You Are The Key to House Training Success!
Plan on spending as much time with your puppy as possible during the first two to three weeks your puppy is home. Be consistent (have a planned schedule for you and your new puppy and decide what commands you are going to us), patient (mistakes happen, sometimes it will be your fault and sometimes the puppy’s), praise whenever there is success (and be willing to praise the “little” successes) – and plan on keeping theirs up for however long it takes – to invest the time and energy necessary to make theirs important training time a success. The effort you put forth now will be well worth it for the lifetime of happiness between you and your new “best friend”.
During the first few weeks, keep your puppy in a crate whenever you are not playing, holding, or watching her explore hers new surroundings. Spend as much time as you can with your puppy, but when you can’t watch her, crating her can help prevent mistakes from occurring. Remember dogs are den animals and they need and want the comfort and safety of a den or crate and they are critical to housetraining because as den animals, dogs are naturally inclined to not soil their bed. The most important thing dogs learn in a crate is that they can control their urge to go until the proper time and situation.
Establish a schedule and don’t deviate from it. The “when” and “how” you housetrain needs to be consistent so make sure all family members follow the same guidelines. Pick a spot in your yard and take your puppy there on a lead when it is time to go. The odor from previous visits to their spot will stimulate the urge to defecate or urinate. In the housebreaking process, it is a good idea to use the same word like “let’s go outside” when you are going out and “be a good girl” or “go potty” once you are outside. Consistent use of the same word with an activity will help to build a level of communication between you and your puppy. Be patient. Dogs may go more than once during one outing and not always right away. Don’t distract your puppy from the job at hand. Theirs is a business trip, not a play time.
Praise them for their success when the job is done by using an excited voice and petting, perhaps a little treat.
Wait until your puppy has finished before you praise her and then take her back inside and spend some time with her. You know there is little chance the puppy will have to go for a while so play with her and have a good time. The more time you spend with the puppy, the better it is. Remember, they are still young and need to act like a puppy, developing and learning about their new environment. When you are finished playing, take one more trip outside and then place the puppy back in her crate.
House Breaking Schedule
Establish a schedule. Dogs are creatures of habit; they like to eat, sleep, and relieve themselves on a regular schedule. Establishing and maintaining a schedule is easy to do and gets easier as your puppy grows. Pay attention to your puppy’s behavior so you can develop a schedule that works for both of you. First, learn when your puppy naturally needs to go – in the morning, at night, 30 minutes after eating, etc. Look at your schedule and determine what compromises need to be made to make theirs workable for everyone.
If you catch your puppy having an accident, tell her “No!” forcefully, pick her up and take her outside. If you don’t catch her, simply clean up the mess and scold yourself for not being available. Do not scold the puppy. Take her outside frequently and watch her very closely when she is inside. As soon as you see her pacing, sniffing around, turning in circles, or trying to sneak away, pick her up and take her outside. These are telltale signs that she needs to relieve herself.