Eleven Helpful Puppy Training Tips
You and your puppy need to come to terms. When you move together into a dog house, then - and only then - will you happily pee in the corner, chew slippers, and raid trash cans together. However, since the situation is, presently, that you both live together in *your* house, the puppy will have to abide by your rules.
If you want to keep your sanity and maintain a healthy relationship with your puppy as well as the rest of the household, house-training is going to be a given.
The first rule is to start young. The saying "You can't teach an old dog new tricks." actually has some truth to it: once the dog is an adult, it is set in its ways and can't be trained much further. The best time is to begin when the pup is about 2 to 3 months old. Do not expect miracles at that age, however. It will still be learning by age 5 to 6 months old.
With a puppy younger than that age bracket, try to "puppy-proof" one room or small area of the household. If you have ever prepared a room for a toddler, this is much the same kind of job. Check that there are no dangerous objects in it that the puppy could choke on. Keep dangling electric cords, window shade cords, breakables, and chemical hazards out of the area. Make sure it is clean, dry, and warm enough.
Perhaps it is the house-training of puppies that has kept the newspaper industry going in the Internet age. You'll be lining the puppy's space with this stuff, and cleaning it up whenever he makes a mess on it, replacing it with fresh paper.
This is actually going to come into play with house-training your puppy later. Over time, you will gradually get the puppy used to the idea that the paper is "the place to go". Then over time, you shrink the paper area. Then you gradually move the paper each day, until it's by the door. Then outside the door. Then just outside! Eventually you get them used to going outside without the paper. Ta-da!
Now for those tips:
The Dos
* Keep the paper in the same place, and always where the puppy can get to it. You shouldn't leave it alone too often for the first few weeks, but when you do go out, it's best to just keep the puppy in one place with its food, water, and newspaper. Bathrooms and garages work well for this.
* When you're home with the puppy, take it to the toilet area every hour. You can extend this interval as the puppy gets older.
* It helps if the area you spread newspaper over is tile or linoleum, anything but carpet. Dogs go partly by smell, so having it smell carpet under the place where it does its business is a bad idea.
* This is the important part: Always reward the puppy for going in the right place. Dogs are unique in the animal kingdom for being the species most swayed by human approval. A bite of a treat or simply praising the puppy will be all it needs.
* Always provide plenty of fresh, clean drinking water make feeding times be on a regular and consistent schedule. This will help the puppy get used to the "routine".
* It helps if your puppy sleeps at night in a bed or crate. Just like us, puppies don't want to do their business where they sleep.
The Don'ts
* Feed your puppy at the same times each day. Do not leave food in the bowl all night long for "snacking". Not only is this overfeeding, but regular feeding times will mean regular bathroom times!
* Your puppy should at least be trained to go on the newspaper before you let him run around the rest of the house. When you give him free reign, limit his space to a room or two, keeping a door closed or a baby gate up. Gradually you can let him roam the entire house.
* You should never leave the puppy alone for extended periods of time. If you're asleep all night and working all day, the puppy won't have human reinforcement for its behavior and it won't take to training.
* Always reward your puppy with treats and praise, but never punish it for doing wrong. They just don't understand the connection! A verbal scolding, if delivered immediately, will however be effective.
Above all, be patient. It takes time and love to raise a puppy just as much as it takes to raise a child. Once you learn to work with the way the puppy thinks, you'll find that this formula is a breeze! By the way, I've placed a big blue order button below in case you wanted to learn all the good things to train you puppy or dog. If you do, that's great. If you don't then I hope you've enjoyed reading some of our information and remember to look after your canine friend.
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