Silky Terrier Puppy pees at work

Question:
 My absolutely beautiful Silky terrier puppy, Baby Girl, is about 5 months old. My boyfriend and I got her from a pet store (yes, I know pet store dogs are famous for health and behavioral problems, but it was more of a rescue thing.... She was the last of her litter to sell, and they were about to send her back to the "breeder" where she would have been a slave or worse). We love her very very much, and she is probably the best dog I have ever owned. She comes to work with me each day (I'm blessed enough to have a job that allows me to do this) so that I can be with her all the time and work on housetraining. Because she is a pet store puppy, crate training has not been successful (She goes in her crate because she is used to being confined with her waste). I try to be very diligent in taking her outside every hour and a half, after meals and naps and before bedtime. She sleeps in our laundry room, which is seperated from the rest of the house by a baby gate and is covered with newspapers. She does go on the papers at night, but she has not shown any clear "favorite" spot, so the entire room remains covered. When I take her out, she ALWAYS goes potty. We almost never have accidents at home or at work as long as I am there (occasionally, if I am at work and busy helping a customer when she has to go, she'll go on the floor). However, if she is left alone with my boyfriend, she pees all over the couch, sometimes on the floor, sometimes several times in an hour. This is becoming more and more common, because I am in the middle of a play and frequently have to be gone in the evenings for performances. Also, when I go out to the post office or to grab lunch at work, I can almost guaruntee that there will be a puddle or a pile of poo to clean up when I get back. Aside from these problems, Baby Girl is a FANTASTIC pet. She's very smart, takes easily to obedience training, is affectionate, playful, and respectful. She had some health problems just after we got her (kennel cough which developed into pneumonia), but since recieving effective treatment, she seems to be a healthy, happy little dog. Am I doing something wrong? What would be the best method of training? Papers? Litterbox? True housebreaking? HELP PLEASE!!! -Tea
Answer:
 I would not do anything to teach her it is OK to potty in the house - and that is what paper, wee-wee pads and litter training will do. Everyone in the house has to be diligent with her training - if not, learning will seriously slow. Also, how people respond to her can affect her learning and such. Now, is it actually pottying or could it be submissive or excited urination? Is there a pattern to it aside from you being away? I suggest due to her background and other issues that you call in a good trainer or even a behaviorist to evaluate the situation and get information and observations not able to be effectively done on line.
Answer:
 Just bear in mind that when a dog is given permission to do something even if not totally desireable, the dog is more likely to keep it up and escalate it. I have been working with dogs for over 22 years as a trainer and now behavioral consultant. If you never want her to potty in the house you must not teach her it is OK to potty there sometimes. If your schedules are not conducive to good housetraining, hire a walker. Confused dogs (like with where they can or should potty) are often likely to begin acting up in other ways - especially if they have not yet hit adolescence. Confusion is a big cause if undesired behaviors in dogs. Also, young dogs can develop surface preferences when it comes to pottying and unless taught to go on a variety of surfaces, they may develop a desire to go in only one place. The last client I had that attempted box training (and she was doing it right) ended up with a dog that developed a surface preference and he was almost impossible to housetraing when she decided that it was better to hire a walker than to leave him home alone for eight hours or even more while she worked. Two lears later, the dog still if not fully housetrained because he developed a surface preference. If you teach a dog at any time it is OK to potty in the house, you must be willing to accept this for the dog's life. It is amazing how many dogs are given up at a few years old because the owners never fully housetrained them, they allowed the dogs to sometimes potty inside because it was more convenient than paying for a daily walker or altering work schedules or even giving a dog up due to lack of time. Well, they decide to try and fully housetrain and the dog is very hard to retrain and it ends up dumped. I volunteer for a rescue and many of the dogs that come in are not housetrained fully and many are 5, 6, and 7 years old. If you are willing to accept a dog that may potty in the house because you are teaching her it is OK to do so for the next 15 - 18 years, that is your choice.