We have a Shichon that is 1 year 5 months old. He is SO smart and can be trained so easily to do "tricks" but he does not grasp the potty training for some reason. It's so frustrating because we have tried everything and we've had him since 8 weeks old. He will go out side when we take him outside but he gives absolutely no indication that he has to go. He doesn't go to the door, bark, pace, or anything to give us a signal. He will sleep with me sometimes when my husband stays up late because we want him to be out of his kennel as long as one of us is awake and home but he sometimes pees on the bed. We are at a loss on what else to do! I've heard that this mix or even Bichon's can take longer (I've read up to two years!) to train so we are trying to be patient but it's so frustrating :( Any help would be greatly appreciated!

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have you tried potty training pads?

I have had my Shichon for 3 months now. She is 6 months old and fully potty trained. When we first got her, she was littler box trained, but still had a few 'accidents' in the house. We took her outside regularly (once every hour or two) , and rewarded her with a treat everytime she went potty outside. If we caught her in the act of peeing or pooping in the house, we disiplined her by telling her "No, bad girl!" in a firm voice, and then took her outisde through the front door and stayed outside until she pottied... then rewarded her with a treat. Now when she has to go, she sits at the front door. It is very time consuming at first, but worth the effort. Also, if you do not have an indoor kennel, I suggest you invest in one for puppy to sleep in. Dog's need thier 'own' space, and generally will not pee in thier bed or space. We started this from day one with our little pup, and it it has worked very well. She has never peed in her kennel. She also goes in there on her own when its 'bed time'. Hope this helps. We tried training pads, but she would just chew them up.

I have had my Shichon for 3 months now. She is 6 months old and fully potty trained. When we first got her, she was littler box trained, but still had a few 'accidents' in the house. We took her outside regularly (once every hour or two) , and rewarded her with a treat everytime she went potty outside. If we caught her in the act of peeing or pooping in the house, we disiplined her by telling her "No, bad girl!" in a firm voice, and then took her outisde through the front door and stayed outside until she pottied... then rewarded her with a treat. Now when she has to go, she sits at the front door. It is very time consuming at first, but worth the effort. Also, if you do not have an indoor kennel, I suggest you invest in one for puppy to sleep in. Dog's need thier 'own' space, and generally will not pee in thier bed or space. We started this from day one with our little pup, and it it has worked very well. She has never peed in her kennel. She also goes in there on her own when its 'bed time'. Hope this helps. We tried training pads, but she would just chew them up.

I have a 9 month old potty trained Shichon. He goes in a litter box (a rubbermaid underbed storage container) and we use "yesterday's news" litter from walmart. They say to get a small amount of feces and put it in the litter box so they will know where to go. I put a smaller litter box in his kennel so he will be able to go during the day. He never has accidents...I think consitancy is the best trainer.

I have a 9 month old potty trained Shichon. He goes in a litter box (a Rubbermaid under bed storage container) and we use "yesterday's news" litter from walmart. They say to get a small amount of feces and put it in the litter box so they will know where to go. I put a smaller litter box in his kennel so he will be able to go during the day. He never has accidents...I think consistency is the best trainer.

I found this breed of dog is very different to potty train what works is ignore any accidents that happen in the house very hard to do if you pay any attention to accident it is attention and you will have a pooping and peeing machine in your house. When they do a job outside all they need is a lot of praise which is attention and they train real quick this way just rember don't talk or pay any attention to pup when it dose its bussiness in the house ignore the dog and clean up mess spray are with diluted vingar and do you stuff

I have a 4 year old Shichon. I had a hard time training her as well, but by the time she was a year, she would good to go and has not had an accident since. She actually can hold it for a very long time. The positive reinforcement is what I have found works the best for her, for any type of training. She totally withdraws when there is "negative" training or scolding. I have gotten to where she gets a small treat when we go outside, and than another one after she actually does her duty. I hope this helps.

You need a definite daily schedule with your dog. He needs to go out within 10-15 minutes of every meal, every playtime and every nap as well as first thing in the morning. It is much easier to do so if he is in his crate when not supervised for meals and play. This should have been done since he was 8 weeks old but it still can be done. You are giving him too much freedom. Think of the crate as his rest time, it is not a punishment when cozy with his favourite toy. My shichon goes out first thing in the morning, then breakfast and 20 minutes playtime, then outside again to do both jobs, then crate rest time for up to 2 hours even with me home, then outside again, then play with me, then crate time again, then outside, then supper, 20 minutes later out one more time, then bedtime - mine sleeps in crate beside my bed and loves it knowing I'm beside her. Structure is what you dog will understand and feel secure with - good luck :)

Our Shichon puppy is 10 weeks old. We seclude him in a spare bedroom at night or when we are gone. I tried to do litter training him but he just dug in the box. He will use puppy pads occasionally. I keep hearing about crate training but my husband refused to consider that. He doesn't want him confined in a crate. I use a child gate by the door so he has his bed, the litter box and some toys and water bowl. I am trying consistantly to take him outside and he goes easily, but he will not go by the door to let you know when he needs to go out. The other problem is we live in Wisconsin and have winter weather. Today we are having a blizzard so it is hard to get him outside. I really don't know which way of training is best. I know he is young and I need to be patient but I don't know which way to try. Any advice Please???

My puppies were trained at 4wks I trained them on peapads & gave them alot of praise when they went potty I trained 6 puppys They are great dogs

I got my Shichon puppy when she was 8 weeks old. She was potty trained within a week. She did have "accidents" though, because of her still tiny bladder. I hung a small cow bell next to the door and taught her to ring it and bark once when she needs to go potty. Whenever she needs to go potty now, she rings the bell and barks once. With ANY breed, you need to stick to a strict schedule. When you wake in the AM, take your puppy out on a lead, to the same part of the yard every time. Take tiny pieces of treats with you and tell your pup to "Go wee-wee". When she does, praise her a LOT and give her a treat. Continue to walk her in the area for 3-4 minutes and tell her to "Go poo". When she does, praise her and give her a treat. She may not need to poo at this time, so if she doesn't go within 3-4 minutes, RUSH her back into the house. Do not play with her outside! This teaches her that she's going outside to do potty. You can go outside later to play or play inside. Feed her and play with her. Watch her like a hawk. After about 10 minutes of play, she will probably take a drink of water. Put the lead on and take her out again. Repeat instructions above. Puppies HAVE to wee immediately upon wakening in the morning and after naps. They have to wee and/or poo after every meal or drink, and after playing. Playing excites puppies, thus exciting their not-fully-developed bladders bladders. Puppies that are only 6 weeks to 3 months have to go wee about every half hour because their bladders are so small. As the puppy grows, so does the bladder so puppy doesn't have to go as frequently. At three months, she may be able to go 1 hour without potty. By six months, she should be able to wait 3-4 hours between potty breaks. Take her out again in half an hour, or sooner. You have to work at this a lot and be patient when your puppy is very young or just learning. When you leave the house and when you go to bed at night, crate your puppy (she can sleep with you when she's fully potty trained). Dog's usually do not go potty where they sleep. Bichons and ShiTzus love to go potty on carpet, so pen them in an un-carpeted area where they can be with family. Don't pen them into a separate room where they are away from you and family. If you don't have an un-carpeted family area, lay down a heavy tarp and lay a potty pad in the same spot all the time, preferably near the back door. But don't rely on the potty pads. If you do, your puppy may never be trained to go outside! You can use one pad but still watch her and take her out frequently. It can be exhausting and boring to give all this attention, but it pays off in the end. My puppy is now 5 weeks old and has not gone potty inside for several weeks. She rings the bell and goes outside.

I can sympatize with you as our dog was about a year old before she finally learned figured it out. She stands and looks at us when she needs to go out. Hard to say what will work for you. We took her out every hour during the day and often 3 or 4 times during the night until she learned. Hope it works out for you as our little girl is a true joy. She is the nicest and most loving dog we have ever owned. Good luck!

I used puppy pee pads and gradually moved it nearer and nearer the door, she is now 18 months old and has grasped the full concept. To let us know she wants to go out we usually say do you want to pee and if she gets up and wanders to the door the answer is yes. Also she sometimes asks by running between the door and me, but it did take along time to get it into her head.