Potty Training
Take Fido on a
leash to the same spot to eliminate each time; watch to make sure he goes. Remember to praise and treat him for going in
the right spot while he is learning! Carry
goodies and treat him the second he has finished his business so he forms a
strong association. If you wait to
reward him until you get back to the house, he will not realize that the reward
was for going potty (he will think it’s for coming through the door). Sometimes young dogs get so excited when
brought outside that they are more interested in exploring the yard
(particularly its smells) than in going potty.
The answer for this is prevention.
Bring the dog to the potty-spot on the leash, and basically ignore
him. Keep him around the same spot, and
try to be as boring as possible. After the dog relieves himself, fuss
over him, play with him, allow him some time to explore and sniff, and/or take
him right away for the rest of his walk.
He will quickly learn to hurry up with his business so he can carry on
with his fun! Do not get in the habit of heading back to the house immediately
after Fido has eliminated (whether he eliminates in the yard or along his
walk). Many dogs will quickly figure out
that elimination ends the pleasant outings and will “hold it” as long as
possible in an effort to extend the fun!
Head back to the house at least
5-10 minutes after potty-time so the dog does not make the association.
Shouldn’t My Dog
“Tell Me” When He Needs to Go Out?
Notice that during
all the above procedures, you have
been telling the dog when to go out, and you have been putting the dog on a
schedule, much like a human baby. There
is no reason you cannot continue this arrangement indefinitely, even for the
life of the dog. This is what I do with
my own dogs. The dogs’ needs are met,
and they have never turned me into a human door-attendant: someone who lets
them in and out 20 times an hour at any time the whim occurs to them (because
they will want to go in and out at
various times for various other reasons besides potty, once they have gotten
the hang of barking for my compliance).
My dogs are also generally quiet
for dogs, because they have never learned that barking earns them any extra
favors or attention. (I will, however, quickly let them outside
if I see an urgent and obvious need, such as a dog sniffing the floor a little
too earnestly or making a tell-tale circling motion over a spot on the carpet).
Whether you want
to train a signal to be let out, such as barking or sitting by the door, should
be totally up to you. Just make sure you
can live with the consequences of your decision (particularly in regard to
barking). Remember that the dog will not
know automatically what you want him to do; you will need to train him accordingly (see section III).
One cute training-idea is to hang a bell or set of bells from the
doorknob. You can train the dog to ring
the bell(s) with his paw or snout when he wants to go outside. Whenever you are sure that the dog’s need to eliminate has been satisfied, you can
make it clear to your dog that there are times he must stay inside with
you. At these times you simply remove the
bells out of sight as a clear visual signal to the dog that the great outdoors
is temporarily unavailable.
Accidents
If the dog has an
accident in his crate or elsewhere, say nothing. Think of this as your fault, not the dog’s!
Assuming he is healthy, and the crate is a proper size, you have
probably not taken him out often enough.
If the dog tends to urinate overnight, you can try cutting off the dog’s
water-supply about an hour before bedtime, or giving him a few ice chips
instead. You should also try waking him
up and taking him out a little later than usual before you go to bed yourself. Small dogs, particularly, have tiny bladders
and tend to have a hard time making it though the night. If the dog has eliminated elsewhere in the
house, you have given him more freedom than he can handle, so increase
crate-training and supervision accordingly.
You should also never punish the dog for having an
accident. If the dirty deed is done, say
nothing because it is too late to change the dog’s behavior. If you punish him (put his nose in it, etc.)
he will not understand why. Worse, he
might begin to eat his own feces in an attempt to appease his angry
master.
If you catch him
in the act, say a loud “AAAH!” in an attempt to interrupt him. Pick him up or quickly leash him, gently lead him outside, take him to his
usual spot, and praise him and treat him for finishing his business there. Clean
up the mess thoroughly using white vinegar or products specially designed to
clean up dog messes. It is important to
remove all trace of odor even to a dog’s nose, which is up to a million times
more sensitive than a human’s.
Elimination of any odor will reduce the dog’s inclination to mark again
in the same spot. Do not punish the dog because you have
caught him in mid-act. The dog might not
understand the reason for punishment: eliminating in the house. He might
think you are punishing him for eliminating in front of you! This will make it much, much harder to
housetrain him, since you should be going outside with him each time and making
sure he voids outside, even if you have a fenced-in yard, until the habit is
well-established.
Some people feel Fido
is smart enough to “know better” because he “acts guilty” after he has soiled a
room or chewed up a pillow. Nothing
could be further from the truth! The dog
either: (A) senses your anger from your
tone, movements, and facial expression, or (B) associates (from prior
experience) your return (in the context of a soiled floor or torn pillow) with
a tantrum on your part. Fido is incapable of connecting his actions
hours or even minutes ago with your reaction or his own punishment now.
The lowered head, the lowered ears, the tail tucked between his legs are
all attempts by a lower-ranking canine to appease a more dominant member of the
pack. If the submissive behavior does
not work as expected, he will begin to see you as some kind of psychopath! The resultant extra anxiety can either cause further misbehavior during your
absences in the future or even cause an aggressive reaction by the dog. He might feel he has no choice but to defend
himself. Please, don’t set yourself or your dog up for such a sorry
situation by resorting to punishment!
Find some therapeutic way of venting your anger out of your dog’s sight
and hearing.
If a veterinarian has pronounced your dog
healthy and he has more than an occasional accident in his crate, consult
with a good dog-trainer for ideas on what to do next. If the dog’s accidents
are due to submissive urination or separation anxiety, also read the special
sections below.
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