No More “Oops!” – Housetraining a Puppy
When you bring a new puppy into your home, he or she is bound to have an accident, or two, or nine… It’s just one of the many little joys of puppy parenting. But housetraining a puppy doesn’t need to take long, or be difficult. There are many effective and pet owner-friendly housetraining methods for you to choose from.
Just remember, once you choose the method that is best for you and your pup, stick with it and be consistent…
The Two Most Important Rules
There are two important rules when it comes housetraining a puppy:
- When you don’t actually witness your puppy in the act of an indoor accident do not punish him or her for it. Your pup won’t know why he or she is being punished after the fact.
- When your puppy does manage to go outside make sure you praise him or her for a job well done, in the right place.
The Main Methods of Housetraining a Puppy
Start Inside – One of the most common ways of puppy potty training is using papers or potty pads. The pads usually come with a pheromone treatment that will attract, your puppy to go potty on them. The idea is, that when you see your pup circling, sniffing, or otherwise cueing you that he or she needs to go, that you will to pick your puppy up and gently move them to the potty area for he or she to do his or her business. Be sure to give your puppy plenty of praise when he or she goes potty in the right spot.
Once your puppy is going to the potty pads themselves you can begin to transition your pup to outdoor relief. Move the papers closer to the door, and even put a set outside the door. This helps you transition your puppy from having one spot to go indoors to being able to go outdoors. And once your puppy knows to go outside you no longer need the papers at all.
While it may be argued that this method will teach your puppy that it’s OK to relieve his or her self inside, there is an advantage to this. If the weather is too severe to go outside, or you’re traveling with your pet, knowing how to use puppy pads without training can be advantageous to the situation.
Using Crate Training – Another popular method of housebreaking uses your puppy’s crate. You only want a crate big enough for him or her to have bedding and be able to turn and lay down. The concept behind this, is that your puppy won’t want to soil his or her bed and will learn to control his or her needs until you can take him or her outside. Just remember, a puppy can only hold his or her bladder and bowels for a few hours during the daytime.
Supervision Training – If you have no desire to crate train, or deal with puppy pads, you can chose to train your puppy by watching him or her like a hawk. When you see your puppy sniffing or circling you’ll know he or she needs to go. At this point you grab up your puppy and gently take your four-legged friend outside to relieve his or her self. This works best for people that are home all the time, and have time to watch their puppy consistently.
Housetraining a puppy might not always seem easy, and it sometimes takes a lot of work, but consistency is the key. Always use short commands, like “go potty” or “outside” with your pet, and be sure to always give praise where praise is due. If you have any questions or concerns about housetraining a puppy, please don’t hesitate to call us.