Relapses in Housetraining
Once your rottweiler is housetrained, you may feel the days of accidents are long behind you. However, he may have an accident in the house occasionally, especially if he is still a puppy. Consistent training is still required until your rottweiler is an adult. Relapses in housebreaking can occur for several reasons, including medical problems, insufficient training, dominance marking behavior, and submissive urination. In each situation, there's a remedy, but you must identify the problem first.
Medical Problems
If your rottie is an adult and you've fully trained him, illness may be the most likely cause for an accident (as in diarrhea). In this case, there's nothing to do except treat the diarrhea and clean up the mess. However, if your rottweiler suddenly starts urinating or defecating in the house frequently, it might be a sign of illness. Changes in your rottie's behavior, such as suddenly forgetting he's housebroken, may be a sign of a serious medical condition. Before you attempt any behavior modification, assume the problem is medical. Take him to a veterinarian for a full checkup.
Tell your veterinarian what you're experiencing. Is your rottie urinating only or urinating and defecating? Is it in one spot or multiple spots? When does it occur? When you're home? When your rottweiler is greeting you?
Your vet will most likely check for bladder and kidney infections as well as other possible problems (diabetes insipidus, Cushing's disease, diabetes mellitus). Some spayed female rottweilers may show incontinence and may leak or dribble a little, and your vet has medication that can fix this. Very old rottweilers may suffer from cognitive dysfunction syndrome (CDS) and may forget that they are housebroken. This is also treatable with medication from your vet.
Behavioral Problems
If there is no apparent biological problem, your next step is to determine if your rottweiler's problem is behavioral (as with marking or submissive behaviors) or insufficient training. If your dog is insufficiently trained, he may urinate or defecate in the house, usually in large amounts. In either case, the dog may eliminate in your presence or may sneak away to go into a back room. Behavioral problems usually involve marking territory — usually with urine — on key items: beds, new items, something that belongs to a specific family member or a guest, or vertical surfaces. Submissive urination is due to the owner's behavior.
Tethering works well in most behavioral cases of relapse in housebreaking. It's not coercive and doesn't require you to get angry or upset. It also works in dominance and bonding issues.
Marking and dominance behavior suggests that neutering or spaying your rottweiler and getting some good obedience training is in order. With insufficient training, going back to the housetraining regimen is a must. In either case, tethering your rottweiler to you will keep him from sneaking off and will strengthen the bond between you and your dog.
Tethering or Umbilical Cording
Tethering or umbilical cording is a trick in the trainer's repertoire. Get a 10-foot tracking lead or rope and attach one end to your rottweiler's collar and the other end to you. Now, wherever you go, your rottweiler goes — whether it is to the kitchen, the living room, or the bathroom. Your rottie will be forced to focus on you and can't sneak off to eliminate. When the two of you can't be tethered, put him in the crate. This training method works wonders, but it takes time. Most people must tether their dogs a month or more to make a difference.
