Puppy Housetraining
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First and foremost, you need to establish some basic rules to housetrain your puppy.
Rule #1
Ignore mistakes and accidents. Clean them up quickly and make sure no odor is leftover which would encourage your puppy to choose that same spot again. I mean it. No yelling, no smacking, no rubbing their noses in it. Unless you actually catch your puppy mid flow or in the act, there's no point in punishing him. He won't associate the fact that he's pooped or pee-ed in the wrong spot with your rantings. Dogs don't function like that. They need to be caught in the act to associate that action with the 'NO'. If you do catch him mid flow, the best thing to do is to give him a firm 'NO' then take him outside and show him where he's supposed to do it. And when he does 'perform' - see Rule #2
Rule #2
Praise, praise and more praise when he does do the right thing! Positive reinforcement is a great thing and it makes for a happy puppy who's only too pleased to be making his number one person joyful.
Housetraining the how-tos
You need to decide where you want your puppy to do its poops and pees. If you decide that he's going to be indoors a lot and want him to use newspapers or special pads, then you need to start with this. It's too confusing for them to learn that if they are indoors when you're out, they need to do it on newspaper and when you're home to do it out in the yard . Consistency is the key. If it's the yard you want them to toilet in, then teach them consistently to do it in the yard
. Puppies usually have fixed times when they are more likely to want to relieve themselves and this usually corresponds to when they first wake up from a nap or sleep, after the eat, after playtime and drinks so it's wise to be vigilant during these times to teach your puppy where it should be going to the bathroom. You will also notice that most puppies give warning signs that they need to 'go' eg walking around and sniffing as if trying to find the right 'spot'.
Okay, so you've decided that housetraining indoors on newspaper is the method of choice for you. There are several ways of doing this. Some decide that less mess is best and so will line a whole section of the kitchen or loungeroom with newspaper and keep the puppy in that area whilst housetraining. Then as the puppy learns to toilet on the papers, gradually decrease the area covered till you're satisfied. Others do this and slowly move the papers to an area of the house they want the puppy to go toilet eg laundry or bathroom. Praise your puppy when he does toilet on the papers. Note that puppies aren't great when it comes to knowing where the paper begins and where it ends - give them plenty of room for error. I've seen some owners who have one small piece of paper and expect the dog to poise in exactly the right spot so that the poop will land there - not a good idea. Dogs often do this circling thing as they prepare to poop and it's not some exact science - they'll think near enough is good enough so unless you want to keep cleaning off poop and pee that's missed the papers, I'd suggest giving them a large enough area to cater for possible 'misses'.
What about crating
Some owners like the ability to confine the puppy when they aren't home, asleep at night or when they don't have time to be constantly watching, so they crate the puppy when these situations arise. Dogs don't usually soil their beds but they will if they can't hold it so it's not an excuse to leave your puppy for long periods in the crate. Note that if you want to crate the puppy, the last thing you need to do is to ensure that he gets the chance to toilet first so give him the chance to relieve himself first.
If toileting indoors isn't your style and you want to teach the puppy to go outside, then the rules still apply. You can still use the crate. Constant vigilance is the key here because you don't have the house protected with sheets of paper. So when you see your puppy giving you warning signs that he needs to go (see above for instances when he's more likely to go), then get him outside and when he does perform, praise, praise, praise! Once that's done, take him inside again. DO NOT start playing with him initially. He needs to learn to toilet outdoors and get the message first. Don't confuse him at this point in time by giving him mixed cues about going outdoors. Once he gets the idea, then you can relax more and be less strict with this.
Teaching your dog to poop on command
Okay this may sound weird but it works. You need to associate the activity eg pooping with a verbal cue. Some people say 'potty' or 'poopies'. Whatever word you use, make sure that when you say it and he responds with the appropriate action, then praise him. Police dogs and guide dogs are often taught to poop and pee on command. Just remember that whatever word you use has to be unique enough that it's not going to be confusing or used in some other context on a regular basis. I recall one guide dog trainer who uses the term 'Busy busy' as the verbal cue for the dog to poop...so imagine his dismay when he was on a training session with the dog and bumped into a friend of his who actually used the term in normal conversation ie 'Well haven't seen you for quite a while now - you must be Busy Busy'.
Accidents will happen when you are embarking on housetraining. Remember the rule above about not punishing your puppy. Ignore it, clean it up well and move on. It's probably as much your fault for not watching as much as it is his. Take it as a lesson to be more vigilant. Just remember that it takes time and patience and eventually your puppy will get it - some will pick it up faster than others but all dogs will eventually get past the puppy stage and learn the rules of the household. Consistency is the key.
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