MARKtoe! JUNIE 2024 - Uitgawe 116 | Page 56

PETS

over several days to his permanent sleeping place .

If you have a calm , tolerant older dog , the puppy can sleep near the other dog from the start .

HOUSE TRAINING

Your new puppy must be taught to go outside to relieve himself . If the puppy was adopted from an animal welfare organization where he was forced to mess in his sleeping place , expect to spend more time on this .

When the puppy wakes up in the morning , take him immediately to a suitable place outside . Stand still without speaking until he has relieved himself . As he prepares to relieve himself , you can use a word of your choice to associate with the process . Reward him when he is done . Until then , do not distract him in any way . Once he is done , take him to his feeding place , give him food , and play with him .

If he hasn ’ t relieved himself , put him back in his sleeping crate for another 15 minutes and repeat the process until he has emptied his bladder and bowels . Do not let him run loose before the process is complete , or he will undoubtedly mess inside .

After this , you can let him loose in a confined area where you can watch him . As soon as he starts sniffing the ground or shows other signs that he wants to relieve himself , take him outside immediately . Take him outside regularly through the day , 15 to 20 minutes after he has eaten or drunk , just after waking from a nap , or if he stops playing

56 MARKtoe ! Junie 2024 and starts sniffing the floor . Reward him when he relieves himself in the right place . If he doesn ’ t relieve himself , place him in his crate for 15 minutes . He should nap in his crate several times during the day . Repeat the process every time he wakes up . If he relieves himself outside , play with him . What you want to achieve is for the puppy to see each trip outside as an opportunity to relieve himself , and when he is inside , not to have the opportunity to make a mistake . Although labour-intensive , this is the quickest way to teach the puppy where to relieve himself .

After a week , most dogs will relieve themselves outside if taken out , but they will sometimes have accidents inside . The routine should be maintained for several months until there are no accidents for several weeks before it becomes established .

Do not get upset or punish the puppy if he relieves himself inside . If you catch him in the act , pick him up and quickly take him outside to finish . If you punish or scare him , he will just hide from you when he wants to relieve himself inside .

Yes , in most cases , it is a long , drawn-out process , but it is much better than having to clean up your dog ’ s messes indoors for his entire life . If you visit someone else with the dog , he will need to go through the process again for a day or two until he learns where the new ‘ toilet ’ is .

A puppy that sleeps quietly and peacefully and does not mess inside too often is just the first step !