# House arrest



## Clairasol (Sep 8, 2011)

Wonder if someone could help me please?

Archie has settled in well, is responding to training and learning extremely fast. We have issues with house training but I am not expecting this to happen over night...although I do have my worries about how often he is weeing.

Anyway when I leave the room he is right behind me, if I go upstairs he is there and if I leave the house he turns into a wreck. Even if I move to the other side of the room he follows. It is better when my boyfriend is home but he still follows me alot. If I move his bed away from where I am sitting during the day he doesn't go in it all day and will just sit on my feet. I have started telling him to stay when I go up stairs and take him back down if he follows, repeat my instructions and go back up. When he stays I reward him with a treat when I go back downstairs..I do the same when I leave him in the car on the nursery run and this is improving as he is now mostly asleep when I go back to the car. However yesterday he was so excited when I went back he wee'd all over the drivers seat!!! 

I have started to put him in the kitchen and leave him for 5 / 10 then 15 mins at a time whilst I am at home to get him used to being left but he goes crazy. I reward him when I let him out! I am not sure if this is making him better or worse. I have been putting a T-shirt of mine in his bed when I leave him but again, I don't know if this is making him worse and more attached to me. We gave up with the crate and he now sleeps in his bed in our room but he is surrounded by cardboard in one corner, so can't see us but can smell us. Bed times are a dream now, he goes straight in his bed to sleep and is mostly clean all night...unless I dont' hear him get up and get him outside in time.

I just wanted to know if this is a general new puppy thing or if we are going to have seperation problems later down the line. I currently feel like I am under house arrest as going out has to be planned . We have had him home 1.5 weeks now and he is 10 weeks old.


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## JulesB (Mar 6, 2011)

I had much the same with Betty when she was little and used to have to leave the bathroom door open when i was in the shower.

You are doing all the right things (in my opinion anyway) and he will slowly gain confidence that you are coming back and will be fine. I remember feeling really stressed when Betty was little as i thought she'd never settle when left, yet now if i go downstairs to take the rubbish out she often doesn't even move from her fave snoozing place of under the sofa!!

hang in there!


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## colpa110 (Jul 5, 2011)

We have to leave Betty in the morning until the dogg sitter picks her up at
about 11.00 am - she used to bark and go a bit nuts when we left but now
she just looks at us with a sad face... don't know what's worse really..
She still follows me around the house but lots of poo's seem to do this and
it seems out of affection rather than any anxiety..It's still very early days for you.. bear with it


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## Clairasol (Sep 8, 2011)

I'm so glad I'm not the only one. Hopefully he will get better then.

He has just waited at the bottom of the stairs whilst I went up to bath my 2 girls so he is learning very quickly just doesn't like it very much.


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## jools (Nov 11, 2010)

Wow he waited at the bottom of the stairs - he is a star (i'm jealous) - Dexter only just at 6 months stays for a short while - until he gets bored and comes and finds me upstairs - sounds like ur doing a great job!! Going out will from now on always take a bit of planning but u just get used to a daily routine and so do they - if ur going to leave him for a little longer try a kong with some mashed banana or his food in just to keep him occupied - keep up the good work j


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## DONNA (Jan 7, 2011)

Dont worry it is normal,im impressed he can be left at all at 10weeks without causeing havoc,if i go out or need to go for a shower i have to pop Buddy in the crate,he also goes in a soft crate in the car.

I think if you dont use a crate when putting him in a room without you for 10 mins then any dog would go crazy if hes used to being with you all the time,the only thing i can suggest is trying a crate again most puppies dont like them at first Buddy's 5 months now and he makes no noise at all when hes put in there now.


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## Clairasol (Sep 8, 2011)

jools said:


> Wow he waited at the bottom of the stairs - he is a star (i'm jealous) - Dexter only just at 6 months stays for a short while - until he gets bored and comes and finds me upstairs - sounds like ur doing a great job!! Going out will from now on always take a bit of planning but u just get used to a daily routine and so do they - if ur going to leave him for a little longer try a kong with some mashed banana or his food in just to keep him occupied - keep up the good work j



What a fab name - Dexter, I love it. Looking down at him whilst he was crying at the bottom though made me feel just awful. I have actually got a kong that we haven't tried him with yet so I think I'll try it tomorrow.


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## Rachel 163 (Jul 6, 2011)

Im sure Archie will get better when left. Ernie is now 17 weeks and is left for 3 hours every day in a crate I get up early so he can be out of crate for a while before he is left and make sure he has a good morning walk to tire himself out so what with early rising and the walk hes to tired to play up .As for the following you around Ernie does the same with me but seeing as my children are adults now I love it its like having a baby all over again .


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## Clairasol (Sep 8, 2011)

DONNA said:


> Dont worry it is normal,im impressed he can be left at all at 10weeks without causeing havoc,if i go out or need to go for a shower i have to pop Buddy in the crate,he also goes in a soft crate in the car.
> 
> I think if you dont use a crate when putting him in a room without you for 10 mins then any dog would go crazy if hes used to being with you all the time,the only thing i can suggest is trying a crate again most puppies dont like them at first Buddy's 5 months now and he makes no noise at all when hes put in there now.


I'm so glad this is normal behaviour for a puppy. I have been looking back through a lot of the old posts on here about leaving pups and it seems I am not alone. Archie won't have the run of the house, just the small kitchen,(and only room that hasn't been decorated yet ). I have been contemplating trying a crate again but mainly for house training him as he seems to wee constantly.  We can't even go half hour without a wee, unless he's in a deep sleep.


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## DONNA (Jan 7, 2011)

Clairasol said:


> I'm so glad this is normal behaviour for a puppy. I have been looking back through a lot of the old posts on here about leaving pups and it seems I am not alone. Archie won't have the run of the house, just the small kitchen,(and only room that hasn't been decorated yet ). I have been contemplating trying a crate again but mainly for house training him as he seems to wee constantly.  We can't even go half hour without a wee, unless he's in a deep sleep.


Ummmm that seems starnge that hes weeing so much with Buddy i would take him out every hour to see if he needed to go most times he didnt,prehaps a crate would be better to try and break this habit because once theve wee'd in one place they'll do it there again.

Washing up powder is the only thing that gets rid of the smell to stop them doing it in the same place.If he continues to wee in the crate maybe a trip to the vets as it could be a water infection???(the only thing i can think of which could cause him to go so often)


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## Clairasol (Sep 8, 2011)

I was thinking the same Donna, it's never ending. I am going to write down everytime he goes from today and see how often it actually is as maybe it just seems that I am continually spraying dettox on the floor....we'll see. We're off to the vets next week anyway for his 2nd vacs so I will mention it then I think anyway. I can't wait till he can go out for a walk. Perhaps that will improve things?! Then we start the next lot of problems of walking on the lead.


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## Happyad (Oct 5, 2010)

Only suggestion would be to treat him when you leave him for five mins, real bones are a hit!
And no treat or chatting when u go back in the kitchen for a min or so. 
Damn cute these puppies!


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## Clairasol (Sep 8, 2011)

Happyad said:


> Only suggestion would be to treat him when you leave him for five mins, real bones are a hit!
> And no treat or chatting when u go back in the kitchen for a min or so.
> Damn cute these puppies
> 
> Yep doing that, however not with real bones..might keep him occupied for a while longer so might give it a try. Thanks for the tip.


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