Housetraining A Puppy - II
Bringing
a puppy or an adult dog home is as great a responsibility as bringing
home a newborn child. You need to train it really early to get the best
out of it. And, as you will agree with me, it is always better to catch
it young and watch it grow into a well-trained dog.
Two
of the most practiced housetraining methods are the Crate training and
the Paper training methods. Let me share some valuable information on
both the training methods with you.
Crate
Training
It
is advisable to put a new puppy or dog in a crate so that it learns from
the very beginning that the entire house is not its playground. It may
seem harsh when you see the tiny little thing trying very hard to make
its way out of the crate. Hold on! One mistake at this stage will make
you repent for the rest of your life.
The
crate also makes you mobile with your Dog. Your dog can easily be taken
for a trip if it stays in the crate. Moreover, it is also safe in households
where dogs are not that welcome.
Most
importantly, the crate marks your dog's territory for good. Now, your
Dog will not understand on its own that the crate is its home. You need
to train it that way.
How
do you do that?
- The
Crate training process needs a lot of patience, persistence and pain.
Firstly, you need to select the right crate for your Dog. It should
be spacious, comfortable and (as per your requirement) portable.
- Secondly,
positioning the crate is vital. Many behavioral problems may or may
not arise, depending on where you place the crate in your house. Make
sure to place it in a room where the family spends most of the time.
As a result, your Dog will not feel isolated and neglected.
- A
soft towel or blanket on the floor of the crate will make your dog
more comfortable. Your dog should associate pleasant things with the
crate. Offer treats and say sweet nothings to your dog as soon as
it goes near the crate. Place food near or just inside the crate.
If your dog crosses the door, repeat the act by placing the food further
inside. Repeat this exercise till your Dog associates the crate with
food (even if the latter is placed way inside the crate).
- Next,
your dog needs to stay inside the crate for the whole day. This will
not be possible in a day. This needs a lot of practice and training.
You have to begin this exercise by keeping your dog inside the crate
only for a few minutes in the beginning. Leave the room instantly.
Return after a few minutes to see how it copes with your absence.
Gradually, stay away from the room for longer periods of time. By
doing this, you are conditioning your Dog to your absence.
- Your
dog also needs to follow the command to enter the crate when you want
him to do so. Again, your dog needs to stay inside the crate at night.
I would advise you to place the crate in your bedroom or very near
it, in the very beginning. Slowly, move the crate away and place it
where you want your dog to sleep. Make sure it is easy for your dog
to get out and eliminate at night.
Despite
all the advantages of crate training, keeping the Dog in the crate for
very long has its own share of problems. The crate is basically a medium
of confinement. Too long a confinement takes it toll on your dog's physical
and emotional needs. Puppies should never be kept in the crate for more
than three or four hours in a day. This is because they have little control
over their bowels and bladders. Once they associate the crate with elimination,
you will have a tough time dealing with the exercise again.
I
hope this information is useful to all dogowners.
Next, I will share some information about the Paper training
method.
Paper
Training
Paper
training a dog is usually practiced by dogowners who stay out of the house
for very long and for those who live on umpteenth floors of sky-ripping
highrises. I would suggest all dogowners to use newspapers because of
two main reasons. Firstly, they are cheap and can therefore be thrown
away after every use. Secondly, the paper quality is such that it makes
a very good absorbent.
What
you do is very simple.
- It
has a lot to do with the conditioning of the dog to a particular place
and object. You begin with papering the entire room except your dog's
sleeping area. Instinctively, your Dog wouldn't like to eliminate
where it sleeps. It will go to the papered area on its own.
- Every
dog chooses its area of elimination. Getting used to eliminate on
paper and doing it at one particular place needs several weeks. Don't
rush. Your dog will make mistakes in the beginning. Don't scold it.
Be stern and order it to do it only on the paper. Once your dog decides
on its area of elimination, slowly begin to reduce the papered area
in the room.
- Remember
to take the process really slow. Keep enough area around its chosen
place of elimination papered. Praise your dog and offer treats whenever
it eliminates on the newspaper. It will soon associate elimination
on newspaper with treats. This will make the training easier.
- After
quite some time, when you are absolutely sure that your Dog will only
eliminate on paper, slowly move the paper (by half an inch a day)
towards the place where you would like it to eliminate. In case of
mistakes, use an odor neutralizer to do away with the scent of waste.
By doing this, you disassociate other parts of the room with elimination.
However,
paper training is always not seen as the best method of housetraining
a dog. This is especially true for large breeds of dogs. If left to themselves
in the house for too long, large dogs may see the entire house as their
playground and they may eliminate anywhere, anytime.
I hope this information will be useful to all you dog
owners.
Nancy Richards
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