How to stop dogs from soiling the couch and improve obedience?

Keep the door to your bedrom closed. If you are letting him be on any furniture in the house, stop. Once he is denied access to your bed, he may transfer his "bathroom" to a couch or chair. Crate him when you can't watch him, and do not give him free run of your home. Keep him on a leash at all times if you need to (you can attachthe end through your belt loop to keep your hands free). This way, if he starts to go in the house, you can give him a firm "NO!" and take him right outside. If he is not leashed, you'll have to catch him, which is a problem for two reasons: (1) it will become a game to him, and (2) by the time you get him, he will forget what he did wrong. If you need more help with this, you can click on the prompt to start a consult, where we can discuss the problem at length. Good luck!

I think the only way to prevent this from happening is to remove him to correct him when he jumps on something, and then distract him by having him perform a desired command (go to your place/mat/bed is a good one) for a treat. You will also probably need to restrict access when he is unsupervised by keeping him in another room or a crate. Some dogs are agile and he might never fall, but if you feel what he is doing is unsafe you can start some training. It may take awhile before he stops trying - be persistent and remember to encourage good behavior.

You may need to spend more time with him outside. Wait him out, and when he does go poop outside, give him lots of praise and give him a treat. You may also want to consider crate training him. Get him a crate that is big enough for him to stand up and turn around in. Make it comfortable, in a nice quiet place, with his blankets and toys. If he's stubborn and won't go outside, put him in his crate and close it. If he cries, give him a few minutes to settle down, but if he persists, he may be letting you know he needs to go potty. By giving him just enough room, but not too much, your giving him a 'den' so to speak. Dogs are very reluctant to soil the place where they sleep, so by confining him, you're presenting him with a choice; ask to go out and get the job done, or possible make a mess and have to be stuck with it for a little while. When he has gone potty, put him in his crate but don't shut it. The presence of his blankets and a toy will reinforce to him that the crate is a nice place that is all his own.

Training dogs to stay off furniture is very difficult. Dogs are situational learners and he thinks that he can get on the furniture when you are not watching. The positive response in his brain happens every time he gets on the couch and since he does it when you're not looking, it reinforces it's self. You either need to block access to the room with a baby gate, put something like chairs on the couch or they do make an electric collar with a small disc that you place under the couch and set a radius. If Bow comes within the radius, he will get a zap and thus not approach the coach. It all depends on how you wish to approach the situation. I hope this helps to point you in the right direction. Please feel free to post any additional questions!

It sounds as Ipo is calling the shots in your house! Did you allow or even encourage her to get up on furniture when she was a small puppy? If so, it is confusing to her as to why it is no longer allowed. EIther way, though, I agree that this behavior has to stop. Get her a dog mat (watch out for fabrics that attract and hold dog hair!) and put it in a spot that is out of everyone's way but where she can still feel like part of the family. Put a few treats in the middle of it and walk her over to it (have her ona leash) and say "Ipo, mat!" She will probably get on the mat for the treats. Ad soon as she puts even one toe on it, praise her. Keep encouraging her to go on the mat. Then, you can start to train her to go TO it instead of just on it by increasing the distance from the mat that you are when you start the exercise. Reward any progress. Your next step is to have her "down" on command. Once all of her is on the mat (oh yes, they will try to cheat and get only partly onto it), praise and reward. Your last training step is in three parts: getting her to obey the "stay" command, getting her to remain on the mat (again with the "stay" command) when guests are in the house, and getting her to stay when no one is in the room with her. If she is rusty on her commands, she needs to go to a beginner obedience class before you start this training. Finally, you can run strips of aluminum foil along the pieces of furniture that are forbidden. Most dogs do not like the feel of foil under their paws. If you need help with any of this, you can click on the prompt to start a consult, where we can discuss it at length. Good luck!

You will have to treat then as puppies again. Keep them kenneled when not being watched and do not let them on the couch anymore. When they go outside make sure you praise them and reward them to reinforce the behavior

The most common cause of housetraining accidents like this that only occur when you're not home is separation anxiety - so I suspect that your dog may be quite stressed and anxious when you're gone. If you're unsure, you can set up a video camera to record him the next time you go out - it's usually quite easy to tell based on the video if this is an anxiety-related problem or not. I would suggest leaving a special long-lasting treat of some kind for him every time you leave the house, such as a Kong toy stuffed with peanut butter. This will help to keep him busy and encourage him to settle, and over time will help to decrease his anxiety by giving him something to look forward to when you leave. You can also try a DAP pheromone collar along with a natural calming supplement like Zylkene or Composure. If these things don't help, I would recommend taking your dog to the vet for a check-up to make sure that there is not an underlying medical issue contributing to the problem. You can also discuss the possibility of prescription anti-anxiety medication for him if needed.