Once a young puppy arrives in the household, it is an exciting time for everybody. In order for the homecoming to go forward as smoothly as possible, it is a good idea to spend a little bit of time in planning.

One of the major challenges of dog ownership (in particular for first-time owners) is the issue of household training. If you outfit yourself with some fundamental knowledge and a positive mental attitude, though, it is a good deal easier than most people make it out to be.

The New arrival

As soon as you take the pup home, bring her outdoors. The excitement of the automobile journey joined with the unfamiliar faces, sights, and sounds will have her requiring to go anyway – and if you can mastermind her 1st toilet break so that it happens outdoors, rather than indoors, then so much the better. And not just from the position of short-term hygienics, either – the more your puppy relieves herself indoors, the more probable she is to do it over again.

The homecoming is a big chance for you to set a case in point for toilet conduct!

- Direct her to your assigned toilet area, and place her down on the grass.

- Hold back while she sniffs about – abstain from petting her or playing with her just yet, since you do not need her to form a connection between this area and games. She has to determine that this part of the yard is for toilet breaks exclusively.

- Once she starts to relieve herself, sound out the phrase you desire her to connect with toilet breaks: “Go pee” or “potty time” or whatever does work for you. It is better whenever the set phrase is short and easily recognizable – and use the same voice inflection each time, too (so that your dog can easily learn the meaning of the set phrase.)

- Once she is done, cause a big fuss over her: shower her in praise and warm heartedness, and give her a small goody.

When you bring her indoors the house, the house training regime you have settled on should begin at once.

As far as house training goes, crate training is more often than not accepted to be the most effective and efficient way of house training a pup in a short space of time.

What is crate training?

Crate-training is fundamentally the use of a small-scale inside dog house (the crate) to enclose your new puppy when you are not actively monitoring her.

How does it work?

Crate training is founded on all dogs’ built-in disapproval of soiling the surface area where they sleep. As you are cutting back young dogs social movement to her sleeping space, she will instinctively “hold it in” until she is let out of the crate (provided you do not leave her in there too long, naturally!)

This is why it is crucial that the crate is sized the right way: if it is too large, she will be able to use one end as a bed and one end as a toilet, which defeats the entirely purpose!

How do I pick out a crate?

As a universal rule of thumb, it is more cost-efficient for you to pick out a crate that is large enough for her to develop into. It ought to be large enough for the fully grown dog to stand up comfortably without crouching, turn around in, and stretch out – but no bigger (so that she does not choose one part as her bed, and one part as her toilet!)

Since the fully grown dog is expected to be substantially larger than the puppy, it will most likely be essential for you to use a barrier to cut down the internal size of the crate. A wire grille or board will do just fine.

As an alternative, you will be able to use an inexpensive crate (or even construct one yourself) and replace it with a larger model as your pup matures.

Using the crate for house training

Crate training works like this: your pup is in that crate at all times unless she is sleeping, feeding, outdoors with you attending to the toilet, or being played with (active supervision.)

You will want to be consistent, or else it will not work: you can not allow your pup ramble off through the household unless you are centering your complete care upon her.

Whenever you permit her entree to the house before she is thoroughly house trained, you are essentially encouraging her to relieve herself indoors – and remember, for each one time she performs this, it will be easier for her to execute it again (and again … and again …)

Sample schedule of a morning’s crate training

7am: Awaken. Puppy comes outdoors with you for a toilet break.
7.25: Breakfast time.
7.45: Back out of doors for additional toilet break (attended by you, naturally.)
7.50 – 8.45: Play-time! Puppy is out of the crate being actively played with, snuggled, etc.
8.45: Outdoors for another toilet break.
8.50 – 11: Puppy gets back in the crate for a nap
11 am: Puppy comes out of doors with you for a toilet break.
11.05 – 12.30: Playtime! Puppy is out of the crate being played with and petted.
12:30: Lunch period.
12.45: Puppy comes outdoors with you for a toilet break.
1 – 3.30: Puppy goes back in the crate for a short sleep.

… And so forth throughout the day.

Crate training usually takes one to two months (depending upon the breed of your dog and however much time you spend on the developing process.) As the pup gets older, you will be able to begin to cut back the amount of time spent in the crate – but beware of doing this too soon!

Other crate training rules

- Your puppy in all likelihood will not be too pleased to go in the crate the first couple of times she practices it. She would like to* be outside, being lavished with affection and attention, and hanging out with you (of course!) But it genuinely is for her own good – in a amazingly short time, she will come to accept the crate as her own personal haven where she can go to unwind and get a couple hours’ uninterrupted rest. It is crucial to persist: don’t react to any whining or crying.

- The most effective place for the crate to be is the hub of the household: generally the den or the kitchen, anyplace where people are incline to congregate. Just because she is in the crate does not mean she can’t still feel like part of the household; it’s significant for her not to feel detached or left out.

- The crate should be a welcoming, inviting place for her to go. Put down a couple of thick blankets or towels on the floor, and place a couple of toys and a chew or two inside it as well. The door should be invitingly open at all times (unless she is in there, of course, in which case it should be firmly closed.)

Some toilet truths about puppies that will come in handy

- Puppies’ bladders and bowels are so small and weak that they’ve only a very small window of opportunity between knowing that they need to go, and having that need become an immediate reality. Because of this, it is imperative that you take her outdoors as soon as she awakens (she will let you know she needs to go out by pawing the doorway and whining), and inside of ten minutes of feeding or playing.

- Behaviors that suggest she needs to go out of doors include sniffing the ground and circling. Once again, because she’s only little, she will not exhibit these warning signs for very long – so as soon as she starts, take her out at once. Better an unneeded trip to the yard than an unnecessary wet patch (or pile) on the rug!

- The maximum amount of time that a puppy can be crated at a time is worked out using the following equation: her age in months, plus one. Therefore, a three-month old puppy can be crated for a maximum of four hours. However, this is likely to be physically pretty uncomfortable for her (let alone hard on her emotionally and psychologically: it is tough being cramped up with nothing to do), so you should actually take her out at the least once every two hours during the day. If she is sleeping, of course, just let her sleep until she awakens naturally.

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Many pet shops like to showcase puppies because they are easier to sell. Kids and teenagers simply adore these little furry animals, and they can’t seem to take their eyes off them. The inevitable then happens – they want to take the pups home. The problem is, they don’t really know how to be responsible for the pets yet. If you are going to buy a puppy for your kids, know that it will be your responsibility to take care of the dog! Your kids won’t be able to do a good enough job.

So before you whip out your credit card and buy the pup, make sure that you know what you are getting yourself into. When the puppy first arrives at your home, the first thing you need to do is to house train the baby animal. You don’t want the young pup to run around the house, eliminating all over the place. The person who has to do all the cleaning up is you. And you don’t want to add too much unnecessary stress to your busy life.

In general, there are 2 areas you need to focus on. The first area is to train your puppy so that it knows when and where to eliminate. The second area is to train your dog to behave in a socially acceptable manner. That means no barking in the middle of the night, no biting small children, etc. Sounds like a lot to do. But fortunately, dogs are rather intelligent, and young pups are well known to be highly adaptable. So if you put in the time and effort to teach the dog, it can become the perfect family pet.

To train your pup to know when to eliminate, you will need to familiarize yourself with the crate method. You can find all sorts of information on this method on the internet. You start by buying a crate for the pup, and placing the animal in it for several hours at a time. The goal is to train your pup to learn how to control its bladder. Dogs like cleanliness naturally, and they don’t like to dirty the area where they sleep. Therefore, when in the crate, they will usually not eliminate.

Be careful not to buy a crate that is too big. Otherwise, the dog will go eliminate in one corner, and then go back to sleep in another. The crate cannot be too small either. It is not meant to be a prison. When the pup is young, the crate is like the second home to the animal. So make sure that you create a comfortable environment. Put some toys around the crate and always have some water for the dog to drink. Your pup will not resist the next time you try to confine it to the crate.

The New Arrival

As soon as you bring the puppy home, take her outside. The excitement of the car journey coupled with the unfamiliar faces, sights, and sounds will have her needing to go anyway ? and if you can orchestrate her first toilet break so that it occurs outside, instead of inside, then so much the better. And not just from the perspective of short-term hygiene, either ? the more your puppy relieves herself inside, the more likely she is to do it again.

The homecoming is a great opportunity for you to set a precedent for toilet behavior!

- Take her to your designated toilet area, and put her down on the grass.

- Wait while she sniffs around ? refrain from petting her or playing with her just yet, because you don?t want her to forge an association between this area and games. She has to learn that this part of the yard is for toilet breaks only.

- When she begins to relieve herself, say the phrase you want her to associate with toilet breaks: ?Go pee? or ?potty time? or whatever works for you. It?s best if that phrase is short and easily recognizable ? and use the same voice inflection each time, too (so that your dog can easily memorize the meaning of the phrase.)

- When she?s done, make a big fuss over her: shower her in praise and affection, and give her a little treat.

When you take her inside the house, the house training regime you?ve decided upon should start immediately.

As far as house training goes, crate training is generally accepted to be the most effective and efficient means of house training a puppy in a short space of time.

What is crate training?

Crate-training is essentially the use of a small indoor kennel (the crate) to confine your young puppy when you?re not actively supervising her.

How does it work?

Crate training is based on all dogs? inherent dislike of soiling the area where they sleep. Because you?re restricting your puppy?s movement to her sleeping space, she?ll instinctively ?hold it in? until she?s let out of the crate (provided you don?t leave her in there too long, of course!)

This is why it?s important that the crate is sized properly: if it?s too big, she?ll be able to use one end as a bed and one end as a toilet, which defeats the whole purpose!

How do I choose a crate?

As a general guideline, it?s more cost-effective for you to choose a crate that?s big enough for her to grow into. It should be big enough for the adult dog to stand up comfortably without crouching, turn around in, and stretch out ? but no bigger (so that she doesn?t choose one part as her bed, and one part as her toilet!)

Because the adult dog is likely to be considerably larger than the puppy, it?ll most likely be necessary for you to use a barrier to reduce the internal size of the crate. A wire grille or board will do just fine.

Alternatively, you can use a cheap crate (or even make one yourself) and replace it with a larger model as your puppy grows.

Using the crate for house training

Crate training works like this: your puppy is in that crate at all times unless she?s sleeping, eating, outside with you going to the toilet, or being played with (active supervision.)

You?ll need to be consistent, or else it won?t work: you can?t let your puppy wander off through the house unless you?re focusing your complete attention on her.

If you allow her access to the house before she?s thoroughly house trained, you?re basically encouraging her to relieve herself inside ? and remember, each time she does this, it?ll be easier for her to do it again (and again ? and again ?)

Sample schedule of a morning’s crate training

7am: Wake up. Puppy comes outside with you for a toilet break.
7.25: Breakfast time.
7.45: Back outside for another toilet break (accompanied by you, of course.)
7.50 ? 8.45: Play-time! Puppy is out of the crate being actively played with, cuddled, etc.
8.45: Outside for another toilet break.
8.50 ? 11: Puppy goes back in the crate for a nap
11 am: Puppy comes outside with you for a toilet break.
11.05 ? 12.30: Playtime! Puppy is out of the crate being played with and petted.
12:30: Lunch time.
12.45: Puppy comes outside with you for a toilet break.
1 ? 3.30: Puppy goes back in the crate for a nap.

? and so on throughout the day.

Crate training generally takes one to two months (depending on the breed of your dog and how much time you spend on the training process.) As the puppy grows older, you can begin to reduce the amount of time spent in the crate ? but beware of doing this too soon!

Other crate training rules

- Your puppy probably won?t be too happy to go in the crate the first couple of times she uses it. She wants to be outside, being showered with affection and attention, and hanging out with you (of course!) But it really is for her own good ? in a surprisingly short time, she?ll come to accept the crate as her own personal haven where she can go to relax and get a couple hours? uninterrupted sleep. It?s important to persevere: do not respond to any whining or crying.

- The best place for the crate to be is the hub of the household: usually the den or the kitchen, anywhere where people tend to congregate. Just because she?s in the crate doesn?t mean she can?t still feel like part of the household; it?s important for her not to feel isolated or excluded.

- The crate should be a welcoming, inviting place for her to go. Lay a couple of thick blankets or towels on the floor, and place a few toys and a chew or two inside it as well. The door should be invitingly open at all times (unless she?s in there, of course, in which case it should be securely shut.)

Some toilet facts about puppies that will come in handy

- Puppies? bladders and bowels are so small and weak that they have only a very small window of opportunity between knowing that they need to go, and having that need become an immediate reality. Because of this, it?s imperative that you take her outside as soon as she wakes up (she?ll let you know she needs to go out by pawing the door and whining), and within ten minutes of eating or playing.

- Behaviors that indicate she needs to go outside include sniffing the ground and circling. Again, because she?s only little, she won?t exhibit these warning signs for very long ? so as soon as she starts, take her out straight away. Better an unnecessary trip to the yard than an unnecessary wet patch (or pile) on the carpet!

- The maximum amount of time that a puppy can be crated at one time is figured out using the following equation: her age in months, plus one. So, a three-month old puppy can be crated for a maximum of four hours. However, this is likely to be physically pretty uncomfortable for her (not to mention hard on her emotionally and psychologically: it?s tough being cramped up with nothing to do), so you should really take her out at least once every two hours during the day. If she?s sleeping, of course, just let her sleep until she wakes up naturally.

For a more indepth look at house training, as well as a great deal of useful information on canine behavioral problems and the most effective training techniques, check out The Ultimate House Training Puppies Guide. It?s the complete house training puppies guide..