Dog Health Questions: Help! what do I do to get this dog trained?

My mom and I just got a toy poodle mix from a lady who was glad to wash her hands of him. We got almost no background info on him, including not knowing what food he had been fed. Needless to say, we are needing to start from square one with this dog!
She told us he was potty trained, but apparently not, since he has been leaving little surprises in the house almost every day.

He seems to only be having "accidents" overnight, since I will wake up and discover a potty spot. I have tried taking him outside before bed, etc, but it still is happening. Should I be getting up earlier?

I think he is almost potty trained, but he never lets us know when he has to go. I just try to keep an eye on him in case he starts sniffing around the house.
My mom and I are considering crate training him, but we have never used this method to potty train before. Do we leave him in there all day?? Or do we only put him in there, say, overnight? And how often should we be letting him out?

Dog Training How Tos - Laying a Solid Foundation

Recommended Answer:
crate training is the way to go. I would definitely do this.
Here is a link to some info.
I would also say you may need a professional trainer. You should have him evaluated and then go to obedience class.

The Importance of Dog Training

• Most dogs will have accidents in a new house, even though they're potty trained.
  Yes, you should crate train him. He should sleep in there at night & the crate should be left open & accessable to him during the day. He will probably go in there on his own for naps.
  I would take him out as many times a day as you can. Take him to the SAME spot every time & say "Go potty!" until he goes.
  Then praise him as though he's done something wonderful. You can even leave the poop there for a day or so (if possible) until he gets the idea that this is the right spot to go.
  And yes - you really can teach a dog to go to the bathroom on command. All of mine do.
  As far as during the day - keep him in an area where you can monitor him at all times. Use baby gates so that he can't go into places where you don't want him.
  At first I would take him out every two hours or so.
  Good luck.


• he may be having accidents due to stress (it is stressful to move to a new home, new people, new everything). give him some time to make the adjustment. if you feel a crate would be helpful, see link for tips on how to use one properly. and no, you do not want to leave him in it all day - that is inviting him to eliminate in the crate, which is counter-productive. crating him at night might be an option and trying to get up a little earlier might also help. depending on his age, he should be going out on a schedule: first thing in morning, after each meal, after naps and playtime, last thing at night (these are minimums; small dogs tend to need to go more frequently than bigger dogs). mostly, praise him for doing the right thing and keep supervising so you can help him learn faster. best wishes.