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HouseTraining for Dogs
By peace | October 30, 2005
The Housetraining Process
This process is based on the fact that dogs are animals that do not like to soil in or around their eating or sleeping areas. Therefore, the need for establishing a place for your dog to be confined will be your next mission. Select a small room in your home, such as your bathroom or kitchen, which for the time being will be used as your dog’s living area. Make sure that the floor is covered with paper or that it is a hardwood or tiled floor. Also have a crate or a blanket to be used as your dog’s bed. Spend as much time as possible in this room with your dog. You can tether your dog to prevent him from getting out or secure him in the crate. Remember, however, that you should never leave a leashed dog unattended, therefore you will either have to stay there with your dog or you can also take him everywhere you need to go. The main purpose of this is to train your dog to control his urges, which he will do because he will not soil his own room.
After your dog’s living area has been set up, establish a second area which will serve as the toilet area. It is important that your dog be allowed to have access to his toilet area every time he needs to go. Feed your dog on a regular schedule so that you can almost control when your dog needs to go. Be sure to stay with your dog during your first visits to the ‘area’. Praise and keep encouraging your dog for relieving here. The more repetitive the process is, the faster your dog will learn to accept this as his toilet area. Housetraining success will be achieved when your puppy or dog begins to eliminate in the right place whether you are at home or not.
As you observe that your puppy is no longer eliminating in his living area, proceed to expand his area by moving him into another room, ideally a larger room. The same housetraining process should be repeated here. This new area is where your dog will sleep and eat for the time being. Praise your puppy for every time he goes outside this room and into his toilet area. If your puppy is successful, proceed to the next room, and then finally grant him unsupervised access to the entire house. Praising and rewarding your puppy will significantly influence the outcome and speed of your puppy’s housetraining process.
The Crate Training Process
Crate training is another method of housetraining your dog which is based also on the fact that dogs do not like to soil their sleeping areas. Your puppy will be placed in a crate for a specified period of time. You should start by getting your puppy or dog used to the crate first, then put him in there for a few minutes. Gradually increase the length of time your dog spends in the crate until you feel that your dog will be fine if he can stay there for a few hours. Never confine your dog or puppy for periods longer than a few hours. Also remember that puppies have different needs than adult dogs and can need to eliminate as much as every hour. What crate training seeks to achieve is to get your dog used to being crated without eliminating in his own place. Your puppy or dog should hold it until they are released from the crate which also teaches him to develop greater bladder control.
Crate training should not turn into permanent confinement, nor should the crate be used for punishment of your puppy. Once the training begins, you must establish a regular feeding routine. By controlling when your dog eats, you will have a better idea of when your dog needs to relieve himself. Observe how long after eating that you dog needs to eliminate. Once you have this down, place your dog in the crate at least an hour before you have calculated that he will need to go. Every time you take your dog out of his crate, make sure to place him on a leash, take him outside and wait for him to eliminate within a few minutes. If this time lapses and your dog has not yet eliminated, put him back in the crate. However, if your puppy eliminates, praise and reward him and then extend the period of time he is outside. Make sure to be consistent with the schedule and to praise and reward your dog for eliminating outside.
Once your dog has developed a habit of eliminating outside, the length of confinement should be slowly reduced until it is no longer necessary and your dog has learned to go outside on his own or to go to the bathroom every time you take him outside. Remember to praise and reward your dog constantly and to avoid reprimanding him if has an accident during the training process. Bear in mind that accident can be due to health related problems or perhaps you left him in the crate for too long. Reprimands will slow the progress while rewards will hasten the progress.
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