she just isnt learning!

[sandy828]

we have decided against crate training.
when she shpws signs of needing the loo i place her on her mat and say "wee-wees" and encourage her, when she does i praise her and treat her but most of the time she steps off the mat and then pees, why isnt she learning? we have been at it for a week and there is no improvement, she is 9 weeks old
also when i tell her no for chewing something she shouldnt be she jus ignores me so i move her away and she goes straight back to it.
why is nothing i do working? i know its early days but surely there should be some improvement?

[Ghilly]

Something else to keep in mind is that if you DO catch her having an accident where she shouldn't be, whatever you do, DON'T yell at her and make a scene telling her what a bad dog she is and all that.  Dogs are smart, even the ones that don't appear to be catching on too quickly, and what the yelling will acomplish is it will make her simply sneak off to other parts of the house where she can do what she has to do without being seen.  She won't equate your yelling with the fact that she's going in the house, she'll think it means that she's not supposed to go in front of you.  In fact, yelling at them if you catch them eliminating inappropriately can also prevent them from wanting to go in front of you even when they're outside on a leash, because, as I said, they think it means that they're not supposed to go when you're there.  That's why I love crate training so much.  All the training takes place with a minimum of yelling, chewed up things, and accidents in remote parts of the house.  

Ghilly

[peekawho]

And remember, the "key potty times" for puppies are:

Immediately after eating and drinking
Immediately after waking up from a nap
Immediately after playing.

Always offer potty time right after any of these activities.

A rule of thumb is that your puppy can only "hold it" for 1 hour for each month of age.  Your puppy is only a bit over 2 months, so she can only be expected to hold her urine for 2 hours.  Some do better, some do worse.  Its just an idea for you.

(We had a Doxie puppy that I SWEAR peed every 10 minutes...EVERY 10 MINUTES.  He's the one dog I could never potty train.  He lives with someone else now.  He is over a year old...and STILL not potty trained.)  

[peekawho]

LOL!  I've never had luck with the chewing, as evidenced by the holes in our couch pillows in my pictures!

(Dobermans love to chew.  I have a slew of chew toys, which we keep up in a basket and rotate out, but they'd rather have the couch pillows and our comforter on the bed.)

For normal dogs, it might just work!  I have abnormal dogs.  

[sandy828]

thankyou both for the great advice! i am going to try the tether tomorrow, ive never herd of it before and it sounds really good! at the minute i am looking after her all day and constantly keeping an eye on her,
i have left her sent on the mat, i clean up with kitchen towel and then place it on her mat but even that didnt work so i am starting to take her in the back garden that we fenced off today, i know this means starting from scratch but i feel that doing this is gonna be easier.
i feel re-asured that it is taking a long time for a reason, so i know not to expect her to learn so soon so that has made me a lot happier thanks!
as for the chew toys i think a kong will be good as they will ocupy her, but when i tell her "no" she just waggles her tail and carries on as if im saying "good girl!" i try to do a stern voice but i have a naturally high pitched voice so its hard for me!
again thanks for the advice!

[Jaybay]

peek gave great advice on the potty training, so I'll hit the chewing issues.  Puppies MUST chew.  End of story.  At this young age, you have to puppy-proof your house the same way you would child-proof for a toddler.  Pups are very capable of learning what objects are their own toys as long as you don't overwhelm them with a boxful at a time.  

A good time for a chewy toy like a gumabone or kong toy - whatever your pup seems to like - is after dinner and after elimination.  As peek mentioned, they need to poo pretty quickly after eating at this age, so keep an eye out.  When all is calm, offer the chew toy and let her go at it.  If she does manage to get something of yours like a sock or a shoe, just take it away from her and exchange it for her own toy.

I've often seen owners make the mistake of going wild with dog toys and they end up all over the house.  The dog gets possessive and you've got a whole new problem to deal with.  Rotate her toys daily.  Say, one different toy for each day of the week.  That will help keep her interested.  Also, when you keep the toys out of reach until YOU offer it at the same times each day, she'll quickly learn to look forward to those times.  Dogs LOVE being on a consistent schedule - whatever it may be.

Another thing you might try with the potty pads is to use one to wipe up some pee and leave it there.  You might even place a tiny bit of her poo on it as well. I know it sounds gross, but it appears she hasn't quite made the connection that those soft pads are for her waste.  Why would that be any different from going on the carpet?

Above all, you must be patient.  Your pup is still very young so you can't expect instant results.  She's getting close, so don't give up.  :-)

[peekawho]

A week is nothing for a 9 week old puppy.   There may not be any visible sign of improvement for a few more weeks.  You have to be consistent and stay with it, 100% of the time.

The way I've always trained my puppies is by tether training.  Attach a leash to your belt loop, and keep the puppy by your side all day, every day.  This way, you'll catch the early signs (circling, sniffing, the beginning of the squat) right away, and you can clap your hands loudly to startle, "scoop" the puppy up and whisk her to the place you've set up and say "go pee".  
Do NOT let her off the place until she does.  Then go wild with praise.  

If you let her wander the house, she'll pee other places and will not realize what she did wrong, as she has to be in the act to be corrected.  A split second later is too late.  That's why tethering the puppy to you works so well.  You'll see in an instant if she needs to go.

Also, be sure you are not keeping food and water down all the time.  Feed and water at regular intervals.  Puppies eliminate very quickly after eating and drinking, so if you have set feeding and watering times, you can take the puppy out right after eating and drinking.
If you simply leave food and water down all the time, you'll have to work much much harder to potty train.

good luck!  Its hard work!