Canine Life and Social Skills is starting to take off.  It’s a new three part program from the APDT, which far exceeds most I’ve ever seen.  It has obedience, manners, and real life training such as waiting to get out of your car.  The objectives are to promote positive training methodology, strengthen the dog & owner relationship, encourage ongoing training, value real life skills, educate about dog behavior, and to promote the value of dog trainers & dog training.

C.L.A.S.S., through its evaluation, curriculum, and training resources, advocates the use of reward-based training. Positive, reward-based training minimizes the use of punishment and is fun for you and your dog! C.L.A.S.S. promotes relationship-based training, training in which the communication is two-way and the mutual trust is strong. It is training that is instructive, telling the dog, without anger or force, what we would like the dog to do.

There is also a shelter program that hopes to increase adoptions and decrease owner surrenders through this training program.

One of the goals of the C.L.A.S.S. program was to develop an assessment that is particularly beneficial to the needs of shelter dogs. To this end, any municipal shelter or registered 501(c)(3) shelter or rescue group may register their shelter for free and all dogs in your care may be tested in the program with fees waived. If you have a staff person who will be doing C.L.A.S.S. evaluations only on shelter dogs up for adoption, their evaluator registration fee is reduced from $40 to $25.

Once a dog has passed the initial B.A. level of the C.L.A.S.S. program, they may be listed on the C.L.A.S.S. web site in our “C.L.A.S.S. Dogs for Adoption” section.

I suppose what I’m most excited about is this isn’t just another obedience class.  Far too often I hear “my dog needs obedience training” when the client really needs a manners or reactivity  issue solved.  And quite honestly I’ve *never* seen a dog lose his home because, “well… Fido just wouldn’t heel straight” or “Sparky didn’t have a fast down” or even “Fluffy only preformed ‘sit’ when I held a treat.”  The main reason dogs under three years old are euthanized is because of behavior problems. And these “behavior problems” do not mean he wasn’t the rock star at obedience tasks. These behavior problems are usually no manners, anxiety, fear, or aggression.  (Miller DM, Stats SR, Partlo BS, et al. Factors associated with the decision to surrender a pet to an animal shelter. J Am Vet Med Assoc 1996;209:738- 742)  I’ve seen a lot of anxiety & reactivity cases where earlier training might have completely prevented it.  It’s a shame really, people don’t seem to realize the value and importance of good behavior training until there is a serious problem.  Which brings me back to the C.L.A.S.S. program.  Take a look at the three progressive levels.

The BA level:

• Wait at the door
• Come & getting leashed up
• Loose leash walking and attention
• Meet & greet
• Leave it
• Wait for food bowl
• Stay
• Settle
• Give & take
• Bonus, trick (roll over, spin, fetch, speak, or paw)

The MA level:

• Wait in the car
• Pass by other dogs
• Wait at the door
• Come & leashing up
• Sit, Down, & Stand
• Handling
• Loose leash walking & leave it
• Stay
• Bonus, targeting
• Bonus, trick

The PhD level:

• Loose leash walking
• Back up
• Stay
• Come & leashing up
• Meet & greet
• Attention
• Table manners
• Do you really know sit?
• Bonus, extra “Do you really know sit?”
• Bonus, targeting unfamiliar person

I personally like the “do you really know sit?” part because it promotes generalization of behaviors.  All too often we only practice training with our dogs in front of us in the kitchen holding a treat.  Then we go on vacation, visit a friend, or take a trip to the vet and the dog has no clue what sit means in those different situations and environments.  An over simplification of generalization is, it’s training for real life in various places.  Here are the possible variations to choose from:  1. Student sitting on hands in a chair 2. Student with back to the dog 3. Student with hands on head 4. Student walking around 5. Student standing 10 feet away 6. Student clapping hands 7. Student shaking hands with another person 8. Student with hand in front of their mouth 9. Student sitting on ground 10. Student bending at waist toward toes 11. Sit on recall (student has dog wait while student walks 35 feet away; student calls dog to come and when dog is halfway to student, student cues sit) 12. Student standing on a chair 13. Student holding one knee to chest 14. Student hopping on one foot 15. Student swinging arms 16. Student lying on the ground 17. Student jogging in place 18. Student doing jumping jacks 19. Student doing squats 20. Student doing leg lunges 21. Student doing push ups 22. Student doing sit ups 23. Student standing on hands 24. Student doing calf raises 25. Student doing a back bend

If you’d like more information you can download their student handbook HERE.

But seriously, I hear it all the time.  “Well I told him NO.”  How much info is in “NO” anyway?  Is there anything at all, even remotely, driving your dog into the direction of behavior you want?  Why so anti-yes?  Why not tell the dog what to do instead?

It really is a choice.  Saying, “NO” to temporarily stop a behavior with little to no learning, or telling the dog to do something he knows and reinforcing that behavior instead.  One way (if done over and over again, over time) will damage the relationship between man and his best friend.  The other will strengthen the relationship.   Personally, I’d rather not have a dog who wants to take his ball and go find a new home.

Here’s an example.  If there’s a smelly sock on the floor, and your dog is about to investigate it, you could say, “NO.”  However, you could also say: leave it, sit, down, come, roll over, give me a paw, target, where’s your ball, want to go for a walk, let’s go bye-bye in the car, back up, spin, watch me, sit pretty, bow, heel……   and on and on.  (As well as pick up your freakin socks).  So, I suppose the sarcastic “down side” is the dog in question actually has to know a few behaviors first.  It’s not cool to spout out, “finish” if you’ve never taught it.  However, personally I think saying, “NO” is just as much as a “read my mind and what I want” as well.

Just say, “NO” to being anti-yes!  Don’t tell your dog to “don’t.”

Most people think of reinforcers as having varying importance, “puppy price tags,” or value – in a pyramid style diagram.  It honestly reminds me of those old food pyramids trying to diagram what is the most important food to eat.  For example, food treats might be at the top level, then the next level is favorite toys, then the next level is a good belly rub, etc.  This thinking can get you into trouble, quickly.  There is no such thing as a set in stone value system your dog will always want.  And even if there were, and you used the cream of the crop all the time, it will actually kill the value of it.  It’s not special if it’s used all the time.  A better mindset is to think of reinforcers in a pizza diagram.  Each random slice is a different reinforcer you pull out at will.  Honestly, in a sense reinforcers are all equal, because they are desired at different times, in different situations, by different dogs, in different environments.  The kicker is they are not all equal at the same time, in the same situation, with all dogs, in all environments.  For example: A hungry dog would probably want food treats more than a dog who just ate and is full.  A dog who has “the crazies” probably wants to play more than anything.  A dog who bolted out the door and went for a five mile run probably doesn’t want a five mile walk when their caught.  Etc.  I know dogs who are exceptionally needy and need a lot of attention and petting.  But when the neighbor’s dog is out, he could give a rat’s rump about belly rubs.  People are the same way.  If you love pizza because it’s your favorite food, and you eat it for a week straight you probably would want a break from it.  Now I know there’s a select few of you reading this that are the exception, however, after a while even you would grow tired of pizza.  And then there’s the potential, if after you’re tired of pizza, but it’s still being introduced, it can actually create a bad association with it.  Ever hear a great song on the radio?  Ever hear it so much by being over played that the song gets killed?  Before long you’re actually changing the station when it comes on.  That’s my point.  Reinforcers need to be random.

The other kicker is reinforcers don’t have to be something tangible you give the dog.  It can be letting the dog do something he wants to do.  Such examples would be after your dog comes back to you at the dog park, you send him back out to play more, or let him chase the squirrel.  My parent’s dog loves to lick.  The joke is “Cassie can’t hold her licker.”  And one way to get her barking under control was to reinforce her by letting her lick you.  (Technically, for all you behavior dorks, that’s also an incompatible behavior.)  At first she had to sit, then I would let her lick me, and I’d pay some attention to her, but really, she just wanted to just lick my hands while I pet her.  I have also reinforced Cassie for being quiet by letting her bark.  Sounds counter productive, but this technique works when used properly.  (For my behavior dork friends, it’s the Premack Principle).  [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_sXxtdPOC3A[/youtube]

So remember, anything that increases behavior is reinforcing!  Make life interesting and change up the goods.  Be creative and observant to see what your dog likes, when your dog likes it, and use that to get behavior you want!  Stay tuned for Reinforcement Understood Part Two next week!

Ever notice how dogs work odd hours? They sit at 10pm, or fetch the paper at 6am. And when you have a dog who works for rewards (any kind: food, petting, a favorite toy, etc) they don’t mind working for us randomly at any hour of the day. Now, can you imagine your boss doing that to you? I’d think you’d have to really like your boss, or the pay is just that good.

Just food for thought on this Monday. That dogs probably have ten Mondays each week.

I’m not saying “ignore the dog” is bad advice.  It’s actually just fine advice.  My concern is that it’s not done right.  Part of the problem is the “ignore” isn’t clearly defined.  When you ignore a dog, you’re trying to not offer any reinforcement at all.  You’re withholding attention.

And I still see people look right at their pet, say a quick “no,” push them away, etc, etc, etc…  The key is to pretend your dog doesn’t even exist.  You can’t see him, hear him, feel him, or even notice he is in the same room no matter what he’s doing! It only takes one little eye contact for the dog to learn he’s getting somewhere.  And the second the dog is given eye contact (or whatever else that tells him you notice he’s there), he’s rewarded.  So think about it.  If you have a dog who’s barking, and you “ignore him.”  He keeps barking, and barking, maybe gets a little louder, or barks with more gusto, or just barks more BPM (barks per minute), and THEN we reward him.  Oops.  Now we’ve created a behavior of barking with duration that will increase in intensity.

What happens is now the dog has learned to just give it his all, and bark like he’s never barked before for two minutes straight.  For some reason I always think of a small child tugging on his mom’s shirt saying, “Mom. Mom. Mom. Mom.Mom. Mom. Mom. Mom. Mom. Mom. Mom. Mom.Mom. Mom.Mom. Mom! Mom! Mom! Mom!” until the mom turns around and says, “WHAT?!?!!”  Which has now taught the kid this works.

If part of the behavior plan is going to be “ignore the dog” you need to make sure that no reinforcement happens at all.  The other part to this training (which is unfortunately often left out), is you need to reward what you want the dog to do! Trust me when I say dogs are smart and will figure out exactly what works to get what they want.  And it might just be another obnoxious behavior.  Dogs aren’t given Human Handbooks, just like when you have a baby they don’t come with manuals either.  Just remember, the outcome isn’t changing.  The reward isn’t different.  The way the dog gets what he wants is.  So if your dog is barking at you for attention, you’re not changing the reward.  Think of it more like taking the desired outcome the dog wants and putting it on hold.  You don’t want to just withhold attention until the end of time, or think giving him a completely different reward will work.  That’s nonsense.  (And can actually cause a doggie road rage frustration.  It’s like, if I’m hungry I want food, not a hug – if I’m sad I want a hug, not food, etc.)  The whole reason the dog will be motivated to change his behavior is to get the desired outcome he’s been striving for in the first place, so you don’t change that.  Instead you would give him attention by doing a different behavior.  And in order for the dog to learn this quickly, you have to heavily reward a desired behavior, like sit for example.  So only when the dog sits he gets attention.  You have to be really black & white about it.  No grey area.  It’s vital to remember to reinforce the desired behavior.  Otherwise we’re basically taking away the car keys without any information on how to earn them back.  A trick before doing this is to have about a week of heavily rewarding for sit (or whatever behavior you want to replace the no-no bad behavior with), because then the dog will likely try this behavior first when he learns what he was doing (barking) just doesn’t work anymore.

The light bulb moment goes something like this:

• I want attention!  I’m going to bark.
• Hum… maybe I’m not barking enough! (ie: an extinction burst, which is where we usually fail at the ignoring part and say, “WHAT?!?!!!”)
• Gee… this worked before, now I’m confused.
• I think I’ll try sit.  That was just working a few days ago for other stuff.  Might work for this too.
• <dog sits> (AND WE NOTICE & REWARD)

Believe it or not, sometimes we human beings are so focused on the part we can’t stand that drives us crazy we forget to notice the behavior we actually want.  Sort of like when a puppy chews on his toys we don’t do anything.  But when he has our $500 cell phone, we dish out all kinds of attention & sometimes even teach a fantastic catch me if you can game.  So, make sure you pay attention and teach your dog what does work.  That’s the way to replace behavior.

Hello: This is the Magic Wand Dog Training Center, we are unable to come to the phone but please press or enter the number for your request, we will return your call as soon as possible.

Press 01 to tell me your dog has been asked to leave the local obedience club because he won’t sit, wait, down or come when called (even when on lead) so you thought you would try agility.

Press 02 if your Labrador is morbidly obese and you thought you would try agility.

Press 03 if you want 30 minutes of advice and have no intention of paying for it.

Press 04 if you describe your dog as ‘a little bit naughty’ when what you really mean is that the b*st*rd bites … hard.

Press 05 if you want puppy training classes but your Boxer is already 12 months old.

Press 06 if you believe that just by turning up to one puppy training class and doing no work whatsoever at home, your puppy will grow up to be a well adjusted companion.

Press 07 if your nervous, aggressive GSD has bitten and hospitalized Aunt Maude, the vet, and your child and you want me to re-home it.

Press 08 if you have three children under school age, an invalid parent living at your home, a partner who works away, are pregnant with twins and want your 8 month old Dalmatian that never gets a walk to stop chewing every thing in sight.

Press 09 if you want to tell me my advice has not worked even though you have not tried it yet.

Press 10 if you want to be dog trainer and behaviorist because you like animals better than people.

Press 11 if you are 15 years old and want to do work experience with me but would faint if I asked you to pick up dog poop.

Press 12 if your dog is aggressive with other dogs but you want to join one of my groups because it will be nice for him to have some friends.

Press 13 if you cannot afford my private rates and want a discount because you only have one BMW.

Press 14 if you are cancelling your lesson that is due to start in 30 minutes and have no intention of paying the cancellation fee.

Press 15 if you do not believe in rewarding a dog and know that clicker training does not work because your friend Beryl said so.

Press 16 if you think your dog knows he has done wrong when you tell him off and that he obeys you because he respects you and acknowledges you are a superior being.

Press 17 if you want me to wave my magic wand over your contacts/weaves/start line waits in just one session and will then tell me it did not work when you go to a show just two days later with no training in the meantime.

Press 18 if you have eleven Jack Russell bitches in a small flat and you want me to teach them not to fight each other.

Press 19 if you already know everything about your breed because this is the fourth one you have had and I cannot tell you anything new.

Press 20 if you want me to pick up your dear departed dog’s ashes from the vets and keep them at my house because you are too upset to have them in your home (true!).

Press 21 if you could not use a Gentle Leader, indoor crate, or harness because they are cruel.

Press 22 if you will not put a muzzle on your deadly aggressive dog because you do not want people to think he is nasty.

Press 23 if you want to leave an increasingly angry message for the third time this week demanding an urgent call back and yet again forget to give your name or number.

Press 24 if, having ascertained I am out, you wish ask my engineer husband for behavioral advice about your pet.

Press 25 if you wish to fill up my answering machine tape with an incoherent rambling message.

Press 26 if want your intact male adolescent dog to spend its days lying patiently on your front step on your unfenced property because dogs shouldn’t want to run away, should they.

Press 27 if you want me to teach your untrained border collie to play with sheep because you think he will like it.

Press 28 if your dog thinks its name is “NO”.

Press 29 if it is before 8am or after 10pm and you want to ask how to stop your 13 week old puppy from biting your 5, 7 and 9 year old boys when they play fight with it.

Press 30 if you have taken trouble to socialize and train your pet and want to make an appointment to learn even more fun stuff. No need to hold, I’ll put you right through!

Dogs don’t go out of their way to please us.  Dogs go out of their way to get something they want or avoid something they don’t want. So ask yourself, what happens to the dog?  What happens when you say “Come?”  Does he go into a crate for 8 hours?  Get a bath?  Leave the dog park?  Now think about what happens when we say “Sit?”  Does he get a treat?  Get a tummy rub?  Get his leash on and go for a walk?  Get dinner?  For whatever reason, most people reward sit, AND use random rewards (aka, make rewards interesting by changing them up), BUT for whatever reason, most people  don’t randomly reward other behaviors the same way. This makes sit a super strong behavior with little chance for extinction, while everything else is “meeh.”

Me? Sure I want a dog who “wants to work for me.”  I want a dog who is “on the payroll” with random rewards.  I want a dog who can’t wait for me to give the next cue so he can comply as fast as possible.  And this is done through positive training and practice to make your dog a gambler, to see what the next goodie is in store for him.

So put your dog on the payroll.  He doesn’t have to work full time, but should at least have a part time gig.  That’s how you get a dog who “wants to please you.”  When you think about it, he’s only working to get something to please himself, by doing things that we want. But hey, we’re no different! And I for one, would like a dog who doesn’t want to call out for a personal day.

Here is a list of things to socialize your puppy around.  Remember, socialization is expo­sure with pleas­ant con­se­quences to teach accep­tance of new experiences. Common sense goes a long way when socializing a puppy.  If your puppy seems hesitant, go slower, let the puppy approach the person (not vice-versa), use rewards like food, praise and petting when the puppy does investigate something he was unsure of, and never force a puppy (this only creates fear issues later).

• Ten different healthy, happy small dogs
• Ten different healthy, happy big dogs
• Ten different calm, well behaved, gentle children
• Ten different calm, well behaved, gentle teenagers
• Thirty different calm, well behaved, gentle adults
• Ten tall people
• Ten average height people
• Ten short people
• Ten people wearing glasses
• Ten people wearing hats or hoods
• Fifty different sounds
• Five things red
• Five things blue
• Five things orange
• Five things green
• Five things purple
• Five things yellow
• One body of water, river, stream, or pool
• Ten different vehicles
• Ten things that are not in your house
• Fifteen things you can only find outside
• Twenty different ring tones
• Five different surfaces (sand, grass, concrete, etc)
• Five shiny things
• Twenty different dog toys
• One fence
• Five street signs
• One crate or dog bed
• Touch each paw twice a day for one week
• Twenty other people to touch or pet the puppy
• Twenty other people to give the puppy a treat
• See, be near, or interact with supervision, three other animals (cat, horse, etc)
• Sniff on a walk at least five times, for at least ten walks
• Respond to at least one easy cue (sit, target, paw, etc) in ten different situations (you’re sitting, standing, laying in bed, mowing the grass, carrying in the groceries, etc), in at least three different environments (outside, at your friend’s house, etc)
• Eat a treat in twenty different environments (your house, outside, the vet’s, a friend’s house, on a walk, in the car, etc)

.

Related Posts:

http://sitstayandplay.com/dogblog/socialization-skills

http://www.petexpertise.com/puppy-socialization-by-jules-nye.html?utm_source=streamsend&utm_medium=email&utm_content=6704741&utm_campaign=Stop%20Door%20Barking%2C%20Help%20a%20Dog%20Recover%2C%20Contest%20%26%20More%20-%20Pet%20Expertise%20October%20Article%20Newsletter

Common human mistake: The dog is getting into the trash, or chewing on the $90 pair of shoes.  The owner gets mad and calls the dog over to yell at him.

Dog’s reaction: “It’s not fun to come when called.  I’ll do it this time because I’m scared when you get mad.  I slink over to you, with what you mistake as guilt, but what is really submission.  I don’t understand you are trying to punish me for a behavior that happened somewhere else, and probably about 2 minutes before I got over to you.”

Reality: The dog will think he is being yelled at for coming when called.  This is in no way fun for the dog.  Next time the dog will avoid the recall to avoid the yelling.

How to avoid this situation: Don’t let the dog have access to “no-no’s.”  Have a trash can with a lid, and put the shoes in a closet.  Teach the dog basic obedience like “leave it” and “drop it.”  Talk to a qualified trainer about house destruction.  Never call the dog over to punish him.

Common human mistake: A dog has run away from his owner outside and takes his time coming back.  The owner becomes angry that first the dog got away, and second that the dog didn’t respond to the first “come” command.  The owner begins to chase the dog.

Dog’s reaction: “Wow, it’s fun to run around outside.  Is that a squirrel?  I need exercise.  Look, there’s my owner.  Oh, fun, he wants to chase me!  I can out-run him!”

Reality: Chasing a dog only makes the dog run away faster.  Dogs usually love the chase game, and this will teach the dog to run away.

How to avoid this situation: Make sure the dog is reliable with his obedience in a distracting situation, like the great outdoors.  If the dog has never practiced his obedience around distractions, it’s really not fair to think the dog should or would respond in this environment.  Also, instead of chasing the dog, some dogs will gladly chase their human.  Try and run in the other direction.  The ideal solution is to make sure the dog doesn’t have the opportunity to get away outside.  Teach the dog to wait at doorways, and teach proper leash manners.

Common human mistake: While playing in the dog park the dog is called to “come.”  The dog does respond to the command, but not with enthusiasm.  The owner then leaves the dog park, or crates the dog for the day.

Dog’s reaction: “I understand what ‘come’ means.  Sometimes I even get treats.  Lately though, I seem to leave all my friends at the park, or have to be in the crate for a while.  Next time I may want to play more, or not go into the crate.  I wonder when I’ll get food again.”

Reality: Remember the recall has to be fun in the dog’s point of view. Leaving doggie friends and crating up for the day isn’t as much fun as food or play.

How to avoid this situation: Don’t consistently call the dog to leave fun situations.  Instead, call the dog, and send him back out for more fun.  If the dog is getting more praise and permission to play almost every time he comes back, this will out weigh the final “come” when it is time to leave.  If this is a crate situation, pick a word that means “get into your crate please” like “crate,” “kennel up,” etc.  Talk to a qualified trainer about crate training if the dog is having trouble.

Now let’s discuss how to train the dog to love being called to “come.”  Think for a minute what your dog really loves.  Most dogs love food, food, and more food.  Some dogs really like to play or have a special toy.  While other dogs love to be pet and have their belly or rump rubbed.  Other dogs love praise like “good boy” when the owner says it in a high pitched voice, like when you talk to a small human baby.  Whatever makes the dog happy is what you want to use to reinforce the behavior.  Meaning, if the dog likes food, give the dog food when the dog comes when called.  Keep in mind if the dog likes food, praise and petting, use all three of these.  If the dog thinks he is better than sliced bread, the dog will race over to see what goodies are in store for him.

Practice and consistency are huge when teaching a reliable recall. Owners should practice ten recalls per day, every day, at different times of the day.  The more you practice and consistently reward the dog for the recall, the more the dog learns “good things are here for you,” and the behavior of returning to the owner will happen.  Think for a minute if there are already cues in the dog’s life that the dog comes running for.  Some may be sounds, like hearing the crinkle of a treat bag, or the can opener.  Other cues may be sayings like “Let’s go bye-bye in the car,” or “want a treat?”  Sometimes the cue is visual, like seeing the leash to go out for a walk.  However, what do all these have in common?  The dog associates these sounds, sayings, or sights with fun things.  The dog wants these things to happen.  Therefore, the dog runs over as fast as he can to eat the treat or go for a ride in the car.  Use these situations to your advantage!  If you can guarantee the dog runs to you when they see the leash, say “come.”  This way you are practicing a rewarding recall, and you can guarantee success.  This will teach the dog “come” means you get dinner, go for a car ride, go out for a walk, get to play ball, eats treats, get your belly rubbed, etc.  This will also help teach the dog food is not always involved.  Yes, food treats are a very powerful motivator.  They are used a lot during the learning process of teaching the recall.  However, after the dog has an understanding of what “come” means, if the recall is always practiced with food, the dog will always expect food.  If the dog knows there is no food around, sometimes the dog decides not to respond to the recall.  Also, if you own a specific breed of dog and know the breed traits, use this to your advantage.  For example: Retrievers usually love to play ball.  The owner throws the ball, the dog gets it and comes back to the owner, drops the ball, then waits for the owner to throw it again.

First, the basics:

• Prevent the dog from going potty in the house.  Manage the environment to a small section of the house so you can always supervise your dog.  Crate your dog when you can’t supervise him.  Put your dog on a food and water schedule.  Reward your dog outside as soon as he is done going potty.
• If you acquired your dog from a breeder, or a rescue group that has foster parents, hopefully these people have been promoting proper potty habits.  If you acquired your dog from a shelter with kennels, or a pet store, please remember the only place for the dog to eliminate was in his kennel/cage and he may take longer to potty train.
• Puppies under six months of age are still learning how to control their muscles.  The rule of thumb for puppies is that they can “hold it” for a time equal to their age.  Example: A two month old puppy can hold themselves for two hours.  A three month old puppy can hold themselves for three hours.  Now this “equation” is not set in stone and the time can vary either up or down depending on the dog.
• Puppies need to relieve themselves: after sleeping; before, during and after play; before and after eating or drinking; and before allowing the puppy to roam about your home.
• Accidents can and will happen.  The more supervision with the dog, the less accidents will happen.  Make sure to clean up accidents as soon as possible with an enzymatic cleaner.
• Punishment does NOT work with any kind of potty training!  It does not matter if you catch your dog in the act.  The only thing a dog learns when humans get angry and yell is that the act of elimination is not to be seen by humans.  Dogs think “I’m making a piddle, and my human is yelling.  I’m sorry, I didn’t know that would make you very angry.  I’ll go out of your site the next time I have to use the facilities and hide it.”  Now punishing a dog for elimination in the house “after-the-fact” is just plain confusing for the dog.  Remember, whatever the dog was doing last is what the dog will think the correction is for.  May be the dog was chewing on his toy and not the TV remote control, or may be the dog was coming to you at the front door.  Do not rub the dog’s face in the mess unless you want to encourage eating poop.
• Having a dog on both a food and water schedule helps tremendously.  If you know when it goes in, you will have a very good idea when it’s coming out.
• Rewarding the dog for proper potty habits will encourage proper potty habits.  If a dog thinks they are the next best thing to sliced bread for using the restroom outside, they will want to repeat that behavior.  Remember, in training a dog for any behavior, timing and consistency are critical.  This means, every time the dog eliminates outside we reward the dog on the spot.  If the reward is too late (like waiting until the dog has entered the house) the dog could very well associate another behavior for the reward, like entering the house, or sitting for the treat.  If the reward in not consistent enough, the dog will be confused and potty training will take much longer.
• Most dogs like a clean living area.  Crates, a small room, and baby gates are some tools used to help a dog learn to hold themselves.
• Most dogs like to relieve themselves on soft surfaces.  This is why most dogs prefer grass to concrete.  In the house: carpet, the sofa, the bed (dog’s or human’s,) and soft blankets in a crate are usually the spots dogs use to eliminate.  During potty training (especially with puppies) it is strongly recommended to NOT put any kind of soft material in the crate.

Some common potty training problems:

I let my dog outside and all he does is play.  I’ve even been outside for an hour hoping the dog will use the facilities and nothing happens. – 1. The dog may not want to mess up his “play area.” A specific part of the yard needs to be used, or a walk around the block.  2. The dog has learned it doesn’t need to eliminate to reward himself outside with play.  The dog needs five minutes maximum outside to relieve himself, and if nothing happens the dog goes back into the crate for three to five more minutes.  Repeat the process until the dog eliminates outside, and reward as soon as the dog’s finished.  (Remember the dog is the next best thing to sliced bread for eliminating outside.)

I let my dog outside for a reasonable amount of time and as soon as I let him inside he pees on the floor.  – 1. The dog may think he is supposed to go inside.  This happens when there is not enough supervision and the dog goes at will inside, and the human(s) just don’t notice the messes; and/or there is a lack of communication to the dog, meaning an error in timing of the reward and consistency of rewarding the dog.  More supervision is needed and the dog needs to be crated or leashed to a human when left inside the house.  The dog needs five minutes maximum outside to relieve himself, and if nothing happens the dog goes back into the crate for three to five more minutes.  Repeat the process until the dog eliminates outside, and reward as soon as the dog’s finished.  2. The dog may not want to mess up his “play area.”  A specific part of the yard needs to be used as a potty area, or a walk around the block.

My dog is great in the house except for one room. -  1. The dog doesn’t understand the entire house is his home too, (and there are probably other messes that have gone undetected.)  Crate training was probably moved along too fast.  The dog should be back in the crate and moved along at a much slower rate as the “house expands.”  Meaning, the dog has the crate.  Then the dog has the crate and the kitchen.  Then the dog has the crate, the kitchen, and the hallway, etc.  2. The dog smells the last time he eliminated in the same spot.  Clean the area with an enzymatic cleaner.  Do NOT use anything ammonia based, since ammonia is one of the main ingredients in urine.  3. The dog may be marking his territory.  Start the “Nothing In Life Is Free” program.  Supervise the dog at all times so accidents don’t occur.  Spay or neuter the dog.

My dog was completely potty trained and just now started to piddle a small amount everywhere around the house. – 1. The dog may be marking his territory.  Start a NILIF program.  Use a crate and reward outside potty habits more.  Train the dog to hit a bell to go outside.  Supervise the dog at all times so accidents don’t occur.  Spay or neuter the dog.  2. The dog may have a medical condition.  See your veterinarian.

My dog eliminates in the crate.  – 1. The dog is not properly crate trained or could be under stress.  2. The dog is in the crate too long.  Dogs usually don’t want to potty in a crate, this doesn’t mean they won’t potty in a crate if left in one too long. Put the dog on a food, water, and walk schedule.  Give the dog more opportunities outside to eliminate.  3. There is something soft in the crate that can absorb the pee.  Take out anything soft and fluffy from the bottom of the crate.  (Remember dogs like to eliminate on soft things.)

My puppy pees on the way to the door (or at the door) when I let him out of the crate or when I am going to let him outside.  – 1. The puppy doesn’t have complete muscle control yet.  Movement usually stimulates a puppy to eliminate.  (This is why they must potty before and during and after playtime.)  Carry the puppy outside to use the bathroom.  Give the puppy more frequent potty breaks.  Distract with food or a toy to get the puppy outside.

My dog goes outside and then fakes going to the bathroom.  – 1. BE HAPPY!!! (Especially if this is a puppy faking it.)  If your dog fakes using the facilities outside, your dog is telling you that he knows what is expected of him. He is trying to make his human happy, and he understands potty habits outside gets him rewards.  2. The dog is not faking it, but straining to eliminate.  This can be a medical emergency and should be seen by a veterinarian as soon as possible.

THINGS TO REMEMBER:

• Timing. Reward the dog as soon as the dog has finished eliminating outside.  Don’t wait.
• Consistency. Reward the dog every time he eliminates outside.
• Supervise. If the dog is consistently under supervision, (especially puppies) the dog will have a lot less room for error and will mess in the house less frequently.
• Asking to go out. Train the dog to hit a bell or bark to go outside.
• Crate Train. Most dogs are den clean, meaning that they don’t want to mess up their home.  This makes it easier for a dog to want to “hold it.”
• Schedule. A food and water schedule ensures a time frame for eliminating instead of guessing when the dog has to potty.  Also have several scheduled times per day for the dog to go outside and relieve himself.
• Patience. Potty Training is sometimes a slow process.  Understand some dogs can take up to six months to completely potty train.
• Reward. Anything the dog wants.  For most dogs this is food, play, praise, and petting.
• Log everything. This is especially helpful if you have an entire family who is “helping” with the potty training.  View an example of a potty training log HERE