Posts Tagged ‘Housebreaking’
How The Weather Affects Housebreaking Your Puppy
Be aware of the weather when taking your puppy to the potty area. If you get a puppy in winter, remember that it will be a little harder on you and your puppy. Dress warmly so you don’t lose your patience if the puppy takes longer to relieve herself.
If you bring your puppy in too soon because you are getting cold and uncomfortable, she may urinate once you bring her into the warmth of your house.
In winter, it is also advisable for owners to put a wind-proof, doggie jacket on their puppies. This way they can stay warm and not have an aversion to being outdoors.
In the fall and spring, the earth is moist and the ground rich with odors. Your puppy will be distracted by the rich scents and she may take longer to relieve herself.
Rainy weather is also a challenge for pups. The rain may alarm them at first and distract them from the familiar scent in their potty area. Snow has the same affect. Be patient under these conditions.
Puppy Training – Potty Training On Command
Any form of puppy training is difficult but toilet training should not end with housebreaking. If you want to avoid the unpleasant but necessary task of picking up after your pet in the street, it makes sense to train him to go before you leave home. This is not as difficult as it may seem but requires a fair amount of patience in the early stages.
If you have been successfully working puppy training at the housebreaking process, you will, by the time you are able to take your puppy out, have a particular phrase that your puppy will associate with going to the toilet.
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You should also have a fairly regular routine and will have some idea of when your puppy needs to go.
Try to arrange your first walk to coincide with this time. Go out to the yard as usual, repeating your chosen phrase until your puppy does what is required. Praise enthusiastically when puppy training and then take him out for a walk.
If he does not go to the toilet, take him back inside for a while and try again later.
If you take your dog out for a walk only after he has been to the toilet, he will eventually begin to realize that producing the required deposit results in a walk; this encourages good behavior when puppy training .
Is A Professional Dog Obedience Training Necessary?
Obedience training for your dog is an important part of responsible pet ownership.
While common puppy behavior problems and housebreaking are discussed in many books and publications, here we’ll discuss your options for basic obedience training and whether you want train your dog yourself or hire a trainer.
Training can begin as early as three to four months if yon train the dog yourself. Most trainers believe puppies aren’t mentally or socially developed enough to benefit from group obedience class until they are six months old.
Any sincerely interested dog owner can train his or her own dog, provided your dog hasn’t already acquired a lot of bad habits.
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You and your dog may want to attend a couple of lessons at a good training club. You may also want to arm yourself with a good dog training book.
Wait until your dog is six months old before taking him to a group obedience class, which is a popular option for many dog owners. Obedience groups not only provide an excellent
source of training, but also helps socialize your pet with other dogs.
When you first visit an obedience training class, make sure the instructors treat their pupils kindly – no punishment or yelling should be taking place or be permitted by those in charge. Your local parks department or school district may sponsor an obedience group.
If you’re having trouble finding one, ask your veterinarian.
Professional training is a good option for some larger breeds or for dogs that have acquired bad habits. If you are looking for a professional obedience trainer, find one who favors working with your dog in your own home.
No matter how appealing it may seem to send a problem dog away to be trained, the reality is that this often is a waste of time and money.
The dog may behave perfectly with the trainer and then ignore you once it arrives home. A professional obedience trainer will
equip you with the knowledge and confidence you need to train your dog.
The best way to find a good professional trainer is through a veterinarian or breeder’s recommendation.
Also, if you have any family or friends that can refer you to a reputable trainer then this would be the most ideal option. Arrange for an exploratory meeting with the potential trainer, you, and your dog.
Then, make your decision.
Training takes time and patience and a capable trainer will stress this fact. Length of training depends not only on your dog’s intelligence, temperament, and age, but also on how many bad habits he has acquired.
Obedience training requires you to take the lead, both as teacher and enforcer. After your dog has been trained you must not let him drift back into bad behavior patterns.
Adopting A Shelter Dog & Raising Him To Be Well Behaved
The number one reason dogs are brought to shelters is that they have “behavior problems.” That label covers a multitude of common canine misbehavior’s such as house-soiling, chewing, digging, and general rowdiness or hyperactivity.
If one of those bad habits is what landed your dog in a shelter, you’ll have to be willing to work to overcome it when you bring her home.
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Remember, too, that your dog will probably have been calling a shelter “home” for some time, and the rules of the shelter may not quite correspond to the rules of your household.
Your dog will have been living in a cage where housebreaking was irrelevant and barking was nonstop. He will not have seen furniture or stairs recently (or perhaps ever), and he won’t immediately understand that he isn’t allowed to teethe on your couch and climb on your kitchen counters.
If he’s been living by his own devices for several months or more, he’ll need some extra training so that he learns his manners and can live peacefully in your home.
If he’s a young puppy, especially if he was taken from his mother and litter-mates too early, he’ll need a lot of socialization from you and your family so that he grows up to be a normal, well-adjusted dog. You’ll have to teach him the things he should have learned, but may
not have, during his first few weeks of life: how to play, how to respect authority, how to accept correction and praise.
It’s never too early or late for a dog to learn all these things. While it may take somewhat longer to train and socialize a shelter dog or puppy, you’ll find that the training process will bring the two of you even closer together and help you learn to appreciate and respect each other right from the start of your relationship.
One thing your adopted dog does not need is your pity. There are a lot of adopted dogs who get away with shameful behavior because their people feel sorry for them. And we know many humans who use their dogs’ uncertain histories as excuses for all their problems. But dog needs your understanding and leadership, not your indulgence.
That is the lesson here: if your dog grew up on the streets, that may explain why he has no qualms about shredding your curtains, but it doesn’t give his license to do so. If he was or have been unkindly treated by someone in her past, that may explain why he initially mistrusts people, but it doesn’t give him the right to growl or snap at them. It’s going to take a magical mixture of forbearance and toughness on your part to help him adjust to the world outside the shelter.
Comfortable Bedding For Your Precious Puppy
A puppy or dog will take great comfort in discovering there is a warm, soft sleeping space all ready for her in her new home. Once you choose the type of bed she will be sleeping in, be sure to place the bed in a place free of loud noise and distraction – a new dog needs to sleep in relative calm.
The most popular commercially made beds are made of wicker. One of the advantages of a wicker bed is that movement causes it to creak, a sound that seems to calm dogs. However, dirt and crumbs get easily lodged in wicker. Wicker also is an easy target for teething and destructive puppies. Not only is it prone to damage, it can break off and wind up inside your puppy’s body. Therefore, avoid wicker beds for young dogs.
Another type of bed available in pet stores is constructed of hard plastic. This will both indulge and survive dogs that relieve their anxiety by chewing on their beds. Beanbag chairs can also
work as long as the cover is very sturdy and can be easily removed and washed.
Of all beds, the one that makes the most sense is a collapsible crate or cage-like enclosure. A cage can be used for housebreaking purposes and often gives a new dog a sense of security. In essence, the new dog will “own” this structure, and consider it to be her very own space in the house. Standard crates suitable for dogs that never exceed thirty pounds are about two by four feet and stand three feet high. Larger enclosures are available to fit bigger breeds.
When She First Comes Home
When the puppy first enters your home, place her in her cage and leave her alone there. After ten or fifteen minutes, return and release her. While the puppy is in the cage, do your best
to resist her mournful howls, which should subside after a few minutes. Try to ease her fear by placing a light blanket over the cage to transform it into a cozy enclosure. Of course, the puppy’s world should in no way be confined to the cage. Supervised ventures throughout the house are crucial to her becoming fully acclimated to her new environment. A puppy probably longs for the snug camaraderie of sleeping with her litter-mates. To reproduce the warmth a mother and litter provides, wrap a lukewarm hot water bottle in a towel and place it in the bed.
Puppies need gentle discipline to give them a sense of order. When it comes to bedtime, they need to learn early that sleep usually means temporarily leaving the fun and attention people provide. A puppy should be confined to her “room” when her natural sleeping time occurs. Stick to this schedule so that it becomes routine. A good way to ease the trauma of these nightly separations is to place a piece of your clothing in the puppy’s bed. The scent that emanates from the garment will be calming.