Hey everyone!

I got my new husky puppy Rylai two weeks ago (she is now 3 months old) and for the most part potty training seems pretty consistent as long as I am diligent at bringing her out at the right times. Whenever we're indoors though, I keep her leashed to me so I can keep an eye on her at all times. The few times I have left her off leash and looked away for a second, she did end up peeing a bit out of line of sight or pooped right behind me. I have also been using potty bells before we go out each time and she does seem to recognize it although I don't think she knows it entirely. Sometimes when we go outside to pee and come back inside, she rings the bell to let me know she needs to go poop and that ends up being successful. On the other hand, in those times when she's off leash indoors and ends up having an accident when I am not watching for a split second, why does it not cross her mind to ring the bell to let me know to take her outside?

In regards to my main question though, since I have her leashed indoors and don't really trust her to not have an accident if I'm not keeping a very close watch on her, how do I eventually phase off the indoor tethering that I have going on? I'm sure potty training is going to take months until she is 100% full developed in terms of bladder control and how long they can hold it as well as having minimal to no accidents so I'm sort of wondering at what age will I expect to be able to completely get rid of keeping her leashed to me indoors.

Thank you for any advice and for reading!

Son got his pup at 4 months...it wasn't until maybe 10 months to a year before he was reliable...not eating rugs, peeing, pooping, eating out of the litter box...

I would start by putting up baby gates or closing doors, sitting in the room with him loose. And watching him like a hawk.

Thank you for the reply Amy! Looks like I have a long road ahead of me before I can fully trust her indoors.

Alesandra wrote:

Thank you for the reply Amy! Looks like I have a long road ahead of me before I can fully trust her indoors.

Oh yes. And be prepared for the husky "teen" years. Somewhere around 6 mos to a year, huskies can be fairly trying. There is a reason so many year old huskies are in rescue. Good luck.

Note: Archer, son's pup, was a holy terror until about 15 mos old - now he is wonderful!

amymeme wrote:

Oh yes.  And be prepared for the husky "teen" years.  Somewhere around 6 mos to a year, huskies can be fairly trying.  There is a reason so many year old huskies are in rescue.  Good luck.

Note:  Archer, son's pup, was a holy terror until about 15 mos old - now he is wonderful!

That's certainly really interesting to learn about since I figured the puppy years were the worst and I always thought that 6 months to a year meant they were more mature and would be better listeners in terms of obedience and training but clearly I am wrong! I'll have to remain patient with all of this, she is my first dog and so far it is a huge learning experience but I can tell she really improves gradually.

Hi @alesandra (Michelle? you're trying to confuse people, eh?)  It's funny to me - I've done adult rescue for most of my dogs over the past 30+ years) but most breeds have what in a human would be called "the terrible two's". In Husky's it seems to appear between 6 months to a year, but it's at that age that the less domesticated has to start 'becoming an adult' (hunting with the pack, etc) so it should not be a surprise that we see different behaviour in an adolescent dog - think about the human teenager who starts rebelling somewhere around 16-18.

Now, all that said, the stronger a bond you build with your 'child' the less traumatic the 'wild years (months)' are going to be.  If your dog is *really* a part of your life - going hiking, camping, to the store (weather permitting), etc. I think you'll find less "assertion of independence' - he doesn't need to assert what he already has.  It seems to be the dog who is the house pet who has the worst time when they reach adolescence; you know, the one who's kept in the back yard until the owner has time for them; the one who never gets to go anywhere. All pup (human and canine) are going to want to 'express their individuality, how you handle it determines how much of a challenge it's going to be.

If I didn't have a front door a few feet off to my left, I'd probably have adopted the "pee bell" idea, the dogs seem to get the idea pretty quickly from what others have said.  My two just go to the front door and set; if I'm not paying attention, I get barked/Avalanche or whined/Sasha at ....

Even though your little one is three months old she's still very much a puppy and like a human baby they have to have the attention ... if they don't get it then they're going to be 'hell on wheels (er, paws)'  I've been a strong support of 'tethering' (an in house leash) because it does several things:

• it makes you more aware of what the pup's up to.
  
• it makes the pup more aware of what you want.
  
• it keeps the pup safe since it can't get into 'things'.
  
• it builds the partnership between the two of you, simply because you're both more aware.
  

< and fin >

Hi @aljones! I really appreciate you taking the time to respond. I'm very curious to see how Rylai turns out because I wouldn't consider her to be a house pet at all, I generally have her out and about with me unless I'm doing errands that can be done quickly without a distraction. After tethering for two weeks now, I definitely find it very beneficial although of course the 24/7 babysitting can be exhausting at times - although necessary for raising a puppy of course. How would you say would be a good, gradual way to slowly eliminate tethering as she grows older? I do admit that potty training may be less concerning as she grows older but they do tend to be curious about a lot of things so off leash I can imagine she'll be getting into a bunch of things that I'd like her to leave untouched.

Michelle, it really depends on the dog and the training. My husky wasn't trustworthy at all until about a year for no destruction and 8 months old on fully potty trained. My gsd, which for the purpose of this thread, I can honestly say not much of a difference between the breeds, pre 1 year. My gsd was fully potty trained 0 accidents at around 5-6 months, she has been always trustworthy, until, yep the terrible 2's at 7 months old, have caught her chewing things, which she never did as a young pup. Chalked it up to being such a great young pup, she is testing as an older pup. Same can be true, a terrible young pup, may be a great older pup. Teething plays a huge role in all of this, imho, my gsd just had the last of her adult teeth come in at 7-8 months old, and that is exactly when she decided to be a rebel. It goes by fast, so try not to focus on the bad, and as Al and Amy mention, train hard to get the dog you want.

Oh, the teen phases. >_< I'm dealing with that right now with Suka. Sometimes he almost makes me wish I hadn't gotten another Husky. LOL He sure tries my patience. My last Husky didn't even give me this hard of a time. But I remind myself during those frustrating moments that it'll be over with before I know it and I'll have a well-behaved adult dog. So hold your breath, count to ten, or put your puppy in a crate for a bit. It'll be worth it in the long run. They're just testing their boundaries to see how much they can get away with, and by not letting them get their way, they become a well adjusted adult who listens to you.

Thank you so much everyone for this helpful information! She has stopped nipping as much right now but I think she will most likely get back into it more as time passes by. I am not looking forward to that period! Who knows though maybe she'll really surprise me and be an angel. This is certainly a very life changing experience I did not expect at all. But boy are huskies beautiful and I cannot wait to go out with her more when she becomes an adult.