Mochi Pomeranian

House training is the number one concern for many new puppy owners. There are many different ways to accomplish this task. All of them require persistence on your part. Remember your puppy is like a small child learning to use the toilet and they will have accidents sometimes. There are 100's of books, DVD's and even private trainers to help you have success teaching your puppy. Choose the best method that works for your family and lifestyle. With all methods remember that young puppies cannot hold their bladder for long periods of time so if you are regularly required to be away for any length of time choose a method such as litter box training, puppy pads or use a doggie door so your puppy can relieve itself without you letting him out.

One of the easiest ways to house train you puppy is to use the crate training method. The crate can be either plastic or wire. The crate your puppy was shipped in will work fine, however many people prefer collapsible wire crates that allow more air flow. These crates are readily available and sell for less than $50 The crate needs to be small, only large enough for your puppy's bed. If the crate is too large the puppy will sleep on one end and eliminate on the other. Many of the wire crates now come with adjustable dividers that expand as your puppy grows. The key to house training is to establish a routine that increases the chances that your puppy will eliminate in the right place in your presence, so that she can be praised and rewarded; and decreases the chances that your dog will eliminate in the wrong place so that she will not develop bad habits. Crate training is so efficient because dogs do not like to soil their resting/sleeping quarters if given adequate opportunity to eliminate elsewhere. Temporarily confining your dog to a small area strongly inhibits the tendency to urinate and defecate. If your dog does not eliminate while she is confined, then she will need to eliminate when she is released, i.e., she eliminates in the right place and when you are present to reward and praise her.

Be sure to understand the difference between temporarily confining your dog to a crate and long term confinement when you are not home. The major purpose of confinement when your are not home such as in a bathroom or kitchen is to restrict mistakes to a small protected area. The purpose of crate training is quite the opposite. Short term confinement to a crate is intended to inhibit your dog from eliminating when confined, so that she will want to eliminate when released from confinement and taken to the appropriate area. Crate training also helps teach your dog to have bladder and bowel control. Instead of going whenever she feels like it, she learns to hold it and go at convenient scheduled times. Eventually your entire house becomes "off limits" and she learns to only relieve herself outside.

Crate training should not be abused, otherwise the problem will get drastically worse. The crate is not intended as a place to lock up the dog and forget her for extended periods of time. If your dog soils her crate because you left her there too long, the house training process could be set back several weeks.

Your dog should only be confined to a crate when you are at home. Except at night, give your dog an opportunity to relieve herself every hour. Each time you let her out immediately take her outside. Once outside, give her about three to five minutes to produce. If she does not eliminate within the allotted time period, simply return her to her crate. If she does perform, then immediately reward her with praise, food treats, affection, play, an extended walk and permission to run around and play in your house for a couple of hours. For young pups, after 45 minutes to an hour, take her to her toilet area again. Never give your dog free run of your home unless you know without a doubt that her bowels and bladder are empty.

During this crate training procedure, keep notes as to when your dog eliminates. If you have her on a regular feeding schedule, she should soon adopt a corresponding elimination schedule. Once you know what time of day she usually needs to eliminate, you can begin taking her out only at those times instead of every hour. After she has eliminated, she can have free, but supervised, run of your house. About one hour before she needs to eliminate (as calculated by your notes) put her in her crate. This will prevent her from going earlier than you had planned. With your consistency and abundance of rewards and praise for eliminating outside, she will become more reliable about holding it until you take her out. Then the amount of time you confine her before her scheduled outing can be reduced, then eliminated. If you ever find an accident in the house, just clean it up. Do not punish your dog. All this means is that you have given her unsupervised access to your house too soon. Until she can be trusted, don't give her unsupervised free run of your house. If mistakes and accidents occur, it is best to go back to the crate training. You need to more accurately predict when your dog needs to eliminate and she needs more time to develop bladder and bowel control.

Again remember it is important that you make provisions for your dog when you are not home. Until your puppy is older and completely housetrained, she should not be allowed free run of your house. Otherwise, she will develop a habit of leaving piles and puddles anywhere and everywhere, especially on the absorbent carpet. Confine her to a small area such as a kitchen, bathroom or utility room that has water/stain resistant floors.