Hi All,

I have a 7 week old golden retriever puppy. We have had her for one week. It was very, very cold for the first 3 days we had her so we bought some wee wee pads to try to train her to go on them. And, our bedroom is on the third floor, as we have a walk-out basement and to get to the back yard where we have a 10' x 10' pen we want her to go in, we have to go down 2 flights of stairs to get to it. So, again, we thought the wee wee pads might be a good idea.

We like to let her roam freely when we are home and she ended up peeing and pooping everywhere and anywhere including in her crate. Although we feed her quite regularly 3 times a day, she does not poop right away. So we never know when it is coming. And, she can pee every 15 - 30 min. Again, we never know when it is coming. I took her to the vet yesterday and she has a little urinary track infection and is now getting antibiotics.

Now, how do we go about changing her habit of going wherever and whenever she wants?

First, she's only 7 weeks old, most dogs don't hae much control until around 4 months of age.

Second, the urinary tract infection definitely has something to do with it.

How long is she being crated? At this age she should only be spending 2 hours in the crate during the day and should be let out at least once at night to go to the washroom.

You've only had her for a week, training doesn't happen that quickly. Chances are she won't be completely potty trained until she's around 4 months of age. That doesn't mean that you can't teach her what's expected. When you catch her in the act take her to the wee pad, use your potty command word, repeat it until she goes and then praise, praise, praise. Repetition is the thing, and a lot of positive praise.

Do not scold her for having an accident, she's a puppy, she doesn't know any better, you have to teach her what's expected.

Good luck and congrats on your new addition. :)

During the day she is crated for 2 to 3 hours in the morning. Then she is usually free the rest of the day. Should we crate her more so she learns to hold it? I mean, should we put her in the crate when we are home for an hour or so at a time to teach her to hold it?

Overnight, we have a crate right next to our bed that we put her in. But, she cries at least 4 or 5 times a night. When she cries I jump up immediately and put her on the wee wee pad but every night, she still pees at least once in the crate. I wouldn't mind getting up that many times (especially with the UTI) if she would just not go in her crate.

I know she's just a young puppy, but I'm getting real tired from being disturbed so many times at night and cleaning up after her constantly. I just want to do the right thing to give her the best chance to get trained properly.

No, do not crate her while you're home at this age. She should only be spending around 2 hours per day in her crate. That doesn't include bed time. It goes by age. For every month of age an hour in the crate per day. In other words, a 3 month old can spend 3 hours in the crate, a 4 months old 4 hours and so on.

She has a UTI, don't expect her to hold it, you couldn't if you had one, she even less so because not only does she have an infection but she's also a puppy, a puppy that really shouldn't even be away from her mother yet, she's only 7 weeks old.

As for being tired, welcome to puppyhood, in many ways it's like having a newborn baby, only they are usually trained quicker. ;)

You can begin training, by all means, but don't expect a lot at this age.

Good luck.