Elliott's Shasta Sheltie's
Sheltie Help and Training Guide
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Congratulations! You are now the owner of a little ball of Sheltie fur and are ready to have fun. The question is, how do you grown this little one up to be the sweet, devoted, majestic dog that he has potential to be?� The information included in this document will give you some good information that will hopefully help you with your new baby.� Just remember that Love and Patience are the keys to training your Sheltie.� Shelties are particularly sensitive and do not need severe discipline. As a matter of fact they do much better with a kind hand and a little treat.� Remember that they want to please you but it is your job to help them understand what it is that you want them to do. Through the process of puppy training you and your puppy will learn and grow together and form a true friendship.
Sheltie Ears
What to do if your Sheltie's  ears don't tip:
About 1/3 of a sheltie's ear should tip forward. Many Sheltie's have prick ears, that is, ears that stand straight up.� Once the dog is 6 or 7 months old, there is not much you can do to correct this, but if your sheltie is still a puppy, you can help train the ears to tip correctly.
How to brace Sheltie's ears:
Moleskin and Japanese Tape can be used in combination to train Sheltie ears.
Supplies can be purchased from the following web site..http://home.comcast.net/~triumphshelties/tape/pricing.htm

Supplies needed for this method are:

Moleskin
Ear Glue: Jiffy Sew, Speed Sew, or Val-a Tear Mender
Rubbing Alcohol
Cotton ball
Q-tips
Detachol

Procedure:

Cut the moleskin into the following sizes:

Two piece 1 .5" x 1.5" Moleskin
Two pieces same size for Japanese Tape

Clean inside of the dog's ears well with rubbing alcohol using cotton balls. Use a
fine tooth comb to help clean any 'sticky' residue left from previous tape or
moleskin. Let ear dry.

Remove the backing from one of the moleskin pieces.  Adhere the non sticky side
of the Japanese Tape to the sticky side of the moleskin.  This will make the
moleskin stick better to the ears as the adhesive on the Japanese Tape is much
stronger. Do this with both pieces of moleskin.

Trim each piece as show below (Figure 1): This piece will go inside lower part of
dog's ear.
Press well to assure good adhesion.  The pieces should go approximately half way
up the inside of the ear.  Then with a q-tip place a dot of the fabric glue onto the
hair on the inside tip of the ear.  Fold the ear over half way and press the hair onto
the moleskin.  Be sure not to glue to skin!  Hold in place for a minute until the glue
has dried.  NOTE: Do not fold ear too tightly as to cut off blood flow.  You should
be able to slide a drinking straw in the fold easily. (This is just a test to see if the
fold is too tight.  Don't leave the straw in place.)

This will be a comfortable brace for the puppy and he will still be able to move his
ears. Replace when this brace begins to come loose.  Watch ears for a day or so
to see if brace needs to be reapplied.
Housebreaking
What are the best methods for house training a puppy?
Q.
A. If your dog is going to live inside the home and in America     over 90% of our pets do, you are going to have to go through the     housebreaking process unless you have grossly different hygienic standards     than most. It is not hard, it need not be messy, and it need not be a     struggle. It does not have to take a long time. Remember that it is a     training issue and you will need to have more than casual input. It will     take some of your time but the more involved you get, the shorter that span     will be.
The Rules
House Training     Rule Number One: This is The Most Important Rule ? If you don't catch     your puppy doing it - then don't punish him for it!
House Training     Rule Number Two: Praise your puppy when things go right. Don't let this     be a situation where your only action is saying "No" when they     are caught in the midst of using the wrong area. If they do it right ? let     them know!
Methods of house training
Starting Inside: There are several     ways to housebreak a puppy. With the first, you can put down papers or     pretreated pads, encouraging them to use these areas for going to the     bathroom. The pads are scented with a chemical that attracts the puppy to     use them. Whenever you see them starting into their  pre-potty     pattern such as walking around and sniffing the floor, you gently     pick them up without talking and carry them over to the papers/pad and then     praise them when they go to the bathroom (Rule 2).
When all     goes well and they are using the papers consistently, the papers are either     moved closer to the door and/or another set is placed outside. The     transition is made from concentrating the toilet habits to one spot inside     the home to one spot outside the home. Finally, the papers inside are     eliminated. The only problem with this method is that for a period of time     it encourages the animal to eliminate inside the home. In our experience,     house training may take longer when this method is used.
Crate Training: The second popular     method of house training involves the use of a crate or cage. The     often-stated reasoning is that the animal 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 be forced to lay in the mess. It works, and while in these confines,     most pups will control their bladder and bowels for a longer time than we     would expect. Young puppies, at 8 or 9 weeks of age can often last for 7 or     8 hours, however, we would never recommend leaving them unattended in a     crate for that long in most circumstances.
During     housebreaking, whenever the puppy is inside the home but cannot be watched,     he is placed in the crate. This might be while you are cooking, reading to     the children, or even away from the home. The last thing you do before you     put the puppy in the crate is take him outside to his favorite spot. The     first thing you do when you take the animal out of the crate is another     trip outside. No food or water goes in the crate, just a blanket and maybe     a chew toy to occupy his time. Overnight is definitely crate time. As your     faith in the puppy grows, leave him out for longer and longer periods of     time.
Most     people do not recognize an important advantage of crate training. It does     more than just stop the animal from messing in the house. It also teaches     the puppy something very important. The puppy learns that when the urge to     urinate or defecate occurs, he can hold it. Just because the pup feels like     he needs to relieve himself, the pup learns that he does not have to. This     is thought to be the main reason why puppies that have gone through crate training     have fewer mistakes later on.
Make sure     you buy the right size cage. You want one that has the floor space that     provides just enough for the puppy to lie down. But cages are useful     throughout a dog's life and it would be nice if you did not have to keep     buying more as he grows. That is not necessary. Simply purchase a cage that     will be big enough for him as an adult, but choose a model that comes with     or has a divider panel as an accessory. With these, you can adjust the     position of the panel so that the space inside the cage available to the     pet can grow as he does.
Using too     large of a crate can often cause long term problems. The puppy will go to     one corner of the cage and urinate or defecate. After a while, he will then     run through it tracking it all over the cage. If this is allowed to     continue, the instincts about not soiling his bed or lying in the mess will     be forgotten and the puppy will soon be doing it every day when placed in     the crate. Now a house training method has turned into a behavioral problem     as the puppy's  newly-formed hygienic habits becomes his way of life.
Constant     Supervision: The last method involves no papers, pads, or crates. Rather,     you chose to spend all the time necessary with the puppy. This works very     well for people who live and work in their homes, retired persons, or in     situations where the owners are always with the animal. Whenever they see     the puppy doing his pre-potty pattern  they hustle him outside.     It is important that the dog is watched at all times and that no mistakes     are allowed to occur. This method has less room for error, as there is     nothing like a cage to restrict the animal's urges, nor is there a place     for him to relieve himself such as on the papers or pad. When he is taken     outside, watch the puppy closely and as soon as all goes as planned, he     should be praised and then brought back inside immediately. You want the     dog to understand that the purpose for going outside was to go to the     bathroom. Do not start playing, make it a trip for a reason. Verbal     communications help this method and we will discuss them soon. For those     with the time, this is a good method. We still recommend having a crate     available as a backup when the owners have to be away from the animal.
Verbal cues
Specific     verbal communications will also help the two of you understand what is     desired. It is an excellent idea to always use a word when it is time to     head to the bathroom. We like "Outside?"  Remember that whenever     you use a verbal command or signal, it is important that everybody in the     family always uses the same word in the same way. Think of the word   "Outside" in this situation not only as a question you are asking     the pup, but also as an indication that you want to go there. Some dogs may     get into the habit of going to the door when they want to go outside. This     is great when it happens but it is not as common as some believe. We have     found that it is better to use verbal commands to initiate this sort of     activity rather than waiting for the puppy to learn this behavior on his     own. It seems like your consistent use of a word or phrase like "Outside"  will cause the puppy to come to you rather than the     door when he needs to go outside. The pup quickly sees you as part of the     overall activity of getting to where he needs to go. We believe this is     much better.
Once     outside, we try to encourage the pup to get on with the act in question. We     use the phrase "Do your numbers.'  This is probably a holdover     from our own parenthood and hearing children use the "Number '    or " Number 2" phrases. Others use 'Do It,' 'Potty,' or 'Hurry     Up.' As soon as they eliminate, it is very important to praise them with a  "Good Dog"  and then come back inside immediately. Again, make     this trip that started outside with a specific word "Outside"  be     for a purpose. If we are taking the pup out to play with a ball or go for a     walk we will not use this word even if we know they will eliminate while we     are outside.
When an 'accident' happens
One of the     key issues in housebreaking is to follow Rule Number One: If you do not     catch your puppy doing it, then do not punish him for it! We do not care     what someone else may tell you or what you read, if you find a mess that     was left when you were not there, clean it up and forget it.
Discipline     will not help because unless you catch the puppy in the act, he will have     no idea what the scolding is for. Your puppy has urinated and defecated     hundreds of times before he met you. Mom or the breeder always cleaned it     up. Nobody made a fuss before and the pup will not put the punishment,     regardless of its form, together with something he has done without     incident numerous times before. Especially if he did it more than 30     seconds ago! Puppies are just like our children. Unless something was     really fun (and a repetitious act like going to the bathroom is not), they     are not thinking about what they did in the past. They are thinking about     what they can do in the future. At this point in his life a puppy's memory     is very, very poor.
Anyway,     let us face it. It was your fault, not the pup's. If you had been watching,     you would have noticed the puppy suddenly walking or running around in     circles with his nose down smelling for the perfect spot to go to the     bathroom. It is just as consistent as the taxi cab driver behind you     honking immediately when the light changes. The puppy will show the same     behavior every time. It may vary a little from pup to pup but they always     show their own pre-potty pattern before the act.
The same     should be said as to your first reaction when you actually catch them in     the act of urinating or defecating. It is your fault, you were not watching     for or paying attention to the signals. Do not get mad. Quickly, but calmly     pick them up and without raising your voice sternly say "No. Carry them outside or to their papers. It will help to push their tail down     while you are carrying them as this will often help them to stop urinating     or defecating any more.
They are     going to be excited when you get them outside or to the papers, but stay     there with them a while and if they finish the job, reward them with simple     praise like "Good Dog".
House Training Rule Number One: If you don't       catch your puppy doing it, then don't punish him for it!
In the     disciplining of dogs, just like in physics, every action has a reaction and     for training purposes these may not be beneficial! If you overreact and     severely scold or scare the heck out of a puppy for making what is in your     mind a mistake, your training is probably going backwards. With house     training this is especially difficult for them to understand as they are     carrying out a natural body function. Carried one step farther is the idea     of rubbing a puppy's nose into a mistake he made, whether you caught him or     not. In the limits of a puppy's ntelligence, please explain to us the difference     of rubbing his nose in his mess he left in your kitchen an hour ago versus     the one the neighbor's dog left in the park two weeks ago. If the dog were     smart enough to figure all of this out, the only logical choice would be to     permanently quit going to the bathroom. Punishment rarely speeds up house     training. Often, it makes the dog nervous or afraid every time it needs to     go to the bathroom.
We will     give you a perfect example of how this kind of disciplining causes     long-term problems between a dog and his owner. A client makes an     appointment to discuss a housebreaking problem. They are hoping that on     physical exam or through some testing we can find a medical reason for the     animal's inability to successfully make it through housebreaking. They readily     admit their frustration with the dog. The fecal and urine tests reveal no     problem. We assumed that would be the case and have no intention of     charging for those services. In the examination room, the pup is showing a     lot more interest in the veterinarian than he is in his owners. The     animal's eyes are almost saying, "Please kidnap me from them".  When the owner reaches down to pet the dog on his head, the pup reflexively     closes his eyes and turns his head to the side. The dog reacts as if he were     going to be hit. What this tells us is that the dog has been punished for     making messes in the owners' absence. During this punishment the puppy is     not, and we repeat, the puppy is not thinking about what he might have done     two hours ago. He is not thinking that he should not make messes in the     house. The animal is not even thinking about the messes.
The     classic line that usually goes with this scenario then comes up "When     we get home we know he has made a mess because he always sulks or runs and     hides!"  The dog is not thinking about some mistake he may have made.     Rather, the pup has learned that when the people first get home, for some     reason he has yet to figure out, they are always in a bad mood and he gets     punished. The puppy has decided that maybe he would be better to try to     avoid them for awhile so he does try to hide. In this particular case,     discipline, misunderstood by the puppy, has caused him to fear his owners     and this will probably affect their relationship throughout the life of the     dog.
If you     want house training to go quickly, regardless of the method you use, spend     as much time as possible with your puppy. In an exam room, one of us once     listened to a client complain about how he had to take some time off from     work for his own mental health and also, but unrelated, how the puppy was     not doing too well in the house training department. For us this statement     was just too good to be true. It was the perfect set-up for our pitch. This     gentleman, a bachelor, truly loved his puppy. We saw them together everywhere.     Still, the problem was that he worked in a downtown office and the pup was     home. His work allowed him to get home frequently but not always on a     consistent schedule. There would be accidents when he was gone and     sometimes he was gone longer than the abilities or the attention span of     the puppy.
The     solution was easy. We simply suggested his health and the puppy's training     would both do better if he stayed home for a week or so. It worked. Under     the man's watchful eye, he was always there at the time when he was needed     and in less than seven days the ten-week-old puppy was trained. We are not     saying there was never another accident, but they were few and far between.     In the end, the best of all worlds occurred. The man realized his dog could     be trusted, and thereafter, they spent their days together at the man's     office.
Feeding and house training
The     feeding schedule you use can help or hinder housebreaking. You will soon     notice that puppies will need to go outside soon after they wake and also     within 30 to 40 minutes after eating. Be consistent when you feed the     animal so you can predict when they need to relieve themselves. Plan your     trips outside around these patterns.
All of     this may seem simple, and it really is. The keys are that it will take time     and you must be consistent. And, of course, you must never lose your temper     or even get excited.
Spontaneous or submissive urination
Puppies     may spontaneously urinate when excited. This may be when they first see     you, at meeting a new dog, or when they are scared. It is often referred to     as submissive     or excitement urination. Do not discipline the puppy for this, as it is     something they cannot control. Simply ignore it and clean up the mess. If     you do not overreact, they will usually outgrow this between 4 and 7 months     of age.
Summary
Your new     puppy is home and you have started the house training process. This is just     as much a part of training as the "Come" and "Stay"  commands.     However, mistakes that occur with house training can cause more problems     between you and your pet than those encountered with any other form of     training. Be patient and stay calm.
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