How to Housebreak
By Jennifer Hack, CPDT-KA
What we are doing when we housebreak a dog is using its natural instincts to train it to go to the washroom in one specific area, keeping its living quarters clean. Dogs do this naturally. Chickens cannot be housebroken, nor can Cows or Monkeys. But Dogs and Pigs have a natural instinct to keep their area clean. This is one of the reasons dogs make great domesticated pets.
FIRST THING...
The first thing you are going to do is use the dogs natural instinct to keep its sleeping quarters, or "den" clean. This "den" is your dog's cage. Once he can keep his cage clean, you are going to expand his freedom, until his new "den" is the whole house. It is important that your puppy always remain clean in the crate. If he gets comfortable sitting in his own pee or poop, you have made it very difficult to housebreak him.
An 8-week old puppy cannot hold it for long, maybe two hours at the most. If you have a young puppy and you have to leave for a few hours and you think he will not hold it, you need to set up a larger cage with half puppy pad and half folded blanket. This way he will relieve himself in a separate area, then lie on his clean bed. You have preserved his instincts and encouraged a good start to housebreaking.
Other than that, do not use puppy pads if you want your dog to go outside, it is a waste of time, makes more garbage, and he learns to go on the floor! Dogs do not automatically understand why you put a puppy pad on the floor or a litter box in the corner, they are not cats. The reason they pee on these pads is because they are absorbent and have a urine scent. They can also start to generalize the puppy pad, and will also pee on your door mats and rugs, or any absorbent surface like clothes on the floor. It is best to housebreak a dog only outdoors, and skip the pads or papers. Also, do not throw your dog in the backyard and assume he peed/pooped, you need to be out there watching, you need to know if he went.
Accidents in the House?
If your puppy had an accident, roll up a newspaper and smack yourself in the head with it, because you did not follow the schedule. :-) Allowing accidents to happen is setting back your housebreaking. You are crate training and only allowing access to certain sections or rooms in the house.
Do not expect too much too soon, it takes time for bladder muscles to develop. Do not scare your puppy by overly scolding him for having an accident, a simple "no!" will do, and he will know it displeases you. Never hit your puppy with a hand or object, he will only distrust you. Punishment is only effective when given immediately and fairly, do not punish him for something he did an hour ago, or even 3 minutes ago, he already forgot, and punishment becomes less and less effective the longer it is. It is cruel to punish a dog for something they did in the past that they do not remember. Always praise him when he goes outside, offer a treat, or reward of play and a walk.
SIDE NOTE: People who say their dog looks guilty and "knows what he did." You walk in the room, see your dog looking guilty and slinking around, then you notice there is a pile of poop on the living room floor. Since he "knows what he did" three hours ago, he deserves to be punished, right? No, your dog does not feel guilty, he feels scared. He has paired these two factors in his head, 1. Poop is on the floor, 2. My owner is here = Bad things happen. Last time those 2 separate things occurred TOGETHER, the dog got in trouble. Now he made the association. He is slinking around, avoiding eye contact, and being generally submissive and fearful. Do not punish your dog.
Remember, just like you needed to keep the cage clean, you need to keep your HOUSE CLEAN. If your dog walks around and smells feces or urine, he will think it's ok to potty there. Dogs sense of smell is very, very, very good. So keep the house clean, and use an enzymatic cleaner for accidents. Nature's Miracle Advanced works well, do not use hot water with it. Of course hard floors are going to be easier than carpet. Carpet not only holds dust, it holds urine soaked into the carpet pad. Carpet is a nightmare for a puppy owner.
If you catch your adult dog in the act, let him know that it makes you displeased, it is wrong, but don't prolong it, a simple, quick "No, bad," will usually do for most dogs, for others it takes more to make an impression on them. Then quickly put him in another room like the bathroom, and clean it up with an enzymatic cleaner to remove all the smell. You can buy these cleaners at any pet store. The reason I do not say put the dog outside is because a smart dog will learn that peeing in the house is his ticket outdoors, and why would you want to teach him that??? After you clean up, take him outside and see if he has to finish up his business. And yes, you need to scold a dog if you catch them, how else are they supposed to know you do not approve of it? Do not punish for something he did hours or minutes before, you have to catch him or it's not fair, this is why you need to supervise. Praise when your dog goes outside! This means you CANNOT just throw the dog in the backyard, you need to be out there watching to see if he goes. Refer to the schedule, you need to know if your dog went #1 and #2!!!
SETUP AND SCHEDULE
I find the best set up is to buy a wire crate and put it right in your living room, where you can keep an eye on the dog. They make cages with dividers for growing puppies. If you kennel your dog off in another part of the house while the family hangs out in the living room, there is a good chance he will feel like a scorned outcast from the pack. This leads to anxiety and boredom behaviors. If you isolate your dog to a basement, yard, or garage and you are doing the worst thing to a pack animal like a dog. So once you have the cage set up in your living room, you need to set up a feeding and potty schedule.
Here is a sample for a PUPPY or NON-HOUSEBROKEN dog, the dog goes out 5 or 6 times:
7:00 am - I wake up, quickly throw on some clothes, and take the dog out
7:20 am - Breakfast, I put the dog back in his crate and feed & water him
9:00 am - I take the bowls away, and I take him outside again
12:00 pm - I take him outside again, I note if he urinates & defecates...
If YES, he can be free in the house for a while and play, if NO, he goes back in crate
1:00 pm - If he did not go at Noon, I take him out again
3:00 pm - Feed Dinner
4:00 pm - Outside, I note if he urinates & defecates
If YES, he can be free in the house for a while and play, if NO, he goes back in crate
8:00 pm - Last Trip Outside, then lights out and crate covered for bed
A good place to have your puppy sleep at night is in a crate in your bedroom. He will be able to hear you breathing and feel closer to his pack. This may also help him sleep more quietly. As he gets older and gets used to going outside, he can have more free time to hang out in the house. Puppies should never be left alone free in the house, they will only get into trouble. They should be in a cage or some set up, like a baby gate blocking them into the kitchen or laundry room. You can leave them with a few safe toys and some music or tv playing. As your puppy gets older, you can increase his freedom, but if he regresses or starts to have accidents in the house, you need to go back to crate training. Accidents are usually the fault of the owner for not taking the dog out enough, not supervising, or giving the dog too much freedom. If your puppy will not potty outside and just goofs around, give him a few more minutes and walk back and forth. Do not pay attention to him, make it boring. Walk back and forth along the same patch of grass, using the same potty area each time. Start saying "go potty" as a cue. When he finally goes, praise and play!
ADULT Schedule: With a mature adult dog who is housebroken, they may need to only go out 3 times a day, depending on the dog. For many working people who have a 9 to 5, this may be your schedule eventually. This is the reality for most pets. So your dog doesn't sit at home bored and alone all day, Doggie Daycare or a hiring a Dog Walker is an option, too.
7:00 am - Outside
7:25 am - Breakfast
8:30 am - I go to work
5:30 pm - I come home, take a long walk, work dog's obedience, play, etc.
6:30 pm - Dinner
9:00 pm - Last Walk
Remember that when a dog is housebroken, he either is or he isn't. There is no such thing as "partially housebroken." It can be done at any age, and with some dogs it takes longer than others. Even a housebroken dog can have an occasional accident, such as if he's sick or if you are gone too long. Male dogs often have an instinct to mark with urine. A male dog Marking in the house is not just housebreaking related, it is training related. They lift their leg and dribble urine on things in your house. For that, you need to ask a dog trainer.
No portion of this may be reproduced without permission of author Jennifer N. Hack
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