CONTACT NUMBERS: (503) 851-1187 Tammy SALEM, OREGON Located in Oregon cavalierkingpups@yahoo.com |
This page requires JavaScript to display properly. Housebreaking Your Puppy There are two rules to keep in mind when housebreaking your new puppy. The first being that if you don't catch your puppy doing it - then don't punish him for it! The second rule is that when your puppy gets it right, praise him immediately. Don't let housebreaking be something in which your puppy only hears the word - "NO".There are several different methods of housebreaking. Paper training sometimes may be difficult because some puppies tend to rip the pee pads to shreds in a matter of minutes and they get quite a bit of joy from doing this, I might add. You can also try the method of constant supervision. This method involves no papers or crates. You will however be spending all of your time with your new puppy. This works well for people who work in their homes, some retired people, etc. Whenever you see the puppy getting ready to find a place to do his business, you take him outside. You will want the puppy to understand that the purpose of going outside was to go to the bathroom. Do not start playing with him, make it a trip for a reason. You will be using verbal cues with this method a lot. Example, "outside", "go potty", etc. We still recommend having a crate available as a backup when you have to be away from the puppy. I am going to tell you about my preferred method which is Crate Training. The reasoning behind crate training is that the puppy is placed in a cage that is just large enough to be a bed. Dogs do not like to soil their beds because they would have to lay in the mess. It works, and while in these confines, most pups will control their bladder and bowels for a longer time that we would expect. I prefer for young puppies, at 8 or 9 weeks of age not to remain in a crate more than 4 hours at a time. This time frame can certainly be lengthen as the puppy ages. During housebreaking, whenever the puppy is inside the home but can not be watched, he is placed in the crate. The last thing that you want to do before you put the puppy in the crate is take him outside to his favorite potty place. The first thing that you do when you take the puppy out of the crate is take him again outside to his favorite place. No food or water goes in the crate. Just a soft blanket and maybe a safe chew toy to occupy his time. Overnight is definitely crate time. As your faith in the puppy grows, leave him out for longer periods of time. You will notice that he will also need to go out within 30 minutes or so after eating. Purchase a crate or cage that will be big enough for him as an adult, but choose a model that comes with a divider panel as an accessory. Using too large of a crate can sometimes teach the puppy that he can go to one end of it and use the bathroom and he will not have to worry about messing up his bed. This is a hard problem to fix once it starts. You must be consistent when trying to housebreak a puppy. When you take your puppy outside for bathroom time, do NOT play with the puppy. Just stand around and try to look bored, you can however keep repeating your verbal cues. One he uses the bathroom, praise him immediately, pick him up and take him inside to play. If an accident occurs, don't scold him. Let's face it, it was your fault, not the pups. You weren't watching him. If you catch him in the act, just sternly tell him "No" and carry him outside to finish his business. Most importantly be patient with your new puppy and stay calm. He will want to please you his entire life. That's just another great thing about dogs! |
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