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Should I Use Puppy-Training Pads?

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When you first bring a new puppy home, one of your first responsibilities is to housetrain him. The sooner you begin housetraining, the sooner you can stop worrying about coming home to find a puddle or pile in the middle of the kitchen floor. When it comes to housetraining, there are a variety of methods to choose from, and one of them is puppy-training pads. Before you choose a housetraining method, take the time to learn the basics about each method to decide which is best for you.

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The Details

  • Puppy-training pads are often used by urban pet owners. If you live in city apartment, you may not have access to a great deal of outdoor space, and puppy-training pads may be your best option.
  • You still need to have a schedule. As is true with traditional outdoor housetraining, you need to stick to a schedule, and be consistent about rewarding your puppy for using the pads if he is going to learn.
  • Only use the pads if you can do so correctly. If your puppy has constant access to the pads, he may not understand their purpose. Treat the pads as you would treat a yard (if you had one), and take your puppy to the pad when it is time to go.
  • Choose one method or the other. Do not try to incorporate both indoor and outdoor housetraining at once because it can be confusing for your puppy.

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puppy-training-pads

  • Consistency is important. The key to using puppy-training pads is to teach your puppy that going on the pad is desired, not that going in the house, in general, is desired. To do so, you must consistently reward your puppy for using the pad.
  • Training pads may extend the housetraining process. If you are using training pads as a stepping-stone in housetraining, it may end up prolonging the process by teaching your dog first to go indoors and then to go outdoors.
  • Training pads can be used to transition a dog to outdoor housetraining. If your dog has a particularly difficult time with outdoor housetraining, you may be able to start him with training pads and slowly move the pad closer to the door until he eventually learns to go outside consistently.
  • Older dogs may revert as they age. If your dog is taught to relieve himself inside the house, he may become lazy as he ages, choosing to do his business wherever it is convenient, rather than seeking out the pad.

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  • Training pads can result in confusion. Some dogs may not learn to identify the pad as the sole place where it is acceptable to do his business indoors. Your dog may eventually start going on newspapers or mats, which resemble the size and shape of the training pad.

The Bottom Line

The method of housetraining you use is up to you. Whether you use training pads for your puppy depends on your particular situation and on your specific dog. By taking the time to learn the benefits and drawbacks of this training method first, you can make an informed decision.

Why Is My Dog Suddenly Having Accidents in the House?

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pettrainersnow.com - Why Is My Dog Suddenly Having Accidents in the House?If your dog has already been house trained, it can be very frustrating if he starts to have accidents in the house. When this happens, it is important not to become angry with your dog or to punish him for the behaviour. Rather, try to determine the cause of the behaviour, and deal with it accordingly.

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dog having accidents in house

The Details

  • He may be getting old. Aging is a fact of life, and as your dog gets older, he may not be able to control his bladder as well.
  • He could have a medical condition. Incontinence could by a symptom of a medical problem. If you suspect that your dog may be sick, take him to the vet for a checkup just to be sure.
  • He could be marking his territory. Male dogs are especially prone to this type of behavior ¾ it is called urine marking. It is a behavior meant to deter rival males from entering the property.
  • He is feeling uncertain or stressed. Sudden changes in routine or in the structure of a family can be very stressful for a dog, and it could result in a regression in his housetraining.
pettrainersnow.com - Why Is My Dog Suddenly Having Accidents in the House?
  • He could be overly excited. Sometimes when dogs get overly excited, they may excrete a small amount of urine. This could happen in cases where your dog is very happy or when he is stressed or scared.
  • You may not be letting him out often enough. If your dog starts having accidents in the house, it may not be his fault at all. If you do not give him plenty of opportunities to go outside, particularly after meals, you cannot blame him for having an accident.
  • It could be a side effect of medication. Incontinence is a possible side effect of many medications. If your dog is on medications, check with your vet to see if that could be the cause of the problem.
  • He may not have been properly trained. If your dog wasn’t properly housetrained the first time, he may, at some point, revert back to his previous untrained state and begin soiling the house again.
  • Keep calm; don’t get frustrated. Dogs do not like feeling out-of-control any more than humans do. If your dog suddenly starts having accidents in the house, it may be outside his control, and getting frustrated at him will not solve the issue.
  • Restart the housetraining process. If you are able to determine that your dog’s behavior is not the result of a medical problem or the side effect of medication, you may simply need to retrain him.

 

The Bottom Line

If your dog starts having accidents in the house, it is important that you take the time to determine the cause of the behavior before you react. If you react by punishing your dog, it could result in making the problem worse. Take the time to figure out what is going on, and then determine the proper solution.

 

 

Calling your dog – We teach this basic training behaviour in 10 steps

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pettrainersnow.com - How Do I Teach My Dog to Come?

Teaching your dog the basic commands, such as sit, stay and come, are very important. Your dog needs to have a complete understanding of these commands before he can move on to more complex commands. The following steps will help you teach your dog to respond to the “come” command.

The Details

  • Start indoors. When you are first teaching your dog a new command, it is important to start in a quiet environment away from distractions.
  • Teach your dog to give you his attention. If you are just starting to train your dog, you may need to wave a treat or call his name to get him to give you his attention. Once your dog responds to your voice, you can begin to train him to respond to commands.
  • Choose the right reward. To get your dog to repeat the behavior once he responds appropriately, you need to encourage him with a reward. Small treats work best for the first few repetitions of a new trick; then you may want to move on to physical rewards, such as playtime or a belly rub.
  • Incorporate praise. Praising your dog is another important aspect of training. Your dog naturally seeks your approval, and if you make it obvious that a certain behavior pleases you, your dog is more likely to repeat it.

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Dog BASIC TRAINING BEHAVIOUR

 

  • Choose a hand signal. Many people choose to incorporate the use of hand signals in training their dogs. To use a hand signal, give the hand signal at the same time you give the verbal command.Stand across the room from your dog. To begin teaching the come command, have someone gently hold your dog’s leash as you stand across the room from them.
  • Give the verbal command. Choose a simple word or phrase, such as “come” or “come here,” while giving the accompanying hand signal.
  • Open your arms invitingly. While making eye contact with your dog, open your arms after giving the verbal command to encourage your dog to come to you.
  • Praise and reward your dog. If your dog responds appropriately, immediately praise and reward him, so he connects the reward directly with the behavior.
  • Repeat the training sequence. Repetition is the key to success in training your dog. Once your dog gets the hang of the basic sequence, he will start to automatically respond to the command.

The Bottom Line

pettrainersnow.com - How Do I Teach My Dog to Come?Before you can teach your dog to roll over or play dead, he needs to learn the basics, such as “come.” This command is very simple, and as long as you are consistent in your training methods, your dog is likely to pick it up after just a few repetitions.

Why Isn’t Punishment an Effective Training Method?

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pettrainersnow.com - Why Isn’t Punishment an Effective Training Method?

If you are new to dog ownership and training, you may not realize that there are many different ways of training a dog. If you do a simple online search for dog training methods, you are likely to come up with thousands of results. While there are a number of training methods that are safe and effective, methods involving punishment of the dog are generally not recommended for a variety of reasons.

The Details

  • Punishing your dog could make him fear you. If you punish your dog often, he may become fearful of you, rather than regard you as a companion.
  • Your dog may not associate the punishment with the behavior. Dogs are most likely to learn when the consequence (reward or punishment) immediately follows the behavior. Rubbing your dog’s nose in it when he has an accident in the house is completely ineffective because the punishment often comes long after the behavior was completed.
  • Your dog could become confused or frustrated. Dogs love to please their owners, and if you do nothing but punish your dog, he may become frustrated and could even develop aggressive behaviors.
  • Yelling at a dog will only make the behavior worse. It may be tempting to yell at your dog to get him to stop barking, but this is only likely to rile him up more.

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puishing-dog-accidents-in-house

  • Consistent punishment could cause aggression. The more you punish your dog, the more likely he is to become afraid, and for many dogs, a natural reaction to fear is to become defensive and aggressive.Scolding a dog for natural behavior may cause frustration. Certain behaviors, such as barking, chewing and digging, are completely natural for dogs, so they may not understand if you punish them for these behaviors. Rather, try redirecting your dog’s attention to a more appropriate outlet, such as a chew toy.
  • Punishment can damage your relationship with your dog. To have a healthy relationship with your dog, your dog needs to trust you. If you are constantly punishing your dog, that is not likely to happen.
  • Punishing a dog doesn’t address the cause of the issue. If you repeatedly punish your dog for a certain behavior, he may learn to stop doing it, but those impulses could end up manifesting in another way.
  • Positive reinforcement is much more effective. It is infinitely more effective to teach your dog what kind of behaviors you DO want rather than punishing him for every negative behavior.
  • Punishing a dog could make him nervous. If your dog learns to be fearful and nervous around you due to frequent punishment, he is more likely to feel that way around other people as well.

The Bottom Linepettrainersnow.com - Why Isn’t Punishment an Effective Training Method?

The fact of the matter is that punishment is not an effective training method, and it is certainly not a good way to foster a healthy relationship with your dog. If you want to train your dog properly, look into training methods involving positive reinforcement techniques.

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