Puppy Housetraining

Housetraining your puppy isn't hard, and doesn’t have to take forever. Follow these simple guidelines and you'll have a polite family member in no time!

1. Buy and use a crate. The idea behind crate use is that a puppy doesn't want to stay in an area it has soiled, so will learn to hold things until taken out. Do remember that the puppy is a baby, with a baby's bladder. Don't expect the puppy to "hold it' for more than a couple of hours at a time, as that is physically impossible.
2. Make sure you set a schedule for feeding, exercising and training your puppy and stick to it. If the puppy can expect to be taken out at regular intervals, it will learn to wait for outside time to eliminate.
3. When out of the crate, never let your puppy out of your sight. Use baby gates or doors or a leash connected to you to keep the puppy in view at all times. If it goes off and eliminates without a timely correction, this will cause confusion in the puppy's mind and make housetraining more difficult.
4. Be consistent and kind when correcting your puppy. Learn to see the warning that elimination is about to occur. When you spot it, pick the puppy up and take time outside. Use the same door you'll want your dog to use and take the puppy through it every time. Repeat at the door "do you want to go outside' and then take the puppy out, wait for the inevitable to happen, and then praise the puppy to the skies. Very Good Puppy!! The praise is the first key to success, as most puppies want to do the right thing, and love to be told how wonderful they are.
5. If elimination starts before you get to the puppy, don't be mad. Use an alarmed voice. Oh, What Happened?? Let's Get This Fixed Right Now! Then pick the puppy up, and put them outside..
6. THIS IS THE STEP THAT HOUSETRAINS YOUR DOG FOLLOW IT EXACTLY! It is vital that you not only clean, but remove the scent from every place in the house that your puppy eliminates. Dogs smell where they've been before, and that triggers a response in their brain that tells them it's ok to go there again. No matter what you do, if your dog can smell a potty spot, it will continue to use that potty spot. That's how their brain is wired. Don't fight it, use it. You can buy special odour eliminators at pet supply stores, and they work fine, but so does plain old white vinegar.
7. Puppies need to eliminate after waking from a nap, after eating or drinking and after playing hard. If you offer your puppy a chance to go outside right after each of these events, you’ll be well on your way to a house-trained puppy. Good luck!