Potty Training and a scary mishap.

My pup will be 9 weeks old on Sunday and we got him Monday. My husband is a very social person and has friends over on his days off sometimes. His friend came over today and at first, Flint didn't seem to care. My husband went out to the backyard and his friend went to the bathroom. While trying to convince Flint to go out back with him, Flint stopped in the doorway and stared at him, letting the flies in. Husband's friend came out of the bathroom and reached out to pick up the puppy, thinking he could just help him go outside. Well, Flint yelped and ran away and peed everywhere.

I am worried that this incident could change him forever and he may became a fear biter. My husband's friend held out a toy a few minutes later and Flint walked up to him to retrieve it, but he didn't play with it as enthusiastically as he normally does. What can I do right now to remedy this situation? Have I just been handed years worth of complicated anti-fear training? I don't need my pup to be best friends with everyone he meets. I am very happy with him watching from a distance until he feels like approaching guests in our home, he is a doberman after all. He is acting normal like nothing happened about an hour later. Is he going to be okay?

Also, he does well going outside to use the bathroom sometimes, but he pees about 3 times in about 20 minutes instead of just getting everything out in one go. It has made potty training difficult and we've had many accidents in the house. We praise him for using the bathroom outside and carry him outside if he starts to soil the floor in the house. I use the Nature's Miracle cleaning product that is supposed to break down enzymes from dog urine and discourage peeing in that same spot afterward, but he seems very comfortable urinating wherever he is at the moment unless he is in his crate.

Any help on either matter would be appreciated. Thank you!

You will *probably* be just fine with this incident. He's a very young puppy, most don't go to their new homes until about 10 weeks, when they've built a lot of confidence by exploring away from their mother and littermates but knowing they are close. So yes, he was frightened, but sounds like he recovered OK. With regular guests coming and going as he grows up, I'm betting he will be fine. I had a rule with my puppy and guests that they were to leave her alone - no touch, no talk, no eye contact - so she could watch and observe the guest and the fact that you & husband act normal around the guest should set him at ease. The stranger approaching with hands out may look threatening to a small puppy. You are his safety net and a stranger came in and scooped him up.

Potty training - again, very young puppy, they change SO much in one week or two in maturity and their learning processes. Right now there is very little control, or at least I should say consciousness about potty time to your pup. As soon as he wakes up or finishes a meal or the instant he stops playing - take him out. It will be a hundred times a day, or at least it will seem like it. I'm assuming you are taking him out a few time in the night as well. I'm assuming he has a crate that you can put him in when not able to watch him? I advocate using a leash and standing still when you want him to go, praising when he goes, and he will learn much quicker to go as soon as you step outside with him. There will be times when he doesn't need to go, especially as he gets older, but it really does help. Never scold for accidents, he absolutely has no concept of right or wrong about this. Potty training can last for a couple of months.

Oh, and Puppy Pictures!!! We need Puppy Pictures!

Okay this is all reassuring. He met the neighbor's American bully/pit bull mix through our fences this morning. Our fences have about a 2 1/2 foot gap between them and mine is 6ft tall. We were back about 30ft from it when the neighbor's dog came out.

He was barking and standing tall with his tail straight in the air. Flint's hackles rose and he trotted off toward the house, but I stayed put, talked to the neighbor and ignored the bully. Flint came back to my side after he saw everything was okay and even sat between me and the other dog. We walked away after awhile and we started playing in the yard again, so I think it was a good experience.

I do have a crate I keep him in. I try to actually wear him out before putting him in there and I put a tiny bit of peanut butter in his puppy kong when he goes in. I tell him "crate" as he steps in to get the kong, tell him he's a good boy or "good crate", then immediately leave the room and turn the lights off. I only hear him whine on occasion, but I've never heard it last more than about 10 seconds. He's a good boy when it comes to the crate.

Here is a picture I took a few hours ago. His ear cropping appointment is Tuesday.

A young puppy…he will be okay. You have time to properly socialize him. Throughout puppyhood and adolescence, he will look to you when socializing. If you show anxiety and fear then he will become anxious and fearful.

Be prepared for loud noises- thunder, cars, vacuums, etc…these are all things that he may react and show fear. Best thing you can do is try to be prepared and show zero emotion at all. Look at him and say- silly boy that’s just thunder or a truck…move about with confidence as nothing happened. Too many folks make shrieking noise and run to puppy to try and protect/comfort.

Potty training- do what @Ravenbird said over and over and over. It just takes time.

Too young for now but you can build his confidence through training and exploration of the environment. Outskirts of schools, shopping malls, Lowe’s, soccer/baseball fields, climbing patio tables, bleachers, etc….

He is cuuute!

Yeah, he is a baby like everyone stated. A bit strong of a reaction but he will overcome it. Good idea to have people ignore him and only pet when he comes up to them. This even applies when they are adults, honestly. I tell people that my dogs will come up to them if they want to interact. Too many people try to force themselves on dogs and my dobermans are friendly and will tolerate rudeness from humans but they are kinda aloof about it.

He is a baby! He probably pees several times because he gets distracted easily. I agree with leashing for housebreaking. I let everyone handle my pups initially in our home. I have always felt multiple exposures were good for them, barring small children who squeeze too tight. Don’t worry so much and enjoy your pup!

Okay update on this:

Flint is absolutely fearless at the tender age of almost 14 weeks. Even the friend that scared him he approaches boldly and excitedly when he walks into our house. He seems pretty socially open with people, though he seems to be increasingly confrontational with other dogs.

The biggest issue from this update is the potty training. He knows to go to the back door and wait. He pees outside, and even when he had a case of the runs (he is better now) he ran to the back door and frantically whined so that I would let him out. But on occasion he still pees in the house. I can't tell if it's a dominance struggle or what, but he has times where he won't go to the back door or give any indication that he needs to go. He just goes.

This is my first male puppy, I have only had females. It honestly seemed like asking the female pups to please pee outside was all I needed to do and it was a done deal and I was warned males were harder to house break. Maybe I have just been spoiled. None of the female pups I've had took more than a week to understand to only use the bathroom outside. We have had Flint over a month now and we are still cleaning up accidents. Is this a male dog thing? I have been consistent in my training but it seems like he just gets lazy sometimes and to hecc with how I feel about things.

StateOfMine said:

But on occasion he still pees in the house. I can't tell if it's a dominance struggle or what, but he has times where he won't go to the back door or give any indication that he needs to go. He just goes.

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That's just a puppy thing and it gets better with time. It sounds like he has the right idea but sometimes the puppy brains get distracted and they go where they happen to be at the moment.

I would say that it’s normal. He’s still a bit young too. Remy was similar while potting training. It took him awhile to actually whine or bark to indicate he had to go out. I really had to watch him at first because I noticed he would sniff the ground or walk around before he had to go out.

I've only had one girl so I can't really 100% compare but my boys so far have been worse. Revel took forever. I didn't change anything with him that I didn't also do with Ripley. He never had a UTI. Would potty after eat, play or sleep. He just wouldn't let me know he had to go or he would go when outside and 30 min later manage to find more inside him to also go inside. Stavros, the youngest boy, has been substantially much better than Revel, only one or two accidents when he was really young. He did have one accident just recently but he also drank a lot of water. I think some aren't as quick as others. Its frustrating but definitely has made me want to get rid of any carpet, even in the bedrooms, lol. At least with a girl they pee in one spot...

The best thing I can advise is the eat play sleep rule and keep an eye for sniffing the ground. If you need a break from watching, don't be afraid to use the kennel for naptime/chill out time. This will help cut down on any accidents too.

I have only had 3 girls, and 6 boys....and in my experience; boys take longer to potty train. Girls seem to catch on quicker. And I have always loved the boys (obviously) Just my experience