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I have housetrained a chihuahua, a pomeranian and 2 pugs. Here are some useful tips to help you through what can be a frustrating time for some dogs and the people who love them. First of all, I could not bring myself to use a crate, so I purchased a baby play yard to use instead. Click here for a photo and description of the play yard. |
| A play yard will not work for all dogs, only small breeds. I would think it would be impossible to contain a Lab or like sized puppy for long in a play yard, as they would eventually simply jump up and over it to get out, or knock it over. The reason I prefer a play yard to a crate is that it seems much more open and I feel this allows the puppy to feel more like a part of the family. |
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My housetraining method is preparing my dogs to use a doggie door. In other words, I don't have to train them to go the door and alert me if they need to go out. I understand that the use of a doggie door is not an option for everyone, but if there is any possible way you can swing it, I *highly* recommend it. Of course, the doggie door needs to lead into a fenced yard to keep them safe Much of my training method described below will relate to house breaking a puppy even if you will not be using a doggie door. I also work out of my home, so I didn't have to leave my puppies unless it was to run a quick errand. I feel this did make housetraining easier than if I would have had to leave my puppies for extended periods of time. For the female puppies I trained (and actually also my male pug, Samson), I lined the play yard with newspaper, added a nice comfortable bed, water and food dishes and some toys. With my male chihuahua, this did not work because he would hike and the pee would end up outside the play yard instead of on the newspapers. So, I used a dog litter pan (it was just deep enough to keep the pee in the pan, but had a lower space that made it possible for even my tiny chihuahua to easily get in and out). I lined the pan with papers. I did not use dog litter because my chi tried to eat the litter. My male pug, Samson did not hike...he actually didn't even squat...he would just stand there and pee LOL, so I didn't have to use the dog litter pan...lining the bottom of the play yard with papers worked fine. I guess this will depend on your male puppy and how he pees. Here is the most important part of successful housetraining. NEVER leave the puppy to run the house unsupervised. If you are not watching them every minute, they can have an accident and you might not even know it...until it is too late. If the puppy is having little accidents around the house that you are unaware of, that means you aren't cleaning them up and the puppy will be drawn to that spot the next time they need to relieve themselves. If you aren't able to supervise your puppy 100%, then you should put him/her in the play yard. Even when you are watching your puppy closely, you may catch them squatting to pee or poop, and depending upon how far away you are it may be too late by the time you are able to reach them. What I would do when I "caught them in the act" was to say "no, no...go outdoors to potty" and then I would pick them up immediately and take them outdoors and say "go potty". Even if they had already went in the house and weren't able to go again outdoors...I still did this. I feel this is important, as simply saying the "no no" part lets them know you aren't happy with what they did...but taking them outside helps them understand what you want them to do instead. If you don't catch them in the act, and find the accident later...just clean it up and move on. It does no good to rub their nose in it or take them back to the scene of the crime and yell at them. When I say "clean up" the accident, I am talking about using an odor neutralizing cleaner. Simply blotting it up with some soap and water, or sprinkling on some carpet fresh will NOT work. The puppy will still be able to smell the scent. There are a lot of products on the market designed especially for removing/neutralizing pet stains. You will not be able to housetrain your puppy by merely leaving it in the play yard or crate all the time and taking it outside every couple of hours. A puppy needs socialization...needs to be out of the play yard or crate when you are there to supervise them. My puppies were only in their play yard when they had to be without supervision. When I was home, they were out playing, and even falling asleep under my chair or in my lap. Puppies need this interaction. I took my puppies outside when they woke up (not 20 minutes after I noticed they were up, but immediately). I also took them out after they ate or drank a lot and after they were playing hard. In other words, I was taking them out at least every hour, probably more often for the first week or so. Samson had one day when I thought I would go crazy. I took him out and he peed...I brought him back in and just 5 minutes later I caught him peeing on the floor. Again I took him out, he finished peeing...yet just 10 minutes after he came back inside he was peeing on the floor. I actually was so shocked by this behavior that I became concerned that he had a bladder infection or something. I took a urine sample to the vet that day and it came back normal. The next day, Samson was fine and had stopped the excessive urination. I was able to take him out every 15-20 minutes...and the following day he did fine for even longer periods of time. I just gradually increased the length of time between taking him out until it was a more normal time frame. I would go to the door and say "outside...outside to go potty" and then take them outside. I would take them to the same area each time, so that their scent was already there. Then I would stand there and say "go potty"..."hurry up"..."go potty". I did not play with them. I needed them to understand that they were outside to go potty, not to play. Once they went, I would say "good girl", or "good boy" or "good (dog's name)", "you went potty...good (dog's name)", I would also bend down and hold out my arms so that they could come to me and I would pet them, all the time telling them how good they were for going potty. Of course, there were times when I was pretty sure they had to do more than pee, so after praising them for peeing...I would then walk around the area a bit more and give them a chance to poop if they needed. If I noticed them going in circles, looking frantic (if you've had a puppy you know that look I am talking about), then I would say again "go potty" and if they did go poop...the whole praise thing would occur again. Then I would take them inside where they would play or eat/drink until it was time to go out again. Some people will use treats as rewards for going potty. Simply praising was been enough for my chi and pom. I used treats with Bella and with Samson. Don't expect a puppy to be able to "hold it" all night long. Some dogs are 6 months or older before they are able to accomplish this. The best advice I can give is...be patient...be patient...and be even more patient. Sometimes, just when you think they have the hang of it and you start bragging to your friends that your puppy is completely house broken...Oops! Fido has an accident. Although I didn't consider my chihuahua hard to housebreak (I actually thought he caught on very quickly)...it probably did take longer than if he had been a larger breed. He was so tiny when he brought him home and it was still cold outside, that I didn't even dare to start taking him outdoors for approx. 3 weeks. When he was out of his play yard, I had to have his dog pan out and put him in it every half hour or so. Now, Bella...even though she came home at only 8 weeks old, she was larger than Tucker was and not as fragile, and the weather was pretty good when I began training her...so she was able to start learning about going potty outside right away. If you are able to utilize a doggie door
that leads into a fenced area, then your next step is to introduce the
doggie door. The time frame here really depends on the puppy, i.e.
whether you feel the puppy understands what is expected of them when you
take them outside and say "go potty", how old the puppy is, the size of
the puppy, etc. When you are ready to introduce the doggie door, the
best way is to have someone on each side of the door. Sit the puppy
inside beside the doggie flap and have the person on the outside attempt
to coax him/her thru. You may have to use treats. You may want to push
the flap open and show them that it leads to the outside. If they
absolutely will not use the door to go outside...then put them on the
other side, the outside, and try coaxing them in...this may be easier.
None of this worked for Glory, my pom, and we finally had to very
gently push her in and out the door a couple of times...then she
would go in and out if we held the flap all the way up...soon we were
able to hold the flap just partially open and coax her in and out. |
