Dog Behaviour and Training Advice, Dog Behaviour Articles
Sheila Hocken (Nottingham/ Derby)
Dog Training web site.

( From your dog's perspective)

I have to drag him to the park every day and he gets heavier and heaver.
He shouts and carries on all the time. I am obviously not going quickly enough.
I really don’t think I can keep this up much longer but he must be desperate to get there the way he shouts., sometimes he yells and screams, goodness know what people must think. I feel ashamed to be out with him some times.
He never stops until we get to the park and then he shuts up. He’s as happy as anything round the park so what’s a dog supposed to do, I’ll just have to keep trying to get him there quicker every day.

House Training

Work on the positive side of training by giving a command, I use Busy Dog. You need to repeat this as your dog is actually going to the toilet, so you must go into the garden each time with your dog. then reward immediately with a titbit, in the garden.

After a week or two your dog will start to associate the works and you can show her the titbit and ask her to be a busy dog. Once the dog starts responding to this it becomes much easier.

In the house
Do not put newspaper down in the daytime, only overnight where you are expecting the dog to wait for eight hours or more. If you constantly put newspaper down in the daytime the dog naturally assumes that is where she should go and becomes very confused. If any paper is soiled overnight put this out into the garden where you want her to go, just leave it for half an hour or so.

Take the dog out immediately after meals, when she wakes up, and each hour between. Wait for her to go - no matter how long you need to stay there, or go out on a walk if this helps.

If you see her soil in the house, you can rush her outside, but never scold unless you catch her in the act. Puppies who have been scolded get very confused, they can't understand things in the past, even a few seconds is too late - you will end up with a puppy who is afraid to relieve herself when you are around so she will hide and soil behind chairs in other rooms etc.

At night
To start with put newspaper down at the back door and over the next two to three weeks move this paper as if it is being pulled through the door. As you expose the floor clean it with an odour eliminator. There is a good odour eliminator in biological soap powder. Move the paper gradually until it has gone, if you get the odd accident after this do not worry.

If you experience any difficulty please contact me for further information or to arrange to attend one of my courses.

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