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nikki's had 'accidents' everyday since we've had her. she's 7months going on 8. her PO told us she was housebroken & she NEVER has accidents.

she never pees in front of us. always surreptitiousl y. like.. when i turn my back for 10 minutes, or when we take the other dog for a walk. when does she pee? :

scenario 1) when both dogs are together alone, she never pees, even after 7/8 hrs.
scenario 2) this morn, she peed on the hardwood floor an hour after her morning walk, while we took the other dog out
scenario 3) yesterday, she peed while we were both facing the computer, and the other dog didn't wanna play with her.

I bought weewee pads over the weekend. no effect. we've scolded her the last 2 times right after we 'caught' her, but her submission mode lasts about 2 seconds...

wtf are we doing wrong? anyone w/ training advice much appreciated.

greek4,
a frenchie owning friend of mine lives out in Lombard, and Downers Grove has the benefit of that HUGE Fry's Electronics . so yah, hit me up when u move. there are a coupla really nice dog parks (registration and fees required tho) out around there...

we live in a 750 sq ft 3rd floor unit of a single family home - with a fenced in yard - in Chicago near sox stadium. real estate is a premium in the city, and my gf's still a grad student, so we're on a budget...

i'm beginning to find it annoying that i'm judged for keeping 2 rather 'large' dogs (golden and now st. bernie) in this "condition". my friends in CA says it's (and i quote) "just too mean to the dogs" because i don't live in a house w/ a big back yard.

we walk our dogs twice a day at the park, take 'em to the dog beach often, carry 'em for drives along the lake shore, feed 'em PREMIUM kibbles, have a pretty darn reliable vet. this year so far, my golden's been to the vet 4 times.

when I tried to adopt a golden in CHI, golden rescue of IL scoffed because we weren't (rich?) in the burbs w/ a huge backyard. when i tried to adopt in LA, they laughed because i said the dog MAY stay outside. catch 22 or oxymoron??? our st. bernie was obtained off craigslist.com from a desperate family. the golden was an older unwanted stud dog ex backyard breeder in the boondocks of IN. i'm not sure how else to get people off my back. would people rather see these things put down? or is my city apartment a better home? GEE i wonder..

besides diabetes (in a 7 months old pup, unlikely, but possible), the other common reason for exessive water consumption is hyperthyroidis m (also listed in that petsplace.nets cape.com link)...

funny thing, last nite, i blocked the water bowl from her for about 5 minutes (after she had downed half the bowl)... and eventually, she just forgot about it and didn't fight to get back to the bowl.

as far as Riley drinking from the lake, when Cody, the golden, drinks too much L ake Michigan water, he gets  the runs ... so i have to watch that too..

i really can't have her drinking the ENTIRE bowl at a time because it'd leave my other dog, the golden, in the desert so... 

We just got our Saint last nite. She's also just around 6/7 months, almost 80 lbs. she WAS being fed IAMS puppy, but i'm switching her to Canidae (same as our golden). Canidae is about 24% protein-ish, something like 14.50% fat and about 466 kcals/cup. From what I read 5-6 cups of this food per day is good for Nikki (per Canidae's 75lb+ feeding chart).

However, Canidae advises to feed at 5-6cups/day until 6 months but Nikki is already 7. How long should I be feeding at this rate until? 1.5 yrs? 2 yrs? etc.? We don't want the puppy to grow too fast, develop weak joints/bones, etc...

much thanks,
Tony