Potty tips..Part 2

drgnrdr

New Member
5. Teaching your dog to go where you want:
Teach them by taking them to the potty pad or if teaching outside...
Use the same door for your trips outside. Don’t confuse them with multiple doors. Wait on a "dog door" for now;(unless it's your only option cause your gone)
Here's why:
A).you need to go out with them to make sure they go,
B). You need to say your cue word when they are in the act.
C).you need to treat them for doing so, right then and there when they finish.

If they just go out and something scares them they will come in and find a safer place to go, maybe behind the recliner. And realize anything we may hear as background noise might be a scary sound to puppies. This can cause them to stop using their normal area for eliminating.
Don’t distract them when they are going, use a neutral tone when they finally are "in the act" of going. Say the same command each time, then tell them "yes‘, in a happy upbeat type voice and give them a treat, and praise them.
DON’T WAIT TO COME BACK INSIDE TO TREAT THEM, that's too late.
If you miss them and they start to go on your carpet, DO NOT YELL at them, just interrupt them with a "uh-uh", (If you yell, you scare them and they will start to go hide to potty). Scoop them up and as quickly as possible take them where you want them to go, and if they finish just a small drop, praise them in a happy upbeat type voice and treat them. Then come in, (keep them away from the accident) and clean up with an enzyme type of cleaner so you can make sure and get the smell out.
Teach them to go in a designated spot:
You can teach your dog to go to a designated spot in your yard, just like having them go on a potty pad or paper. It’s better to start as a puppy, an older dog will take more time, because the smells in your yard take time to go away so that your dog doesn’t smell it and try to go there.
It takes PATIENCE AND TIME on your part. You must TAKE them to the spot your designating, on leash, and treat them when they go, the best is to put the potty behavior on cue, adding a word to what they are doing then rewarding. Dog’s learn better when they are in the act, so, when you put the English word to the act, that’s how they know what they are doing, squatting, urine or defecating coming, is Potty and Potty 2, or whatever word you want , just be careful what you say, so you can say it in "mixed" company and say it in public.
Make sure to make an area that is relatively close so they don’t have to hold their legs together to get to the spot and may make a mistake, and make sure it is safe from your dogs perspective, not yours. If you have a tall grassy area you want them to go that is convenient for you, is it for your dog? Your small dog, who may not be able to see over the grass, may think it is to scary for them, or next to your neighbors fence where the dog next door barks or tries to hit the fence when your dog is near.
Once you’re taking them there after a few days, and they are doing better at it, let them walk over there more on their own without you leading them, say your cue word you’ve been practicing, when they get to the area, don’t say it over and over, just say it once or twice, and let them sniff, give them a treat then praise calmly after they go, pretty soon a leash is not needed, just walk them over there, and say your cue word, and treat and praise, then when they go after a couple of weeks, just praise them, and let them play or some other reward, always praise when they choose the right thing to do, if they try to go somewhere else just give a negative sound like ‘UH-UH!", and encourage them to the area you want.
After awhile, you just start to head to the area and stop before you get there, the dog should head in that direction, and they'll go without you, pretty soon you'll stand at the door and tell them to "your Cue word" and they'll go.
Always make sure potty is done before running and playtime, business first before pleasure applies to dogs also. If you learn your dogs routine and add the potty behavior on cue it makes this relatively easy.
It’s up to you to watch them, don’t give the job to a small child that can easily get distracted. Make sure you know your child is mature enough to realize that they may have to get up in the middle of the night to take the dog out. Puppies need to eliminate frequently, they can hold it maybe 3-4 hours at night, and if you’re lucky it might be longer. But they still might have to get up and go; someone has to take them out if you’re training them to go outside. Is your child able to wake up when hearing the dog makes noise?

6. Dog starts to go in house again*: If your dog ever is potty trained and all of a sudden he stops then please take them to your vet and check them out medically first before getting angry with them, they could have a UTI or crystals (or other medical reason) in their urine. Lots of things can make a dog change their habits. If they were ever scared while eliminating, when you taught them to go to some spot, they won’t want to go back there. It could be something simple like a car backfire or maybe someone threw a rock at fence or transformer blew, or maybe you yelled at them to "hurry" or showed frustration. You may have to change locations to get back on track. Or a simple change in your routine at home can do it. Child goes to college or a divorce, or moving. DOGS LIKE ROUTINE.

7. Sometimes it is harder to train a smaller dog than a big dog, but look at it from the dog’s point of view. You are living in a LARGE CRATE. They are usually taught by the mother to go away from the living area to eliminate. Well your house is a large area to them, and if you spend most of your time in the living room and kitchen then the back room is far enough away from their point of view. Also, the world is a big place. Having grass too tall could cause a small dog to not want to go outside. Eliminating is a very vulnerable position for a dog, any thing seen as a threat or scares them can cause them to not want to go where you want them, it may be the best place for you, but what about the dogs’ view of the place. It's much safer and warmer to go inside.
You must be able to have no accidents for at least 2 months straight before declaring them potty trained.
*If your dog is peeing small amounts (already checked medically) and they are not spayed or neutered and they are close to or over 5 months old, chances are they are "marking". This is not a potty training issue, it’s a behavior issue that is hormone driven, if they get into a habit of marking, they will keep doing it to replenish their smell on things. They are putting their calling card on everything and saying this is theirs. You need to stop the behavior, this will require you to "supervise" and control their access and take back control of your home.

If you are not showing your dog, spay and neuter is recommend, the earlier the better. Studies have shown that pets are less likely to develop reproductive-related health problems when spayed or neutered. Without the urge to mate, your pet is more likely to focus on you.
Take away the hormone and all that is left is the habit, habits can be corrected with training.
©Drgnrdr 2004 (revised 2007)
 
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