I have a 2 yr. old mini yourkie. She still goes to the bathroom in the house. I try so hard to train her. In the beginning we were taking her out every 1/2 hr. Now we do every hr. She does go outside but also inside. She will even go right infrount of us! And she knows its bad cause after she goes, she hides. My husband says she's just a retarded dog. My house smells so bad. People say they don't smell it, but I do. And it makes me sick. I will never get rid of her because I love her like a daughter. Is there still any hope? Or is she going to do this the rest of her life.

Try following the methods in the sticky at https://www.askmehelpdesk.com/dogs/information-articles-our-dogs-expert-labman-53153.html#post251809

The last paragraph cover some of the differences with an older dog.

What do you do when she goes right in front of you/husband ? Is she spayed?

In looking over your question, I failed to mention needing to talk to the vet about a possible physical problem. The sticky was written for healthy, young puppies. Adjust for the timing, and it should work for a healthy adult.

What do you do when she goes right in front of you/husband ? Is she spayed?

Yea, she's spayed. My husband yells at her and smacks her. I yell at her but I don't smack her.

Try following the methods in the sticky at https://www.askmehelpdesk.com/dogs/information-articles-our-dogs-expert-labman-53153.html#post251809

The last paragraph cover some of the the differences with an older dog.

Thank you for your advise. We had her at the doctors. They never said anything. But maybe I should mention it so they can look at that area closer. You know I was thinking the same thing also. Maybe she just can't hold it. But if I'm standing right there, you would think she would go to the door. She does go to the door, but not always.

My sticky doesn't include smacking and yelling. It could be sometimes she doesn't have much warning. Do you praise her for going to the door?

My sticky doesn't include smacking and yelling. It could be sometimes she doesn't have much warning. Do you praise her for going to the door?

Yea, we always give her a milk bone. Those are her favorite. When she goes in the house, this is what we do, we yell "bad daisy! what did you do? where you bad?" And those are our exact words. But my husband smacks her and I yell at him cause she's so little. She's only 5 pounds. How do you think I should handle it if nothings wrong with her at the vet?

Giving a sharp ''Ah, ah. Ah!'' and gently picking her up and taking her out is in line with current trends in dog training. Just quietly clean it up if you don't catch her in the act.

I do not believe in yelling and smacking dogs, I think it only makes the problems worse. When and if my dogs have an accident in the house and this is rare. I clean it up, and toss the soiled cloth out into the yard. I think it lets them know that their pee & poo goes in the yard. My pom was very hard to train and the vet says that she has a small bladder,so she stills has accidents,but please do not allow people to hit your dog or scare her.

I do not believe in yelling and smacking dogs, I think it only makes the problems worse. When and if my dogs have an accident in the house and this is rare. I clean it up, and toss the soiled cloth out into the yard. I think it lets them know that their pee & poo goes in the yard. My pom was very hard to train and the vet says that she has a small bladder,so she stills has accidents,but please do not allow people to hit your dog or scare her.

I will let my husband read this cause he won't believe me. I don't believe in smacking dogs either. She's like my daughter! Thank you for your advise.

Giving a sharp ''Ah, ah. ah!'' and gently picking her up and taking her out is in line with current trends in dog training. Just quietly clean it up if you don't catch her in the act.

I will try that. Thank you.

Let me tell you about a little dog that my husbands family had. They bought him when he was 6-8 weeks old.paid 300 hundred for him and got all of his shots etc.. He is a rat terrier chihahui mix. No one took him out to the potty like he needed for them to. They yelled at him from the beginning. While he was with them for a year, they started to starve him so he would not poop in the house, he would poop and pee everywhere, in their bed in the floor on the couch. The poor dog was looking for a place to use the potty without getting screamed at or hit over. I have him for almost 2 years and I can say that when I find a mess in my house that 9 times out of 10 it is my pom. Other than submissive peeing( which I just ignore and clean up. & toss out) he never does anything wrong and listens to every word we say. They told us he was hopeless and dumb etc... he was on his way to the SPCA the day I went and got him from those nut cases. Needless to say that my husband nor I have much to do with these cruel people. They clamied that they were feeding him but within weeks, of me having him he started to gain weight.I'm sorry that they even share our last name. Please be patient and firm with your dog, labman has wonderful advice but you and your family must take the time to train your dog with patience and love, without her being in FEAR. I don't much believe in potty pads but I work with a woman that has had much success training her 2 toy breeds to use them, if all else fails you might give them a try.

Let me tell you about a little dog that my husbands family had. they bought him when he was 6-8 weeks old.paid 300 hundred for him and got all of his shots etc.. he is a rat terrier chihahui mix. no one took him out to the potty like he needed for them to. They yelled at him from the beginning. While he was with them for a year, they started to starve him so he would not poop in the house, he would poop and pee everywhere, in their bed in the floor on the couch. the poor dog was looking for a place to use the potty without getting screamed at or hit over. I have him for almost 2 years and I can say that when I find a mess in my house that 9 times out of 10 it is my pom. other than submissive peeing( which I just ignore and clean up.,& toss out) he never does anything wrong and listens to every word we say. They told us he was hopeless and dumb etc... he was on his way to the SPCA the day I went and got him from those nut cases. Needless to say that my husband nor I have much to do with these cruel people. They clamied that they were feeding him but within weeks, of me having him he started to gain weight.I'm sorry that they even share our last name. Please be patient and firm with your dog, labman has wonderful advice but you and your family must take the time to train your dog with patience and love, without her being in FEAR. I don't much believe in potty pads but I work with a woman that has had much success training her 2 toy breeds to use them, if all else fails you might give them a try.

That is such a sad story. I hate hearing stuff like that. I don't know how people abuse their animals like that. Its not like we are doing any of those things. I would never do something so horrible to a helpless animal. But I do understand that my husband should not hit her at all. I always scream at him. She does get so scared. We tried those potty pads. She would just play with them and pee next to them. I swear I would just get new carpets if I had to cause that's how much I love my dog. But my husband is always threating to give her away because she's so bad and retarded. I think he says those things to upset me because its something that I care so deeply about. And she's not a bad dog at all. She only goes in the house oh and when people are outside she'll run up to them and pee on them! Oops! That's because she's such a people dog. She love people and other animals even cats! But other than that, she's a good dog. When we first got her, she ran away all the time, would not go outside at all, chewed EVERYTHING in sight including all my shoes and son's toys. But she don't do any of those things anymore. I have problems in my marriage, so I know this sounds weird, I love her so much, I kind of talk to her as a person. She's like my best friend. I know that's kind of weird. I think my husband just gets jealous. He said "I can't wait, 13 more yrs. until shes gone. We will never get another dog again." And my family is dog lovers. We always had dogs. I can't live without one. They are a part of the family. I believe that's what make the family a family. They complete it. And I know his family always had dogs,too. He just hates her because of me. Sad, huh? But seriously, I would never let him hurt her. I would probably divorce him if he ever would. That would just be an excuse to get a divorce! But thank you for your concern.

I can tell that you are in a bad situation and your dog is stuck in the middle of it. To often abusive people use the dog to hurt the other one. I really do not know how to advise you. But I can tell you, I am sure the dog is not at fault. Me I would get rid of his a$$. I am afraid that no matter how you try with the dog unless she feels secure around every member in the house she will have these accidents. For her peeing on the strangers it is most likely out of fear. I am going to make you angry, by saying that if your husband can not treat this dog right you should consider getting rid of one of them. Just put yourself in the poor doggy's place. Is he home alone with her? I really feel bad for you, your children and your dog.

I can tell that you are in a bad situation and your dog is stuck in the middle of it. to often abusive people use the dog to hurt the other one. I really do not know how to advise you. But I can tell you, I am sure the dog is not at fault. Me I would get rid of his a$$. I am afraid that no matter how you try with the dog unless she feels secure around every member in the house she will have these accidents. For her peeing on the strangers it is most likely out of fear. I am going to make you angry, by saying that if your husband can not treat this dog right you should consider getting rid of one of them. Just put yourself in the poor doggy's place. Is he home alone with her? I really feel bad for you, your children and your dog.

She pees on people because she gets so excited. She rolls over to have her belly rubbed then she pees a little. The doctor says that's normal for small dogs to get excited and pee. I like your advise about getting rid of him, but I would never get rid of my dog! I never really thought about my dog is in the middle of this all. I just really thought about that right now when you mentioned it. I can see that. But for my son, I think he's OK. People say that I should not leave my husband because of our son. I don't believe in that. I think my son does need to be happy but I also feel that I do too. Don't you? Yea, a divorce is bad but in the long run everything could turn out OK.

I am sure your dog is showing submissive behavior when she rolls on her belly and pees. This is not because eshe is happy, but from showing you /them that she is submissive. Someone will correct me if I am wrong. You must convince your husband that he is making her worse by treating her badly. Get some books and read them about dogs and their behaviors. Are you a stay at home mom?

I am sure your dog is showing submissive behavior when she rolls on her belly and pees. This is not becaus eshe is happy, but from showing you /them that she is submissive. Someone will correct me if I am wrong. You must convince your husband that he is making her worse by treating her badly. Get some books and read them about dogs and their behaviors. Are you a stay at home mom?

I tell him all the time to stop. He doesn't go anymore than a smack. But its still wrong. Yes, I am a stay at home mom. But she is a very happy dog. You can definitely tell. She's always waging her little tail and always playing. But I still think that she pees a little when she sees people is because she's excited. She's done that the first time we played with her and decided to take her home. At the pet store we even asked why she does that and they even told us that she's just excited.

Yes excitement when she is small, but that should have stopped by now. I am sure it is because she is frightened. Honey I have seen dogs that were scared wag their tails, there are different wags for different feelings. You really need to do a lot of reading about dogs. By no means am I a trainer, but I do love to read about dogs and sometimes pick up a stray. Rubypitbull will come along and give you some very good advice I am sure and I hope that you read labmans stickey. However I do not think that she can be helped if the yelling and smacking does not stop.

Yes excitement when she is small, but that should have stoped by now. I am sure it is because she is frightened. Honey I have seen dogs that were scared wag their tails, there are different wags for different feelings. You really need to do alot of reading about dogs. By no means am I a trainer, but I do love to read about dogs and sometimes pick up a stray. Rubypitbull will come along and give you some very good advice I am sure and I hope that you read labmans stickey. However I do not think that she can be helped if the yelling and smacking does not stop.

You're a dog trainer? That's cool. So you don't think that's normal? Maybe I should take her to the vet. Someone told me that she could just have a problem with going all the time. I will have to look into it. And I will let you know. Thank you for all your advise.

Pinky You misunderstood me, No I am not a dog trainer.

pinky You misunderstood me, No I am not a dog trainer.

Oh, OK. I'm sorry I misunderstood you. I read that wrong.

My Smart Puppy :: Puppy Submissive Urination: Urinates When Anxious or Excited (http://www.mysmartpuppy.com/ask-us/articles/submissive-urination-puppy.html) read this it will give you an idea of what I am talking to you about.My Smart Puppy :: Puppy Submissive Urination: Urinates When Anxious or Excited (http://www.mysmartpuppy.com/ask-us/articles/submissive-urination-puppy.html) this as well. Show your husband some of these sites or print them off and let him read them . If you work with her you could have such a wonderful relationship with your dog.

My Smart Puppy :: Puppy Submissive Urination: Urinates When Anxious or Excited (http://www.mysmartpuppy.com/ask-us/articles/submissive-urination-puppy.html) read this it will give you an idea of what I am talking to you about.My Smart Puppy :: Puppy Submissive Urination: Urinates When Anxious or Excited (http://www.mysmartpuppy.com/ask-us/articles/submissive-urination-puppy.html) this as well. Show your husband some of these sites or print them off and let him read them . If you work with her you could have such a wonderful relationship with your dog.

Thank you so much.

The more of your posts I read, the more it sounds like you have a dog with bladder control problems. You really need to talk to the vet about it. You might ask the vet about anti anxiously medicine too. It sounds like you could cut the tension in your house with a knife. Dogs can't cope with such an atmosphere.

Like many sites people post links to, I am not impressed with ''Smart Puppy"". There is a ton of garbage on the net. It failed to address the importance of building a dog's confidence. Doing so may help even with the atmosphere in your home. Start with obedience training. The key to most behavior problems is approaching things using the dog's natural instincts. Dogs see all the people and dogs in the household as a pack with each having their own rank in the pack and a top dog. Life is much easier if the 2 legged pack members outrank the 4 legged ones. You can learn to play the role of top dog by reading some books or going to a good obedience class. A good obedience class or book is about you being top dog, not about rewarding standard commands with a treat. Start at Raising Your Dog with the Monks of New Skete (http://www.dogsbestfriend.com/) As you praise the dog for following your commands, it will build its confidence.

Play tug of war with the dog and lose. However at the end of the game, take the rope or toy and put it up, less the dog becomes confused about who is top dog. Ropes from the pets' store quickly turn to hazardous shreds. Ones I made lasted much better. Go to a hardware or home center that sells rope by the foot. Buy 2' of 3/4" poly rope. Melt the ends, and tie knots in it. Get them as tight as possible, put it in a vise and pound it with a hammer. Watch carefully, and be ready to discard when it comes apart.

Having a den to live in may help too. More so in your home. Having a crate with the door open all the time to retreat to when things become too much, could make a big difference. The sticky, that I have already mentioned, discusses crates, but not introducing an older dog to one.

A dog that has not been crated since it was little, may take some work.
Start just putting its toys and treats in the crate. Praise it for going
in. Feed it in the crate. This is also an easy way to maintain order at
Feeding time for more than one dog.

Once the dog is obedience trained, you control excitement wetting by putting the dog in a down stay. It also helps to have the dog empty its bladder ahead of time if you can. Before guests arrive, take her out and let her urinate. It is usually much less likely to be a problem on an empty bladder. In unexpected times, it may work to pick her up and carry her outside. Dogs usually won't urinate while being carried. I frequently use that technique when I have had a young puppy in somewhere for a while. Quite often they would never make it out without urinating. We certainly used it last April when we spent a weekend at a convention with an 8 week old Golden.

Labman the link was to show her what submissive urination was. Op thought she was peeing out of joy, and excitement. I thought she was peeing from, being afraid. I believed the link provided a good explanation as to what submissive urniation was/ and caused from. I do think that she needs to rule out a medical problem as well. But the yelling and smacking needs to be stopped immediately and the husband needs some type of material to read, so that he can see that the dog is not a "retard" as he thinks. To the op this is the other link that I wanted you to read. I posted the link smart puppy twice, sorry. . Submissive Urination by Perfect Paws Dog and Puppy Training (http://www.perfectpaws.com/subr.html)

The more of your posts I read, the more it sounds like you have a dog with bladder control problems. You really need to talk to the vet about it. You might ask the vet about anti anxiously medicine too. It sounds like you could cut the tension in your house with a knife. Dogs can't cope with such an atmosphere.

Like many sites people post links to, I am not impressed with ''Smart Puppy"". There is a ton of garbage on the net. It failed to address the importance of building a dog's confidence. Doing so may help even with the atmosphere in your home. Start with obedience training. The key to most behavior problems is approaching things using the dog's natural instincts. Dogs see all the people and dogs in the household as a pack with each having their own rank in the pack and a top dog. Life is much easier if the 2 legged pack members outrank the 4 legged ones. You can learn to play the role of top dog by reading some books or going to a good obedience class. A good obedience class or book is about you being top dog, not about rewarding standard commands with a treat. Start at Raising Your Dog with the Monks of New Skete (http://www.dogsbestfriend.com/) As you praise the dog for following your commands, it will build its confidence.

Play tug of war with the dog and lose. However at the end of the game, take the rope or toy and put it up, less the dog becomes confused about who is top dog. Ropes from the pets' store quickly turn to hazardous shreds. Ones I made lasted much better. Go to a hardware or home center that sells rope by the foot. Buy 2' of 3/4" poly rope. Melt the ends, and tie knots in it. Get them as tight as possible, put it in a vise and pound it with a hammer. Watch carefully, and be ready to discard when it comes apart.

Having a den to live in may help too. More so in your home. Having a crate with the door open all the time to retreat to when things become too much, could make a big difference. The sticky, that I have already mentioned, discusses crates, but not introducing an older dog to one.

A dog that has not been crated since it was little, may take some work.
Start out just putting its toys and treats in the crate. Praise it for going
in. Feed it in the crate. This is also an easy way to maintain order at
feeding time for more than one dog.

Once the dog is obedience trained, you control excitement wetting by putting the dog in a down stay. It also helps to have the dog empty its bladder ahead of time if you can. Before guests arrive, take her out and let her urinate. It is usually much less likely to be a problem on an empty bladder. In unexpected times, it may work to pick her up and carry her outside. Dogs usually won't urinate while being carried. I frequently use that technique when I have had a young puppy in somewhere for a while. Quite often they would never make it out without urinating. We certainly used it last April when we spent a weekend at a convention with an 8 week old Golden.

Thank you so much for your advise. I will try all of that.

I am sorry I missed this post. Pinky, please follow all the advice you have been given here. Please let us know what the vet says. You do need to rule out any physical problems first.

I will say that if you cannot get your husband to change his behavior toward the dog, there is very little hope that your dog will be completely housebroken. So, you need to have a long and serious talk with him. Print out all the responses and the training tips as you said you were. Of course you know hitting is a big no-no, but yelling is also a no-no. Dogs have very acute hearing. They don't need us to raise our voices to get them to pay attention to us. All that is happening now is that your dog knows that you both are extremely angry with her and she doesn't have a clue as to what she is doing wrong. Timing is everything when it comes to housebreaking. If she pees and you don't see her doing it, EVERYONE needs to keep their mouths closed and just clean up the mess. Ignore the "bad behavior". Praise her every time she goes potty outside. Get excited, tell her she is a "Good Girl" pet her and give her a small treat after she does her business in the correct place. She will eventually associate that good things happen when she does her business outside. She wants the positive attention. The negative attention just confuses her. So, give her no attention when she urinates in the house and you don't see her do it. As labman stated, if you catch her doing it, then give her a firm (but not yelling) "Ah, ah, ah, gently pick her up and get her outside" to do her business. Keep her outside until she does another potty. Then shower her with praise. Since she is older and the training has not gone the way it should, this will take time and A LOT of patience on everyone's part. She is not "retarded." That is such a terrible thing for your husband to say when the fault actually lies with the adults in your household who haven't learned how to train her correctly. Right now, what you have is a dog that is a nervous wreck. She never knows when she will be showered with love and affection, or if she will be hit and yelled at. She is looking for both you and your husband to provide the proper leadership and to teach her the difference between acceptable and unacceptable behavior with positive reinforcement for the good things she does. That means petting and praise. You will both find that this technique will get through to her. You have already found the negative stuff doesn't work, so what do you have to lose by retraining yourselves on your approach? Your dog is counting on both of your for help with this problem. Don't let her down and you will eventually find that you have the wonderful dog that you have always wanted.