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Housetraining Your Dog Although housetraining can be frustrating, once it’s done your life will be more pleasant, your floors will be cleaner, and your dog will be trained for life. A dog who hasn’t been indoors does not know it’s wrong to go to the bathroom indoors. An untrained dog needs attention, supervision, patterned training and plenty of gentle understanding. Dogs want to please their people; they just need to know what to do, when, and where to do it. Even housebroken dogs commonly have accidents when they are adopted by a new family. The dog must adjust to a completely different daily routine, new people, strange surroundings, and unknown expectations. This is very stressful and confusing.
While a dog may “act guilty” when you discover a housebreaking mistake, he or she is merely responding to your body language at the time. Dogs associate rewards and corrections with the act that is currently taking place (i.e. your coming home, or your walking into the room). They cannot relate praise or correction to an activity that took place even a few seconds before.
Realize Your Dog's Limitations
Time Considerations: Regardless of age, don't expec t your dog to "hold it" for eight or more hours--could you? In fact, this can cause kidney or bladder infections and other health or sanatary problems. Many options are available for allowing your dog to go to the bathroom while you are at work. They include the following:
Leaving a dog in the garage or outdoors all day should not be an option. If you have a GreySave greyhound, this is in fact prohibited by the contract you signed. Temperatures in a garage get too hot in the summer and too cold in the winter. If you don't believe it, try sitting out there for even an hour some day in July or December. The same goes for outdoor temperatures. Even with a dog house or shaded area, your dog is exposed to unacceptable extremes of heat, cold, and moisture. Your dog should always have access to a temperature controlled area even if it is only part of the house.
Help Your Dog Succeed Plan to be with the dog almost continually the first few days. Keep the dog constantly under surveillance. You want to catch the FIRST time he or she tries to go inside. If you don’t, the odor is there, even if you can’t smell it, and the dog thinks that it is sometimes OK to go inside the house. A dog has a “nose brain” and can smell one part of urine in 60 million parts of water. That's the equivalent of 1/8 cup of urine in an Olympic sized swimming pool of water. So when it makes a mistake, wash the area with cleanser and water several times then sprinkle with an enzyme-type of disinfectant especially made for urine odors. (Ordinary cleansers often don't work.) This will discourage the dog from using the area again. If you are consistent during the first 48 to 72 hours, housetraining will usually be a breeze. If you fail during that time, you may be in for an extended time of effort. This does not mean that you must stop your life and stare at the dog for 48 hours. Attach the dog’s leash to your belt and go about your normal business. This does two things: it helps the dog bond to you; and it helps you know exactly where the dog is and what it is doing at all times. An alternative is using a baby gate to close the dog in the room with you (as long as you can see the dog at all times).
At night and when you are gone for short periods, use a crate. Dogs are inherently neat animals. Given the choice, they will not soil their den; the same principle will apply to the crate.
Establish a Routine The consistent training pattern you establish must include the following: accompanying the dog outside first thing in the morning, last thing at night, after eating, after playing, and whenever you see the dog circling, sniffing, or acting restless. NOTE: It is extremely important that you take the dog outside. Do not simply turn the dog loose in the back yard and hope he or she goes. Go out with the dog so you can praise the dog profusely when he or she does what you want. Some dogs, especially males, go to the bathroom "in stages." They will mark one spot, sniff, mark another spot, sniff, mark again, etc. (Remember to praise each time.) Bringing the dog in too soon will mean that he must go again before long. Let him take the time to completely empty his bladder. To avoid confusion or distraction, do not let the event turn into an outdoor play period. Keep playtime separate from training time.
Reward Correct Behavior Never rub the dog’s nose in a mistake. If you
find a mess in the house, don’t rub the dog’s nose in
it and scold. This is ineffective for three reasons.
When you catch the dog in the act of having an accident indoors, clap your hands or shout “NO!” This should stop the momentary action. Then rush the dog outdoors to finish. When your pet does go outside (or even tries), praise profusely. Every time the task is completed praise profusely!
Keep Your Frustration in Check Take preventive steps to keep your frustration level low. Until your dog is trustworthy, always confine or directly supervise him or her. Don’t leave clothing and papers lying on the floor. “When in doubt, take him out,” better too soon than too late.
There may be times when you feel like screaming–DON’T. Losing your temper will only make your dog frightened of you. Physical punishment and intimidation undermine training efforts. Effective training is accomplished through praise, positive reinforcement, and gentle reminders. Don’t give up because of continued indoor accidents after you think training should be completed. Go back to square one and step up your watchfulness to prevent future accidents. The length of time required for complete housetraining can range from less than one week to several weeks. Dogs who “can’t be housetrained” are dogs who weren’t given a consistent training pattern--or a fair chance.
Special Problems If you feel you are having a serious problem housetraining your dog, please consult a veterinarian in order to rule out physical problems. For example, urinary tract infections or hormonal factors may cause a housebroken dog to have accidents. It is imperative to consult a veterinarian if your dog strains to urinate, urinates unusually frequently, has blood in the urine, or leaves urine puddles where resting. Some dogs suffer from “submissive urination.” When excited or scolded, even mildly, they urinate on the spot. The cause of this response is psycho-logical, not physical. Any discipline or drawing the dog’s attention to the accident will likely make the condition worse. In these cases, accidents commonly happen when the dog is excited. Puppies will usually outgrow submissive urination by the age of six months. For older dogs, patience on your part and giving the dog a strong sense of security within your family will usually cure this problem. If not, consult a behaviorist who can outline the best approach to curing your dog of submissive urination.
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Age
Considerations: Realize that puppies under six months old, like
human infants, do not have the physical ability to "hold it"
very long, if at all. The same goes for many dogs as they reach
their senior years. You must provide opportunity for them to go
to the bathroom in an approved spot at all times.