All he cares about is foraging and when given freedom he does not even want to spend time with us. Just go looking around the house for food or something to chew on. He eats lots of dog food so should not be hungry and he has lots of toys.
He also still pees on the floor and furniture. Without any warning he just stops playing and pees. He is driving me crazy! Advice?
On Facebook follow Zak George. He is a positive dog trainer & posts free training videos that you can work into your day.
Sounds like your missing structure. When your pup gets up take a walk or feed 1st then wait an hr & short walks like 15mins total 2-3 Times a day. Do not take 1 long one since it is not good for there bones.
After rest spend 5min-10mins short training segments . On Zaks pg you can bookmark the link where he has all his videos in order of training pups on you tube so you not need to search all the time.
Get out to a dog park 1-2 Times a week & socialize.
When a pup eats he pees, he plays he pees etc. Crate him at night he's to young to have run of house & be trusted not to get into puppyhood trouble.
Last but not least he should never be out of your sight. This way he picks up something that is not his he can be told no & given something he is. If he pees a sharp AH AH or no, taken out side even if you need to put a leash on him & walked in back yard to pee then treated. Turkey lunch meat make a nice special treat for good special behavior.
Remember in puppyhood which lasts approx 3 yrs. Out of sight in TROUBLE. Train, train, train. Socialize, socialize, socialize then they won't have time to learn bad behaviour. Then for the rest of their lives they will have learned the right stuff you'll never want to leave them at home bc they do everything right & you can show off your accomplishment of good dog parent.
I am so sorry to hear you are having issues with your little one.
I am not sure it would be of help, but I will try to explain what I am doing with my little one. He is almost 8 month old.
At six month, your little one still is in teething phase. You need to give him a good chew toys to chew on (please when you give hime a chew toy, you need to watch him closely). If toys get too sharpe or too small you need to take them away from him. His teething will get slower down when he gets all his adult teeth.
Also, Coton loves interactive play time. My little one loves to tug and fatch, so I set a tree to four times a day to play with him for 10 to 15 minutes. This will help him to bond with you.
About his peeing issue, you need to put him on a routine. Coton will follow his routine well. You may have to start it with take him out every hour. Everytime he takes care of his business, you praise him and give him a small treat. At his age, he does not need to go out every hour, but you need to find out what will works for him. When He knows he gets a treat by doing business outside, he will follow the routine. Consistency really do woks on Coton. Marking his terratory can be an issue, but if he bonded to you, you need to catch him an action and correct his action. Usually he wants to please you, so he will not do it.
About his eating, he will grow most rapidly in age of 6 to 8 month. So he will be hungry all the time. I feed my dog a raw food, but I will give him less than recoomended portion, so he gets treats through the day, such as to teach him a trick and to praise him.
Coton can be high maintenance, but if you work with him, he will be a great kid you can proud of. Good luck with your little one.
Mine is almost 3 & has been marking for the last year. He is a persnickety eater . He eats better than we do & I have the change brands frequently. Only made in the USA did find & often organic.
But the marking, we can't get him to stop!
Mine was 5 months old when I got her, pee pad trained but had accidents sometimes. We took her out every hour and when she did either thing we praised and gave treat Really made a big deal out of it.-----She finally learned to go to door-- always use the same door.
She is now 41/2 and at times will have accident, mostly when we come home and she is excited. consistency is the answer and lots of patience, treats and praise.
Its strange he shows no interest in you, they are usually little magnets and want to be right where you are. It is very frustrating but give it time and it will happen.....Wishing you the best of luck.
Just a thought but is he eating quality dog food? Is weight about right? Has he been checked for worms? Just trying to figure this out.
Try taking him out every 3 hours to do his business. When he pees praise him & give a little treat. It takes time to potty train. If he makes a mistake in the house scold him with a firm NO. Or with a can with coins in it. Tape up a soda can with a few coins. It works great at getting their attention and is a good training tool. Do not scold him after the fact. You have to get him in the act or the dog won't know what he did wrong. It took my Pierre 2 weeks and now he goes to the door and sits up when he has to go.