back yard woes...

Mel · 08-06-2011, 03:59 PM

i have posted before on this but i haven't as yet tackled the project....

i want to fence off part of the yard just for Spike to use for potty (pooping) due to the stress of 'policing ' the yard every day before my kids run through it....

i have a few ideas...chain link, shady, grass and linked to the deck gate/steps so that he can go straight out there if needed.

just wondering if anyone has had any success with this idea...not quite a dog run as he will play with the kids and be around the house etc but more of an area for his pottying only....

am i being too ambitious hoping that he will use only this area ? It would be a good size area but i am wondering if he will relax about it or just hold it until i let him out....

i have tried for 3 months to take him on the leash to a certain area of the yard with plenty of praise moving on to walking without the leash to the same spot but this only works for the first one of the day and then he wants to sniff around and find that perfect spot...which is his dog gone right to do

I just want to avoid him doing it RIGHT NEXT TO THE SANDBOX or RIGHT AT THE BOTTOM OF THE SLIDE

i have to add that Spikes poops are rarely 'easy to pick up' we have on going stomach issues.....he is not sick, just seems to have 'pudding' poops every other day at least....but that's another story. It just makes it hard to keep things clean for my children.

Riverkatie · 08-06-2011, 10:15 PM

Well with my new found success with clicker training, it ought to work....

It would mean going out with him every single time and waiting in the penned area until he performed, click and treat. I think it could be done, but would be very hard whilst you were training.

Or, just thought of this....clicker train to 'go' on command, then go every 2 hours to fenced area and give the command, soon he should be going only there. Ignore mistakes, click and treat when going on command.

I have no idea if any of this will work!

Mel · 08-07-2011, 09:24 AM

i need to buy a clicker

, they sound awesome !

i really hope i can pull this off, my yard is such an odd shape with hidden areas etc...my kids and their friends (and Spike) are all over it so i do need some kind of fenced area for either them or Spike, it will be cleaner for them and less stressful for me. Spike gets walked everyday, we live right next to a big park so he will not miss out on exercise

.

Riverkatie · 08-07-2011, 02:31 PM

It may of course be easier to fence the kids play area! Which also means the kids can lie on the floor or picnic without the puppy joining in......

Nikkiey · 08-08-2011, 10:12 AM

I wish you luck Mel, and I do sincerly mean that!

Before we picked up Juneau, both my husband and I said, "Everytime he has to 'go', we'll take him to one spot in the yard and that will be where he's 'spot' is

...ummm...yeah, we didn't take into account that we got Juneau on November 1st and that the weather here in Alberta get's mighty cold!! We even created a tether system in hopes that that would help. The tether would reach to our door so eventually we didn't even have to step outside, just grab the clip, hook up Juneau and that would be that. Well, then January came along and with it so did the -40 (that's the same in °F and °C) temperatures. The clip on the end of the tether would freeze shut and since Juneau was still learning, we couldn't very well expect him to cross his paws and wait another 10 minutes as we tried to thaw out the clip.
(though on the times it did take us a little longer to get him outside it did give us quite the laugh. We had bell trained Juneau so he would sit there frantically throwing his nose into the bells and looking at us going, "Guys, seriously, don't you hear me ringing this bell?")

Anyways, once summer finally arrived here we did start making Juneau a kind of dog run along the side of our house. We invested in a "pee post" from our local pet store and shoved it into the ground in hopes that it would really work the way it says it does on the packaging. Well, it's been about two months and I can safely say Juneau pees in 'his area' 95% of the time. As for pooing, we're still working on that.

Keep in mind that once a dog has peed or pood anywhere in the yard, it will take a lot of time and energy to break that cycle, plus you will have to be careful if you ever have other dogs come over because one mistake and it could set you back in your training.

Nikkiey · 08-08-2011, 10:15 AM

Also keep in mind that some dogs, if they are trained to go in a certain spot, will do just that....ONLY go in that spot. So if you go camping or on holidays, they will hold it till they get back to 'their spot.' My Aunt's labradoodle will not eat or go to the bathroom while we're all out at the lake or when they go anywhere else...

Mel · 08-08-2011, 05:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Riverkatie

It may of course be easier to fence the kids play area! Which also means the kids can lie on the floor or picnic without the puppy joining in......

i think we are going this route, it will be easier to just run a fence across the yard width ways. It would be around 70/30 to the kids

, this way Spike still gets the areas by the back gates and the trees so that he can chase his bunnies which is his most favourite thing to do

.

Mel · 08-08-2011, 05:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nikkiey

I wish you luck Mel, and I do sincerly mean that!

Before we picked up Juneau, both my husband and I said, "Everytime he has to 'go', we'll take him to one spot in the yard and that will be where he's 'spot' is

...ummm...yeah, we didn't take into account that we got Juneau on November 1st and that the weather here in Alberta get's mighty cold!! We even created a tether system in hopes that that would help. The tether would reach to our door so eventually we didn't even have to step outside, just grab the clip, hook up Juneau and that would be that. Well, then January came along and with it so did the -40 (that's the same in °F and °C) temperatures. The clip on the end of the tether would freeze shut and since Juneau was still learning, we couldn't very well expect him to cross his paws and wait another 10 minutes as we tried to thaw out the clip.
(though on the times it did take us a little longer to get him outside it did give us quite the laugh. We had bell trained Juneau so he would sit there frantically throwing his nose into the bells and looking at us going, "Guys, seriously, don't you hear me ringing this bell?")

Anyways, once summer finally arrived here we did start making Juneau a kind of dog run along the side of our house. We invested in a "pee post" from our local pet store and shoved it into the ground in hopes that it would really work the way it says it does on the packaging. Well, it's been about two months and I can safely say Juneau pees in 'his area' 95% of the time. As for pooing, we're still working on that.

Keep in mind that once a dog has peed or pood anywhere in the yard, it will take a lot of time and energy to break that cycle, plus you will have to be careful if you ever have other dogs come over because one mistake and it could set you back in your training.

thanks Nikkiey

, sounds like you had a good thing going....the weather always messes things up ! we had a similar thing happen in the spring when Spike first came here....rain, rain and more rain.

we never had any luck with the pee post....he just tried to bite it and then pee'd somewhere else.

i think we have given up training spike to potty in a certain area....i just think it will be easier just to fence off an area and then once he has a routine down and gets used to pottying in his 'area' he can play with the kids in the 'clean area' ..... i'm sure he will pee or poop in their area the odd time but it has to be better than the situation right now...he just loves the area around the sandbox

and i can't move that now it's filled. i Have to be with him the whole time he is outside because the minute i leave him there he will poop right there or at the bottom of the slide. The fence will be a little way from the deck steps so that he can just come down the steps and there will be a gate into the childrens area.

Thanks for the good luck ! i need it

sweetp · 08-10-2011, 07:11 AM

Mel, have you thought about a small square gravelled area for potty? Spike may 'get it' if the material he's supposed to 'go' on is distinct? We have a rock garden in part of our back yard. When we were potty training Bosco, we would direct him to that part of the yard to 'pee' and he has been heading there ever since. Friends of ours went the same route with their Golden, they put in a small gravel area near the house but off the beaten track, and he uses his gravel area very well.

We haven't had any problems getting him to 'go' elsewhere when we're not in the yard. If the only option is grass when we're out for a walk, or camping, or whatever, then that's where he goes.

As an added bonus, it's much easier to see when something needs to be picked up. I had intended to do the same thing when we move, and try the pee stick to help train him to his gravel spot in the new yard.

Mel · 08-10-2011, 03:16 PM

sweetp, thanks

, i did think of gravel but i am worried that with Spikes poops being 'pudding' 8/10 times (ongoing problem) i would have trouble picking up ? do you have any problems picking up ? i can see me taking handfuls of gravel each time and having to replace gravel every week

i like the idea of paving slabs/squares....easy to hose down and cool in the shade. not sure if we can afford a big space for this though.

08-06-2011, 03:59 PM	#1 (permalink)
Mel Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2011 Posts: 146	back yard woes... i have posted before on this but i haven't as yet tackled the project.... i want to fence off part of the yard just for Spike to use for potty (pooping) due to the stress of 'policing ' the yard every day before my kids run through it.... i have a few ideas...chain link, shady, grass and linked to the deck gate/steps so that he can go straight out there if needed. just wondering if anyone has had any success with this idea...not quite a dog run as he will play with the kids and be around the house etc but more of an area for his pottying only.... am i being too ambitious hoping that he will use only this area ? It would be a good size area but i am wondering if he will relax about it or just hold it until i let him out.... i have tried for 3 months to take him on the leash to a certain area of the yard with plenty of praise moving on to walking without the leash to the same spot but this only works for the first one of the day and then he wants to sniff around and find that perfect spot...which is his dog gone right to do I just want to avoid him doing it RIGHT NEXT TO THE SANDBOX or RIGHT AT THE BOTTOM OF THE SLIDE i have to add that Spikes poops are rarely 'easy to pick up' we have on going stomach issues.....he is not sick, just seems to have 'pudding' poops every other day at least....but that's another story. It just makes it hard to keep things clean for my children. Last edited by Mel; 08-06-2011 at 04:01 PM.

08-08-2011, 10:12 AM	#5 (permalink)
Nikkiey Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: Alberta, Canda Posts: 196	I wish you luck Mel, and I do sincerly mean that! Before we picked up Juneau, both my husband and I said, "Everytime he has to 'go', we'll take him to one spot in the yard and that will be where he's 'spot' is ...ummm...yeah, we didn't take into account that we got Juneau on November 1st and that the weather here in Alberta get's mighty cold!! We even created a tether system in hopes that that would help. The tether would reach to our door so eventually we didn't even have to step outside, just grab the clip, hook up Juneau and that would be that. Well, then January came along and with it so did the -40 (that's the same in °F and °C) temperatures. The clip on the end of the tether would freeze shut and since Juneau was still learning, we couldn't very well expect him to cross his paws and wait another 10 minutes as we tried to thaw out the clip. (though on the times it did take us a little longer to get him outside it did give us quite the laugh. We had bell trained Juneau so he would sit there frantically throwing his nose into the bells and looking at us going, "Guys, seriously, don't you hear me ringing this bell?") Anyways, once summer finally arrived here we did start making Juneau a kind of dog run along the side of our house. We invested in a "pee post" from our local pet store and shoved it into the ground in hopes that it would really work the way it says it does on the packaging. Well, it's been about two months and I can safely say Juneau pees in 'his area' 95% of the time. As for pooing, we're still working on that. Keep in mind that once a dog has peed or pood anywhere in the yard, it will take a lot of time and energy to break that cycle, plus you will have to be careful if you ever have other dogs come over because one mistake and it could set you back in your training. Last edited by Nikkiey; 08-08-2011 at 01:49 PM.

08-06-2011, 10:15 PM	#2 (permalink)
Riverkatie Senior Member Join Date: May 2011 Posts: 110	Well with my new found success with clicker training, it ought to work.... It would mean going out with him every single time and waiting in the penned area until he performed, click and treat. I think it could be done, but would be very hard whilst you were training. Or, just thought of this....clicker train to 'go' on command, then go every 2 hours to fenced area and give the command, soon he should be going only there. Ignore mistakes, click and treat when going on command. I have no idea if any of this will work!

08-07-2011, 09:24 AM	#3 (permalink)
Mel Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2011 Posts: 146	i need to buy a clicker , they sound awesome ! i really hope i can pull this off, my yard is such an odd shape with hidden areas etc...my kids and their friends (and Spike) are all over it so i do need some kind of fenced area for either them or Spike, it will be cleaner for them and less stressful for me. Spike gets walked everyday, we live right next to a big park so he will not miss out on exercise .

08-07-2011, 02:31 PM	#4 (permalink)
Riverkatie Senior Member Join Date: May 2011 Posts: 110	It may of course be easier to fence the kids play area! Which also means the kids can lie on the floor or picnic without the puppy joining in......

08-08-2011, 10:15 AM	#6 (permalink)
Nikkiey Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: Alberta, Canda Posts: 196	Also keep in mind that some dogs, if they are trained to go in a certain spot, will do just that....ONLY go in that spot. So if you go camping or on holidays, they will hold it till they get back to 'their spot.' My Aunt's labradoodle will not eat or go to the bathroom while we're all out at the lake or when they go anywhere else...

08-10-2011, 07:11 AM	#9 (permalink)
sweetp Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: BC Posts: 26	Mel, have you thought about a small square gravelled area for potty? Spike may 'get it' if the material he's supposed to 'go' on is distinct? We have a rock garden in part of our back yard. When we were potty training Bosco, we would direct him to that part of the yard to 'pee' and he has been heading there ever since. Friends of ours went the same route with their Golden, they put in a small gravel area near the house but off the beaten track, and he uses his gravel area very well. We haven't had any problems getting him to 'go' elsewhere when we're not in the yard. If the only option is grass when we're out for a walk, or camping, or whatever, then that's where he goes. As an added bonus, it's much easier to see when something needs to be picked up. I had intended to do the same thing when we move, and try the pee stick to help train him to his gravel spot in the new yard.

08-10-2011, 03:16 PM	#10 (permalink)
Mel Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2011 Posts: 146	sweetp, thanks , i did think of gravel but i am worried that with Spikes poops being 'pudding' 8/10 times (ongoing problem) i would have trouble picking up ? do you have any problems picking up ? i can see me taking handfuls of gravel each time and having to replace gravel every week i like the idea of paving slabs/squares....easy to hose down and cool in the shade. not sure if we can afford a big space for this though.

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