Toilet Training for Puppies… and Older Dogs
Times when Your Puppy Will Need to Relieve Itself
- When it wakes from a sleep
- When it has eaten or has had a drink
- When it is excited (when you come home)
- After strenuous exercise (or play)
Many people take their puppies out for a walk only to see the puppy disgrace themselves as soon as they get back indoors. To avoid this, walk the puppy to his toilet area. Stand still with him, allowing the puppy to lose interest in you – do not sit down as this will only encourage the pup to jump on you and forget what he is out there for.
Praise him if he performs. NEVER ever rub his nose in any mistakes! Positive reinforcement when he does the right thing in the right place is the best and quickest training method.
REMEMBER THAT YOUR PUPPY WILL NOT WANT TO FOUL HIS OWN BEDDING OR LIVING AREA.
When training the puppy to go outside to relieve himself – LEAD him to where you want him to go, stay with him, praise him when he performs. Remember that a male puppy sometimes takes longer to perform than a female. However, at night, make provision for “accidents” by putting paper down if puppy does not have access to outside (via doggy door etc).
In a House or Unit
Confine puppy to an area – (laundry, kitchen etc) – and put newspapers down over the entire area. When puppy wakes or after eating, LEAD him (don’t pick him up) to where he must go to the toilet (onto newspapers, litter tray etc).
Stay with him - he might not do anything if you just leave him, he may even be frightened to be suddenly left. Wait until he relieves himself and PRAISE HIM LAVISHLY. Then remove the soiled newspaper or liner and replace with clean paper, leaving a small portion of the soiled paper to keep the pup’s smell there – this will guide him back when he needs to go again. After a while, your puppy will soon get the idea and be able to go to his toilet area himself.
REMEMBER THAT JUST LIKE A CHILD…WHEN HE HAS TO GO…HE REALLY HAS TO GO!
YOUR PUPPY CAN’T TRAVEL LONG DISTANCES TO RELIEVE HIMSELF SO KEEP HIS TOILET AREA NEARBY.
The first thing you must consider if you have recently introduced a puppy to your home and family is whether it is to be an inside or an outside dog. If it is to be an inside dog then toilet- training is a priority, closely followed by taking steps to puppy-proof property and belongings.
Young pups can be very destructive and, like babies, initially have no control over their bodily functions. We have to teach them good toilet habits, especially if we are keeping them inside for long periods and not giving them access to the garden.
You wouldn’t hit or reprimand a baby for soiling its nappy…and it’s exactly the same for puppies. No rubbing noses in accidental ‘whoopsies’.
It’s much more effective to use predictable toileting times, such as straight after the pup’s eaten, or after it’s taken a nap. Walk the pup to a special place in the yard, place it on the ground and say “Go to the toilet” or something like this. Friends of ours say “Empty the dog!”
9 times out of 10, the pup will relieve itself…giving you a chance to praise it’s action lavishly. A puppy wants to please you and will want to respond to positive reinforcement.
There are other times that your pup will want to go to the toilet, so take it out at regular intervals. A good gauge is every hour, on the hour. If you have to go out and leave the pup in the house, provide a large litter tray with soil in it as a toilet for the pup. Do not give it run of the house as it will go to the toilet wherever it wants, and bad habits, once learned, are difficult to break.
It is advisable to contain a pup to a certain section of the house, such as the bathroom, laundry or garage, or to partition off a section of the house. This will help protect such things as carpets, drapes and furniture. Also provide some toys, food, water, for the pup to chew on.