Dog Toilet Training

All dogs need to learn dog toilet training.  Nothing will get a dog kicked out of his home faster than soiling in the house.  Animal shelters report that soiling in the house is one of the top reasons given for dogs being given up by their owners.  That suggests that there are a lot of dogs who have a hard time learning their toilet training.  However, dog toilet training is actually very easy to teach as long as you are patient and committed to teaching your dog.

How To Teach Your Dog Toilet Training

Whether you are teaching a puppy or an adult dog, the basics of dog toilet training are the same.  You need to train your dog to let you know when he needs to go outside to relieve himself.  You have a great advantage in training your dog because dogs have a natural instinct to relieve themselves away from the place where they sleep and eat.  Your dog prefers to potty outside when he has the opportunity.  That means that it’s up to you to provide him with the opportunity to go outside.

In order to toilet train your dog you’ll need to start by putting him on a good schedule.  The more you can control when he eats and sleeps, the easier it will be for you to control when he needs to relieve himself.

Feed your dog meals at the same time each day.  Try to take him outside at approximately the same times each day.  Schedule times for his naps and play sessions.  Take him outside at the same time before going to bed each night.  This kind of routine will help your dog know what’s coming.  It will be easier for him to regulate his toilet habits if you help him with such a schedule.

Watch For Signals

Aside from these scheduled trips outside you should watch your dog for signals that he needs to go out.  These signals will include the following:

• Sniffing at the floor
• Walking by the door
• Looking for private places
• Going back to a place where he’s had an accident
• Looking at you
• Barking

All of these signals can be an indication that your dog needs to go out.  In most cases, the older your dog is and the better he is at communicating, the stronger the signals will be.  If you have a young puppy he may not know how to let you know he needs to go out.  In that case, he may simply wander around the house until he finds a spot in the floor he likes.  If you have an older dog who’s not toilet trained he may be much clearer with his signals.  He may look at you and bark or go sit by the door, depending on his communication skills.  Watch for these different signals and try to figure out the ways that your puppy or dog is communicating that he needs to relieve himself.  There will always be some kind of body language that indicates your dog needs to potty.

Training Your Dog

Once you have picked up on your dog’s particular signals you can start taking him out before he has an accident.  When he relieves himself outside you should praise him and give him a treat.  Let him know that this is what you want him to do.

You puppy or dog may still have a few accidents inside but this is to be expected.  It’s part of the learning process so don’t be too harsh on your puppy or dog.  It won’t do any good to punish your dog after an accident is over.  Your dog won’t know why he’s being punished. Instead, you should make a point to pay closer attention to your dog’s signals the next time.

If you are persistent and take your dog out on a regular schedule and each time you see his signals, your dog should be toilet trained in just a few weeks.  Some breeds, especially toy dogs, can be harder to toilet train than other dogs.  But even these dogs can be toilet trained if you are dedicated to training them.

All dogs can be toilet trained.  It’s up to the owner to spend the time and effort on the dog and the training to make it successful.