So you have got yourself a new puppy which is a wonderful time for any family, the not so wonderful part is the puppy housebreaking process that unfortunately, all dog owners must go through. If the dog is going to be living in your house which I assume is the case, then you are going to have to take on the puppy housebreaking task. However, try not to worry too much about it as it is not hard, too messy and does not need to be a long struggle. It doesn’t necessarily take a long time either but it will require a bit of dedication from you to get it right. The more effort you put in to getting it right at the start, the quicker it can be done.

Before you get started with the puppy housebreaking there are a couple of rules you must obey

Puppy Housebreaking Rule 1. This is the number one rule for a reason, it is the most important rule. If you catch your puppy fouling in the wrong place then you can punish them for it, as they will associate the action with the punishment. The rule is, if you don’t catch them in the act then DO NOT punish them.

Puppy Housebreaking Rule 2. When things go right, lavish praise on the puppy. Housebreaking is a combination of saying ‘NO’ when they get it wrong and praise when they get it right, not just one or the other. These might seem quite obvious rules but you would be surprised how many people get these fundamentals wrong.

Puppy Housebreaking Methods

The Inside to Outside Paper/Pad Method

There are a number of puppy housebreaking methods, the first of the two we are looking at here is by putting down old papers or the pretreated training pads you buy from the pet store. I like the pads as they make it a little easier for the dog as they are scented to attract the puppy. When a puppies are looking for somewhere to relieve themselves they sniff around looking for somewhere that has been used before, if they don’t find anything they give up and make a new spot. When you see the signs,  walking around sniffing the floor, calmly pick them up (no talking) and put them down on the pad or papers. When they do go, Rule 2 comes into play so make sure they know they have done a good thing.

After a short time of doing this and they are consistently using the paper, try moving the papers nearer the door and place some more outside the house. This will help the dog to transfer it’s toilet habits from a spot in the house to one outside. Don’t forget to continue with Rule 2, you might get tired of it but your dog never will. Now it’s time to take the next step in puppy housebreaking by removing the papers inside. If you stick with it and follow this guide then the method is very effective for puppy housebreaking.

Crate Training Method

After the first method we discussed crate training comes in at a close second for puppy housebreaking and it involves using a cage or crate. You don’t want a massive cage that the dog can roam around in, just one big enough for a bed. At the beginning as you are puppy housebreaking the cage may be a little too big for them, which is not what you want. Try to buy one with a divider that can be removed and the space made bigger as the dog grows.

This method of puppy housebreaking works due to the fact that a dog does not like to soil it’s bed, as it would then have to lay in the mess. This method does work very well and whilst in the confines of the crate most puppies can control their urges much better than usually expected. The important advantage of crate training is often overlooked. It is not just about stopping the dog messing up the house, it teaches them a valuable lesson in puppy housebreaking. They learn that when they have an urge to go to the toilet they don’t have to go immediately and that they can hold onto it until they are in the right place to go.

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