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Many have now got a new puppy in their homes and pups will do what pups do, poo and pee, and they will do it on your carpet until trained. Don't get mad, get 'em trained, and never ever hit, in anyway, because they screw up. One of the best training devices is puppy training pads, available everywhere, including Wmart.
When the cute little pup pees on your best carpet and you catch him/her in the act immediately pick up the pup and move it to an area where you want them to go. i.e., the puppy training pad at first and outside later. It is pretty obvious but let me say; put the training pad on a vinyl or other non absorbent surface. (If you do not catch the pup in the act do not do anything with the pup). The best way to clean pee from the carpet that I have found is with paper towels. As soon as the pup has been place in the proper place take a few paper towels and a scrub brush with soft bristles and put the paper towel over the pee and dab the brush lightly into the paper towel. Repeat as needed and you will be able to get most of the pee absorbed into the paper towels. Then use a doggie odor remover.
I'd like to see other poster post their tips on puppy training. There are many pups who end up chained outside, confined, or given to an animal shelter simply because they need to pee and poo and they are born untrained. Come to think of it, neither do human babies come potty trained.
Never use training pads. You are teaching your dog that it is acceptable to pee in the house. Our dog is 4 months old now and completely potty trained. Any good trainer will tell you to just take them out every 2 hours for the first couple of months and NEVER use those pads. You're asking for trouble and it will take much longer to train your puppy. It is never acceptable to pee in the house. The dog doesn't know the difference between the pad and the carpet. We just went through this and trust me, puppy pads are not the way to go.
And should your pup have an accident, get a cleaner like Nature's Miracle, which not only removes the stain, but has enzyme to remove the scent. Simply dabbing it with a paper towel does nothing, since dogs have a great sense of smell and will continue to go in the same spot unless you get rid of the scent.
This isn't absolute. Not EVERYONE lives in a house. When living on the 14th floor of an apartment building, where the elevator service is not instantaneous, it's often a GOOD thing to use the pads. And they can be obtained CHEAPLY: go to a medical supply house online and type in 'chux.' These are the SAME THING as the pads sold solely for puppy use - we use them in the hospital under patients' arms when doing phlebotomy, under patients who're incontinent, etc. You can buy them by the case and they're CHEAP. And shipping is sometimes free.
Re: potty training: the following method is GUARANTEED if you, and everyone in your house, follow the directions TO THE LETTER. IT WORKS. Not right away, because young pups are too neurologically immature to be able to have much bladder or bowel control, but it DOES work. And it's great for older dogs who need refresher courses, like new rescues!
Housetraining your dog (puppy or adult!)
The first thing you need to do is to remember that you’re trying to reinforce a new behavior. That means that the rewards for this behavior must be WONDERFUL. NOT crap from the store. Wonderful treats are poached chicken breast/turkey breast, cheese and steak. And you don’t have to use big pieces. Tiny pieces (about 3mm cubes) are just fine! I poach a whole turkey breast every few weeks, cut it into hunks when it’s cool enough to handle, wrap them well and store them in the freezer. When I need some, I’ll thaw a hunk overnight and cut off pieces and dice finely, storing them in a plastic bag in the fridge. One hunk will last about five days. Cheese is also popular, so variety is fine.
I carry these plastic bags in my jacket pockets in the winter and in a fanny pack in warmer weather. You HAVE to have these with you, or this method won’t work, because you need to reward as soon as the dog finishes pooping or peeing. It’s not going to work if the rewards are in the house.
Remember that you’re trying to change a very ingrained behavior. Some dogs like to feel certain things under their feet when they eliminate, like fabric, or newspaper. This is called a ‘substrate preference.’ What you’re trying to do is change this substrate preference, and to do that you have to make the treats SO wonderful that the dog will change this very well-entrenched behavior. Thus the chicken, cheese, steak.
I love clicker training, but this can be done without clickers. You just need a way to ‘mark’ the behavior you want to reinforce. Use the word ‘YESSSSS!!!!’ very enthusiastically – that works for some.
You’re going to need to GO OUTSIDE WITH your dog and the dog needs to be on a leash. Yes, even in winter. If you don’t reward IMMEDIATELY after the event (when dog immediately finishes pooping or peeing) and wait inside, the dog is going to be reinforced for coming inside, not for doing its business. So, leash up your dog. STAND IN ONE PLACE. Be boring. Bring a book or magazine for yourself.
Eventually, the dog will do what you’re waiting for. The NANOSECOND that the dog is finished, HAVE A PARTY – lots of loud, high-pitched praise, treats and running around. You want to make this memorable for your dog! You’ll find that once the first event is achieved, the others will come more quickly. Keep on treating (you don’t have to throw a party except for milestones – a milestone = if he only pooped outside but now peed, too, or something equivalent to that) until he’s good and used to peeing/pooping outside. Before you know it, you have a trained dog.
Regarding accidents in the house: NO SCOLDING. Just clean them up. If you scold you’ll get the dog to think it’s bad to pee or poop and he’ll do it in places you won’t see. Until you step in it. Invest in a big bottle of Nature’s Miracle or Simple Solution and use it liberally on accidents.
With young puppies, remember they have little control of the muscle that holds the bladder closed. This is something they grow into. Just as it’s not expected that a human baby is toilet trained at six months, don’t expect much from a puppy. Patience, patience, patience!!!! The nervous system in a puppy has to mature, and it won’t have much control over the sphincter (closing muscle) at the neck of the bladder until six or seven months. The same goes for the anal sphincter. Until control is achieved, both of these muscles operate on reflex: there are stretch receptors in the bladder wall. When the bladder is full, it sends impulses to the spinal cord and these, in turn, send signals to the sphincter to open and the dog pees.
In the stomach wall, there are also stretch receptors. So when the dog eats and the stomach is stretched, the impulses again go to the spinal cord, but this time the reflex, outgoing, nerve signals are sent to the anal sphincter, so the dog defecates. This operates in people, too – which is why some people rush to the ‘reading room’ after a meal – especially breakfast.
Another point to remember - small dogs cannot 'hold it' as long as big ones, so, while the 2 hour rule is generally a good one, you may have to adjust based on your particular (type of) dog.
I agree that pads, or even a doggy litter box, can be great helps, particularly this time of year and particularly when you are working with a very young puppy who should be quarantined until s/he has gotten clearance from the vet - usually after some series of shots - to go outside.
The key is to be patient, and, for those really stubborn stains - Spray n' Wash works wonders
in defense of little dogs my tiny tiny can hold it longer than ANY of my dogs. When she goes out she will poop first then go pee for 45 seconds...She's fine in the house until it's time for her to GO then she needs to GO....That includes having the big dogs go out hours before her....
My JRT/CHI will go on the bathroom towel...she refused to have anything to do with snow.
Since we're thawing... I expect she will be outside tomorrow no problem.
Reps Viralmd!!! Excellent post with wonderful instructions. I've also had wonderful success with crate training, but you have to actually be around for it to work. You can't lock a 10 week old puppy in a crate for 10 hours and not expect an accident. If you have a puppy and won't be home for more than a couple hours, confine it to a room with solid flooring like tile or linoleum. Cover it in newpaper. It's going to potty, it's just a matter of making it easy for you to clean up.
The confinement method also works for housebreaking them. Start them in the tiled / linoleum room and they can only be out when you are right there to monitor. If you're pre-occupied, put them back in their area. Once they are good at not pottying in their area, expand it to two rooms and when they master that expand to three and so on. If they have an accident back up to one or two rooms for a while.
Anyway, those are the methods we've had success at in about 10 years of rescue work. And as for potty pads, they're wonderful!! We have 5 chihuahuas and 3 of them use the pads religiously. It's been a God send for my husband who's disabled and not always able to get up to take them for walks.
I disagree...We tried using puppy pads, but I think they are a complete waste of money. We were just really good at bringing him outside A LOT and when he went outside we praised him and let him know that was good. And if he went inside we told him no and have gave him a small spanking (nothing hard and hurtful, I know people are going to flip out that I said that though. It is just to let him know not to go there). I know they are puppies and don't know what they are doing wrong, they can't help it, but you have to teach them, just like a kid! Our pup is 10 weeks old and is already 90% potty trained. He is a very smart dog.
I disagree...We tried using puppy pads, but I think they are a complete waste of money. We were just really good at bringing him outside A LOT and when he went outside we praised him and let him know that was good. And if he went inside we told him no and have gave him a small spanking (nothing hard and hurtful, I know people are going to flip out that I said that though. It is just to let him know not to go there). I know they are puppies and don't know what they are doing wrong, they can't help it, but you have to teach them, just like a kid! Our pup is 10 weeks old and is already 90% potty trained. He is a very smart dog.
Why would you hit your puppy? Would you hit a baby for not being potty trained? All you are doing is teaching your pup that your hands are not a good thing and he may very well grow up to be fearful of peoples hands.
We get treats for our dog too, but it sure aint poached turkey! lol We have a 9 yr old Shih Tzu, that more or less trained herself. When my wife was given this puppy she was living at home with a semi invalid mother in her 80s. Mother couldn't get up all the time to get the dog in and out. When to dog would sit by the door she would try to get over and take her out. A couple times Mother would be asleep when the urge hit, the dog made a B line for the bathroom to do what she had to. There was never any training for the bathroom. When my wife would come to my house for the weekend and bring her, we would sometime leave her in all day while we went out, especially in cold weather. My shower was a huge walk in with just a curtain. If she had to do something, she went to the shower.
As far as the pads, those are lifesavers. MIL is no longer with us. We have taken some overnight and a couple of 2 night trips and just left the pads on the bathroom floor. And that is the only place she has gone. Never have any trouble.
When we moved she had to "mark her territory" on the carpet. Woolite Pet Oxygen stain and odor remover works great. Spray on, let set for a few seconds, and wipe up with a paper towel. Can't tell anything had been there!
Location: Montreal -> CT -> MA -> Montreal -> Ottawa
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Quote:
Originally Posted by kygman
We have taken some overnight and a couple of 2 night trips and just left the pads on the bathroom floor. And that is the only place she has gone. Never have any trouble.
You've left your dog at home alone while you went away overnight or, worse yet, for 2 nights????? I find that ________ (there are many words that I could use here, but none of them are nice).
I really try not to be judgemental. I really try to go by the "if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all" way of being, but this just makes me too upset.
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