Thursday, March 11, 2010

What You Should Know About House Training A Dog

By Brad Davenport

When it comes to house training a dog, pet owners can often feel like they have all the wrong ideas. Sometimes they seem to resist house training to the point where you wonder if you'll ever break them of the habit of going to the bathroom in the house. But there are secrets of house training a dog.

One great method is associating a word, such as "potty" or "outside", with your trips out. If you get the dog used to hearing one particular word and go to the door that you would like for them to use at the same time, they will learn. Every dog loves association and when they can associate a task with a command you're teaching them.

Another popular method for house training a dog is using crate training. This is where the dog is confined to a cage or crate and taken out at particular intervals to put them on a schedule. Most dogs will not eliminate in their sleeping area, so this method can work quite well as the dog learns that their bedding area is "home" and that they should go to the bathroom outdoors.

Another way the dog will learn to go to the bathroom outside is by using certain verbal commands or even a clicker to signal them when it is time to go out. For example, taking the dog out and using the word "potty" will allow the dog to start to associate that word with the need to go outside. You can even walk them over to the door that you want to use for this purpose so that they know where to stand when they need to alert someone.

These are some of the secrets of house training a dog. The important thing to remember is that they have to learn the same way each of us learned everything we know- by repetition and patience.

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