (I took off three weeks to take care of him).

[VanIslandSibe]

I dont think you have much to worry about yet. A) hes four months old, hes still a baby, hes a husky. They arent too keen on paying attention to what you want them to learn, especially at a young age (that is the challenge with this breed, hopefully you did your research ;-) ), and C) hes brand new to you. He has no reason to think he should listen to you or know that you are the dominant one. also its a completely new environment. Hes probably very confused and theres a lot to take in. You really need to put yourself in his....paws? When I brought my husky home the first day he got diarrhea because he was so stressed out so potty training was virtually pointless. He doesn't know you at all and you don't know him so its no surprise you are having trouble understanding eachother. Give it a couple weeks and you will start to figure out his personality and quirks and you will begin to learn how to read him better. And of course he will learn the same about you and what you want from him. Just be persistent but patient and keep in mind huskies are incredibly smart so he will learn eventually.

[Jay]

I would agree with VanIslandSibe. Nikko had pretty bad separation anxiety when we would leave for work. From the time I put him in his crate until I walked out the door he would whine and howl. This lasted about 2-3 months, and now he will go right up to his crate without fuss (most of the time!). Yukon’s only lasted about a week though, now he feels safe in his crate and won’t whine when I leave him alone. When you leave the pup alone he does not know that your coming back, and since you are his main source of security that is probably the reason. It will get better…I would try leaving him alone for short periods of time (like 10-15 minutes), and come back so he knows you are not leaving forever. Also, when you do come home, don’t make a huge deal, basically ignore him until he calms down. Same for when you leave, don’t make a big deal of it. I made that mistake with Nikko, I would give him hugs and love when I got home, but that only made his SA worse.

Again, I believe that dogs can adapt to your lifestyle, however that is only to a point. Huskies especially need their exercise, both physical and mental. They were bred to work, and love to run and dig, so you will still need to give them proper outputs for all of their energy. If you don’t and leave them alone you won’t find your house the same as you left it.