House training.

[Wolfman]

Hey all,

Maybe its just me since I haven't had to house train a dog for about 13 years, but I've got a 9 week old pee factory here who I'm trying to convince that outside is better than inside for such business

Right now we are crate training and taking him out regularly to go, which he does, but often prefers the warmth of the house to the chill of outside.

Any hints or tips for the 'ol Wolfman?

Thanks

Wolfman

[tomahawk]

Hey Wolfman

I put a box in my crate so that there was only enough room for the pup to sleep and turn around, let him out after each feed after about 1/2 hr and he was house trained in no time. He ddn't want to pee on the bedding and it went real well. Good luck.

[todbartell]

got a 6 week old pup here too, he's been pretty good so far. Keep an eye on them, when they start to sniff its a good sign nature is calling, or when they whine its time to drop a deuce. Putting them outside every 30 mins to an hour, just for a minute or two, seems to get them to do the deed.

[Steeleco]

Crate training is the only way to go.

[Tikka7mm]

I just got my pup about 7 months ago. I had her house trained in about three to four weeks. If she pee'd inside I wouldn't rub her nose in it or get mad at her. When they are puppies they can be easily scarred so you have to be gentle. I would just grab her by the nose and make her look at me in the eyes and tell her no in a low but stern voice more than once and say bad dog. I would always try and stop her mid pee and if my girlfriend and I saw her peeing we would make all kinds of noise and say no, no, no, and wave our arms in the air all over the place almost to startle her and make peeing inside a kind of nerve racking experience. Don't confuse noise with aggression though. Immediatly after I would carry her outside as quickly as possible and put her on the lawn and say, "go pee" repititively about 3 or four times until she went. At first, she'd look at me kind of confused and unsure but eventually it started to work. When she pee'd I'd just get really excited and say good pee Kona good pee and pet her after she was done and try and make her feel like she was doing something really good. It sounds silly but it works and it's better than a smelly house and an untrained dog. Now if we're outside she pees on command....no kidding. I can take her out and say go pee Kona and she'll pee, even if only a little comes out she'll still squat and try and go for me. I still go through the motions after she's done and tell her good dog and good pee etc. Then she feels like she's doing something good. If she needs to go pee she just goes and sits in front of the door and looks at us. We live in a condo so we don't allow barking inside. Also, enzymatic cleaner is helpful. After your dog pees on the carpet or wherever, soak it up and clean it after with enzymatic cleaner and your dog shouldn't go in the same place twice. It's important to remember not to correct your dog if you haven't seen her go pee and you've just found a pee spot on your carpet. The reason being that your dog won't know why you are correcting it and you'll have a confused dog this way. Positive re-enforcment is the key no negative stuff....always positive for anything good your dog does whether it's come, sit, stay, pee, wait etc etc.

As far as the kennel training is concerned it's the only way to go. The Kennel can't be too big though just like tomahawk said. Just big enough for them to turn around in and sleep in but not cramped either. If it's too big they'll pee inside it but a dog won't pee where it sleeps or visa versa. We ended up buying two kennels so it cost us a bit more but putting a box inside is a good idea as well and will save you money. Don't put your dog inside the kennel if it has been bad because it should be a place that your dog wants to go. If you put your dog there when it is in trouble it won't want to go there regularly, or alternately, when it is time for bed your dog will think something is wrong because it will associate the kennel with being told off. My dog loves her Kennel now and when it's time for bed I just say bed time and she'll go in all by her self. If she wants quiet time to have a nap the Kennel is her haven. If we take her anywhere and we need to put her in the kennel, no problem.

Good luck Wolfman, I hope this helps.

[Marc]

Soon as you take him out of his crate taking him outside and don't let him back in until he's done something.

[Paulyman]

I agree with crate training.in addition make sure you reward the pup for going in the right spot, treats and tons of praise had my pooch competley trained within three weeks. Make sure you take the little guy out at as little as 30 minute intervals, especialy during playtime. also the most important thing is expect mistakes....shit and piss happens!

[Jimbo]

All good advice but it is hard for a young pup to hold its water all day in a crate. If theres no one home all day to let the youngster out, the training process gets stretched out until they are physically able to hold it for longer periods.
A world of patience is your best asset Wolfman.

[BCLongshot]

I pee all the time. So when I get the urge out they go !

Crate is the best.

Never put'em in the crate when they're bad.

[BlacktailStalker]

ITs not hard if you catch and interupt him in the act inside.
Best way is to scare the crap outta him by clapping your hands or something loud and take him right outside.
Eventually he'll figure out he's gonna get scared if he pisses inside and put 2 and 2 together.
Praise him every time he pees.
Eventually you can train him to piss on command (my dog does) which is great when you need to be somewhere.

Yeah the crate is his "escape" all dogs need one and it should never be associated with being reprimanded. The best way to reprimand a dog is to ignore them.