Potty Training Your Dog
Bringing a new dog into the house is always an exciting experience but it’s also one that’s fraught with hurdles that will need to be overcome before you’re eventually left with a mature, well-adjusted dog who can give you many years of companionship and loyalty. One such problem is “potty training” your dog.
Of course, nobody actually uses a potty for their dog, but because we, as a nation, tend to see our dogs as part of the family and therefore our children, potty training your dog has become the accepted from when we speak about dogs’ toilet training.
Not the way to potty train...
It’s a dog’s natural instinct to keep his bed clean and the “den” free from anything that may jeopardize the health of the pack (family) and because marking the pack’s territory is important, a dog will naturally be drawn towards defecating outdoors, often around the perimeter of what he considers to be the pack’s dominion. By using the natural instincts of your dog, toilet training should cause too many gray hairs among owners!
A dog’s toilet training should consist of plenty of patience and consistency – remember that puppies don’t yet have full control over their bladders so you MUST react quickly whenever yours is showing signs of needing to relieve himself.
Take him outside to the spot you’ve chosen as his toilet every time he wakes up, after finishing a session of play, and after every feed telling him “go potty” or whatever your command for going outside to eliminate will be. Give him lots of praise whenever he does the deed but don’t stress him if he doesn’t go. Positive reward is the only way forward.
During the first weeks of potty training your dog as a pup, you’ll need to put down either housebreaking pads or newspaper. Housebreaking pads are preferably as they have a natural odor (undetectable by humans) that attracts dogs to eliminate on them, and doesn’t lead to the possibility of your dog relieving himself on your copy of the New York Times. The other alternative is to keep your puppy crated during the night until he’s old enough to have enough bladder control to see him through the night.
No matter how quick to learn you dog is, there will be accidents. Potty training your dog takes time so don’t be surprised when you find unwanted puddles and piles on the floor. Never scold your dog – toilet training will just be put back by that – because this can easily lead to your dog being afraid to relieve himself. With love, patience and plenty of reward based positive reinforcement, potty training your dog will soon belong in the past.
Tags: dogs
