New Dogs: Potty Training

Hey Everyone,

  I know it's been a while since I've been around.  I apologize, life with kids kinda of have a way of leaving you little time to deal with posts.

  Whenever you add an addition to your family either a kid or a dog you have to take on the responsibility to be vigilant until they are trained.  I don't include cats as they don't listen and they tend to be their own person from the time you get them, put a litter box down and there you go.  Kids don't mature as fast as dogs despite how much we want them to.

  Dogs specifically are something are a little more interesting.  Unlike kids you get to pick and choose what you want.  For me I have plenty of space, time and a liking of large dogs that are good with kids where as someone who lives in an apartment wouldn't pick the same large dog as me.  So when you pick a dog you have to do the research, if you go through the SPCA which is good and I've taken advantage of them numerous times throughout my life if they don't have someone with a good idea of dogs can mislabel and you can end up with a dog with an energy level and personality not suitable to you and your family.

  Now you know what you want and have suited up to take on the responsibility for a new dog, just like a child you have to continually be on top of them to train them.  Just like children dogs are intelligent enough to learn if you resort to this basic principle.  Reward good behavior and punish bad behavior CONSISTENTLY.  Now you have to be aware if you are punishing the dog because you screwed up or because the dog screwed up.  You have to understand a dog will love you no matter what but if you want a dog for the rest of your life you want to be friends with than be clear in what you want from them through consistent and persistence by using positive and negative reinforcement (See B.F. Skinner and Pavlov)

  POTTY TRAINING:
  If you are going to keep the dog in the house this is a must and for the first 6 months as the most important training you will do with them.  Once you get this down you are more than capable of mastering everything else from sit, roll over, sic 'em.

  Reward for going outside and punish for when they don't.  The punishment should only be given once you have firmly established a positive reward for taking the dog outside to do it's business.  I recommend until you have firmly trained the dog use a crate of the appropriate size.  This prevents your carpets and finding random puddles and squishiness on bare feet.  If you are getting a puppy laying a pad down in the crate will help absorb any of the pee and poop.

  The common thinking is every hour to three hours for puppies and dogs under 6 months.  If you get a dog over 6 months.  Anything over 6 months taking them out every 3 hours is sufficient, but you have to be consistent and persistent.  Every time they go crap and piss you have got to love them and make the dog feel like they are the king or queen for dropping their load.  This is huge as positive reinforcement is very important.  Now when you come home and they dropped their kids off you can't go ballistic as to much time as pass, the dog just won't understand, you teach them you are angry when you get home.  Put when they drop one or attempt to drop one while you are home you have to scare them and/or make it very apparent they just did something very wrong and need to not do that.  Taking them outside immediately and wait until they go again, rewarding them when they do.

  If you get a dog at the 6 week mark than hopefully through this you will able to train the dog to be house broken by three to four months.

   A few things to help you along the way.  The first is don't leave food and water out while you are gone.  Without food and water they don't need to go because they don't have full bladders and stomachs.  Make sure to take them out before you leave and as soon as you get home.  If you can come home during the day to let them out would help this training (if we live in a perfect world).  The last thing to remember is patience.  Just like children, dogs need to be trained and without good training relying on negative and positive treatment reinforced consistently you can't instill the desired effect from your new dog.