Corwyn Pointers: Puppy Housebreaking

Puppies have begun to go to their new homes. Jazz & Banks have headed off on their merry way with their new people, and both are doing well. They are eating well, sleeping quietly in their crates at night and learning how to fit into a new family.

Naturally the first order of business with any new puppy is housebreaking. Part of this is potty training and part is learning house manners.

It's important to remember that your puppy has only a beginning of these rules. We do make an big effort to begin potty training and house manners before your puppy goes home, but puppies spending an hour or two in teh living room with us and most of the day either outside or safely in their puppy pen indoors is very different from all the freedom they have in a new home.

POTTY TRAINING:

Puppies need to go out far more often than adult dogs. Our adults might go out between 3 and 5 times a day. The pups need to go outdoors after nearly every activity. They wake up, they need to go out. They eat, they need to go out. They play hard for 30 minutes, they need to go out. Since at first they don't know or understand the rules, it is YOUR job to help them. Get used to the idea of putting the puppy outdoors whenever the activities change. It's helpful to put the puppy out on a leash at first - go out with them and supervise. Choose the spot in the yard you will MOST wish the puppy to use for elimination, and walk her to that spot. Then just wait - don't try to play with the puppy or interact much - it's not playtime. You might try walking in a small circle to get the puppy moving around. Once the puppy has gone, tell her how great she is and you can either take her back inside or remove the leash and let her play.

For the first several weeks, any accidents the puppy has are really not her fault. It is up to you to keep a close eye on her and get her out BEFORE any accidents. If you missed your chance, and you find the mess but the puppy is not caught in the act, you can only clean up and vow to watch more closely. You CANNOT discipline the puppy unless she is caught still squatting. Even if the puppy is still in the same room or NEAR the mess, YOU CANNOT DISCIPLINE. IF the puppy is not actually still going, she will just think she is being disciplined for say, standing near the mess. Or, being in that room. Or, standing near a lamp.

If I see a puppy starting to have an accident, I will call out "Hey! Not in here!" and scoop the puppy up and get her right outside (at this point I'm saying "Outside! Outside" in a more pleasant tone. Usually they will then go immediately since I've startled them. NOW I can praise for right behavior. Puppies usually get the idea fairly quickly.

DO NOT put your puppy's nose in the mess and discipline them. They are sure to agree it's disgusting, but this message is not going to be clear. It will only be clear and make sense if they are disciplined DURING the act and shown immediately where the correct place is.

Putting your puppy on a schedule at home in which he is being fed, played with, taken outdoors and put to bed at approximately the same time will really go a long way to facilitating the potty training. It will be several months until the puppy has full bodily control of his functions, and the schedule will help him to get the idea before his body is ready to comply with what he is learning.

Each time I take a puppy out the door I will say "Outside!" and each time I take them indoors I will say "Inside!" Some of the pups still here already understand these words. Some of them will already go towards the door when I said "Outside!" The same goes for putting the puppy in to the crate or the puppy kennel. We use the word "Kennel!" for nearly every doorway so they learn that the word "Kennel" means "Go in there."

HOUSE MANNERS

I'm surely nearly every new puppy has a pile of new toys to play with. Make sure these include items puppies like to chew on. Hard bones, nyla bones, chew hooves (the white ones don't smell nearly so bad as the black ones!) and teething toys are great. We strongly recommend you do NOT use any rawhides. The dogs seem to like to soften them up and then try to swallow them whole. This can lead to constipation, indigestion and sometimes obstruction surgery in the intestines.

It's also important to note that all of the Corwyn puppies, as well as other puppies, are usually raised in a whelping box or pen lined with newspapers. So, it's a good idea to keep newspapers, magazines and other paper items up off the floor where the puppy could get confused.

When puppy proofing our home, we put away important items the puppy might swipe, and make sure all electrical cords are out of reach, if possible. However, it's useful to leave out a FEW nonessential items which are NOT puppy toys in order to be able to show the puppy what IS and IS NOT allowed. I usally have at least one pair of ratty old shoes and a few tissues around on the floor. This way, when the puppy picks up something NOT for the his use, I can take it away and provide something appropriate that IS his. And, if he does go after the shoes or tissue, I've not lost anything important.

Until your puppy begins to understand the rules, it's best to be sure he is supervised at all times. If you must be doing something that distracts you from watching him, put him safely outdoors or into his crate. I don't particularly like having puppies helping me cook, fold laundry or clean the house. It's very difficuilt to do a good job at these tasks AND watch the puppy as well. If I allow him to be loose while I'm distracted, any damages are really my fault as the puppy simply has not yet learned the rules.

It's important that children in the household learn to keep their bedroom & playroom doors closed and keep their possessions off the floor. Anything in reach is going to be interesting to a curious puppy. And puppies all seem to feel that most of these interesting items are much improved by being turned into confetti....

So, those of you still waiting on your new puppy - start looking around for things the puppy might find interesting and put them safely way. Begin thinking about the schedule you will set for your puppy and a quiet place to put his crate. In a few weeks you will be enjoying your new baby and teaching him all the new rules in his new house!

Here's Jazz in her new home meeting one of her "cousins."