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Help! My Dog Can’t Be House Trained! (or 8 Tips for Successful House-training)

copyright © 2007 Jo Jacques

As a behavior counselor and trainer, one of the most often heard complaints from pet owners concerns house-training. The stories I hear of the suggestions clients have gotten from others are sometimes amazing:

“The vet told me that my [insert breed name] is impossible to house-train, so I don’t expect it to happen.”

“My neighbor told me that if I keep the dog in the crate all the time, it won’t eliminate in the crate, but he still does!”

My favorite one: “He’s 5 months old now – he can last the whole day, right?” (WRONG!).

Depending on the age and physiology of a particular pup, house-training any breed can be accomplished within a week or two, barring any physical problems or behavioral issues stemming from previous training (it takes far more time to ‘un-train’ and then build new habits than to start from scratch!). However, both time and effort are needed in order to accomplish this, as well as an understanding of what an individual puppy/dog is capable of physically.

Owner understanding and compliance has a HUGE effect on the elimination habits their puppy/dog develops! For example, I always recommend that owners take at least a week – if not two – off from work (or work from home, if possible) when they bring their pup home in order to house-train and start bonding with their pup. This time also helps you to learn your pup’s individual personality and needs – both physically and emotionally.

The following are 8 tips for Successful House-training – barring retraining or physical issues, if these tips are followed you will have no problem house-training nearly any dog.

Develop a routine schedule for feeding and potty breaks – and stick to it, even on weekends and at night. Feeding on a regular schedule helps to regulate your dog’s system – and makes it easier for you to know when to take him out for a potty break, as well. Dogs, like children, just LOVE schedules!
Feed a high-quality food consistently – don’t change food intermittently. A high-quality diet usually means fewer and firmer bowel movements; less salt and preservatives in their food cuts down on water intake and urination.
Take the pup out on a leash for a potty break whenever he wakes up, after he eats or drinks, and after he’s been playing. As well, pups should be taken out once an hour, an older dog every two hours until he’s trained. Even if he doesn’t eliminate every time you take him out, try to stick to your schedule. Soon, you’ll be able to predict when he’ll need to go. As he gets older, you’ll be able to lengthen the time between breaks.
If you can’t watch him, use a crate or an X-pen. Or, tether him to your belt using a leash so that you’ll always know where he is and can feel when he starts to move away from you. Remember – puppies have very little bladders, and just as little control over them, so they shouldn’t be confined for more than a few hours at a time after the initial house-training schedule until they’re old enough to handle it. One rule of thumb for puppies is to take their age in months and add 1 – this will be the maximum number of hours he’d be able to hold his bladder. In the toy breeds, due to their smaller bladders and a slower maturation time, don’t add the extra hour. Older dogs have more physical control, and may be able to stay in a crate a little longer without eliminating.
When taking your pup or dog out for a potty break, be sure to reinforce him EVERY time he eliminates outside. Make a HUGE deal out of it – tell him what a wonderful dog he is while giving him lots of affection, petting AND a treat. Soon, he’ll come to associate eliminating outside with fun and treats – not a bad combination for a pup! Remember – any behavior that gets rewarded will get repeated!
When you take the dog out for a potty break, chant a particular phrase or word while waiting for him to eliminate. Have all family members who take him out to use the same phrase and to pace a little with him – movement begets movement! Some people use, “Let’s go!” or “Let’s do it!” in an excited voice. This will enable the pup to connect the phrase used with eliminating, and you’ll soon find him eliminating outside as soon as you say his special phrase.
If you manage to catch him eliminating in the house, interrupt it by picking him up and taking him outside – if he stops in mid-stream and finishes outside, heap on the praise. Be sure that you DO NOT SCOLD HIM or ‘rub his nose’ in it – he will not be able to connect eliminating in the house with the punishment, but he WILL connect punishment for elimination with YOU (if that happens, he may start hiding to eliminate OR will begin eliminating submissively whenever he sees YOU). Then quietly pick up the ‘deposit’ in the house, cleaning it with with an enzymatic cleanser specifically designed for that purpose (my personal favorites, in order of preference, are Foster & Smith’s Stain-Away® or Nature’s Miracle®). However, if you truly feel the need for punishment, take a rolled-up newspaper and hit yourself in the head with it repeatedly, while chanting, “I WILL pay more attention to my dog! I WILL pay more attention to my dog!”
ALWAYS remember to have FUN with your dog! The housebreaking phase won’t last long, but the impression you make on your dog during it will, so here’s your chance to make a positive impact in his life!