help, very distressed pup!!!!!!thanks 4 all advice so far xxx

[lynneylou]

Have tried leaving Tyler's crate door open and left him for 2 hours the other evening, came back and all great, no mess. Therefore left him the same overnight, only to come down in the morning to a soaking wet floor and poo again shredded up in his newspaper and wee pad.

Last night I returned to the old way, in his cage with his wee pad and made sure he went to the loo before bed etc, and as per usual came down this morning to a totally disgusting cage and dog. Left him for 40 minutes this morning after he'd had a very long 1.5hr walk and again came back to a very exhausted -tongue hanging out and poo smeared cage and dog????????

I am aware that maybe at some point when he's been left alone, he's been made scared by something, but this is separation anxiety big time, I don't want to have to totally be joined at the hip with him!!!!!

[shaneystar2]

You don't say how old this pup is Lynneylou but I would say ..get rid of the cage.I have owned dogs all my life and have never used one of these things.I can understand that if he has to be left it is the safest place,for him and also your furnishings etc.! My way of looking at things is ..if you have a pup they are 24/7 like a child.
Dogs like routine..as soon as he has eaten he should be put outside to tiddle and poo.He should be put outside last thing at night and first thing in the morning and at regular intervals during the day. Of course he is anxious..you are his surrogate mother. Would you leave a baby alone for any length of time_
I am afraid that when you take on a dog ..joined at the hip is how it has to be most of the time.

[shaneystar2]

P.S .Whenever he goes outside .praise ,praise and praise again.Have a game with him and tell him what a good boy he is.I dont mean to sound harsh but you must get some routine with him .Good luck ..I am sure he will soon be fine.

[ruthann58]

hi lynneylou like kids, puppies dont all go clean at the same time and he is only four months our puppies we had before the dogs we have now used to take great delight in shreading up the poo and pee soaked paper they both grew out of it and lived to a ripe old age our ggsd cross still loves to shred give her a carrier bag and she dances round the garden with it till shes torn it to confetti my friend has just invested in two large cages for her 2 labs they are 2 years and despite training classes etc they are complete home wreckers doors off the kitchen, washing machine seal chewed, off fridge opened and contents all over the floor, you name it they have done it she only left them to go shopping she wishes she had bought them when she first got them now she pops them in the cage and goes to the supermarket without having to spend an hour clearing up the devestation when she gets back .he wil grow out of this just persever and dont get down just enjoy him the beagle we have now had to have lots of washes when she was small as poo is just wonderful to roll in ! good luck

[ruthann58]

ps putting him in the cage is no different to putting a baby in a playpen or cot to keep them safe

[maggie01]

I am sorry to hear you are still having problems with Tyler. As I said before, I do not like crates but if you are going to use one then I think you have to stick with it. It may be worth having a chat with your vet. I am sure there's nothing wrong with the dog but sometimes speaking face to face with someone gives you a chance to ask lots of questions. I am sure most of us who have dogs have experienced what you are going through at some time, but I assure you they do grow out of it eventually. I wish you all the luck. It's not easy but well worth it in the end.

[acorn]

Maybe its not separation anxiety but the fact hes concerned that hes messed his 'bedroom' up. I still think you should try making the crate smaller for a while by blocking part of it off. He need only go in there when its time for bed or you are out so he doesnt need the room to exercise in it - or at least i hope when your home hes out with the run of the house. He is still very young to actually expect him to get it right every time. Maybe just keep cleaning up after him and get that routine going of taking him out and staying with him while he goes.

[acorn]

And those wee pads - hmm not sure that they arent hindering his toilet training. Its a mixed message. Do you want him to go on the pad - ie in the crate, or do you want him to be housetrained and go outside. If your cleaning up his mess anyway why not stop using the pads and just clean up the floor of the crate with a good spray that will take most of the smell of urine away. Put a sheet of thick plastic down under the crate if your worried about flooring (although your crate should have a plastic bottom anyway.) And dont give up! Hes only small still and if he gets your attention when he poos inside then thats what he will keep doing. As shaneystar says, praise him when he goes outside, use a silly high voice so he knows hes done good. Eventually he should get the message but its gonna take time! Good luck

[adygolding]

hi i have a pup 5mths old had the same problem, best thing i did was to get a crate advised by the vet to do this. dont put anything in the cage no paper or anything(apparantly they wont mess where they sleep. dont feed after teatime i took the food away (shes got used to this) doesnt do anything at all in cage .i put her out every morn as soon as i wake and stay out with her until she does her business and praise her(even a treat) she is even locked in cage when we go out. in the day i leave the cage door open and she assumes now this is her bed and goes in of her own accord. hope this helps