Where oh where?

Where oh where has my puppy dog gone? Oh where oh where can he be?

I think he’s peeing behind the couch.   Why do I think that?    Ummm -because that’s what he Does.

And you know why?  Because someone Lets him.

When I taught classes, there were always women ‘of a certain age’ who would come in with a new puppy and I’d ask ‘do you have any housebreaking issues or questions?’   And they would look at me as if I’d grown a third or fourth head and say NO.

To them it just wasn’t an issue.  Dogs peed where they were told, there was no discussion.  It took as long as it took.  Yes, many of them did it in many different ways, but it was important and just a chore to be done.

Then I had a man come in with a twelve week old small puppy.   He told me his wife was at home with their four kids under the age of five, and she was NOT doing a good job housebreaking this puppy.   The puppy was peeing in the house, not in the unfenced back yard.   I told him his wife was overwhelmed and no way could she house break this puppy with four tiny kids in the house to…do what with while she took the puppy out as needed?   He didn’t understand the question.

And the rest of us fall in between.

So what do I do?

Most of my dogs are ‘housebroken’ in two rooms of the house.   The Kitchen.  The den.  Two of them have run of the house, because they have proven themselves worthy.  (And my son and I want a dog to sleep with)

The dogs know, if they need out, to let me know  They go to the back door,  They circle in front of me.  One whines.   But they all have a ‘way’.  Its my job as mommy to figure it out.  If -I- mess up -and I do sometimes – well –   Sometimes I don’t pay attention, sometimes I’m lazy, sometimes my head is in another world – its a writer thing- but there is Zero excuse for that.  They told me and I messed up.

I have them on a loose schedule, that probably should be tightened.   They go out first thing in the morning, a couple more times during the day,when I’m home,  and before bed.

The good thing about my dogs is they are confined.   That doesn’t mean that they are in crates all the time – that’s just mean, and why  have  a dog, if not for fun?  However – they are not the be all end all of my world.  I have a job, volunteer work, I take classes, I have kids and grandboys,  - and my grandboys are also allowed to have fun and toy play withouy cold puppy nose up…anything or chewing on their stuff.

So the dogs are confined to two well used rooms in the house.

Housebreaking is a step by step process.   I don’t expect a two week old puppy to pee outside.   I don’t expect an 8 week old puppy to be fully housebroken.  Just like kids, they mess up.  You did too.  Just focus on the basics.  Be calm, be patient, tell puppy what you want, when, where and how.

It can happen.

Keep them close, but walk them around

Today’s quick housebreaking tip – keep them close.

When you are housebreaking your new rescue dog or brand new puppy, don’t start out thinking that you are Housebreaking.

Try instead to think of it as ‘room breaking’.  One room at a time.  One area.

I like this area.

Your dog doesn’t realize that just because he isn’t supposed to pee in the kitchen, he also isn’t supposed to not pee in the bedroom.   (How many negatives was that?  I lost count.  But I think you get the idea.)   He just doesn’t know, can’t realize.  His brain doesn’t work that way.

One trick I’ve found, when you start letting them explore more, to break out of the kitchen – in the den – watch tv with the family!  Is to put them on the leash and keep them close.   I worked with a cocker puppy a while back who had it in his head, he ran to the basement room and peed every time he got loose.   Driving the mom nuts with frustration.   I told her to put the dog on the leash several times a day and walk the dog TO the basement, instead of trying to keep him out!  He needed to realize this was part of his usual house, not the outside, or the bathroom or whatever he was thinking.

Because until we explain it to them in a way they understand, they don’t understand.

So during your housebreaking time, think small.   Housebreak them in This room first.  Then one more room.  But walk them around the house, on the leash, let them know its all part of where they live.  Its not the outside, their place to pee.   It will take them a while to figure it out, but they will.

As an aside – my attempts to make sweet potato treats over on www.longroadkennel.com today.   Check it out, give me some better ideas if you have them?  Thanks.

Papers?

Baby its cold outside!

Do you WANT your dog to pee in the house?

Oh, come on, quit laughing.  Some people DO.   They live in an apartment with lots of stairs between here and down there.  They have a tiny dog who ‘doesn’t go much’.   They just want to paper train their dogs.  They use newspapers, potty pads, those new ‘pee here’ pieces of equipment.

Doesn’t matter.  It all works out the same.  IF you have a small dog and that’s what you want.  This doesn’t work for Huskeys.  Or Labs or rotties or…well – you wouldn’t have gotten a dog that worked with if you didn’t want it, right?

One – name your spot.  When you go outside, I call it…outside.  When in the house, I call it Papers.   Either way, you let your dog walk to the same spot all the time.  I’ve seen people with papers all over the house.  So the wherever the dog pees, we can catch it.  Good in theory.  Not so good in practice.  Once you pick up the papers by the end table – will he know to stop?

Don’t give your dogs that much credit for smarts.

One spot.  Confine your dog to that area.   Teach them the name “papers” or “pee” or whatever feels good to you.  Get his attention.  Throw a treat there – Papers!  So he runs to get the treat.  Its a Game!

Take him there on your schedule, saying the same words.   We want this dog thinking  he knows How to get there, and what to do once he does.   So we take him there on his schedule.  We hold him there with the leash and we tell him what we want “Hurry up” “Go potty”  whatever.   and if that happens we praise and reward with treats.

We also send him there on his own.  “Papers!”   “Potty!”  and throw a treat – send him.

This is the same thing you do for an outside peeing dog.  You think the same place, the same time, the same words, the treat for going, the same schedule.

I’ve had people act as if puppy pads or papers in the corner of one room was a bad thing.  Just like cat litter boxes, no.  Its Not bad.  You just have to clean up after them, teach them what you want and hey – you Might be the smart one.  Not standing outside when its zero and sleeting!