My husband and I were at a pet store a week ago and saw the cutest little 8 month old Ratpoo. He was 'on sale' as they were trying to get rid of him as he had been there for 8 months. Our hearts broke for him so we decided to take him home (we also have a 6 YO lab/pit mix girl). We put him in a crate at first but every time he would poop and fling it everywhere so we stopped putting him in the crate and kept him out. I take him outside every 30 minutes and he never does anything outside, ALWAYS inside. I know he was used to going anywhere he wants for 8 months and it will be hard to break but I wanted to know if anyone had any advice for me. He generally pees and poops in the same area in our living room (we have a very tiny two bedroom home)... I know it has only been a week but I feel like I am doing everything I can...

A dog that's been kept in a pet store cage for 8 months is going to be very hard to potty train. Consistency is the best thing, lots of praise when he does what you want, no punishment when he doesn't.

When you're outside with him give him lots of time to sniff and go potty. Repeat your command word, I use "potty" and when he does go (and he will eventually) lots of praise. Act like he just wrote a sonnet, lots of "good boy" and a treat.

When he goes in the house take him outside immediately. Do not put his nose in it, do not yell, just calmly pick him up, put him outside and repeat your command word. You can also take the poo and place it outside, letting him know that that's where you want him to go.

I would also suggest a pet odor remover for the spots that he goes in your house. If the scent is still there then it will be harder to train him. He's marked that area which is why he continues to go there.

This is going to take time and lots of patience. He's been pooing in his cage for 8 months. That's what he thinks is the right thing to do, because he was never taught differently.

I can never condone buying a pet store dog, but I do understand why you did it. It's often hard to walk away. Sadly, the majority of the dogs sold in pet stores come from puppymills, the others are from backyard breeders (which are just one small step above puppymills). By purchasing from a pet store you are in fact keeping those places afloat. As long as there are people willing to purchase from pet stores, there will be puppymills mass producing the product for those stores.

Please make sure to get a complete physical done on this puppy.

Good luck.

I have a friend who works at a pet store in the town I live in. Coincidently the one who likes to dine and dash at my place. Anyway, we argue ALL the time about why pet stores are wrong. She thinks these dogs are coming from reputable breeders. Funny none of them come with "breeding papers" or any sort of vet reccords. Most them are mixed breeds like yours. She also states that these dogs get premium care by experts, including basic training. The "experts" she is talking about are the 16 year old kids who work part time after school and on week ends, who also put in their 4 hours of work, and then they are done. Most of the time these kids have had NO experience with any other job, let alone training animals. Heart breaking.
Anyway, the best way (in my opinion) to train your new puppy will be crate train. Is there someone home all day or are they left for a period alone? The ONLY benefit (if you can call it that) is that they will be used to being in a confined area for long periods. Remember positive reinforcement is key, and it definitely won't hurt to check out obiedience classes. I know that a beginners or manners class would definitely help him/her build some self esteem which will make your long and hard journey a little bit easier.
Good luck!

What you need to do is start bringing her/ him outside. Do that every morning and evneing and soon, he/ she will claw at the door to go out :)

Put some puppy pads down and when the puppy peeps or poops tell the puppy NO! Then take the puppy out side until it poops or pees then reward the puppy. Take the puppy for walks so he/she has to poop put out side and reward her make sure he/she will be around other people don't want he/she to get protective like my dog

Please pay attention to dates. Older threads are great to read but responding to them puts them back up in the threads currently needing help. This thread is from December and the op has not been back since posting. Hopefully by now the puppy is housebroken.