Do you have a new hunting dog puppy? If so, you may have noticed that the most frustrating part of puppy ownership is housebreaking. Take a look at some ideas to help with the task.
Telling if it’s Potty time
Puppies will “signal” you when he has to go. Here’s what you should watch for:
Circling, sniffing around
Stops play activities or strays off in a different direction
Squirming or whining while you’re handling them.
Stands right at the exit or door
If the puppy shows you any of these signs, you should take them out right away.
Be Consistent
If you provide a regular routine for your dog to get accustomed to going to the bathroom, you’ll have far more success in the housebreaking since puppies confuse very easily.
Know when your puppy will most likely need to “potty”.
When he gets up in the morning
After a nap
Right after eating or drinking
During or after play times
After being confined
Right before going to bed
Also, you should have both weekend and weekday potty routines, and keep them as consistent as possible. It’s great to keep a little journal of housebreaking activities to get a good look at the puppy’s bathroom times. Make sure that everyone in your house is familiar with the housebreaking routines, and ensure that they stick to it. Don’t confuse your puppy by using multiple cues. For example, if Dad says “outside”, and Mom says “Go potty”, the puppy will probably get confused.
It will take longer to housebreak your puppy if the same routine is not adhered to. However, this probably won’t destroy your housebreaking attempts. Do the same thing at the same time everyday, and he’ll quickly learn what is expected of him.
Basics of Housebreaking
The main housebreaking goal is for your puppy to learn to “go” outside. Puppies have smaller bladders so you should make sure to take your puppy outside if you decide to crate train him. Crates and kennels can be used, and your puppy might like the feeling of den-like security.
If you work during the day, rather than leaving your dog in a crate for the entire day, consider a puppy play area or even a gate to confine him to one room in the house. This is helpful even if you’re at home and you don’t want the dog running all over the house when you’re not paying attention!
When you take your dog outside, make sure he’s properly leashed and take him to the area that you want him to void in – give the command that you and your family have decided works best and wait for him to accomplish his task! Once he’s gone to the bathroom, make sure you praise him and use a little treat to reward him for going in the right spot. Just make sure that you don’t take him immediately into the house, remember – most dogs don’t empty their bladder immediately and taking him in too soon can result in an accident. If your dog does go to the bathroom again, follow the same process (i.e. praising and rewarding) and if you’re in a safe area let him off his leash and let him play for a few minutes. If you’re out walking with the dog and he goes to the bathroom while he’s on the walk make sure he’s completely finished before you keep walking.
Give your puppy lots of praise, petting, treats and play time whenever your puppy “potties” in the right place. Never spank him for accidents. If he has an accident in the house, clean it up with something containing an odor enzyme remover, such as “Nature’s Miracle”. Don’t use bleach or harsh chemicals. These will make your puppy very ill.
What to do if you don’t have a yard
You should still have a housebreaking routine, as suggested previously, but have him use paper instead of an outdoor potty spot. This is called paper training. To aid in this kind of potty training, you can use a product like “Nature’s Miracle” grass-scented pads which is designed for paper training.
Nature’s Miracle manufacturers a puppy pad that can help you train your puppy indoor. These grass scented pads can help you tremendously with housebreaking by simply treating the entire process exactly as if you were taking your dog outside. Lead him to the pad, issue your chosen command and be patient!
Training your puppy to potty on paper or in a litter box offers you and your puppy another option when traditional housebreaking isn’t possible. It doesn’t mean that he’ll never learn to potty outside.
Consistency in training and patience are the secrets to success. Whether you elect to use paper or litter box training these can be in addition to or instead of outdoor training. Just because you’re not able to take your dog outside regularly is not any reason not to use basic housebreaking routines. He may eventually learn to go outside!
Tags: Basics of Housebreaking, Dog, housebreaking, housebreaking routine, Hunting Dog Puppy, Pets, Potty time, Puppy, Socialize
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