Housetraining your puppy

The first thing everyone wants to know when acquiring a new puppy is how to housetrain him. Remember that consistency is definitely the key to success when housetraining.

By following these easy steps, your puppy should be housetrained quickly.

Frequent toilet breaks:
Take your pup outside to eliminate every 40 minutes, after naps, mealtimes and playtimes. First thing in the morning and late at night before bedtime is also a must.

Management:
Don’t let your pup wander out of sight unless he’s just had a toilet break. Keep bedroom doors closed, and block access to other unsupervised areas. That makes the margin for error much smaller.

Watch your pup:
If you see him circle or sniff around, or generally looking uncomfortable, take him outside immediately.

Reward:
When you take your pup out, take a treat with you. You will have to reward correct toileting habits within a second of it happening so you’ll need the cookie there!

Cleaning up:
Don’t use any product containing ammonia as this is a constituent of urine and your dog could mistake this as “just another toileting area”. Rather use dishwashing liquid, diluted in lukewarm water, which is sponged on and rinsed out repeatedly.

At night:
Either paper train your puppy, or alternatively take him out every four hours to eliminate. Remember, he won’t be able to hold his bladder all night yet!

Other bits:
Don’t always carry him outside – he has to learn to walk outside all by himself. Choose the same area for toileting every time and take your pup to this spot every time. But: make sure that the area is easily accessible and nearby.

Punishment:
NEVER EVER hit your puppy, or scold him for accidents. Punishing your pup will only harm your developing relationship and he will become scared to eliminate in front of you – which makes teaching him the correct place very difficult.Your pup should quickly learn where he is supposed to eliminate during the day if you are consistent and he has access to outside, but bear in mind that it can take up to six months of age before your pup will be able to control his bladder for prolonged periods of time.

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