How to Housetrain a Puppy


	GREATER MONROE KENNEL CLUB Monroe, NC

All Breed Club

HOUSEBREAKING YOUR NEW PUPPY

Fact: Dogs are creatures of habit; they do what they have always done. When urinating or defecating, they do it where they have done it before. As much as possible, allow the dog to urinate or defecate only where you want him to continue doing so.

Fact: Dogs react to smell. They urinate where there is a smell of dog urine. Eliminate the smell of "accidents" from your house by cleaning as soon as possible with a solution of 1 part white vinegar to 4 parts water. This will not hurt most carpets or flooring, but test first. Commercial products, such as Simple Solution, may also eliminate the visible spot on a carpet.

Fact:* Dogs’ bodies respond to what and when they eat and what they do. Always take your dog outside immediately after sleeping or eating, and during play time.

STEPS IN HOUSEBREAKING

"Crate" your dog (confine him to a small area, such as a wire or plastic dog crate large enough for him to stand and turn around in) when you cannot watch him.
When you first get up in the morning, put the leash on the dog, urgently say, "Outside, outside!" and run him through the house out into the yard to the place you want him to do his thing.
When he does his thing, praise him to the skies. This tells him that he has done a good thing. Also give a treat immediately. (This may be no more than a piece of dry food from his oncoming breakfast.)
If you wish, you may add a command word as he’s doing it: "Hurry Up" for urination and "Big Business" for defecation are the simplest. (If you wish, you may say "Tee-Tee" and "Go Poo," but you may not enjoy saying this later in public.) The dog will learn to associate the command with the action; this will make life a lot simpler if you travel with him and need to get it taken care of at a rest area.
Stay out with him (on leash) for another five minutes or until you’re sure he has finished everything possible.
Take the dog inside the house, remove the leash, and give breakfast.
Immediately after breakfast, take him out again to potty (see above directions).
Your dog may now have the "freedom" of the house for a short period of time (1/2-1 hour), depending on his age.
At the end of his free (off leash & uncrated) time, put on his leash and take him out again.
If he empties his bladder and/or defecates, give him another short period off-leash in the house.
If he does nothing during his "potty break," when you bring him back in, put him into the crate for an hour. [An alternative to the crate is the "umbilical cord."]
After an hour, give him another "potty break," after which the same rules apply as given above.

SCHEDULING FOR POTTY BREAKS:

5 minute potty opportunity

Success =1/2 to 1 hour’s house freedom, followed by

5 minute potty opportunity

Nothing doing =1 hour in crate or on leash attached to you at all time (umbilical cord)

**Sleeping, eating, and playing are always followed by a

5 minute potty opportunity

WHAT TO DO WHEN "ACCIDENTS" HAPPEN:
and they will happen

1. If you catch the dog in the act, shout "No! Outside!" and race her to the assigned potty place.
2. If you do not catch her in the act, simply take her out.
3. If she does potty some more, praise, reward, etc., and give freedom as per schedule.
4. If she does nothing more, crate her as though she had done nothing.
5. Clean up the accident before bringing the dog back into the room--do not allow her to watch you clean up.
6. Urine accidents must be treated with vinegar mixture or with a commercial pet urine odor neutralizer (such as Simple Solution) designed for dog training.

THE WEEK-END DOG

If everyone is gone from home all day, your housetraining may take longer, but it can be done. Some suggestions:

Try to come home in the middle of the day to walk the dog. (This may mean a quick sandwich in the car for lunch!) If possible, get a friend, neighbor, or relative to "exercise" the dog at least once or twice during the work day. This should include walking and plenty of praise for the dog doing his business. You might consider hiring a "pet-sitter" for the time of housebreaking.
If you cannot get home, and cannot get someone to help you, you may need to leave the dog inside a well-fenced yard (not tied) or in a "mess room" lined with newspaper. A young puppy should not be crated all day, since he will just learn to "go" in the crate, and then you will really have problems.
Try to avoid being gone for long periods of time at night and on week-ends or vacation during the housebreaking period.

THE UMBILICAL CORD

An "umbilical cord" in dog training is a six-foot leash attached at one end to the dog and at the other end to the owner. Thread the loop through a belt around your waist and go about your business. (This is not for walking your dog down the street!) You needn’t talk to or correct the dog; the umbilical cord is self-correcting. But watch what your dog is doing.

Some uses/advantages: Housebreaking, bonding, leash training, attention on owner, etc.

TRAINING FOR THE CRATE

* Crate should be large enough for the dog to stand up, lie down, and turn around. Most puppies and some older dogs will easily adapt to the crate and require very little training, but if yours has a problem follow this procedure:

Start by tossing in treats and toys on an occasional basis. When the dog goes in to get one, praise him, but do not close the door.

Place the food bowl in the back of the crate, so that the dog has to go all the way in to eat. Again, leave the door open, and praise him for going in.

When the dog is comfortable with the crate, put in an especially good treat, such as a biscuit, and when he goes in to eat it, praise him, close the door until he has finished, and then open the door to let him out.

As this becomes acceptable, leave the door closed for five minutes, then 10, and then 15. If the dog objects to staying in the crate, ignore his objections--and him. You are the boss and you make the rules!

Once the dog is comfortable with 15 minutes in the crate with the door closed, you have successfully trained him for it.

Another good tip is to attach a bell or some type of audible signal to the doorknob for the dog to signal when it's time to go potty. By incorporating this into your training every time prior to going outside (game or not) your dog will be training you as well to recognize a "signal". At first it may become a kind of game thing.... but stick to it. Even if they don't need to go potty they learn very quick if they don't potty outside it's back in the crate. After all, they want to be with you not in the crate; Dogs have a strong desire to please their family... they just need you to teach them what pleases you.

Updated: Tuesday, September 05, 2006