| THE PET TEACHER In-YOUR-Home Dog Training 248-232-3655 |
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| House Training Tips |
OTHER HELPFUL THINGS TO KNOW
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| Teaching your dog how to reliably eliminate either outdoors or on a potty pad/litter box requires that YOU understand you have two goals: 1. First, you are setting your dog's body clock so you can then ... 2. Teach your dog how to control their bladder/bowel functions |
| WHEN DOES MY DOG HAVE TO POTTY? There are certain times a dog has to potty, and you don’t have to ask the dog or wonder if your dog needs to go outside. When it's one of the following times, just take your dog outdoors. If you wait and the dog has an accident inside the house or crate,it is more likely that you did something amiss, not your dog. Watch for these times:
How often does the dog have to go outdoors? Rule of thumb your dog’s age in months plus one. So if your dog is 8 weeks old he should be able to go 3 hours in between trips outdoors. HOWEVER, this is only for the quiet or nighttime hours. During the day light hours, their metabolism runs faster so they may have to potty more frequently. Get to know your dog’s metabolic schedule by setting consistent outdoor breaks. |
| BODY LANGUAGE Watch your dog’s body language. If you see him start to act somewhat wild when just the moment before he was quiet, then you can safely assume it’s because he has to eliminate. Take him outdoors! If you see him sniffing around the carpet, especially if he seems to be pushing his nose deeper into the carpet, it’s likely he has to potty. Take him outdoors! If he starts to spin, turn, or squat – take him outdoors because he definitely has to potty! Be observant and get to know your dog’s specific body language. He usually projects that he is going to eliminate – you just need learn how to see it in your dog ... and with puppies the body language is quick and subtle! |
| THE POTTY TRAINING PROCESS Take him out on leash to the spot you want him to eliminate. Yes, you need to take him out on leash and you need to stay with him. There is a reason. First, you need to take him out on leash so he learns how to eliminate BEFORE getting distracted by playing. And you need to stay right by him because you need to reward him where he eliminates – not back in the house. Take your dog outside on the following schedule to teach him that there is a reliable amount of time between potty breaks, which is how he learns to control his bladder because he starts to understand that you are sticking to a consistent and reliable clock ... and when he succeeds he is rewarded. DAY ONE - Every 15 minutes for the first hour he is in your home - Every 30 minutes for the second and third hours he is in your home DAY TWO - Every hour for the first two hours of the second day - Every 90 minutes for the third and fourth hours - Every two hours for the balance of the second day DAY THREE - Every two hours for the first two hours of the third day - Every 2.5 hours for the balance of the third day DAY FOUR - Start with 2.5 hours for the first half of the day, then edge him up to the appropriate time he should be able to control his bladder for his age, such as three hours for an 8-week-old dog GOING FORWARD - Continue on the schedule increasing the time between outdoor visits as your dog ages: 3 months = 4 hours, 4 months = 5 hours, 5 months = 6 hours, 6 months = 7 hours, 7 months = 8 hours, 8 months = 9 hours+ Take him on leash to his elimination spot, and stay there no longer than 5 minutes. If he hasn’t eliminated in those 5 minutes, bring him back into the house and put him in their crate for 10 minutes. (This process is a big deal and cannot be sidestepped.) He needs to go back into his crate so he doesn’t wander off and eliminate some place in the house. Be sure to take him back out in 10 minutes – don’t get lazy and leave him in his crate for 60 minutes because he’ll then have an accident in the crate. 10 minutes and take him back outdoors. Give it another 5 minutes outdoors and if he eliminates, give him praise and a treat (this is also not to be sidestepped), then you can let him off the leash to play. However, if he does not eliminate the second time either, then take him back inside and crate again. Keep repeating this process until the dog eliminates and you can reward. |
| GO POTTY - OR ADDING THE CUE WORDS When you first start teaching the dog don’t bother to say “go potty” before the dog eliminates. He has no idea what you are saying … he doesn't understand our language or words. All he hears is us making noises. You first need to associate those noises (our words) to the action in order for him to begin to understand. To teach the dog what the words “go potty” mean, say the words DURING the action for at least two weeks, so that down the line he will understand what those words mean and he will then understand what you asking him to do. It takes approximately 60 repetitions of an exercise before your dog starts to understand what you are asking of them. So, for the first few weeks say the words while he is eliminating … then praise him when he finishes eliminating and give him a reward. |
| HOW WILL HE TELL YOU HE HAS TO POTTY Barking or scratching at the door does not come naturally to all dogs to let you know he has to go out. So help him with a bell. Hang a bell by the door at floor level and ring it every time you take the dog out to potty. Ring the bell and immediately open the door and take out the dog. After a couple of weeks he will most likely start to understand and will start to bump the bell with his nose. During those first few weeks, if the dog bumps the bell just out of curiosity, get that door open and take him outside! You need to let him/her know that bumping the bell works! You can find bells at craft stores, a toy store/department or an office supply store. If you have a big house, use a dog doorbell: www.petronic.com |
| NO YELLING PLEASE If you come into the room and you see a puddle or pile, DO NOT yell at the dog or rub his nose in it. It doesn’t work and dog behaviorists have learned that was a bad idea. If you see the puddle/pile, then just make a note when it might have happened so you know the next time to get the dog outside before this time. If you yell at the dog, you will merely frighten the dog into hiding somewhere to eliminate in the house – it will NOT frighten the dog into stopping. What the dog will really think is that you just yelled at him for whatever he was doing when you yelled. Dogs don'tfeel guilt (it's not one of their emotions) so that body language that makes you think they know they did wrong – that's not guilt, it's fear. And it's fear of you! He doesn't understand that you are acting that way because you just discovered a puddle on the floor. He doesn't understand that eliminating in the house is a bad thing because in their world eliminating wherever they are is natural. They process their thoughts and actions differently from us because nature made them that way. If you dog starts to eliminate in front of you, scoop him up and get him outdoors – then praise and reward the dog when they finish! For more information on how dogs think and learn, enroll in a good positive reinforcement dog-training course. And don't yell - it doesn't work! |
| THE SIZE OF THE CRATE Don’t keep the crate so small that the dog cannot stand up, turn around, and totally stretch out. If you’re keeping the crate that small in an attempt to keep the dog from eliminating in the crate, this is wrong and won’t work. All you do is make the dog hate the crate. Allow your dog sufficient room in the crate to move freely, and remember it’s your job to take the dog outside to potty before they have the accident in the crate. The crate doesn’t potty train the dog. The crate is meant only to confine the dog so they can't eliminate in the house, but it doesn’t replace your consistent and timely trips outdoors. |
| HOW MUCH WATER? Water should be available at all times – you cannot cut back on the dog’s water needs or you will cause internal organ damage to the dog. Hang a water bottle inside the crate rather than a dish and allow the dog to drink his water from the bottle. The bottle will keep the water from spilling and make it more difficult for him to consume large quantities of water. You can remove water after 8pm for a puppy - if you absolutely must - until he is potty trained. At meal times and when the dog is out of the crate, however, the dog should be allowed to drink freely. After exercise, please allow your dog to replenish himself from a water bowl. |
| STILL HAVING PROBLEMS? Try these: KEEP A LOG – mark the date and time and place your pup eliminated. Add any other notable items, such as fireworks or thunderstorms when the accident happened. Or lots of children running around, heavy winds, strange odors or tension in the household. You can often pickup behavioral patterns when you see it in writing and you can then adjust your schedule. FOOD PROBLEMS - have you been changing foods or using an array of different treats? It may be causing bowel issues. To change your dog’s food follow this formula:
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