Things You'll Need:
- Leash
- Collar
- Newspapers--lots!
- Bounty paper towels
- small wind chimes or jingle bells
- Pet odor remover
- dog treats
- dog crate or cage or a small room (like the laundry room)
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Step 1
new puppy traumaYour new puppy is so adorable and cute but he/she is not housebroken. At first this is forgivable, but as time goes on, if the problem is not corrected it can become very annoying and destroy your relationship with your four-legged frisky friend.
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Step 2
Be consistent!You, as the new owner can take some positive steps to ensure that your puppy will be properly housebroken without the trauma some families endure in trying to housebreak a new pet. First, and foremost, you have to make the commitment to be consistent. This means someone needs to be aware of the puppy's needs at all times. Following are the three most important times you need to be SURE you take puppy outside.
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Step 3
Be ready when puppy wakes!ALWAYS take puppy out right after he/she wakes up. Puppies almost always have to relieve themselves after waking from a nap...so be AWARE! and if you hear the little rascal waking up (at 5 AM..yawn)...get up yourself and go out with him/her. It's a little work for you,(especially in 10 degree weather) but it's worth it for the results you will get.
And praise your puppy when he is doing his "potty" outside. A "Good girl! or Good boy!" will help encourage them to continue this practice. -
Step 4
Sandy rings the bell to go outsideHere's a couple of little tricks that should help you. first one--it works great for us--try to hang something "jingly" and noisy (we used an old set of outdoor wind chimes which we re-attached with strong fishing line) on the door knob of the entrance where you want your dog to go in and out to potty. It only took Sandy, the pup you see pictured, a few times of this and she was nuzzling the bells herself and signaling us that she needed to go outside. She thought it was a great game. This was a big aid to us in staying aware of when she needed to go out because we could hear those bells all over the house! Second tip: don't just send the dog out...(you will be able to do this later) but at first, it's better if YOU go out WITH the dog and encourage the "potty"...yes, even if 10 degree weather, which is when we had to train Sandy the dog you've seen pictured. I promise this ordeal for you will not last long and you will be glad you were consistent in this when it becomes easy for you later. Like I said, most of our "returned-can't be housebroken" dogs were owner problems, not bad dog problems. The owners weren't willing to put out the extra effort at the beginning in order to reap the wonderful rewards later. Don't let this happen to you.
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Step 5
Small bladders go frequentlyALWAYS take puppy out right after he/she eats. Puppies almost always have to relieve themselves after they have eaten--so control when you feed your puppy so you can control when they need to go out..it's not a good idea to leave food available all the time at first. Again, you can do this later...but at first monitor when you give him/her food. They need food more often as puppies, but YOU put the food down, once you're on dry food, and be sure you stir it with your hand so puppy can smell YOU in the food..another thing to help bond you. Once puppy has eaten her fill, then take her out right away and walk with her to get those muscles working that help cause the urge to potty. Once she does her duty, praise her greatly and go back in. Remember, things will improve as she gets a little older. At first they have to go much more frequently than later so you may miss and have to blot up a few "accidents." That's where the paper towels and doggy odor remover come in handy. This is normal. If you are consistent these "accidents" will disappear. There's no need to scold, just keep praising the positive times and the negatives will stop.
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Step 6
Turn your terror into a fuzz ball!ALWAYS take puppy out after a period of strenuous play. Puppies often have to relieve themselves after they have exercised a lot..so be aware of this and take puppy out at that time. Does it sound like a lot of work for you? Yes, at first it requires discipline and effort on your part, but amazingly within a month or even less, you will be amazed at how much the situation improves and your life becomes rewarded with a housebroken puppy. Once she's played hard and been outside, you may get the reward pictured and hold a lovable little fuzz ball napping! (we didn't take a photo of daughter Michele when the excited puppy dribbled all over her!..so remember exciting a puppy may cause an "accident!")
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Step 7
A few words about "crating" your puppy when you have to be gone..or at night.
Most dogs will not "mess" in their own area so enclosing your pet in a crate or kennel at night can be an aid in training. We happen to have a nice laundry room that had space for a large kennel. We actually left the kennel door open and put newspapers down on the floor around the puppy kennel for about a month. We also put the food and water near the kennel in the same laundry room. Sandy was allowed free reign of the kennel and the room and the water all day (food was provided at our designated times). When we had to leave, we put Sandy in the kennel with a couple of her toys, left the door open to the kennel, but shut the laundry room door. She never messed in the kennel but we had quite a few messes to clean up at first on the newspapers. However, within a month she was not "messing" in this room at all and waited for us to come let her out in the morning, or when we returned from our excursion. We always took her outside immediately after we opened the door. People who have jobs and have no one home for the puppy, have another set of challenges but using a large kennel or crate can help in training your dog. It's important to allow the dog out several times a day..perhaps a neighbor would be willing to walk the dog, or a local teen could come in. Mature dogs can stay in a kennel much longer than a puppy, so special arrangements need to be made if you are starting with a puppy and need to be gone long periods of time.
