Train A Puppy For Potty Housebreaking

Tuesday, July 2, 2013

Train A Puppy For Potty Housebreaking

Housebreak your puppy from the moment you bring him home.

With consistency and commitment, most puppies are housebroken easily. Housebreaking should begin from the moment you get the puppy, as puppies develop their elimination habits in the first few months of life. Getting your puppy from a reputable breeder who began the process properly will help with training; sticking consistently to the schedule as outlined below will ensure a perfectly housebroken puppy in minimal time.

Instructions

Housebreak Your Puppy

1. Keep roaming room to a minimum for all housebreaking crates.

Buy a crate prior to bringing home your puppy. The crate should ideally fit the size of your puppy, not the adult version of that puppy. If you purchase a large crate, make sure to partition off the back end of the crate to keep roaming room to a minimum in the crate. Dogs are naturally inclined to dislike soiling themselves and will avoid eliminating in their sleeping quarters. If too much room is provided in the crate, the dog will eliminate in one area and move to another to sleep.

2. Keep an eye on the puppy anytime it is out of the crate.

Place the puppy into the crate any time during the day when you will not be able to actively watch the puppy. The puppy must be watched at all times in order to catch it from making a mistake. The key to housebreaking a puppy is to prevent it from making a mistake; correcting mistakes is always harder.

3. Take the puppy to the same patch of grass each time to housebreak the puppy.

Take the puppy out to the elimination area outside every time you bring the puppy out of the crate. The puppy should be taken to this area after it eats, plays, drinks or sleeps. Prior to placing the puppy into the crate, take it to this area one more time. Use a cue word, like "potty," and say it repeatedly until the puppy relieves itself. This puppy will come to understand this word with repeated usage.

4. Praise the puppy profusely when it relieves itself in the desired spot, or offer it a small treat to reward the good behavior. Positive reinforcement will help the puppy understand that it displayed the correct behavior and used the right spot for elimination.

5. Take the puppy outside immediately after a monitored playtime.

Feed the puppy on a strict schedule -- at the same time every day. Keeping a feeding schedule will make bowel movements more predictable. Puppies tend to eliminate immediately after eating; once the meal is done, pick up the puppy and take it outside. Keep the last feeding of the day to at least one to two hours prior to bedtime to prevent overnight mistakes.

6. Puppies are unable to go overnight without eliminating.

Wake up intermittently throughout the night to ensure that the puppy gets to go outside. A young puppy cannot keep itself from eliminating in the crate overnight; depending on the size and breed, you may have to wake up a few times throughout the night for a few weeks to months until the puppy is able to hold it overnight. Over the course of time, wean the puppy to hold it for longer intervals until overnight success is achieved.

7. With consistency, you will have a housebroken dog.

Repeat the steps consistently, and prevent the puppy from making mistakes. If you catch the puppy in the act of making a mistake in the house, scold and pick up the puppy immediately and take it out to the desired elimination area. If you find that the puppy has made a mistake after the fact, clean up the mess but do not scold the puppy; scolding it at this point is pointless, as the puppy will have no idea what it has done wrong.

10 good facts

Tuesday, July 2, 2013