Tips for Housetraining Puppies
Timing is Important Potty on Comand Crate Training Feeding Schedules Expect Mistakes
Nervous Wetting Keep away from Problem areas Don't make it Worse Patience Back
Getting On the Right Track
The first course of action in housetraining is to promote the desired behavior.
You need to:
Designate a potty area outdoors. Guide your dog there to do his business.
Heartily praise him when he goes. By occasionally giving him a treat right after
your dog finishes, you can encourage him to potty in the desired area. The odor
left from previous visits to that area will quickly mark it as the place for the
pup to do his business.
Timing Is Important!
A six- to eight-week-old puppy should be taken outdoors every one to three
hours. Older puppies can generally wait longer between outings. Most puppies
should be taken out:
After waking in the morning
After naps
After meals
After playing or training
After being left alone
Immediately before being put to bed
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Pottying on Command
To avoid spending a lot of time waiting for your puppy to go, you may want to
teach him to potty on command. Each time he is in the act of eliminating, simply
repeat a unique command, such as "hurry up" or "potty," in an upbeat tone of
voice. After a few weeks of training, youll notice that when you say the command
your puppy will begin pre-potty sniffing, circling and then potty shortly after
you give the command. Be sure to praise him for his accomplishments.
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Feeding Schedules
Most puppies will potty within an hour after eating. Once you set your puppy's
feeding schedule, you will have some control over when he needs to go.
Schedule your puppy's dinner times so that you will be available to let him out
after eating.
Avoid giving your puppy a large meal just prior to confining him or he may have
to go when you're not around to take him out. Schedule feeding two to three
times daily on a consistent schedule.
The last feeding of the day should be done several hours before he's confined
for the night. By controlling the feeding schedule, exercise sessions,
confinement periods and trips outdoors to the potty area, your puppy will
quickly develop a reliable schedule for pottying.
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Crate Training
This is one of the best puppy house training tips we have to offer. Training a
puppy to be comfortable in a crate is a good way to keep him safe and confined
during housetraining. Most puppies will quickly accept crate confinement when
you make the introduction fun. Since its important to associate favorable things
with the area where your puppy is confined, it is a good idea to play with him
there, or simply spend some time reading or watching television nearby as he
relaxes with a favorite chew toy. If he is only in the area when you leave, it
becomes a social isolation area that he eventually may resist entering.
A good time to start crate training is at dinnertime. Feed your puppy his
dinner, one piece at a time, by tossing pieces of kibble into the crate for him
to chase and eat. This way, you can make a game out of training.
When you pick up his toys, store them in the crate so he will enter on his own
to play. You may even want to occasionally hide a biscuit in the crate as a nice
surprise.
You should not use the crate for periods that exceed the length of time the pet
can actually control the urge to urinate or defecate. A good rule of thumb for
puppies is that they can hold off urinating about one hour for each month of
their age. If you are gone for long periods each day, you will need to provide a
larger confinement area. You may want to consider using an exercise pen, outdoor
kennel or small room.
Provide an area large enough so that if your puppy has to potty when you are
gone, he can do it in a space that is separate from his sleeping area. A 15- to
30-square foot area is adequate for most puppies. If he chooses a specific place
to eliminate, cover it with paper to make cleanup easier.
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Expect Some Mistakes
Left on his own, the untrained puppy is very likely to make a mistake. Close
supervision is a very important part of training. Do not consider your puppy
housetrained until he has gone at least four consecutive weeks without pottying
in the house. For older dogs, this period should be even longer. Until then:
Your puppy should constantly be in your sight.
Baby gates can be helpful to control movement throughout the house and to aid
supervision.
Keep them in the crate when unsupervised.
When you're away from home, sleeping or if you're just too busy to closely
monitor your pet's activities, confine him to a small, safe area in the home.
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Nervous Wetting
If your puppy squats and urinates when he greets you, he may have a problem
called submissive urination. Dogs and puppies that urinate during greetings are
very sensitive and should never be scolded when they do this, since punishment
inevitably makes the problem worse.
Most young puppies will grow out of this behavior if you are calm, quiet and
avoid reaching toward the head during greetings. Another helpful approach is to
calmly ask your dog to sit for a very tasty treat each time someone greets him.
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Direct Him Away from Problem
Areas
Urine and fecal odor should be thoroughly removed to keep your dog from
returning to areas of the home where he made a mess.
Be sure to use a good commercial product made specifically to clean up doggy
odors. Follow the manufacturer's recommendations for usage.
If a carpeted area has been soaked with urine, be sure to saturate it with the
cleaning product and not merely spray the surface.
Rooms in the home where your dog has had frequent mistakes should be closed off
for several months.
He should only be allowed to enter when accompanied by a family member.
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Don't Make Things Worse
It is a rare dog or puppy that can be housetrained without making an occasional
mess, so you need to be ready to handle the inevitable problems.
Do not rely on harsh punishment to correct mistakes. This approach usually does
not work, and may actually delay training.
An appropriate correction consists of simply providing a moderate, startling
distraction. You should only do this when you see your dog in the act of
pottying in the wrong place.
A sharp noise, such as a loud "No" or a quick stomp on the floor, is all that is
usually needed to stop the behavior. Dont be too loud or your pet may learn to
avoid going in front of you, even outdoors.
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Practice Patience
Don't continue to scold or correct your dog after he has stopped soiling. When
he stops, quickly take him outdoors so that he will finish in the appropriate
area and be praised.
Never rub your dog's nose in a mess. There is absolutely no way this will help
training, and may actually make him afraid of you.
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Success!
We hope youve found these puppy housetraining tips helpful. The basic principles
of housetraining are pretty simple, but a fair amount of patience is required.
The most challenging part is always keeping an eye on your active dog or puppy.
If you maintain control, take your dog outdoors frequently and consistently
praise the desired behavior, soon you should have a house-trained canine
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