Article Title: Tips For House Training Your Dog
Author: Thomas Cash
The first thing you must have when attempting to house train
your dog is "patience." Keep in mind that when we were young,
we too had to learn where and when we could go. Bad news is, we
don't have doggie diapers, but the good news is we don't have to
get our dogs on a toilet seat! Also, dogs are instinctively
clean animals, they would prefer to not to mess themselves or
their usual eating and sleeping areas. Depending on the age of
your dog, they naturally develop tendencies to go on certain
surfaces like grass or dirt, use this as a stepping stone to a
quicker and more successful training cycle.
Establish the Living Area with Your Dog
Help your dog establish their living area in a small confined
space, maybe a bathroom, part of the kitchen or garage. Please
make sure that if you plan to have your dog in a crate, make it
an open environment. Some people think that putting the dog in a
crate and shutting the door helps them get used to their
surroundings, but it doesn't. Using a crate is OK if you let
your dog live comfortably by letting them have some freedom to
go in and out as they please, unless you have to leave the
house for a short period of time. Keeping them locked up for
long periods of time is when you should ask yourself if you are
really ready to own a dog.
Take the time to work with your dog to establish their living
area. Spend time playing with them in their "room" as well as
let them eat and sleep here. Do your best to make their room
comfortable, maybe give them a comfortable dog bed, blanket and
give them a bowl of water in, or close to their space. It's
possible they might still wet their space in the beginning but
once they realize that their room is designated for their
comfort they will do their best to avoid going in their space
as long as they have regular opportunities to go to the toilet
on the paper or outside.
When your dog has had the time to get comfortable with their
room, you'll be able to move it around and they will follow it
to wherever you decide to place it. It's important to find a
place that makes them part of the family surroundings but is
equally convenient for you so you don't feel they're "in the
way" a dog will become part of the family in no time, trust me!
Once your dog gets to the point of sleeping in their bed feel
free to confine them there by leashing them or shutting the
crate door to keep them in their room, just be aware of them
and ensure you can keep an eye on them. Keeping your dog on a
leash unattended is not recommended anytime. Also, if you feel
that you want to keep an eye on them when there awake, just
keep their leash attached to your belt during your daily
routine to help you identify any tendencies and help monitor
their behavior.
Establish the Toilet Area with Your Dog
Help your dog establish their toilet area, at first it will
probably be inside the house on some news paper, just make sure
they that they have access to this area when they need it. If
they do not have access to this area they will go in other
places and establish their own areas, the problem being this
might not be ideal for you and your family. Until they are
comfortable going in the designated area, it is important that
you accompany your dog every time.
The best way to gauge when your dog has to go to the toilet is
to keep them on a regular eating schedule. You will start to
see that when they eat at a certain time they will need to go
to they toilet after an approximate amount of time, this will
give you a better understanding of when they have to go. A
regular eating schedule means a regular toilet schedule this
will help you to plan out your day without having messy
accidents everywhere. If your dog is confined too long and has
to go, they will potentially go in there space and it will get
increasingly more difficult to house train them.
If you have a new puppy they have a harder time controlling
their bladder so you might have to take them a little more
frequently, but healthy adult dogs should be able to control
their bladder and bowels for about eight hours. Also, keep in
mind that when new puppies get excited they might make little
mistakes, make sure you don't scold them in this instance, just
let them know they did it and show them the regular toilet area.
Every time they go in the right place make sure you let them
know they did good, this will reinforce what you're training.
As you are training your dog in the house you should be working
with them outside as this is where your dog will end up going.
You have to read little signs to know when they're ready to go
and if convenient take them outside right away. Don't expect a
puppy to bark when they need to go, they're not there yet! You
will know something's up when your dog starts to get restless
or starts sniffing around, they're actually looking for a spot
to go. Just pick them up and take them outside, they'll do the
rest, you can urge them a bit with the command that you want
them to go. Again, once they go it's important to acknowledge
them in a positive way so they know that this is where they
must go. When they get comfortable with this they will start to
ask to go out.
Some Tips
* If you follow the instructions as outlined above, your dog
will be house trained in a short period of time. One way to
speed up the process is to praise and reward your dog each and
every time they go successfully in their toilet area. It is
just as important not to scold your dog for accidents and
mistakes. Reprimanding your dog usually confuses the dog and
slows down the house training process.
* If you find that your dog continues to go in their allotted
space, make note of how long they were there. You might find
they were in there too long or they're space is a bit too big
for them, giving them the room to go in the corner of they're
space. You can remedy this by not leaving them there too long,
establish a smaller sleep area and take them to the toilet more
often.
* If you find that your dog continues to go in their bed, this
might be due to being confined there too long and they couldn't
help themselves, or they are still trying to understand that
this is their sleep and comfort space. Again, try not to leave
your dog in their space too long and try to take them to the
toilet more often.
* If you find the bed wetting continuing longer than you feel
is right, you might want to look at their water intake. A lot
of dogs will drink water out of boredom or habit, ensure you're
limiting their intake and take them out more often if possible.
Also, try and keep your dog active to ensure good health and
limited boredom, get them into good habits. Also, be aware that
continued messing can be due to unknown medical issues like
urinary tract problems for instance, try the tips above first,
it's usually something simple that you might be missing.
* If your dog doesn't feel comfortable in their space and/or
surroundings you might notice signs of them barking, chewing,
some anxiety or whining a lot. If you feel this is happening go
back over your method and ensure you're making them as
comfortable and welcomed as a family member.
Remember, love, due diligence and patience on your part will
make it a smooth and "clean" transition.
About The Author: Great resource for dog lovers, tips on dog
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