House Breaking A puppy
House Breaking A Puppy Will Take A Little Time And Patience
The trick to housebreaking a puppy, is always applying the same system, being patient, being understanding, and sticking with it, until you achieve success. This can be a very difficult period for both you, and your puppy who is a bit confused, but trying to please.
The value of properly housebreaking a puppy is extremely important, because not getting it right at this early stage in the puppy’s life, can damage the relationship between owner and dog down the road.
Different breeds of dogs can be more difficult to housebreak than others, and some may take more time and patience to housebreak, but all dogs should be able to learn this basic skill, if you keep it simple, and stay patient.
There are two different methods for properly house training a puppy. One is to show your puppy from the start where you expect him or her to do their business, such as your back yard. The other housebreaking method would be to paper train as a beginning stage, if it is easier than taking your dog outside each time.
To housebreak a puppy using the outdoors method, the puppy must be allowed frequent access to the outdoors, and given ample time to do his business before being brought inside. When your puppy is inside he should be kept confined to a small area of the house, like the corner of the kitchen, or inside a proper dog crate.
Keeping your puppy confined during the housebreaking stage, when you are not playing with him, will make him reluctant to soil that area. It’s important to take your puppy out often at this stage so he can relieve himself. Young puppies need to eliminate often, but as control develops your trips will become less often.
If your puppy has an accident in this enclosed area, give your puppy a firm No or Bad command, and take your puppy outside, so he knows where he should have gone. This way he will start to catch on, and eventually will wait until he is outside to do his business.
Some people think crates are cruel to use during housebreaking a puppy, but I assure you they are not, when used properly. It is the best and safest way to raise your new dog. You will find that your dog will actually appreciate a quiet safe place of their own, and it keeps them from under your feet when you need a break.
Another way for house training your puppy is the paper training method. It works like this. Pick a small area in your house where you can keep your puppy confined. Cover the entire floor with several layers of newspaper. Replace any soiled paper with fresh ones as necessary.
After a day or two leave one corner of the room floor uncovered. If your puppy tries to use the uncovered area to urinate or defecate, give him a mild scolding, and place him on the paper.
As your puppy starts to get the point that using the paper is the only acceptable place, gradually start taking the paper away until there is only a couple of sheets left.
Let the puppy use only these couple of sheets for a few days, as you start to reinforce the idea that going outside is the proper place, either by taking him outside when you see him headed for the last few papers, or just start taking him outside every couple of hours to keep him from wanting to use the papers. At this point remove the remaining papers.
During this sensitive housebreaking period be alert for any indication that your puppy needs to go out, such as searching for the missing newspapers, or going to the door. If you notice any of these behaviors, take him out immediately.
One thing to remember when housebreaking a puppy. If your puppy has an accident, and you didn’t catch him in the act, don’t bother scolding him, because he will have no idea what he did wrong. Just clean it up and move on. Good luck
Note: For more information, use the search bar at the top of the site, and search Crate Training.
