House Training Puppies

House Training – The Reality

If you cannot be with your puppy 24 hours a day, house training your puppy could take up to 6 months. Young puppies are ‘in one end – out the other’ machines. As they grow and develop rapidly at this stage, they eat more food, burn up more energy and seem to need to go constantly! They also have not yet developed bowel and bladder control, so they cant hold it as long as adult dogs.

House Training When You Can’t Be There

Keep your puppy in a ‘puppy-proofed room’ and cover the floor with paper. Have everything s/he needs in the room, toys, water, bed etc. He will go every where and any where. And just like my sister’s little West Highland Terrier, Buddy, s/he will chew and drag the paper all over the place in his/her den. This is just the way it is with puppies. Dont get upset or angry, definitely no shouting. When you get home, clean up the mess and lay down fresh papers.

Paper Training

Your puppy will always be going on newspaper, because you have covered the floor and this is the habit you are trying to encourage. Eventually s/he will show signs of going in a favourite place and if the rest of the paper stays clean, then you can start to reduce the area that is papered. Start by removing the paper furthest away from his/her chosen place, till you just have a few sheets in his/her place. If there is an accident, maybe you are going too fast, so take it back a stage and add some more paper. There will always be set-backs, but stick with it and your puppy will be paper trained.

House Training When You ARE Home

If you are at home, but not with your puppy, follow the above. The training will progress quicker the more time you spend with your puppy. You are aiming to get him/her on the paper whenever s/he needs to go, about once every 45 minutes. Especially after a play session, eating, drinking or just upon waking. When s/he goes in the toilet area, praise and reward him/her enthusiastically! No telling off or punishment for accidents. Your puppy is too young to understand.

It is advisable to only let puppy out around the house, when he has already fully emptied his bladder and bowels in his toilet area. Your puppy needs constant supervision when in the rest of the house, perhaps even on a leash when exploring. Return your puppy to the toilet area every 30 minutes. As the puppies toileting becomes more reliable you can allow him more time around the house, maybe one room at a time, always with supervision.

The Key to Successful House Training

Consistency and Patience. Rewards and lavish praise. Never scold or punish your puppy for accidents. As your puppy gets older, the more s/he will be able to control his/her bladder and bowels. Eventually your pup will have enough control that s/he will be able to "hold it" for longer and longer periods of time. Don’t rush the process, this is when things go wrong. Dont forget, most puppies are not reliably house trained until they are at least 6 months old.

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