You have a new puppy! While puppies are undeniably adorable and add to your life in innumerable ways, there is one thing that many new pet owners approach with trepidation: housebreaking. As long as you start early and stay consistent, you can have an accident-free puppy in a few months, maybe even weeks.
Get Started!
The most important step is to start working on housebreaking immediately. The earlier the better. If you let a puppy start going in the house and don’t respond, they will learn that it is both easy and safe to go inside and will be much harder to coax them to go outside.
Make Going Out a Habit
A young puppy will need to go out a lot. If you are home, you should take a very young puppy out every few hours to as much as every hour during the day. This will allow the puppy to feel comfortable going out and also trust that you will take him out whenever he needs to go. Take the puppy out immediately upon waking up, after meal times, naps, active play, and right before bed. This will establish a habit for the puppy.
Use a Crate or Kennel
This next step is crucial. Use a crate or a kennel when you can't watch your puppy closely during the day and at night. Crates are a safe spot for dogs. You will find as your puppy grows that they will lie in their crate even with the door open because it feels comfortable and secure. More importantly, dogs typically will not go in their crate, even when they are very young. This will train your puppy to hold it for longer periods of time and teach them to wake you up at night if they need to go.
Pay Attention to Their Cues!
As a puppy gets the hang of housebreaking, you will notice that they develop cues to show you when they need to go out. They may seek out a little privacy in the house by going to corner. They might even walk to the door and wait. With very young dogs, the time between this cue and them actually going is very short, so pay close attention!
How to Respond in the Event of an Accident
No matter how well you train, your puppy will have accidents in the house. How you respond is crucial to successful training. If, and only if, you catch your dog physically peeing or pooping, give a sharp "NO"! Then immediately get the dog to the door and go outside. No further response is necessary. They need to know that going inside is not okay, but they are also still young and excessive scolding will not do any good.
If you don't catch your puppy in the act, and you only come upon a puddle or a pile, you cannot respond. Puppies have a very short attention span and memory and chances are they have already forgotten that they went inside. If you drag them to the puddle and shout at them, they will only learn that the physical mess makes you mad, not the action that creates it. Using the crate when you can't watch them closely will prevent this problem.
Advanced Tips
Since you'll be going out quite a bit over the next few months, it's helpful to make these trips as quick and painless as possible. Try introducing a cue word to your dog. Pick a word or phrase that you feel comfortable saying often and in front of others. Try "outside" or "potty". When you go outside with your puppy, walk over to the area where you would like your puppy to go. As he is actually going, say your cue word in a positive, cheery voice. Once he's done, give him a treat immediately. Continue this process for a few weeks to firmly establish the connection in his mind.
Eventually, start walking your puppy over to the area and saying the word in the same positive manner. If he starts circling to pick a spot, you've succeeded! If not, back up a step and continue repeating the word and treating after. Eventually this word will be a strong cue for your dog to go. You will really appreciate all this work on long car rides or short lunch breaks when your dog has a limited amount of time to go.
Don't forget to enjoy your puppy over the next few months. It can be frustrating at the beginning and don't be surprised if you have a lot of early wake ups. If you put in the effort up front, you'll be amazed how quickly you'll have a completely housebroken puppy!
Emily Goodridge - Hello everyone! I'm a young professional living in the Northeast with my boyfriend and our two dogs. I've always enjoyed writing and honed ...
