I have an 8 month old Boxer who has peed in the house twice over the last two months. Once was on the couch almost two months ago and the other was on the floor today. My husband feels that putting the dog outside and making her an outside dog is the answer, after hitting her and throwing her outside saying that I make excuses for her and that she should know better. I view my puppy as a member of the family who is still very young and he views her as just a dog. When the incident happened today he decided that she would be an outdoor dog only, which he later compromised that she could come in for her kennel only. Is her behavior normal? Whenever she does it she looks right at my husband, as if she knows it's wrong but is going to do it anyway. How do I work with my husband so that my puppy can stay in our home and not be given away because of a few peeing incidents?

I really don't know how to respond to this. My gut reaction is to take your husband and make him an outdoor man. :(

I'm going to give you advice, but be forewarned, your post really upset me, and I may not be as nice as I want to be.

The number one question is what have you done to train her? What techniques have you used? Does your husband beat her? Does he hit her? Does he rub her nose in her pee and poo, or was the hitting a one time deal?

How long have you had the dog?

Your husband, well, there are many words that come to mind to describe him, but I'll hold back. This man should not own a dog. He has no business having pets, and the best thing for your dog at this point would be to re-home her.

She is a dog. She needs to be treated like a dog. Dogs don't hit. Dogs don't yell. She doesn't understand this madness. She's a dog!

Training is necessary if she's to remain with you, which I wouldn't recommend. But, if you decide you just have to keep her, despite your husbands vile acts against her, the only thing I can suggest is to start from scratch. Take her outside for every potty break. When she potties outside, tons of praise and affection, and a treat. If she has an accident indoors, a firm no, and then outside, to show her where she should be going potty. Consistency and patience. Hitting doesn't work. Take over the training. Don't let your husband near her.

If this dog is going to be confined either to a crate or to the outdoors, really, give her to someone that's willing to put in the time and effort. Someone that understands what it takes to have a dog. In other words. Get her away from your husband.

I guess I didn't do such a good job of keeping my feelings bottled up. Sorry, but this really has me upset.

By 8 months she is physically capable of holding her bladder. Consistent potty training is very easy. You merely have to know how and then be as consistent as a clock.

The thing is that it's your responsibility to help her succeed in potty training. BELIEVE ME she lives to want to be a good dog.

To try and dictate how to potty train your dog is impossible as I don't know your life style... What I can say is that dogs NEED routine and consistency. Every day they find comfort in knowing what comes next. That is the essence of what makes a dog feel comfort.

You should consider buying a dog training book that will give you tips on how to potty train. Even a second hand book store will help. The good news is that she's 8 months and has a mature enough bladder to succeed holding it in until...

POTTY TRAINING: I can tell you dogs need to eliminate FIRST THING IN THE MORNING and AFTER BREAKFAST are the PRIMARY needs in the mornings. (In fact after EVERY MEAL, as standard knowledge). For potty training purposes you should leash her and bring her to grass (with the exception of the first thing in the morning and after breakfast pee) TWO MORE TIMES which would be needed for practicing her training... so that she would be eliminating a total of 4x's in the a.m.

ROUTINE: Hopefully you're aware that routine means: Walking time, Play time, Training time, crate time (even chewing rawhide/nylabone time). These are times of the day she'll look forward to as a structured routine. For the human it's bonding time. No better a scenario than a dog doing exactly as it should be. A happy dog is a dog that plays games and to a dog TRAINING TIME is nothing but game time. Nothing better than getting rewarded with something yummy for doing something like sitting or lying down.. It's so so fun a game for dogs. :D xo <3. The other structured times of the day teach the dog that there are hours in the day where she needs to be calm and quiet (such as crate training time). This is where you keep the crate in THE SAME ROOM AS YOU and she can chew a bone for the time she's there. Otherwise a bone should not be given. It's a way to train your dog to understand routine. (Walking time of the day isn't the same as potty training time, but the first rule of thumb is to secure that she's house broken so as you begin to learn how to train you can later separate her potty time from walking time).

In the afternoon teaching fetch is a rewarding game because the dog gets treats for bringing a stick or ball back to it's human, WHAT AN AWESOME GAME! It's a learning tool for the dog, but she won't know it. It's also a great way to exercise your dog without taking the dog on a structured walk.

Potty training on a leash should happen at least twice throughout the afternoon, before her dinner. Just stand on a grassy spot and say something like "Go quickly" (or whatever suits you). Don't walk around. Just stand there with a treat in your pocket and be ready to shove that treat into her mouth the second she eliminates. Say "Good girl" in a happy tone. She'll want to eliminate on command all the time if it's done like that. She's a baby, just a bigger one... she needs to have routine and structure so she knows what's expected of her thru'out the day.

After dinner is another time she'll need to go potty as well as just before bed.

Not sure if you crate train her or not, but it's a good idea. Teaches her to love her crate, which equals alone and "down time" for a dog. Makes it easy to bring her along to friends houses over a holiday or on vacation to a hotel if she loves her crate. Keep the crate next to your bed... so she can see you and be close. Canines are PACKING ANIMALS when kept alone it's as good as animal abuse. Think of it like this: how would you feel if your family put you in an area throughout a period in the day where you had to be separated from the rest of your family. Would you feel like you were lonely and unwanted? Would you feel scared? Everyone else got to be together but not YOU. You hada be separated everyday for hours at a time. All alone...

Dogs are packing animals. They live in a family structure much like humans.

Perhaps if your husband isn't keen on having another family member (which a dog IS just that... ) a family cat where they're independent and need sporatic care and attention is better suited..

I recommend going to a book store and reading up on potty training, sitting, sit/stay, sit/down, leave it, come... etc... all these fun games that your dog will excel at and adore you for teaching her... they are awesome games to a dog and for you because you reap the reward of having a best friend who has your back no matter what. It's going to make living with her a dream. Your life will be enriched by it. There is no greater a friend than the friendship one has with their dog. <3 xo

I think you need to consider if you should have a dog or not. I mean you may be a great pet owner but I think your husband should never be around a pet. What you have posted is scary. Where did he learn his training of dogs, certainly not from anyone who knows what they are doing!
Please for the pups sake find him a new home. If you want a pet may I suggest you volunteer at a shelter. You can go there to take them for walks, play time and of course lots of love.
I agree on what Alty has said as well. You need to be the mature one and think of what is best for the dog. He has no idea why he is being hurt and is scared. I am also very angry at your husband.

Susan

As much as it pains me to give this advice I tend to agree with mogrann.

Some people are just not dog people, they never will be. It sounds like your husband just does not like dogs.

At 8 months old she is still a young, bouncy puppy and will be much easier to rehome now than he will be over 12 months of age.
Younger dogs also adjust to being rehomed much better than older dogs, if she finds a new owner now he will bond with them quickly.

I know it is not something you want to do but you have to think about the quality of life of the dog.
What happens when she gets old or has bladder problems and your husband follows the same path again? Incontinence can actually be pretty common in female dogs, I have a b*tch here who leaks urine several times a day. I wouldn't dream of kicking her outside because of it, we just manage the problem. Whereas other people don't see it the same way, I have even been told as far as I should put her to sleep because of it!

Of course if you want to toilet train her then go for it and follow the advice above, but if your husband is wanting to kick her outside after just 2 accidents you really have to wonder what he will do if she gets sick.