House Training Your Dog

Going to the bathroom outside is usually the first thing people want to teach their new puppy or dog. House training relies on two steps: rewarding your dog for going in the right place and preventing accidents in the wrong places.

Rewarding the Right Thing
Set a schedule for your dog with regular trips outside to an appropriate place for them to potty. For puppies, make a trip outside after meals, after naps, after play, and at least once an hour in between. Once outside, stand quietly with your dog on leash and wait. Don’t play with them or talk to them. As soon as they potty, reward them with special treats (don’t wait until you’re back inside). If they don’t go after a few minutes, take them back inside and put them in their crate or safe space. Wait a little while and try again. With an adult dog, you will soon learn how often they need to go outside and you can relax your schedule.

Yes, Go Outside With Them
Even if you have a yard, go outside with your puppy or dog. You need to make sure that they actually potty and don’t just explore or play. If you assume your dog is “empty” when they come back inside, you may be setting yourself up for accidents.

Preventing Mistakes
Set a schedule for your dog with regular trips outside to an appropriate place for them to potty. For puppies, make a trip outside after meals, after naps, after play, and at least once an hour in between. Once outside, stand quietly with your dog on leash and wait. Don’t play with them or talk to them. As soon as they potty, reward them with special treats (don’t wait until you’re back inside). If they don’t go after a few minutes, take them back inside and put them in their crate or safe space. Wait a little while and try again. With an adult dog, you will soon learn how often they need to go outside and you can relax your schedule.

Supervision​​

After your dog or puppy has done their business outside, they can have time to socialize, play, and practice training either outside or in the house. However, you should still be supervising to watch for other problem behavior like inappropriate chewing. Start with short periods of freedom, around 15 minutes for puppies, and slowly add time.

Using a Safe Space

When you aren’t able to supervise your puppy or dog, they should be in a safe, dog-proof space where they are unlikely to make house training mistakes. This space will also prevent inappropriate chewing and other problem behaviors. A crate is an ideal safe space for house training because it is small enough that your dog won’t want to potty while they are inside. You can learn more in the Crate Training page.

Leaving your Dog for Longer

An adult dog should only stay in a crate for about 4-5 hours. A puppy may only be able to stay in their crate for an hour before needing a potty break. Ideally you can maintain your puppy’s routine of outdoor potty breaks during the day or find someone to help you. If this isn’t possible, you will need to set up a larger space with a potty area where you can leave them. This should still be fully dog-proofed. Place a bed and water bowl on one side and a potty area (a litter box, pee pads, or a piece of turf) on the other side. The ideal space is narrow so that the bed is at one side and when the puppy moves away from their bed before eliminating (which is natural), they end up at their potty spot. A crate plus an exercise pen can create this kind of space.

Even with a spot to take care of business, your puppy still has lots of socialization needs so make sure they aren’t being left in their confinement space for any longer than necessary. In order to be fully house trained, your puppy should do most of their business outdoors (unless you plan to continue to use an indoor potty spot as they get older).

Handling Mistakes

If you discover your dog had an accident inside the house, there is nothing you can do except using more supervision to prevent it from happening again. Punishment after the fact won’t teach your dog anything and can cause fear or aggression. Accidents are usually the result of not maintaining a routine of trips outside, not going with your dog to confirm they pottied when outside, or not supervising your dog while they are loose in the house.

If you catch your dog in the act of making a mistake, you can interrupt them and quickly take them outside to finish. Don’t try to scare or punish your dog; you just want them to stop until they get to the correct spot. If you punish them, they may start hiding from you when they need to go.

 

This material was written in collaboration with dog behavior consultant Jessica Char.
Learn more at   www.CanineEngineering.com