Housebreaking 101
Remember that
dog who just
knew you didn't
want her piddling
in the house? Some
dogs just need
a slight sense
of disapproval
from you,
and they virtually housebreak themselves.
But you dont
have one of
those dogsor you wouldnt
be reading this!
So
how do we house train
the dog who just doesnt seem
to get
it? Believe
it or not,
its simple.
I
have two key words
for you:
Confine
and Observe.
While there
is a great
deal to know about food and water scheduling, timing
can vary from dog to
dog. So well just concentrate here
on the main concept which
is to
confine your dog to an appropriately
sized crate when you cannot observe her.
A properly sized crate is large
enough for
your dog to stand up and turn around,
but hardly bigger than that. If you have
a puppy
in a large crate, shell think shes
got a bedroom
with a bathroom built in. Shell wee
in one corner and sleep in the other.
The correctly sized crate consists of bedroom only
with no bathroom. So if your crate is too
large, go to the pet store and purchase a crate divider so you can
temporarily reduce the accessible area.
Fido should be in her crate unless you can observe her 100%. This means that when the dog is loose,
she has your undivided attention. Consider attaching a 6
foot light cord to the
collar so you can
more easily locate the dog, and prevent her from leaving the room without you. Simply step
on the cord to stop her.
At the first sign your dog needs to
go, whisk her outside. Those
signs include circling, sniffing,
anxiousness, whining among other symptoms.
When youre
not observing your dog
with full attention, you
confine her to the crate. That
being said, you do need to
ensure your dog has liberty periodically so shes not all
day in the crate. By being diligent now, youll be able to
give Fido years of liberty with no worries. So its well worth the
investment in time
at this stage.
Be sure you spend time
playing with your dog, and
also let her
wander outside the crate. Avoid tossing her in the crate as punishment. Alleviate your guilt feelings by placing bones smeared with peanut butter in with her.
This
method makes it impossible for your dog to have an accident. Youre either right there to take her out, or shes in the crate where
she wont
want to
go. When youve had a month with no accidents, you can begin to let the dog earn a little
more liberty,
five or
ten minutes at a time.
That means she can be out of your
sight for a few moments at a time. But only a few. You want to
build slowly on a
record of success
until your dog literally forgets that the house ever contained a bathroom.
For each week with no accident, you can give Fido a few more moments of liberty at a time. However, if there is an accident, go back a step, and reduce that liberty. One accident in the house erases progress
made for the several previous days.
Confine and Observe your
way to house breaking success. In the course of just two or three months, youll have a dog you can trust in the home.
Its going to be worth the effort!
Marc Goldberg is a dog trainer specializing in the rehabilitation of difficult dogs and improving relationships. He is Vice President of the
International Association of Canine Professionals (IACP) and Editor of
SafeHands Journal. The author also educates professional dog trainers in
his techniques. Visit him on the web at
http://www.chicagodogtrainer.com or
http://www.dogtraininginchicago.com.