3 Tips to Help Housebreak Your Puppy

When you get a new puppy for your household, sometimes the excitement of the moment can replace your concerns. But when it comes down to living with this puppy in your everyday life, you realize that there's more to this "dog ownership" thing than you originally thought. One important part of working with a puppy that you just welcomed into your house is housebreaking.

Bringing up a new dog in your family environment means that you'll see the dog grow up alongside your family. But it also means you have a lot of responsibility to make sure that dog grows up happy, healthy, and exhibits controllable behavior. So it's time to learn how to housebreak your puppy in the most effective way possible.

Tip #1: Like humans, dogs are creatures of habit.

You won't get anywhere unless you can be consistent with your puppy and being consistent means that you'll have to follow through yourself. You can't let the puppy "slip one by" by any means; this will just communicate to the dog that your rules can be broken. That's the last thing you want your actions to say. Instead, remain consistent. Unless you can build up a new habit for yourself, you can't expect to build one up for your puppy, either.

Tip #2: Taking your dog outside isn't enough.

You have to remember that dogs don't speak English, nor can they read your thoughts. Just because you're bringing a dog outside doesn't mean it will know what your intentions are. Rather, you should work on stopping your dog at the point of using the bathroom and make sure that it goes outside. Keep the dog on a leash initially if you have too much trouble with it. You can't "convince" a dog to do something; you can only work with its habits in real-time.

Tip #3: Watch the puppy's preexisting habits and work around them.

If you notice that your puppy has to use the bathroom at a specific time in the morning, this would be a good time to take the dog outside for a small walk or simply moving around in the yard. This will help the puppy to begin associating the outdoors with using the bathroom. Once your dog makes this association, you might notice that it begins to wait until you let it outside in order to go. Congratulations! Your dog is housebroken.

Remember that with dogs, actions speak louder than words, and consistent actions will determine your amount of success. Don't try to convince or bribe your dog to make the right decision; guide it so that it makes simple associations like "outside" and "bathroom."

Photo Credits: Scarleth White

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creatures of habit, dogs, everyday life, excitement, family environment, good time, housebreaking, household, how to housebreak your puppy, real time, time tip

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Puppy Training, Tips for Dog Owners

Posted by Dog Training Pet on March 11, 2010 in Puppy Training, Tips for Dog Owners. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.