House breaking (or sometimes called housetraining) can be relatively simple to understand but rather time consuming and require great impulse control and patience.  Keep in mind that this process can become long and complicated if not done properly or done with the wrong responses to house accidents.  These 5 quick tips will help keep the process much less stressful and positively rewarding for both you and your dog.

 

Supervision!  Always keep constant supervision on your puppy when roaming in the house and learn to identify the signs your puppy gives (such as circling or sniffing the ground) right before having an accident to remain proactive and move the puppy to the area in which they are allowed to go.

 

Reward Success!  Rewarding your puppy for eliminating in the right spot every time, even if you had to move the puppy yourself to that spot.  This reinforces the good behavior, and allows the puppy to remember that spot as being positive place to eliminate.

 

No Punishment Policy.  Your reaction to an accident can be crucial in the mindset of your puppy.  Remain calm and use a startling sound to interrupt the puppy while having an accident.  Then immediately move the puppy to the proper location and reward when puppy finishes. Understand that punishment might be the most natural response but also the most devastating to the puppy. Punishment actually causes the puppy to fear eliminating in front of you (even outside in the proper locations), which leads to the puppy hiding from you and eliminating in the house when not being supervised.

 

Clean Up. Using an odor neutralizing solution will keep the puppy from identifying that spot as a place to relieve themselves.  Soap, water, and other household products will not remove this odor.  Also, remove the puppy from the area when cleaning to keep attention away from the area as well as to allow your temper to cool.

 

   

Your dog most likely spends a great deal of his (or her!) life at home.  As a result, I believe strongly that the training should start there.  Training at home creates a less stressful environment for both you and your dog and gives us the ability to really focus on the obedience training and relationship building you are looking for.  Whether your dog barks at everything, jumps on guests, pulls on the leash, or just plain doesn't listen, it is my job to help you understand why you are getting these undesirable behaviors from your dog.  Once you know the "why", it is much easier to understand not only how to fix the problem, but how to prevent future ones.  It is my goal to give you the ability to not only problem solve with your dog, but to also learn how to strengthen the bond that you and your dog have. 

 

 
  For your free consult or more information, you can get ahold of me by phone or email: Mon-Fri 8am-7pm and Sat from 10am - 6pm.