Ok, so you've decided to bring a puppy into the fold. Your puppy's lack of housebreaking is unfortunate. The thought of going through this procedure is typically met with strong dislike.
Although, you and your dog need not have a tough time with this. It might take a few weeks to complete, but doing it properly can save a lot of trouble over the years.
You should first treat your puppy as you would a young child. Puppy toilet training is similar to human potty training in that it takes time and consistency.
It may take several weeks to successfully house train a puppy. Your dog hasn't yet learned to recognise the cues his body gives him to go potty.
As soon as he feels the need to urinate, he immediately complies. Puppies, like toddlers, need to learn to communicate their bathroom needs to their carers and hold it until they are taken to the appropriate area.
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You can start training your puppy in these areas by formulating a strategy. You should consider the factors that make you feel the need to go to the bathroom and teach your puppy to do the same.
Most people have to go to the bathroom shortly after eating or drinking, when they first wake up, and after extended periods of time have passed since their last restroom visit.
Similarly, a puppy should follow these guidelines. Take this into account when determining how often your puppy needs to go outside to relieve itself. When first beginning to house train a puppy, it is recommended that the puppy be taken outside once an hour.
Although it may seem inconvenient at the time, your puppy will only have this requirement for a few days, at most a week. To help your puppy associate the word "out" with going outside to do his business, say it aloud each time you take him there.
The puppy will get the idea that he needs to go outside to relieve himself. This will also teach him the importance of telling you when he has to go outside. After several days of taking the puppy out every hour, you can gradually increase the duration between walks.
Consumption of food is a major source of waste removal. In light of this, you should think about this while deciding when to let the puppy outside. Your puppy will have to go to the bathroom soon after eating.
During the first few days, it's best to feed the puppy just after he comes in from going to the bathroom so that he can go back outside to play an hour later. You should schedule your puppy's meals and bathroom breaks so that it gets fed and out at the right times three times a day. Several hours before sleep, give your puppy his last food of the day.
It's important to take your puppy to the same spot every time you take him out for a potty break. A puppy will quickly learn to eliminate only in this one spot since it will always carry the familiar aroma of its prior eliminations there.
Positive actions prior to elimination, such as sniffing, should be praised gently. Use the same command, such as "potty time," every time you take your puppy outside to do its business. In doing so, he will eventually learn that he needs to go potty only when he is outside. When your puppy uses the bathroom in the right spot, be sure to shower him with praise, play, and maybe even a treat.
You must keep a close eye on your puppy until he is thoroughly house trained (having gone 6-8 weeks without an accident). It helps if more than one family member is available to help with the monitoring of the situation.
Consider getting a new puppy during a period when at least one family member will be able to stay at home with it nearly round-the-clock for the first week. Your kids will love having a new dog to play with throughout the long summer months.
This way, you won't be alone in keeping an eye on the puppy. Puppies have an innate need to investigate their environment. When you can't pay close attention to both the puppy and your other tasks at once, try using a leash to keep the puppy close by.
When you can't keep an eye on your puppy all the time, like when you're asleep or out of the house, it's best to keep him or her in a compact space like a dog box or cage. In the first several weeks, the puppy shouldn't be confined for longer than he can physically hold his bladder. Never confine a puppy without first giving him a chance to go potty.
For the first few weeks, he will need to get up several times during the night to use the restroom, but after that, he should be able to hold it for longer stretches of time, particularly during the night. When introduced to the crate in a positive way, most puppies accept it immediately. Add some playthings and maybe some snacks.
The crate will become your puppy's safe haven and he'll grow to adore spending time inside. Your puppy will be more comfortable in a larger space, like a room or a dog run, if you must leave him alone for an extended period of time.
If he has to go to the bathroom, he needs to be able to do so without disturbing anyone else, and he also needs to be able to lie down comfortably a few feet away. Placing newspapers in the spots where he is most likely to urinate will help deter him. Once more, try to make his cage an enjoyable environment for him.
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Like any other skill, housebreaking a puppy will require time and repetition to master. Thus, you should have a plan in place for handling unexpected events. Keep in mind that punishment is the worst possible response to an accident. If your dog eliminates somewhere, don't touch his nose to it.
His fear will simply be amplified. If you catch him in the act, then you can scold him. Use a startle method, such as stomping your foot once or saying a loud "no," to get him to stop eliminating if you find him in the act. Then you should get outside to his designated elimination spot. When he's done, be sure to give him some high marks.
If you don't catch him in the act, reprimanding him will only make him more fearful of you and less likely to tell you the truth in the future. In the unfortunate event that your puppy has an accident inside the house, be sure to apply an odour remover to completely clean the affected area.
If you don't remove the stench from the spot where the puppy had an accident, he or she is likely to return there to defecate.
If your puppy has started having accidents in a specific room or part of the house, you should prevent him from going there by closing the door, installing gates, or placing an object (such as a rug or piece of furniture) over the problem spot.
You can use a motion alarm to train your puppy to stay away from specific areas. In addition, canines typically avoid defecating in their own living quarters. A dog's eliminations might be discouraged by placing a bed or food dish in the vicinity. Read also: Treatment
and Prevention of Dog Separation Anxiety
Potty-training a puppy is a lot like training a human toddler. It will take some time before they can recognise the signs their bodies are giving them and communicate this requirement to you. A little time and effort spent being consistent will have your dog housebroken in no time!
