Potty Training Your Pup

#AlphaDogTraining #dogtrainingsaltlakecity Potty Training Your Dog Published by Alpha Dog Training https://www.alpha-dog-training-slc.com One of the most common themes in the many emails I get every day concern the problems people are having with potty training their dogs. When housetraining goes well, new pet owners assume that this is a cakewalk and it should be like this all the time. These people are wrong. More often than not, problems come up and when that happens, people get frustrated. The fact is there are many reasons that puppies and older dogs develop housetraining problems. There is no silver bullet that is going to fix each and every dog's problem. With this said, the solution to all housetraining problems lies in owner education. When problems arise, pet owners almost always often fall into a common trap. They start to ask family and friends what they can do to fix these housetraining problems. Unfortunately, most people are unqualified and lack the experience to offer accurate advice. This results in a lot of bad information being passed out which only makes the problems worse. Here are some of the most common housetraining problem areas: • Puppies usually can't hold it for 8 hours until they are 16 weeks old. With this said, some have problems until they are 6 to 7 months old, some are good at 8 weeks. Usually, dogs on an all-natural diet do better because they poop about 5 times less than commercial kibble eaters. • You have to use a dog crate. If you're not prepared to do this, quit reading and move on because you are wasting your time. You are not going to reinvent the wheel by doing this without a crate. • In the beginning, take your dog out often. The concept is to teach the dog that "if it holds it just a little longer, you are going to take it outside". • It takes a dog about 5 seconds to pee. This translates into a simple rule which is "NEVER TAKE YOUR EYES OFF YOUR DOG - not even for 5 seconds". • Those "pee pads" that pet stores sell are the dumbest idea I have ever heard. They teach dogs to pee and poop in the house. • We don't let our dogs have free time in the house until they are 2 to 3 years old. If a dog has an accident in the house, they go right back to square one and start again. Some dogs cannot be housetrained to the extent that they can be left alone inside the house (out of the crate) when you are gone.