Fern's Guide to Pet Care

The secrets of house training your puppy

WOOF! A puppy’s mother should teach it to keep the den clean. Too many puppies are taken away from their mother too early, though. And the pack leaders have to teach a new puppy the extent of the “den”. I was well taught by my first humans, but others aren’t. The new pack must lay down their rules.

Those who have brought a puppy to their lives know how much pleasure they, and their family, can get from such a pet. But, with the pleasure, comes the responsibility, and hard work, of house training your puppy. Remember that, as with human babies, a puppy has to reach a certain level of maturity before you can expect complete control over bladder and bowels. This will come around the age of six months. Depending on the age at which you adopt the puppy, expect 3 or 4 months of “accidents” before it is completely house trained. Lots of thick newspapers or other protection for floors and carpets – unless you want to shut puppy into one area of the house where the floor is easy to clean. But where is the pleasure in having such an appealing creature and shutting it away?

Before you get your puppy you have to decide where you are going to train it to “go”. For most of us this will mean a corner of the garden. You have to teach your puppy to let you know when it’s got an urge. Start house training your puppy by taking it on a lead to the place where you want it to do its business. Do this after every meal, and you’ll reduce the risk of “accidents” while giving the puppy the idea that it should go to this place when it has an urge. Remember that dogs have a built-in need to keep the den clean. Show your puppy where you want it to “go” and it shouldn’t take that long to get the idea.

Puppies need lots of liquid for their growing process. Leave a bowl with fresh water all day long for your puppy to drink but remove it two hours before bed time. This is part of house training your puppy, as it means there will be less peeing over night. Take the puppy out first thing in the morning and make it the last thing you do before bed time.

Everyone in the family needs to be involved in house training your puppy. I’m sure one person wouldn’t want to have to stay in the house all the time, making sure that the puppy “goes” in the right place. Spread the responsibility. If you have children old enough to take on the job then let them. And if they are negligent then make them clear up! House training doesn’t all have to be about the puppy – young humans have to learn things, too.

Be patient with your puppy. House training may be quite challenging. Do not fall into the trap of scolding your puppy and rubbing its nose in the mess when it has an “accident”. Puppies don’t have much of a memory. They know they need to keep the den clean, so don’t make things worse for your puppy. Do praise it, though, when it asks to go out and does its business in the right place.

If you don’t want to bother with house training a puppy, then you buy an older dog that has already been house trained. Or there is always the option of adopting an adult pet from one of the many rescue centres. But beware – can you guarantee an adopted dog has been house trained?
There are many more secrets to house training a dog. Have a look at The Ultimate House Training Guide for a much more comprehensive coverage of this important topic.