Tips on toilet training

We are often asked for advice on how to house train a new puppy. There are many common mistakes that people make in all innocence, but with the right regime  your puppy will quickly learn the correct place to go to the toilet.

With very young puppies, take them in the garden every 20 to 30 minutes. If your dog is older, take them out four to five times a day at approximately the same times.

Look for outward signs that your dog/puppy may need to toilet – sniffing the ground, circling, seeming distracted etc.

Train a toilet command. Pick a word you don’t mind saying in public! Repeat it all the time they are actually passing urine (never at any other time!) whilst praising lavishly, for example ‘Tinkles, good tinkles’. Give a treat immediately after they have finished, especially if your dog needs extra encouragement that they are going in the best place.

After approximately two weeks (every dog is individual and they learn at different speeds) try saying the word when you know they need to go. If the dog looks at you, then goes to the toilet – success!

If you catch the dog in the act in the house, interrupt with an ‘oopsie’ and quickly move them to the garden even if they wee all the way down the hall and stop when they get to the garden! NEVER PUNISH. They will get the picture eventually.

If you don’t catch them in the act the best response is to clear away the mess without fuss, using your normal non-biological washing liquid. Do not use commercial products designed for clearing pet odours and stains as some contain ammonia or have strong odours that will only encourage the pet to return to this area. Deterrent sprays can actually become attractive to the pet or may just make them feel unhappy in their home environment, neither of which will meet your need to train your pet.

Quite often a dog/puppy will know he/she is expected to toilet outside but does not know how to ask to go out. This can easily be trained by asking your dog to perform a certain task/command every time you open the door. For example a sit, paw, speak etc.

Your dog will soon learn that this behaviour helps make the door open and he/she will start to do this when they need to go outside.

It is worth mentioning that installing a dog flap in the door is not generally a good idea for a puppy, unless it is locked regularly. The reason for this is that these do not encourage the puppy to hold his/her bladder, resulting in a dog that could be unable to control his bladder for extended periods of time. This could be a concern if you take your dog to a friend’s house or go on holiday in a dog friendly cottage that does not have a dog flap. This theory also applies to leaving the back door open – a common mistake made by owners. The pup can start to view the house/garden as one big area rather than an inside and outside area.

It is possible to buy puppy ‘training pads’ or to use newspaper and encourage the puppy to use these in the house. These can work for some puppies but for most it can be confusing – should they use the garden or not? It is far easier and quicker just to keep taking them outside and have a set rule of toileting outside.

Puppies associate toilet protocol with the ’substrate’ under their feet and grass is usually a preferred material. This also makes it a lot easier to associate between outside and inside – this also explains why puppy toilet pads can be confusing.

The key to successful toilet training is to be a step ahead of your puppy/dog. The more accidents you prevent, the quicker you will succeed!

NEVER be cross if your puppy/dog has an accident, it was not his fault – he just needs educating more clearly.

If you are having problems with toilet training please contact Jo Raine at the main Hospital on 01903 223137.

Training tips for puppies!

The down command is quite easy to teach as it is natural for a puppy to do it. It is best achieved from a sitting position.

From the sit, show the puppy you have a treat in your hand and slowly bring the treat down until it reaches the floor allowing the puppy’s nose to follow the treat at the same time (do not give the treat yet).

The puppy will find it uncomfortable to try to get the treat by bending his head down and should eventually lie down to get in a better position.

When he does this, give the treat immediately and give the command ‘down, good down’.

Some puppies, instead of lying down, will stand from the sit position in order to get a better position. In this case, ask the puppy to sit again and repeat. Eventually the puppy should realise that by standing he will not gain the treat and will try something else – like lying down!

On the odd occasion when some puppies don’t get to grips with the down command then we can use another tactic:

Sit on the floor next to your puppy and have your legs out in front of you with a bend at your knees – creating a ‘tunnel’.

Show the treat to your puppy and slowly bring the treat through the ‘tunnel’ (under your legs), allowing the puppy to follow the treat and eventually have to go under your legs,  encouraging him to lie down to get there.

Give the treat immediately when he lies down, giving the command ‘down, good down’.

Repeat until he gets it!!

Keep all training sessions short and sweet.

If you have any training questions, please call Jo Raine who is our qualified behaviourist here at Grove Lodge.

The Bateson Report – what do you think?

Some of you might have read my post on this blog from last year about the BBC documentary “Pedigree Dogs Exposed“. As a direct result of the documentary, dog breeding has been brought very much into the public eye.

Sir Patrick Bateson, of Cambridge University was appointed to conduct an independent enquiry into dog breeding.  The Bateson Report makes recommendations to make dramatic improvements to dog breeding, including an upgraded accredited breeder scheme, avoiding interbreeding (eg siblings or granddaughter to grandfather), changes in the law and educating the general public in the best way to buy a puppy.

The BVA and BSAVA have welcomed this report and the changes it will hopefully bring to the welfare of dogs. However, some people think it doesn’t go far enough, as reported in K9 Magazine.

What do you think?