See I kept my promise about posting at least once every week or so. ANYWAY. I've got a lot of catching up to do.
Since the last
time I talked about my life, I've gotten to two different schools,
since I switched schools when joining a gifted program, and then
switched again to go to the school that program feeds into. I've met
lots of new people, and gotten to see people from years past once
again.
NOW, the reason I'm telling you
this with very little of my usual humor, is because this the basis of
what I will be talking about in future posts.
THIS post
however, is NOT talking about my school at all but rather
the troubles I've had in these past two months with our new dog.
We currently have two dogs now, Dexter and Cinnamon. Dexter is a 9 pound chihuahua, jack russel, and italian greyhound mix. Our other dog Cinnamon, is a 50 pound, border collie and possibly boxer mix. (A fairly odd bunch, I know)
(click to enlarge)Dexter (left) and Cinnamon (right)
Our
new dog Dexter. He's cute, loyal, sweet, small for a change, playful,
and doesn't bark. What could be the problem? That's what we though when
we picked him up from the animal shelter on June 2.
After bringing Dexter into our car, he stood up on the arm rest to see
out the window. When we got home, he played with our other dog's rope
quite a bit, jumped on couches, cuddled with us, posed for pictures
etc. But something else happened. He went in the house.
"POOP!" I remember saying, since I it came to mind and didn't want to cuss.
After Dexter went several more times in the house, including IN MY BED, (so if you or someone else complains because their dog gets hair in their bed, tell them to SUCK IT UP. .....I've dealt with much worse -_-) I didn't know what to do. So, I turned to the internet.
And THAT is why I'm writing this article. To explain how greedy people are (and how stupid others are) about giving real solutions to potty training dogs.
The biggest reason dogs are given away is because of potty training issues, and still, people have offered no FREE solutions to potty training. (and yes there are solutions!)
Let me give you an example.
When you search on Google: "potty training your dog" the first result (or the first result for ME, although google customizes your results based on the searches you perform.) almost doesn't help whatsoever. As I said before, Dexter, as well as our other dog, is from a SHELTER that finds STRAY dogs, and puts them up for adoption. Here's the first tip on how to potty train your dog on that page: buy a puppy from a responsible breeder who has already started potty training." When I read that, my jaw dropped. ARE YOU KIDDING ME? I mean that's so low for a tip I don't even know what punctuation I should use after that. Like should I use the .......... to show it's pathetic, or the ?????? because it is so stupid or should I just say, "I'm gonna #(
&@&!: that TIP! Yeah that gets out my anger a little more, but feel free to leave me a comment on which one you like best. Wait a minute...what the hell? How did smiley faces get in that??? Stupid hotkeys....
I will admit, there are a FEW decent tips on the website such as: take your dog out after they eat, take away water two hours before bed. But most are like the breeding one or things like: go to bed and get up at the same time. That does nothing, and doesn't help dogs get used to them possibly having to hold it
a shorter or longer time.Then when you have the smart people, most of the are like "Buy my book for only three payments of 39.95 (or whatever the cost is, It's not that high usually that's true) to find out the secrets of potty training your dog. But remember, this is the only way, since I TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE FACT THAT NO GOOD FACTS ABOUT POTTY TRAINING ARE ON THE INTERNET. I mean, they may as well say, "Hi, most dogs are given away because of potty training issues and then are usually youthenized later, but since im such a dick, I'm going to CHARGE you to get any REAL facts about potty training dogs. But oh ya i love dogs for sure."
Really and truely, these people need to get a grip, and realize that if you really care about people or dogs, you would make information free. That's what I'm going to do here.
I want you to know I'm NOT saying that all trainers should write a book or do everything for free, since obviously they need to make a living. And yes, writers need to make a living too, but if you really do know how to potty train dogs, your able to make a website (since most people use a website to ADVERTISE their book) and you are a good writer, don't write an expensive BOOK. Write a free ARTICLE on a BLOG, and write your BOOK about something that's not a necessity for dogs, like tricks, or advanced commands.
Now for the tips. I found this out from trying out things in my own experience, two professional trainer's help, the few facts I could scrape from the internet, and a few suggestions from friends.
GOOD tip #1: Monitor your dog constantly, and if you can't tie a leash to him and tuch it through your belt loop. This is a technique called tethering.
Good tip #2: Use a dog belly band. Yes a belly band. It is like a diaper, and dogs hate to have their waste being rubbed against them for two hours. So, put a belly band on them when their inside, and take it off when they wish to go otuside. Once you have this, and your dog hasn't gone for about a week in a half, you can be a LITTLE bit leaner on watching him. A LITTLE TINY TEENSY TEENSY BIT. I mean like, you don't need to tether him ALL THE TIME, just most of the time.
Tip #3: If you can, crate your dog at night. (crates can be expensive
however, so if you can't buy one, make sure that you have an isolated
area for your dog) Yes I said it, the dreaded word, crate. But don't
fret. Let me explain. Dogs are denning animals. They like to be in
spaces like crates. And when your potty training a dog, you don't want
them running around the house, well..pottying. Dogs don't like to soil
their sleeping areas. But, another thing you might not like. You can't
get a lavish mansion crate for your dog. Your dog shouldn't be able to
walk all around the crate. He should be able to stand, lay, etc. If
your dog has too much room, they will potty in one area and sleep in
another. Depending on the age of your dog, take your dog out after so
many hours of sleeping to go potty. If your dog whimpers in the middle
of the night or early morning, it usually means he has to go potty.
Also, when first putting your dog in the crate, your dog may get a
little nervous, not knowing what it is, and may whimper. . You can't
give in. The dog's need to be confined to an area, and they need to
know they can't potty in the house. Crates help with that, and since
dogs are denning animals, after a couple days, they will like their
crate. The first day however out of confusion, they may potty in the
crate. But, once your dog hasn't gone in the crate in a couple of days,
you can put a cushion pillow or blanket in the crate. It's also a good
idea to from the start, put something, anything, with your scent, along
with a towel, to help cushion them from the beggining. (Yes the towel
may have your scent, and if that's the case that will work, but if your
dog hasn't gone potty in it, it doesn't hurt to slide a quiet toy in
there or something as wel.
Tip #4: Make sure to use a word every time you want your dog to go potty, and
it's better if you have grass rather than rocks, because dogs prefer to
do their business in grass, however rocks will work, as long as they
get used to going in them. If you're dog doesn't go potty after you've
used the word a couple times in the past, and you've said the word once
kindly, and then firmly, take him inside and put him in his crate for
5-15 minutes. Take him back outside as soon as you let him out. Repeat
this process up to three times. If the dog still doesn't go, just go
in. Once the dog goes potty, is praised, and doesn't have to go in the
crate, they will realize what you want them to do, and what that word
means.
BEST tip #4: Don't try this unless your dog hasn't pottied in the last 40 inutes to hour in a half, (depending on the age). Also, do this after you've had the belly band on for a couple days. In the meantime, take your dog outside every hour in a half or less if your dog is a very young puppy. Make sure to use a word every time you want your dog to go potty, and
it's better if you have grass rather than rocks, because dogs prefer to
do their business in grass, however rocks will work, as long as they
get used to going in them. If you're dog doesn't go potty after you've
used the word a couple times in the past, and you've said the word once
kindly, and then firmly, take him inside and put him in his crate for
5-15 minutes. Take him back outside as soon as you let him out. Repeat
this process up to three times. If the dog still doesn't go, just go
in. Once the dog goes potty, is praised, and doesn't have to go in the
crate, they will realize what you want them to do, and what that word
means. One of the hardest things about potty training and you may not know it, is your dog getting you to know he needs to go potty. Even if they know they aren't supposed to go in the house, if they can't find a way to get outside, they will go in the house anyway. The solution? If you don't get a dog door, the solution is as simple as a windchime.
Get a bell or a windchime and put it on your door to the backyard, front yard, or wherever your dog goes to go potty. If your dog is to short to be able to EASILY reach it with their nose, (if they have to jump, they may get annoyed and give up on it) get yarn, string rope, or anything else that can help make it the right height for your dog. Crumplle up about three dog treats into a bunch of tiny peices, so they are ready to go for the steps to come. Put a dab of peanut butter or cream cheese on your finger. Let your dog lick it. Then put some peanut butter or cream cheese on the bell or wind chime. When your dog licks the bell/windchime, open the door, and throw the treat outside. When your dog goes outside to get it, tell him in your happy voice, "Good Job!" or something similar. Even if you use a happy tone, if every time you get mad you say omg, and your so amazed that they are going outside you want to say omg, don't, beacuse if you got mad at your dog enough (which hopefully you didn't but still), your dog may recognize the word, and might think they did something wrong. So use a word that is often used to mean something GOOD. Repeat this process of every time they lick the bell you throw a treat out about twenty times. If they don't want to come in, show them a treat while you're inside to entice them. After doing it 15-20 times, (it seems like a lot but it's not hard at all) the next time he licks the bell, open the door throw the treat outside, go outside with the dog, close the door and use whatever the word is you use when you want the dog to potty. It might be "potty". That's fine. The simpler the better. Again, if your dog doesn't go potty, put him in his crate for 5-15 minutes. And if he hasn't after three times, try again later. If your dog does go potty, praise hi like it's the best thing in the world. Practice this bell technique every time your dog needs to go potty. To keep your dog from continually licking the bell, once your done practicing, take the bell or chime away for at least ten minues, and wash it off. Then put it back on. If the dog rings it, be dilligent, and put him outside. Even if it's just for 30 seconds, they need to know what the bell is for.
Tip #5: Develop yourself as the pack leader. Although I'm not fond of some of Ceaser Millan's methods of scaring and forcing dogs to do things, he does have a point. If your dog humps you, make sure they know it's not okay. Take them off, tell them no, and kiss their nose, as that is a sign of dominance. When going on walks, make sure you don't let your dog pull you. Let them sniff however. Show them you have treats to give them, and if they stay by you, even if it's just because they're staring at the treats, give them a treat now and then. Teach your dog basic commands such as sit, lay, and come. Stay is a bit harder, but do try it.
I will explain how to do these tricks in the next blog post, or in a couple of posts, so stay tuned.
Tip #6: Don't make them thing pottying in the house is acceptable. If they go in the house, don't rub their nose in it, or hit them, but if you catch them in the act, say NO, and put them outside. If you've caught them in the act several times, and introduced the bells and they go, if you don't catch them in the act, take them to the mess spot, point their head to it, and say in your firm disappointed tone, NO. Don't do that. Then put them outside for a bit, and spray the area they went with perfume or bitter apple. DO NOT SPRAY THEM WITH PERFUME OR BITTER APPLE!!
If you have a belly band however, you shouldn't have to worry about mess spots in the house. If that's the case, show them the belly band, say No, and put them outside.
Other Tip #6: When training your dog to do anything, don't repeat a word over
and over. Don't even use a word when first training the dog but rather
only a hand signal. Then incorporate the word to accompany it. If you
constantly repeat the word over and over and then your dog does it, and
you reward your dog, you could be teaching your dog to do the command
only after you've said the word ten times, or however many times.
Tip #7: Be careful about smiling. Occasionally, vicious dogs will take smiling as bearing your teeth, so be careful. If you have a nice dog, you shouldn't need to worry, because they will soon understand that it's not a bad things, even if at first they don't understand why you're doing it.
Thank you for reading, and good luck training future dogs!
Be sure to leave me feedback about my tips!
Also, I wanted to include a section for program reviews, and a section for articles on my website. If anyone has suggestions about how I should include these (such as through one blog, or two seperate blogs, or two seperate pages, or on the homepage, or as part of a page, etc) I would greatly appreciate it.
