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My 12 y/o mini dachshund, the prettiest in the world, if that makes a difference, was pretty easy to potty train. Rarely an accident as an adult. She has surprised me with her ability to hold it when necessary. When I go to work, she holds it every day for about 10.5 hours. Then at night, she holds it all night, essentially never waking me up to go out. And sometimes, when she pokes her nose outside and it's pouring rain, she'll decide, "NOPE!" and she ain't going out, no matter what, so she holds it longer then, too.
But the problem is when I'm home. I'll come home and take her out right away, and then she'll insist on potty time a couple hours later. Then again, a couple hours later. Once we go to bed, she's fine until morning, and when I'm at work, she's fine all day. On the weekends, it's every couple hours. When she squats, the volume will be normal for her first one in the morning, generally, and when I get home, since she's been holding it. But the times when she insists on going out frequently, the volume is very low.
On the occasions when she is asking to go out every couple hours, I discourage her and tell her no. She'll lay down for a while, but minutes later, she'll again insist that she has to go. "Are you sure?" I'll demand. She's sure. But again, we get out there, and there's almost nothing. And this is the dog that holds it all day when I'm gone and all night in bed.
So the vet took a urine sample and it came back dirty. We put her on antibiotics and that cleared it up, but the problem persisted. The pH was off, so we treated that and that normalized, but the problem persists. She's had x-rays, ultrasounds, some other thing that I don't remember to look for tumors in the urethral and bladder walls and areas like that, and the vet says she is physically fine. We are starting an anti-spasmodic that's normally used on horses but she says it's really the last physical explanation and after this, it's more of a behavioral issue.
So that's the reason for this post, exploring the behavioral aspect. The vet says she's not a behaviorist and one would have to be consulted. This has already been pretty expensive and I'm not made of money, so I'd much rather get some ideas from the forum.
But the problem is when I'm home. I'll come home and take her out right away, and then she'll insist on potty time a couple hours later. Then again, a couple hours later. Once we go to bed, she's fine until morning, and when I'm at work, she's fine all day. On the weekends, it's every couple hours. When she squats, the volume will be normal for her first one in the morning, generally, and when I get home, since she's been holding it. But the times when she insists on going out frequently, the volume is very low.
On the occasions when she is asking to go out every couple hours, I discourage her and tell her no. She'll lay down for a while, but minutes later, she'll again insist that she has to go. "Are you sure?" I'll demand. She's sure. But again, we get out there, and there's almost nothing. And this is the dog that holds it all day when I'm gone and all night in bed.
So the vet took a urine sample and it came back dirty. We put her on antibiotics and that cleared it up, but the problem persisted. The pH was off, so we treated that and that normalized, but the problem persists. She's had x-rays, ultrasounds, some other thing that I don't remember to look for tumors in the urethral and bladder walls and areas like that, and the vet says she is physically fine. We are starting an anti-spasmodic that's normally used on horses but she says it's really the last physical explanation and after this, it's more of a behavioral issue.
So that's the reason for this post, exploring the behavioral aspect. The vet says she's not a behaviorist and one would have to be consulted. This has already been pretty expensive and I'm not made of money, so I'd much rather get some ideas from the forum.
Now change the ones that do not work with your routines. 
