How can I prevent pets from going on the rug?

First make sure that there's nothing physically wrong with the dog and that it is in fact just a housebreaking issue. The little dog is also probably stressed by its new environment and will definitely need to go outside more often.

Always remember that whenever you have to go, your dog probably has to go too (if not even more frequently!). I would start by making sure that the dog goes out quite often until the habit is broken. For the evenings, the dog should either stay in your sister's room with her (and puppy training pads on the floor) or in a crate. In a perfect world, your sister would set an alarm for the middle of the night and take the dog out for a potty break. The age of the dog should help determine whether or not it needs a middle-of-the-night potty break. Puppies and older dogs really need that middle-of-the-night potty break more than dogs in their prime.

Any time that you see the dog sleeping, when it wakes up, get it outside! Think about how you feel especially when you wake up in the middle of the night. :)

You'll also want to get your hands on some Nature's Miracle to get rid of not just the odor but to kill the enzymes and/or pheromones that are attracting others in the house to the same spot.

If you're not up for getting the dog outside more frequently then you either need to crate it when you can't keep an eye on it and then immediately take it outside when you let it out of its crate or get some puppy training pads which will attract the dog to them instead of your floor.

Most importantly -- every time that the dog goes outside and does its business, GIVE IT PRAISE like it just invented sliced bread! They need positive reinforcement just as much as people do.

Good luck and with a little time and tenacity, you should have no trouble resolving this issue!

have to agree with the comment above. also- using anything that has a smell of fruit is a no-no. that smell to animals is that of pee, not your favorite fruit smell. includes candles, lemon polish, room sprays and so on.

Thank you both!

Not to be a Debbie downer, but it seems that anytime there is even the smallest piece of carpet in a house, this is where they go. It is much easier to train a young dog if they don't have to do their business in the snow. Over the years we have had 7 of our own dogs and 6 grand-dogs in the house and the ones that gave us the issues were the male dogs, especially those that are still intact. The sooner you can get the carpet cleaned, the less chance there is of any other pets having to re-mark their spots.