Training your dog in housebreaking is fairly simple if you follow a few steps. In this article I will go over the things you'll need in order to be successful.
The first things you will need are a puppy, a crate, some treats, a leash, and a enzymatic cleaner. A crate similar to the one you would carry your dog in while traveling is perfect. You may think placing your dog in a crate for this purpose is cruel, but remember dogs are den animals, and like small enclosed locations.
The dog will also not want to soil the area within the crate. The exception to this are puppies purchased from pet stores, which are allowed to soil their enclosed spaces. This is one good reason you should avoid buying puppies at the pet store.
Buy a crate which is large enough to fit your dog when it is grown, but block off certain parts of it with cardboard. If you don't do this, the puppy will use the bathroom in one part of the crate and sleep in another. You just want to leave enough space for the puppy to rest comfortably.
If you can't watch the puppy, put him in the crate. Put toys and things in there with him so it is comfortable and your dog doesn't think you're punishing him. If he begins yelping, ignore him until he becomes quiet before letting him out. If you take him out when he yelps, he will think he can yelp whenever he wants to leave.
Take the puppy out to relieve himself after every meal, and after a large drink of water. You also want to take him out after he has been playing vigorously. When the dog sniffs, runs around in circles, or whines, that is a signal he needs to go and relieve himself.
You may want to take him out every 30 minutes during the day and every four hours at night until he can sleep through the night. Make sure you place treats in the area where he wants to relieve himself, and reward him when he does.
If he has an accident, don't yell at him. You can either take him outside and reward him when he finishes or in some cases you may want to hold his nose above where he used the bathroom so that the smell will make him think twice about using the bathroom there again. After a while he will begin to listen.
You must remember that puppies are babies, and it will take them about 6 months before they can sleep through the night without supervision. They will have to be a bit older before they are able to be fully housebroken.
Michael Colucci is a technical writer for Free Dog Training - A site that offers free articles and resources on dog training.
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