Excellent Tips On How To House Training A Dog
You bring home a new bundle of joy. He is got beautiful brown eyes, a cute little button nose and a tail? That is right. You have just brought home a puppy. He is loving, loyal and playful. But what is that? Oops, you did not think about house breaking him. So, now what do you do?
There have been several theories on how to housebreak a puppy. Some say to train on a schedule; after feeding, put the puppy outside until he goes. Or put him in the kitchen with newspapers so he has a specific place to go and then move him outside. If you use the latter, keep in mind that he may start using the newspaper before you are finished with it. After all, you taught him that it was an acceptable area to relieve himself.
Which ever you chose, the one thing to remember is you will need to have patience with your new friend and to keep in mind he only wants to please you.
The first step on this journey is to watch his behavior. When he is outside and does his business, what does he do? Does he sniff around for a while and go in an open area or does he prefer the corner of the yard? Once you know his preferences, you can watch him while he is inside, when he starts checking out corners of the room, you know it is time to get him outside. Make sure you use the same door every time. This will avoid confusion in his mind.
When it is time to go to sleep for the night, you may want to put the puppy in a crate. Dogs are, by nature, den animals. They will do just about anything to not soil where they sleep. It will still be necessary for you to watch your puppy. You cannot expect him to hold it until morning when even an adult human sometimes needs to get up in the middle of the night. If he starts to get restless or fidgety, take him outside and wait until he is finished.
Should it so happen that the puppy forgets himself, don't strike him or punish him. It will only make him hand-shy and afraid of his owner. It will be hard to regain his confidence. And should he select dark places underneath the bed, closets and dim corners to hide his misdemeanors, clean them up with a strong solution of disinfectant to eliminate the unpleasant odor and to make the puppy shun the same place again. Above all, do not push the puppy's nose in his filth as a corrective measure; this accomplishes nothing as far as he is concerned.
The most important thing is to be consistent! Let the little guy know what you expect from him. Reward him with treats and praise when he does as he is suppose to. In the long run, how the house training process goes will determine if you become a dog lover, not just a dog owner.