Ways to house train a dog

[thestrangebrew1]

I'm getting a puppy, really just a mut, from my mother in law for my daughter and I'm trying to figure out the best way to house train it. I'm considering crate training, however, having never really done anything like this before, I'm open to other suggestions.

I think my biggest concern is what to do when my wife and I aren't home from work. I'm assuming we just confine the puppy to a certain area of the house with pads while we're gone, and work on the crate thing when we get home, but isn't part of crate training the idea of bladder control? Won't this be sort of counter-intuitive to let the puppy go wild in a confined area, then try to do elimination control while we're home?

 

[uclaLabrat]

Leave the puppy in the crate while gone. Get home, take puppy out of crate, immediately outside. Don't go back inside until they piss. Bring puppy inside, and keep your eye on it. If you see him/her about to squat, tell them no, pick them up and throw them outside. Praise them when they DO go outside.

Should take 2-4 weeks to be perfectly potty trained, with 50-80% in a few days.

 

[pelov]

but isn't part of crate training the idea of bladder control? Won't this be sort of counter-intuitive to let the puppy go wild in a confined area, then try to do elimination control while we're home?

Yes, it's definitely sending mixed signals.

Crate training means crating the dog until you're there/awake to take them out and keep an eye on them.

http://www.humanesociety.org/animals/dogs/tips/crate_training.html

 

[Ns1]

Leave the puppy in the crate while gone. Get home, take puppy out of crate, immediately outside. Don't go back inside until they piss. Bring puppy inside, and keep your eye on it. If you see him/her about to squat, tell them no, pick them up and throw them outside. Praise them when they DO go outside.

Should take 2-4 weeks to be perfectly potty trained, with 50-80% in a few days.

So much this, except don't expect perfection for 2-3 years.

 

[thestrangebrew1]

Leave the puppy in the crate while gone. Get home, take puppy out of crate, immediately outside. Don't go back inside until they piss. Bring puppy inside, and keep your eye on it. If you see him/her about to squat, tell them no, pick them up and throw them outside. Praise them when they DO go outside.

Should take 2-4 weeks to be perfectly potty trained, with 50-80% in a few days.

Most guides I've read online say not to leave them in for more than a few hours (basically until their bladder's get bigger?). I'm gone from 630am to about 5pm and I'm the 1st one home usually. Should I just expect that for the 1st few wks the puppy has crapped the crate?

 

[thestrangebrew1]

Yes, it's definitely sending mixed signals.

Crate training means crating the dog until you're there/awake to take them out and keep an eye on them.

http://www.humanesociety.org/animals/dogs/tips/crate_training.html

This is the guide I was probably going to stick with.

 

[Ns1]

Most guides I've read online say not to leave them in for more than a few hours (basically until their bladder's get bigger?). I'm gone from 630am to about 5pm and I'm the 1st one home usually. Should I just expect that for the 1st few wks the puppy has crapped the crate?

WTF? "General" rule is months+1, ie if your dog is 3 months old it will probably hold it's piss for 4 hours.

Took my dogs 2 years but they can go about 12 hours before going out (not that I do it often). We try not to have them in the crates longer than 8 hours unattended.

Almost 10 hours home alone inside a crate for a puppy is borderline cruel. It needs a bigger space, someone to go home at lunch to take it out on a walk, or a dog walker.

 

[uclaLabrat]

So much this, except don't expect perfection for 2-3 years.

Depends on the breed, small breeds are notoriously more difficult than larger breeds. My ridgeback was having about 2 accidents per month in the house after 2 weeks being home. I called that housebroken. Now he's down to pretty much never, last time I remember was when my wife busted out the steam iron which freaked him out. In retaliation, he went and pissed straight on our bed.

 

[Ns1]

Depends on the breed, small breeds are notoriously more difficult than larger breeds. My ridgeback was having about 2 accidents per month in the house after 2 weeks being home. I called that housebroken. Now he's down to pretty much never, last time I remember was when my wife busted out the steam iron which freaked him out. In retaliation, he went and pissed straight on our bed.

I just want to be clear here, because I don't consider 2 accidents in the house/month to equal housebroken.

 

[Capt Caveman]

WTF? "General" rule is months+1, ie if your dog is 3 months old it will probably hold it's piss for 4 hours.

Took my dogs 2 years but they can go about 12 hours before going out (not that I do it often). We try not to have them in the crates longer than 8 hours unattended.

Almost 10 hours home alone inside a crate for a puppy is borderline cruel. It needs a bigger space, someone to go home at lunch to take it out on a walk, or a dog walker.

This. If you're not able to get the puppy out of the crate to relieve itself every 3-4 hours then don't expect the house training to go very well. Also, the puppy will have tons of energy and will need to get out to release it during those potty breaks.

 

[Ns1]

This. If you're not able to get the puppy out of the crate to relieve itself every 3-4 hours then don't expect the house training to go very well. Also, the puppy will have tons of energy and will need to get out to release it during those potty breaks.

Yep, the puppy will try to unload it's 8 hours worth of energy between 5p and whenever you go to sleep

you NEED a dog walker.

 

[Vic Vega]

Oh... and you can't be a

 

[Chrono]

Wait... why not just put the dog outside?

 

[Vic Vega]

All day?

Unless you live in the country that's not an option for most people.

 

[nickbits]

crate+bell training seems to be working for my pug and nothing else has

 

[theLION]

Leave the puppy in the crate while gone. Get home, take puppy out of crate, immediately outside. Don't go back inside until they piss. Bring puppy inside, and keep your eye on it. If you see him/her about to squat, tell them no, pick them up and throw them outside. Praise them when they DO go outside.

Should take 2-4 weeks to be perfectly potty trained, with 50-80% in a few days.

I'm basically doing this with my shih tzu puppy. Seems to be working. He let's me know when he wants to go outside to do his business now.

 

[thecoolnessrune]

If your house is vacant 10 hours out of the day you are not a suitable candidate for being a dog owner..

 

[boomhower]

If your house is vacant 10 hours out of the day you are not a suitable candidate for being a dog owner..

I disagree. What's the difference in being gone to work or asleep at night? Yes during the puppy stage he really needs to find someone to come over and let the pup out but once they are roaming it's not that big of a deal as long as the type of dog is correct.

Anyways: Leave the pup in the crate anytime you don't have eyes on it. Even when your home, if your not actively engaging the pup put him in the crate. Anytime he goes in the house it's a big set-back in the training. Where would you rather go, in the house or in the yard? Same for him so it's important he never goes in the house.

 

[Capt Caveman]

I disagree. What's the difference in being gone to work or asleep at night? Yes during the puppy stage he really needs to find someone to come over and let the pup out but once they are roaming it's not that big of a deal as long as the type of dog is correct.

Anyways: Leave the pup in the crate anytime you don't have eyes on it. Even when your home, if your not actively engaging the pup put him in the crate. Anytime he goes in the house it's a big set-back in the training. Where would you rather go, in the house or in the yard? Same for him so it's important he never goes in the house.

Like a baby, the puppy will need to go to the bathroom during the middle of the night. Maybe by 6-8 months the puppy will hold it thru out the night. I cheated by installing a doggie door(have a fenced in back yard). Possibly the best investment I've ever made.

 

[Ns1]

I disagree. What's the difference in being gone to work or asleep at night? Yes during the puppy stage he really needs to find someone to come over and let the pup out but once they are roaming it's not that big of a deal as long as the type of dog is correct.

The difference is if I'm asleep my dog can bark and I will take him outside.

 

[Powermoloch]

So far my dogs are house trained :awe:

 

[tcsenter]

http://web.archive.org/web/20100501171022/http://puppykarma.net/raisingapuppy_housebreaking.htm

 

[thedarkwolf]

Like a baby, the puppy will need to go to the bathroom during the middle of the night. Maybe by 6-8 months the puppy will hold it thru out the night. I cheated by installing a doggie door(have a fenced in back yard). Possibly the best investment I've ever made.

Yeah doggie doors make life so much eaiser. No more of the "I want out wait no I want back in" repeat crap. I can't leave it open anymore when I'm not home since I can't 100% trust my two current dogs not to jump the fence. I've come home to one of them standing in the driveway a few times.


I've been lucky with my house breaking since every puppy I've had to deal with there was always somebody at home to keep an eye on them. My last few dogs have all been adults from the pound that were already house broken.

 

[Humpy]

I'm getting a puppy, really just a mut, from my mother in law for my daughter and I'm trying to figure out the best way to house train it....

How did you house train your daughter?

Do the same thing with the doggy.

 

[thestrangebrew1]

I'm gone for a good 10hrs but if its too long I can come home at lunch. just wasn't planning on it if I didn't have to. my son will be home from school usually by 230 pm now that he's done with football so he can take him out of the crate to run around and play.

last night I cut a box open so he can walk in & out & got some pee pads. just got the crate today so when I get home I'll start the training