The Cellar - Help!

a dog should be housebroken at that age. basically what you have to do is keep him in the crate anytime you cannot directly supervise him-and hopefully this won't be more than 5 hours a day! when he is out, watch him like a hawk! as soon as he starts peeing/pooing on your floor say NO!! and take him outside right away. If he finishes out there, give him love and dried liver, or beef tenderloin(kidding), a really yummy treat (keep them in your pocket for these occasions. take him out every 2 hours, right after every meal or periods of activity. Always reward him with lots of love and food when he goes outside. Be very consistent. and don't punish him when you find a puddle on the floor, because at that point, it's too late. He doesn't know why you're yelling at him. you have to catch him in the act! if you really watch him and catch him in the act a few times, reward him for doing the right thing, he'll figure it out eventually.
DON'T feed him grocery store crap dog food. It makes big messy blobs for you to pick up off your rug, or outside, and it's not healthy. Switch food gradually. 3/4 old and 1/4 new for a week, then half and half for a week, then 3/4 new and 1/4 old for a week.....I recommend Wellness dog food, Canidae, or Eukanuba maintenance - not the all pink bag! the black and pink bag...Science diet is crap and Nutro natural is all rice...just go with one of the first three I mentioned. well, that covers housetraining and diet...i was a veterinary technician for a couple years, i was also an animal care technician at an animal shelter and i worked in a pet store for over a year- I sold a lot of dog food, read a lot of labels...I have a dog too...i am no longer in the pet business...euthanasia and ignorant owners too depressing... But I still love animals! I'd love to answer any more questions you have about your new dog...Good Luck!