House Training a Puppy: How to Potty Train Your New Family Member
If you just got a new fur baby, you need to train your new puppy to make it a part of your family. Puppies are a bit naughty; hence house training a puppy will not be a walk in the park.
Nonetheless, if you have a new puppy as a pet, you will have to adjust. Your new pup requires training about where to poop and pee.
Your new little animal will also need to be trained on the best way to conduct itself around all the house occupants. How do you go about it?
There are many resources to help you, like books and videos. You can also seek advice from websites like theonlinedogtrainer.com, where you will receive plenty of help.
However, to get you started on your potty training journey, here are ten tips for potty training your puppy on how to release itself at a particular place
10 Tips On House Training Your Puppy
Once in a while, your puppy or dog will defecate or urinate in your living room. However, it does NOT have to be an everyday experience. You can train your pup to use a single spot for its bathroom experience.
1. Create a Schedule
Just like children, puppies love to work with routines. They get to learn that there are schedules for eating and playing as well as one for pottying.
Usually, a puppy at one month of age can contain its pee in its bladder for about an hour. However, you should make sure that your dog has somewhere to relieve itself after that hour. If you work long hours, then you might need to hire a dog walker.
2. Get Your Puppy Outside Frequently
Take your puppy outside as often as possible, preferably every hour. Also, take your pup outdoors as soon as it wakes up, after eating a meal or drinking, and when playing.
3. Select Your Puppy's Bathroom Outdoors
Pick a designated spot outdoors where you will be taking your puppy at all times. When you take your little dog there, remind it to potty.
It might happen that by the time you take your pup out, it's not yet ready to relieve itself. Try to play with it until it eliminates its waste.
4. Appreciate Your Puppy's Little Effort
If you ever thought that only human beings like being appreciated, you are wrong. Puppies also notice when you recognize their efforts.
Appreciate your little dog after it eliminates outside. However, to ensure that praise positively affects its behavior, praise it immediately after its potty experience.
Praising will help your puppy to understand what you expect of it.
Pro Tip: Don't give your puppy a treat before it finishes eliminating its waste, as your pup might hold it in until you take it back into the house.
5. Create a Regular Eating Timetable for Your Pup
When your puppy takes its meals on a schedule, it's likely to eliminate waste on a schedule. Based on its age, you should feed your puppy about 3 or 4 times daily.
If you feed your puppy on a timetable during the day, it's likely to do its business on schedule. Creating a program will make it easier for you to house train your new puppy.
6. Remove Their Water Dish One Hour Before Sleep
To reduce the likelihood of your puppy needing to potty at night, be sure to remove your dog’s water dish.
Most puppies will sleep for about seven hours without needing to eliminate. Nevertheless, if your puppy wakes up, just take your pup out to potty. Here's some help if you need to get your puppy to sleep through the night.
7. Always be on the Lookout
It will take time before your little dog learns that it cannot potty inside the house. It's your responsibility to supervise your little gal to make sure it does not pee and poop in the house.
8. Maintain Your Puppy on the Leash When Outdoors
Your little pup will be easily distracted by all the wonders of the world, such as a squirrel in the tree or the wonderful scent of the neighbors’ cat. Therefore, it's always a good idea to keep her focused and on a leash while doing her business.
9. Keep Your Puppy Confined
When you cannot supervise your pup, place her in a small compartment (such as a crate) where it would be uncomfortable for her to pee or poop. Note, the kennel should be spacious enough to allow the puppy to stand, turn around, and lie down.
Pro Tip: You could utilize part of a laundry room or bathroom and then use baby gates to confine your pupster. However, when you let her out of confinement, be sure to take her out for a potty break.
10. How Do You Deal With Puppy's Failures?
House-training will not be easy. You need to be patient with your puppy. How do you handle the mistakes? First, when you find the little dog messing up anywhere else apart from their outdoor bathroom area, make a startling noise but ensure that you do not scare your pup.
Secondly, do not punish your puppy. Punishing could end up derailing the house training. Lastly, make sure that you have cleaned (really well) the spot it has soiled since puppies like to soil in a place they have used before.
Final Thoughts
You do not have to start with a trained dog. Instead, you can adopt a puppy and potty train it. Check out the online dog trainer for the best tips and tricks on how to potty-train your puppy. Here you will find all the information you need to house train your puppy.
There are videos and eBooks which you can use to help with your DIY house training. The website has resource materials, which makes puppy training more of a fun activity than a nightmare.
Now that you understand a few tricks for preventing your puppy from soiling your home, it is time to train them. As mentioned earlier, it will not be an easy job. Nevertheless, as the online dog trainer puts it, you can make it exciting by following the expert’s tricks.
We hope you found these tips on house training a puppy helpful. If so, be sure to share with your friends and family. We would also love to hear your house training nightmares experiences - be sure to leave your comments below!
