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Author: Moses Wright Article source: http://www.articlealley.com/. Used with author's permission.
Puppies are prone to making mistakes while they are undergoing potty and house training. Be patient, keeping in mind that it is a natural part of learning. As puppies are young and still unsure, leaving him alone will increase the chances of him committing errors. Constant monitoring is necessary so try to have someone stay with him as much as possible. A puppy isn't fully house-trained until he has gone past 4 weeks of not soiling the home. If you are attempting to teach an older dog, it could take longer before he fully learns all the rules.
Monitor him constantly, and baby gates can be used to restrict his wanderings within the house and crates can be use to constrain him when there is no supervision. If you notice your puppy squats to urinate or relieve himself while greeting you, he could be afflicted with submissive urination. These types of dogs are very high-strung and you should refrain from reprimanding his actions as such scoldings exacerbates the issue. This will not persist with his maturity if you maintain a sense of calm. Alternatively, you can try asking him to sit and stay still for a yummy snack until someone acknowledges his presence.
To prevent your puppy from committing the same mistake, you should remove all urine and fecal odor so that your puppy does not return to the same spot in your house where he made a mess. They have an innate tendency to go back to a spot they visited earlier.
A good deodorizer is key to ridding the home of pungent doggy smells. Soak the carpet with cleaning agents should he relieve himself on it. Shut off all those rooms in your house where your puppy has made frequent mistakes. Only allow him permission to pass if he is in the presence of a family member and has approval.
A useful way to spot and remove urine stains from carpets and furniture is to utilize black lights as stains will show up, a;;owing for more efficient cleaning. You can use commercial or create a homemade deodorizer by mixing 50% water and 50% white vinegar. Do bear in mind that ammonia should not be used on a spot of urine. It will encourage your dog to return to the same spot.
Remember, dogs will make mistakes during the period of house-training and it is part of the learning process. This is the reason for being prepared to deal with such issues.
a. Punishing him only after a mistake has been committed will slow down the speed of training.
b. Be patient. Like any training endeavor, potty training requires a lot of patience. Don't rub his nose into his mess. Instead of getting him to stop committing the same mistake, it futher aggravates the situation by instilling the fear of you in him.
c. If you catch him in the act of soiling the home, grab his collar quickly and pull him up, saying "No" with a strict tone. Do this only when you catch him red-handed, but be sure not to be too loud or he will eliminate in front of you or perhaps even outdoors.
d. Bring him out to the gardens to let him complete his business. Lastly, pat him on his head while saying "Good boy!" or praising him. Remember to shower your dog with encouragement and praises when he is displaying the desired behavior. Giving him food as a reward when he does his business in the appropriate spot can help too.
Common sense is indispensable when you are starting to housebreak your puppy. Use your common sense to determine the amount of water given to the dog before his bedtime especially if he is prone to urinating in the middle of the night. It will be useful to try to suit his timing initially before trying to get the dog to adjust to your timing.
Aside from patience and common sense, consistency is also one of the important factors of this dog training activity. If you suddenly forget about the routines yourself, don't blame if your dog if he starts committing accidents more often.
The risk is great - a filthy and smelly home. If you would like to succeed in this potty training feat or just about in any other training drills, don't treat it as a game. You need to be responsible and spend enough time on your side.
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Moses Wright is a dog lover and owner of Dog Obedience Training site. He loves to help dog owners with their dog problems and do so by consolidating his years of dog ownership experience into a free book filled with simple yet powerful dog training tips: Dog Training Problems Book
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