[JGraceD]

Before I start, let me preface by saying this: yes, I do know the disadvantages of indoor housetraining (i.e. pad training) a dog. I have physical disabilities and up until a few months ago lived in an apartment complex, so this is the best option for me and my dog. I have also trained my former dog to use a pad indoors and had no issue, so I have at least some experience.

Okay, now that that's out of the way, let me explain my situation. I have a male toy poodle named Oliver who is 14 months old. He seemed to get the hang of using a pad indoors after training as a puppy but would still have one or two accidents on occasions (mainly due to the fact that he gets a little too excited sometimes). I had to move houses about 4 months ago and while I expected a few difficulties in Oliver adjusting to the new house, it seems to be getting worse.

It started out with a couple of accidents. I kind of understood/justified these because I'm in a rental house so there may have been other dogs living here before; I thought maybe he was just going through some "teenage puppy" behaviour and trying to mark his territory. But now it's like he almost refuses to pee on his pad. Even if it's the first thing in the morning (when he always has to pee), he'll almost actively avoid it. And the weirdest thing is that he's totally fine when it comes to pooping; he always does it on the pad. It's just so bizarre...

Any ideas or suggestions as to what might be going on with my dog?

 

[Shandula]

Whenever potty training takes a massive step backwards, my first recommendation is always to suggest a trip to the vet to rule out anything medical like a UTI.

If that's all clear, go back and treat him like an 8 week old puppy. Let him drag a leash if you need to so you can quickly walk him over to his pad, and praise/reward heavily for going on the pad.

If you haven't been using one, make sure to use an enzyme cleaner to remove the smell of where he's been going/potentially marking over previous dogs.