Housetraining Schedule How To Housetrain Your Puppy In 7 Days Or Less

Housetraining Schedule: How To Housetrain Your Puppy In 7 Days Or Less

It is quite alright if you are a new puppy owner and feel clueless about how to initiate housetraining for your dog. Many new dog owners make the mistake of scolding and punishing their dogs when they make a mess.

I made this same mistake with my first Chihuahua. Every time she would go potty inside the house I would take her over to the messy area and scold the dog with a loud voice with the occasional tap to her rear.

Soon enough, I noticed something strange happening. My puppy was still refusing to use the bathroom where she was supposed to go, but she started pooping and urinating underneath the bed and in closet areas. I caused my puppy to be afraid of going to the bathroom!

She did not understand why I was angry all of the times before and all her little brain knew was that every time she used the bathroom, I would yell at her. I realized that she started to be fearful of going potty and was basically trying to hide it by going in places that I could not see in plain view.

The Positive Approach Always Works Best

The moral of the story here is that you must take a positive approach to housetraining and totally eliminate any negative scoldings or punishments. The best thing to do is to supply your dog with a schedule each and every day. This schedule must be adhered to without fail in order to produce the quickest results possible. Here is a sample schedule:

6:30 AM: Immediately upon waking, remove your puppy from his crate, leash him up, and take him to his potty area, wherever that may be. Allow him to focus by staying quiet as he sniffs and circles the area.

When he starts to eliminate his wastes, offer praise and start repetitively giving a potty command such as “Go Pee, Go Pee”. As soon as he is done, offer more praise and a treat if you like. Now take your puppy back to his crate.

7:30 AM: Exactly one hour later, give your dog breakfast and then take him outside to the potty area approximately 20 to 30 minutes later. Immediately return him back to his crate until the next potty break.

10:30 AM: It's time for another potty break.

12:30 AM (Noon): Take your puppy outside to his potty area and follow the same routine. Afterwards, come inside and feed the dog lunch and then some playtime.

3:30 PM: It's time for another potty break.

5:30 PM: Take your puppy outside for another potty break and then back inside for some dinner. You do not have place him back in the crate until the next bathroom break.

During this time at night, try to play with your puppy as much as you can. This is a good time to tire him out a bit for his nighttime sleep. But keep a close eye on his behavior in case he starts to sniff and circle an area in the house before using the bathroom. If you cannot keep a close eye on him, simply put him back in his crate.

9:00 PM: If your puppy is sleeping at this time, wake him up for one last bathroom break. Follow the same potty routine and then put him back in his crate until the next morning potty break. Start the entire routine all over again.

BONUS : Housetraining Tools: Great Products That Make Housetraining A Breeze (1)

The X-Pen

An X-pen (or exercise pen) is a series of gates that snap together to become a sort of open-top cage that has a lot more room than a crate. Most trainers don't advocate using X-pens as a housetraining device unless you're going to put a crate inside of it and use a small area as a “potty spot” with a pee pad or newspaper.

However, that's not a permanent solution to housetraining because presumably you'll want your pup to only potty outside. X-pens are good for confinement in the same way that you'd use a baby gate – to restrict your dog to an area that can be easily cleaned in case of an accident.

The Ever Trusting Pee Pad

Pee pads are a staple for small dogs, those that live in apartments, or incontinent dogs. Essentially, these are the same pads that hospitals and nursing homes use for their bed-ridden patients, just packaged differently. Some pads come infused with a scent that attracts the puppy to the pad.

Pee pads can be very helpful, particularly for people who are unable to take a puppy out frequently. The pads encourage a puppy to use one place for elimination and can be moved close to the door that will be used to go out for bathroom duties. Over a period of time, the pad can be moved outside if your ultimate goal is to have your pup use a yard.

Here are a few times when choosing pee pads:

1) Look for a brand with the best liquid-retaining properties.
2) Choose a size large enough for your dog.
3) Look for a brand that locks in moisture to prevent tracking.

Fan Of The Pan?

A few years ago, litter boxes came into vogue for potty training small dogs, especially those that live in apartments. Litter boxes can be effective but some dogs would rather play in the litter or eat it instead of doing their business there.

However, some dogs will use the litter box appropriately, making potty duties very easy on an owner – just clean the box, add new litter, and you're done. These boxes tend to work well with dogs that weigh less than 10 pounds.

Look for a dog-specific box because cat boxes aren't tall enough for dogs, especially males that like to lift a leg. Using a litter box won't untrain your dog from going outside; it will just give him an option if he has a tiny bladder.