Crate Training, Paper Training & Litter Plan Method for Potty Training Dogs

Potty Training your dog should not have to be a recurring nightmare for you, if you know how to housebreak your dog, properly. Dogs are intelligent animals, creatures of habit and eager to please. So, if you teach your dog where it should eliminate, he will do just that…for his favourite reward or a little pat on the head J It really should not be a big hassle as most dog owners find it to be.

But….it is!

Messy floors and smelly corners are frequent occurrences that drive most dog owners over the edge. And if most dog parents find it extremely difficult to housebreak their dogs, your dog's breed might just be responsible for it.

It might help you to remember that not all breeds pick up housetraining quickly. Some breeds like Border Collies take as little as 3 to 4 months, while Great Danes may take upto 18 months to be properly potty trained!

Some breeds are typically difficult to housetrain. Namely – Beagles, Afghan Hounds, English Setters, Yorkies, Huskys…to name only a few.

As dog owners, the biggest mistake that we make is: Inconsistency.

Choose and stick to a appropriate housebreaking method. Even though you might be losing your patience more than once, DO NOT switch between housebreaking methods or your dog may never be fully housetrained.

You may choose from any of the methods below. These methods are time honored and most widely used during dog potty training:

CRATE TRAINING

Crate training can be used on both a puppy and an adult dog and is probably the most effective and efficient way to housetrain your pet.

A crate is a dog's 'personal space', its immediate 'home'. Hence it is unlikely that he will eliminate inside his crate, unless left inside too long. So, the first lesson that your dog learns is…the Crate

is HIS and not some place to eliminate in.

Of course, you have to support this by regulating his water intake and establishing a routine to supervise his potty hours.

Hence, it is advisable that you take your dog out every one hour. Walk your dog to the place you want him to eliminate. With any luck, your dog may go potty that first time. If he does not, try again in another hour. Reward your dog if he eliminates, praise him and return him to his crate. Do this every time he goes potty. Help your dog make the 'connection' between eliminating in 'that' place and the receipt of a reward and praise.

Once the 'connection' is established, your dog will not want to disappoint you by eliminating elsewhere.

Quite simply, the idea is to gradually replace the crate, figuratively speaking, with the house. With potty training, your house should become your dog's 'personal space'…a place where he should not go potty.

To do this, once you feel your dog understands where he SHOULD go potty, you may lessen his crate time and let him out more often. Allow your dog to open area in your house little by little so he clearly establishes the larger area as "his area", increasing the desire to keep his area clean.

Eventually, you will be able to open up your entire home, but this is only after a lot of time has been

spent training and proof that it understands.

PAPER METHOD

The paper method seems to work better with a puppy than with an adult dog, although it can be used on both.

Paper method can be messy, whether you have a puppy or adult dog. Puppies will eliminate frequently and large dogs will just do more in volumes. So, just be prepared for lots of cleaning up in the beginning.

(And also remember to remove soiled paper after each potty session. Your dog will hate to go on a dirty area and if it feels too yucky…well…too bad! You could either choose between cleaning for the first few months of housetraining or cleaning for life or just live with the stench.)

Since Paper Method involves the use of floors in your house, it may be wise to choose a place that will not cause permanent damage to your house. A bathroom, in this case, is most advisable.

Once you have decided upon an area, cover the entire bathroom floor with newspaper.

Your puppy may, at first, go to several corners in the house. It is important that you keep a check on your pup's potty clock and take your puppy to the bathroom each time he wants to eliminate.

Once you are successful at this, your next aim is to stop your dog dribbling all over the bathroom. This should not be very difficult because your dog will 'mark' an area where it wants to pee or poop.

Once your dog establishes its preferred area in the bathroom, begin removing the paper from the rest of the room, only covering the area your dog uses. Even then, make sure you cover a large area around your dog's preferred corner so that your dog does not miss the paper.

Praises and rewards are important at this point. The more your dog associates a reward with his choice of papered area instead of the linoleum, the quicker your dog will be trained.

Your dog learns two lessons from this:

a) That he cannot romp around and eliminate where he wishes to. That he gets only a small corner to do his business

b) That small corner does not feel like linoleum. Instead it feels like paper.

Once you are sure your dog has understood this, begin moving the paper towards an area (presumably somewhere outside your house) where you want your dog to go when fully housetrained.

The paper should only be moved a little at a time towards this location. If moving the paper confuses

your dog, you may only be able to move about one inch per day, until the paper reaches its final destination J

But once your puppy understands that he is to eliminate only on the paper, and you have been able to move the paper towards an area outside the house, monitoring its habits will be much easier.

With time and even when the paper is completely removed, your dog will know where to eliminate and this he will show you by turning in circles or sniffing his marked spot.

LITTER PLAN METHOD

Similar to paper training, litter box training begins in a confined area such as a bathroom or kitchen.

Although most people still use the traditional cat litter boxes, there are dog litter boxes available at many pet supply stores these days.

The beginning stages of Litter Plan Method is the same as paper training. You cover the entire floor with paper and continue to change soiled paper until your puppy chooses a place on the floor it likes to eliminate on.

Once the puppy has eliminated in a particular area for approximately two weeks, place a litter pan, with paper inside, on the floor.

When your puppy goes and does his business inside the litter box, make sure you praise him profusely. Your pup must establish this as the correct behavior before he is absolutely comfortable with it.

Once your dog is used to the litter box with the paper and as time goes on, you may eventually do away with the paper, until only litter remains.

But remember, if you choose this method, you must clean the litter box every time your dog eliminates in it. Your dog will not go in a dirty box. Failure to consistently clean the litter box will result in your puppy reverting back to the floor.

Follow any of the above 3 methods consistently, and you should soon have a fully housetrained dog!