If you take your puppy out to go potty, then bring him back into the house and immediately leave for the day, your puppy will quickly learn that going potty is associated with your leaving and being left alone all day. Because of this your puppy will start procrastinating while outside just to keep you around for a while. A way around this is to set time aside to play with him or her once you are back in the house, giving your pup at least 5-10 minutes of play time before you have to leave.
The best and safest way to tether your dog to a door is to slip the leash handle over the doorknob on the other side of the door, drop the leash to the floor, and slip it under the door. Then close the door. Make sure you have a long enough leash so that your dog can get to the items he needs. However you should never use this practice and tether your dog unless you plan to be home and could supervise just in case something happens.
Now your puppy has been in and out of his crate a few times, and now you would like him to sleep there through the night. A good way to do this is to sit the crate on your night stand or a chair close to your bed in a area where he can still see your or you can put your fingers through the crate door. First tire your puppy out by playing with him, make sure he has gone potty and then lure him into the cage with a treat. Go to bed and turn out the lights as usual If the puppy whines, place your fingers in the door of the crate and talk softly to the puppy until he falls asleep. The first night will be the hardest and depending on his age he will only sleep for about 4 hours before he needs to go out to potty again. Make sure you wake up if he starts to whine again and let him out to potty, then promptly bring him back place him back in the crate and tell him to go night night again. If he whines again talk to him softly again until he settles down. He just needs reassurance that you are still close by. Soon he will be use to this routine and once his bladder is larger he will sleep though the night in his crate.
Are you trying to crate train your puppy but he keeps whining? He whines because he would like to be snuggled up to you instead. If you let your puppy sleep on your bed or couch when you first got him it may be harder to crate train him. If you are just about to get a puppy and want to crate train here’s what you can do. First when you get him from the breeder find out if he had a certain blanket he slept on and if you can have it. If so you can put it in the crate so that he will have a familiar smell and feel safe. Okay no blanket that’s okay. Just try to make the crate as comfortable as possible so he will feel at home. Get a small treat and allow the puppy to sniff it and then place the treat in the crate so that the puppy will want to follow the treat. Do not close the door, let him come in and out as much as he wants. Repeat this several times. Think of a phrase you want to use for him to know it is time to go into the crate and use it each time. When you think that he is comfortable next it is time to try closing the door for a while. Place a new toy in there so he will have something new to spark his interest. After you close the door sit on the floor in front of the crate and keep visible so that he knows that you are still there. You can also put your fingers though the crate so that he can lick them and feel your touch. After 5-10 minutes he should stop whining and calm down enough to settle down and possibly go to sleep.
It’s hard for a child under lets say 10, not to understand that you can not use certain tones with puppies when you are trying to train them. You may end up feeling like you are training both the puppy and your child. Kids have a way of using a very high-pitched tone and the words they use are not always pronounced properly. The best way to handle this is to over-enunciate all of your words in front of your child so that he or see can see how it is done. Once they see what you are doing and how your puppy reacts they will want to follow your lead.
Does your pup bark at everything? If the answer is yes. To your puppy this means great things. Because more than likely whatever they are barking at goes away and they feel like they are in charge. Puppies who bark at everything perceives themselves as the boss and not you. They feel as the boss they must guard their territory. You must stop this right away, make sure your puppy knows your the boss and stop the barking That does not mean yelling at your puppy, it means teaching them the appropriate times when to bark. Anytime you hear your puppy starting to bark say Shhht (make sure you emphasis the “T”). Then use a treat to lure him or her back to your side. If your puppy ignores you, place his leash on him and drag him over so that you can gain control.
1) Call for your dog in a real nice sweet voice, but then when he comes to you, you punish him for something he did a while ago.
2) Not stick to your training schedule for your dog. A couple of days your follow a schedule with your training. Your faithful with your training, then the next day there is something on TV so you skip training all together. Then days go by and finally you find some time and you don’t understand why he is not progressing.
3) You don’t give attention to your dog’s emotions. Okay here is an example your back on track and starting to train your puppy. You notice that he is yawning and it could be around his naptime but you ignore this and just keep on training anyway. Then you get frustrated and mad because he is not responding on the training. You need to stop and think that since he is tired he can’t concentrate and all he really wants to do is take a nap. Let him take a nap and then try again, I’m sure it will work out much better.
Do you hate when you go to a friends or family’s house and they have a dog that is roaming around the dinner table? Do you wish that they would take the dog to another area so you can eat in peace and not have the family dog begging you for food? Okay so it may not bother you if your dog does that to you, but it could bother your guest. So the best way to avoid this is to teach your puppy how to “Settle Down” This could be when you send your puppy to his special area in the room. This is his own space where he feels safe and secure. This area should have a bed and toys for him. Ideally you want to be able to send him to his area on command. So your question in your mind now is how right?
1) With your puppy on a leash say “Settle Down” and point to the area with your free hand.
2) Walk your puppy over to the area (If he is unsure stay with him over there for a few moments, once he starts to play with toys or curls up on his bed you can leave).
3) Repeat this step several times. Depending on the age of your puppy it may take a while for him to get it. Usually older than 12 weeks of age works best for this step.
Is your puppy getting in the way when you walk? Does he keep moving to the wrong side when you walk him on the leash? Did you know that blocking you is his way of getting your attention? It can be cute at first, but it could be hazardous too. What if you trip on him or step on him, you would feel terrible and he could be hurt. So what you need to do is teach him what “Excuse Me” means. So when ever your puppy trips you or gets in your way say “Excuse Me” and move him out of your way with a little shuffling of your feet under his body. Remember don’t yell this or it will frighten him and you can’t train him that way. If you use your hands he will think that it’s play- time. Once you get him moved over don’t forget to praise him. Soon you will see that little face looking up at you with his tail wagging.
Is your puppy going to be around little kids? If so you need to teach him how to handle their touching and pulling. The best way is for you to act like a child and gently pull on his coat, make loud sharp sudden noises and sudden movements. At the same time make sure you handle your puppy frequently, touch his paws, ears, belly and tail as if you were grooming him. Keep in mind that little kids are curious and want to explore this fur ball, so make sure he can handle it. Praise your puppy and give him treats during this time.
