CAPITAL HUMANE SOCIETY
2320
Housetraining Your Puppy
Copyright Denver Dumb Friends League and
Humane Society of the
Housetraining
a puppy requires time, vigilance, patience and commitment. Following the
procedures outlined below, you can minimize house soiling incidents, but
virtually every puppy will have an accident in the house (more likely several).
Expect this – it’s part of raising a puppy. The more
consistent you are in following the basic housetraining procedures, the faster
your puppy will learn acceptable behavior. It may take several weeks to
housetrain your puppy, and with some of the smaller breeds, it might take longer.
Establish
A Routine
·
Like babies, puppies do best on a
regular schedule. Take your puppy outside frequently, at least every two
hours, and immediately after he wakes up from a nap, after playing and after
eating.
·
Praise your puppy lavishly every time he
eliminates outdoors. You can even give him a treat. You must praise him and
give him a treat immediately after he’s finished eliminating, not after he
comes back inside the house. This step is vital, because rewarding your dog for
eliminating outdoors is the only way he’ll know that’s what you want him to do.
·
Choose a location not too far from the
door to be the bathroom spot. Always take your puppy, on a leash, directly to
the bathroom spot. Take him for a walk or play with him only after he has
eliminated. If you clean up an accident in the house, take the soiled rags or
paper towels and leave them in the bathroom spot. The smell will help your
puppy recognize the area as the place he is supposed to eliminate. While your
puppy is eliminating, use a word or phrase, like “go potty,” that you can eventually
use before he eliminates to remind him of what he’s supposed to be doing.
·
If possible, put your puppy on a regular
feeding schedule. Depending on their age, puppies usually need to be fed three
or four times a day. Feeding your puppy at the same times each day will make it
more likely that he’ll eliminate at consistent times as well. This makes
housetraining easier for both of you.
Supervise,
Supervise, Supervise
Don’t
give your puppy an opportunity to soil in the house. He should be watched at
all times when he is indoors. You can tether him to you with a six-foot leash,
or use baby gates, to keep him in the room where you are. Watch for signs that
he needs to eliminate, like sniffing around or circling. When you see these signs,
immediately take him outside, on a leash, to his bathroom spot. If he
eliminates, praise him lavishly and reward him with a treat.
Confinement
When
you’re unable to watch your puppy at all times, he should be confined to an
area small enough that he won’t want to eliminate there. It should be just big
enough for him to comfortably stand, lie down and turn
around in. This area could be a portion of a bathroom or laundry room, blocked
off with boxes or baby gates. Or you may want to crate train your puppy and use
the crate to confine him (see our handout: “Crate
Training Your Dog”). If your puppy has spent several hours in confinement,
when you let him out, take him directly to his bathroom spot and praise him
when he eliminates.
Oops!
Expect
your puppy to have an accident in the house – it’s a normal part of
housetraining a puppy.
·
When you catch him in the act of
eliminating in the house, do something to interrupt him, like make a startling
noise (be careful not to scare him). Immediately take him to his bathroom spot,
praise him and give him a treat if he finishes eliminating there.
·
Don’t punish your puppy for eliminating
in the house. If you find a soiled area, it’s too late to administer a
correction. Do nothing but clean it up. Rubbing your puppy's nose in it, taking
him to the spot and scolding him, or any other punishment or discipline, will
only make him afraid of you or afraid to eliminate in your presence. Animals
don’t understand punishment after the fact, even if it’s only seconds later.
Punishment will do more harm than good.
·
Cleaning the soiled area is very
important because puppies are highly motivated to continue soiling in areas
that smell like urine or feces (see our handout: “Successful Cleaning to Remove Pet Odors and Stains”).
·
It’s
extremely important that you use the supervision and confinement procedures
outlined above to minimize the number of accidents. If you allow your puppy to
eliminate frequently in the house, he’ll get confused about where he’s supposed
to eliminate which will prolong the housetraining process.
Paper
Training
A
puppy under six months of age cannot be expected to control his bladder for
more than a few hours at a time. If you have to be away from home for more than
four or five hours a day, this may not be the best time for you to get a puppy.
If you’re already committed to having a puppy and have to be away from home for
long periods of time, you’ll need to train your puppy to eliminate in a
specific place indoors. Be aware, however, that doing so can prolong the
process of teaching him to eliminate outdoors. Teaching your puppy to eliminate
on newspaper may create a life-long surface preference, meaning that he may, even
in adulthood, eliminate on any newspaper he finds lying around the house.
When
your puppy must be left alone for long periods of time, confine him to an area
with enough room for a sleeping space, a playing space and a separate place to
eliminate. In the area designated as the elimination place, you can either use
newspapers or a sod box. To make a sod box, place sod in a container, like a
child’s small, plastic swimming pool. You can also find dog litter products at
a pet supply store. If you clean up an accident in the house, take the soiled
rags or paper towels, and put them in the designated elimination place. The
smell will help your puppy recognize the area as the place where he is supposed
to eliminate.
Other
Types Of House-Soiling Problems
If
you’ve consistently followed the housetraining procedures and your puppy
continues to eliminate in the house, there may be another reason for his
behavior.
·
Medical Problems: House
soiling can often be caused by physical problems such as a urinary tract infection
or a parasite infection. Check with your veterinarian to rule out any
possibility of disease or illness.
·
Submissive/Excitement
Urination: Some dogs, especially young ones,
temporarily lose control of their bladders when they become excited or feel
threatened. This usually occurs during greetings, intense play or when they’re
about to be punished (see our handout: “Submissive
and Excitement Urination”).
·
Territorial
Urine-Marking: Dogs sometimes deposit urine or feces,
usually in small amounts, to scent mark their territory. Both male and female
dogs do this, and it most often occurs when they believe their territory has
been invaded (see our handout: “Territorial
Marking Behavior in Dogs and Cats”).
·
Separation Anxiety.
Dogs that become anxious when they’re left alone may house soil as a result. Usually,
there are other symptoms, such as destructive behavior or vocalization (see our
handout: “Separation Anxiety”).
·
Fears Or Phobias. When
animals become frightened, they may lose control of their bladder and/or bowels.
If your puppy is afraid of loud noises, such as thunderstorms or fireworks, he
may house soil when he’s exposed to these sounds (see our handout: “Helping Your Dog Overcome the Fear of Thunder
and Other Startling Noises”).