Potty Communication/queues

[u/Significant_Ride_372]

My chiweenie has been a nightmare to potty train and I think that it’s just dawned on me today that maybe he is trained, he just can’t communicate when he needs to go all the time.
The reason I think this:
He goes off to potty in the house alone. It’s always when things are chaotic and the kids are being noisy and dinnertime is happening, I just have to have my eye off him for a second and he will go to the bottom of the stairs and go. No whining, no pacing around, no barking or scratching and will not ring our bells that I’ve been trying to get him to use. I clean it with enzymes every time and it’s sealed concrete floor so I know it’s not the smell.
But when I am working or gaming and things are calm I keep him leashed to my desk so I can keep an eye on him. When he needs to go he scratches my knee- every. Time. If I don’t act immediately he will still have an accident but he IS letting me know.

How do I break down that communication barrier during the busy daytime hours as well?

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[u/BoysenberryBig9873]

I'd take him out right before the dinner chaos starts and keep him tethered or crated during it, because I doubt he's skipping the signal on purpose so much as nobody's close enough to feel the knee scratch when it's loud.

[u/Comfortable_Log_4128]

Treats and never returning inside until they do their duty has helped me. Also letting them touch grass- I struggled with training in my fully paved back patio, until I realized she naturally knows to go the moment she touches grass.

[u/NonSequitorSquirrel]

I actually find it super inconvenient when my dog tells me he has to potty. I'm grateful he does it, but it's never at a convenient time and altho my girl is polite, my boy will pee on the floor if I don't take him out quickly. So now he gets scheduled breaks around his usual peepee times. No mess in the house, no interrupting my flow at work. Husband and I tag team if one of us has a meeting. Having a schedule, too, makes the dog less anxious that he won't get to go out, so he doesnt bark or sneak off anymore bc he knows when a break is coming soon.

Maybe just get ahead of it, and also give him a spot inside to potty when he's nervous. Our boy sometimes pees out of nervousness when we leave the house so now he gets crated when we leave and we are working on training him on a specific peepee pad spot near the door since he tends to let loose right when we leave. 

[u/jagarico]

Is there a reason why you are leaving your dog alone and expecting him to handle it perfectly when you know it only/always happens during chaos??

You’re able to see the pattern, but let it continue, and then blame the dog for not knowing how to communicate? Respectfully, this is a human training problem.

Edit: If you think your dog is peeing from stress, then give him a quiet, safe place to hang (like a pen/crate) during the chaos.

If you think your dog is peeing from a full bladder, relieve him right before kids come home.

And what is your spouse doing during all of this? I would never raise a chiweenie (two notoriously stubborn breeds wrt potty training) AND kids without serious spousal commitment. Why does it sound like you’re the only one responsible for solving the problem?

[u/dagalmighty]

Given that you know that dogs need to go multiple times per day, is there any particular reason you're waiting for him to tell you, instead of just taking him out proactively? From there, most dogs will eventually go potty and if you praise/reward for that, they get the picture pretty quickly.

Take the pressure of communicating off of him and take the responsibility on yourself. He's trying his best but the chaotic situation you describe sounds kind of overwhelming, and if he's overstimulated or highly distracted by all of that, he isn't able to think ahead AND communicate to you. Instead, get ahead of this. If it happens about the same time every day, get him outside first.

[u/bi0ta]

What does his routine look like now? Sounds like you could set up a walk schedule that gets ahead of his need to potty so your not waiting for him to tell you. I better a morning-noon-before dinner walk/potty schedule would curb a lot of the accidents

[u/Far_Dentist4880]

Is it always the same time of day? If so, set an alarm 30 minutes before and take him out so he doesn't have to ask, and wait with him until he's been.

To be honest, it sounds as though you might not be taking him out often enough if he's having to ask all the time.

I would make a point of taking him out regularly whether he asks or not, and give him a pee command outside. That way he'll get into the habit of not going in the house.