House Training Older Dogs

Some basics you ought to keep in mind when housetraining older dog are:

- Confinement

Any time the dog is in the house, you should keep him confined to avoid any accidents. Confinement is also necessary any time you cannot supervise the dog’s movement, this will prevent the dog from making mistakes in the house that will interfere with the process of house training.

The crate should be comfortable for the do since he will spend a lot of time here before he is properly house trained.

The dog should be placed in the crate when you first begin house training him. Now, the dog may at first not like being in the crate, so he is likely to cry, howl or try to scratch at the bars. Do not let him out. However, you can try to make him comfortable in the crate by placing a blanket in the crate and putting the crate in a room where your dog can see you.

- Be observant

Keep track of the dog when he is not in the crate. At times, your dog may want to go and potty when it is not yet time. In such times, the dog is likely to act in a manner to suggest that he really needs to go out.

- Positive reinforcement

Reward the dog for going outside to potty. Make sure you are there when he goes to eliminates so that you have as many chances as possible to reward him for correct behaviour. If the dog messes up inside, do not punish him.

If you find him in the act, you can take him outside to the correct spot and let him finish eliminating there.

If the dog has relieved him in the house, mop up the mess and clean with substances that will get rid of any odour that might be present. Soak up any urine on carpets by using papers to press on the spot. Then, you may pour some baking soda and leave it overnight and clean up the next day.

Choose a spot where you want the dog to relieve himself. Take the dog to this spot anytime he has to eliminate and do not leave until he has eliminated.

To efficiently housetrain your dog, make a schedule for the dog’s elimination and adhere strictly to this schedule so that it becomes routine for both you and your dog. The number of times the dog is fed will determine how many times he has to go and eliminate.

Before settling in for the night, ensure that you take the dog out to potty. Dogs have better bladder and bowel control than puppies. Although an adult dog needs to eliminate every 5-7hrs, it might not be necessary to wake up in the middle of the night to take the dog out. However, in cases that the dog starts to howl or cry at night, you might have to set your alarm in order to let him out.

Consistency is the key to success in any training program, so make sure that you do not give the dog any mixed signals as this will determine whether you have success or failures in house training an older dog.

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