what is involved in housebreaking a dog?

Question

what are you supposed to do to let it know it can't go in the house?

Answer 1

http://www.dog-breeds.net/Housebreaking.htm

The absolute first thing your puppy must learn is housebreaking - that is, he must learn where and when he may do his business. Besides being substantially advantageous to the hygiene of your household, dogs benefit from having rules and a routine - as pack animals, they look for duties issued by the pack leader and naturally enjoy keeping schedules. Here are the steps to housebreaking your dog:

Experts suggest incorporating a crate in a young dog's training process. A crate usually resembles a cage, with a locking door and see-through bars, and should be big enough for the dog to move around in. While it sounds like a miniature jail cell, crates should not be used to punish your puppy. The idea is to make the crate into a doggy bedroom - someplace where your puppy can play and sleep. He should never be confined in his crate for more than two hours at a time.


Because dogs, thank goodness, don't believe in eliminating by their sleeping areas, your puppy will not relieve himself in the crate unless you've cruelly locked him in there for longer than he was able to hold it in. Three-month old puppies generally need to eliminate every three hours, so lead your puppy to a designated outdoor bathroom spot often.


Try to always leave the house through the same door - the door you'd like your dog to scratch at to signal his need to go out in the future.


Try to take your dog out at around the same times each day. A routine will eventually be established, and your dog will soon know to hold it in until you take him out.


If your not-yet-housebroken dog is used to roaming freely around the house, look for clues that tell you he needs to go. Your dog may suddenly put his nose down and sniff the ground intently. He may begin to circle an area. Or, he may stare at the door with an intense look on his face. Signs like these tell you to drop what you're doing and get that dog out of the house. If you catch your dog doing his business inside (and only if you catch him - not after you discover he's already committed the crime), rush over and stop him by grasping his collar, pulling up on it, and saying, "NO" in a deep, stern voice. This will startle him enough to get him to stop what he's doing. Then take him outside to let him finish up and praise him with pats on the head or a pleasantly chirped, "Good Fido!" when he does. (Note: Don't say "Fido" if your dog's name is "Rex.") You can give him a code word "go potty" when you're going outside so eventually he'll know what to expect.

Whenever your dog relieves himself outdoors, say "hurry up" and then praise him. "Hurry up" serves as the trigger words that will eventually make your dog go on command. That's right, if you consistently say "hurry up" as your dog is doing his business, those words will stick in his mind as an indication to let it all loose, and soon he'll be doing just that whenever he hears the command. Those magical words will make a frigid winter walk much shorter for the future.


When issuing commands, use a deep, gruff voice. Even though most of your speech is just garbled psychobabble to your dog, he will notice tone and pitch differences in your voice. So if you normally sound like Jewel and you suddenly switch to a Sean Connery intonation to deliver a command, he'll pay specific attention to what you're saying in the authoritative Connery voice. Conversely, when you're praising your dog, use a high-pitched, happy voice and incorporate his name a lot. Throw in some excited squealing to really get the point across. You may think you sound ridiculous (and you probably do to other humans), but your dog will eat it up. Encouragement is really important, so ALWAYS praise your dog when he does you proud.


One final thing on housebreaking your dog - maintain your patience. We know that when the stakes are as high as cleaning dog waste off carpets on an hourly basis and having your entire house smell like a public bathroom, you want him to be housebroken as soon as possible, if not sooner. But losing your temper or giving up on your dog will only set back the rewarding moment when things suddenly click in his head: "I'm being housebroken! Well, why didn't you just say so?"


Your dog WILL have accidents at first, so don't complain about mopping up dog pee. To stop persistent accidents, just use common sense. If your dog tends to pee during the night, don't give him water before bedtime. If he tends to poop a lot during the night, take him out one last time right before bed, and wake up early to take him again. First cater to his schedule, and then slowly change it to yours.

Answer 2

The best method is crate training! Get a crate only large enough for the dog to turn around and lay down. A dog will not potty where it has to sleep. Keep the puppy in it's crate ANY TIME you cannot watch it closely, you don't want to give it a chance to develop a habit of going in the house. Offer food 3 times daily and pick up what the puppy doesn't eat. Take the puppy out to potty about 1/2 hour after each feeding and each and every time he shows signs of needing to go... trying to wander off into another room, sniffing, whining etc... you'll learn the signs. Tell your dog to "go potty" each time you take him out and make a HUGE deal of it when he goes with TONS of praise eventually he will get the idea that it is good to go outside. When he does have an accident in the house pick him up and give him a stern "NO" and take him out and tell him "potty outside" He'll get it. Some dogs get it in just a few weeks some it takes a few months but be consistant with this method and it will work.

Answer 3

Please call your vet or local Petsmart store immediately. I know it involves alot of time, patience, CONSISTENCY, and yes, floor cleaner, but I would suggest calling the experts for the specifics.

It's easy to end up inadvertently punishing a dog for doing what it has to do anyway. You obviously don't want to be abusive, or you wouldn't be posing the question. You just want to be successful.

Either of these sources should be able to help you. You might even consider getting the little blue pads they use for children...give your dog a place to go in case he can't wait until you get home.

Best wishes!

Answer 4

This article makes it simple! http://www.thewagstreetjournal.com/?p=693

Answer 5

A great deal of time and attention, a crate, about 10 bottles of stain remover, and 100 rolls of paper towel!!

Answer 6

The site below will tell you all you need to know. Go down to
Crate Training and "Potty" Training" .
http://www.rat-terrier.com/forums/Home/tabid/36/view/topics/forumid/4/Default.aspx

Answer 7

Toilet training is hard work. Whether you have a young puppy or an older dog who arrives with little or no understanding of the basic toileting rules, it is going to be tiresome.

But, be comforted. It doesn't last for long! A few weeks of kind, consistent training will ensure that you dog/puppy will be reliably house trained for life (give or take the odd regression when ill etc).

Puppies are particularly demanding as they have very small bladders! This means that they wee all the time! The more they are moving about, the more they wee! Older dogs do not need to urinate as often as puppies, however, when they do have an accident, it takes a lot more clearing up!

The first point about toilet training for puppies is the need for a cage. This has already been mentioned in my article on Crate training. When the puppy is small, the cage has a warm, cosy bed at one end and a pad of newspaper at the other. Water should be available at all times and I recommend a bowl that bolts to the cage to save the mess of puppies that like to play in the water or simply knock it over!

When the puppy is left at night (I leave mine in the cage, in the kitchen) I don't go back until morning. They have the other dogs for company and I feel that it is better to ignore crying (unless the puppy is clearly in serious distress). The puppy is not able to be dry all night and people often take the view that when the puppy cries at 5am, it is because he/she wants to go outside to urinate. My view is that, if the puppy is crying at 5am, he/she has woken up, urinated, then wants attention. If you respond to the crying, he/she will quickly learn that you will come when called. I would rather that the pup learnt to urinate on the newspaper,[they will generally avoid soiling their beds] then go back to sleep until a more civilised hour. [The need to urinate in the night will reduce as the pup grows and the bladder capacity increases].

During the day, toilet training is mainly down to vigilance. Most puppies will give some sign that they want to urinate or defecate. They often walk around purposefully, sniffing the ground and turning in circles. They may become more agitated or they may give no signals and simply squat and wee! Through observation, you will note how often your pup needs to eliminate. Obvious times to expect a puppy to need the toilet are, immediately upon waking, soon after eating and often whilst playing.

Ellie was able to go 2 hours or more without eliminating, when she was resting in her cage but, as soon as she was out and playing around, she needed to go out every 10-15 minutes. It is important that the pup is rewarded for eliminating in the right place as often as possible. You should go out with the pup [if you stay inside, the pup will often refuse to perform and ask to come back in - only to immediately have an accident]. You should stand still and wait, perhaps using a word/phrase that will come to mean "do your business". Eventually he or she will perform, at which you reward madly! Titbits are fine, you can even click and treat if you are clicker training.

The more times you are able to reward your pup for eliminating outside, the quicker your house training will be. There will still be accidents inside and you need to be quick to clear them up. Using an "odour-removing" solution is important as dogs will often choose to go where they went before! If you catch the pup in the act, you can say "no" but punishment is not appropriate as he/she is still learning. If you find the evidence some time later, the pup will have forgotten about it and will not learn by being reprimanded at this late stage!

Eventually you will begin to notice that the puppy does not need to go outside so often and may even be "asking" to go out.[you can teach this separately, if it is something you would like your dog to do]. You will start to be able to let the puppy outside without accompanying him/her and he/she may start to eliminate in response to a cue. You will then reap the rewards of a well house-trained pup.

Note: Older dogs that are not fully housetrained can take longer to train as they have to "unlearn" the wrong behaviour at the same time as learning the right behaviour. You should use the same procedure as with puppies but expect the progress to be slower. Fortunately older dogs do not need to eliminate as often as puppies but you should not be complacent. It is better to take the dog out too often rather than too little!


www.eurobichons.com

Answer 8

Petsmart has free Potty Training classes. Call your local one and see when the next one is.

Answer 9

a lot of patience

Answer 10

don't spank it... that just makes it pee on itself