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Housebreaking: Get a Leg Up

Denise Flaim | Animal House

September 19, 2000

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WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE between housebreaking and housewrecking?

When the former is done incorrectly-not much.

That's not to say that we're forecasting gloom and doom for your prized Oriental rug. But housebreaking a puppy is a lot like driving the Indy 500: Take your eyes off the road for just one second, and be ready to deal with a major clean-up.

The secret to successfully housebreaking a dog is to never let it make a "mistake" in the house without being corrected. If a puppy does, you've taught it-albeit passively-that piddling in the foyer is OK. Conversely, if a dog never eliminates in the house, it won't know it's an option. (This works for anything, from fence-hopping to furniture-chewing: If you never give the dog the opportunity to do it, a habit can't develop.)

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So the solution is simple, if exhausting: Until it is reliably housebroken, don't ever allow a free-ranging puppy out of your sight. (Hey, I said this was a solution, not a shortcut.)

As the housebreaker, your approach to dealing with the housebreakee should be twofold: Take the puppy outdoors at appropriate intervals and praise it lavishly-even give it a food treat-while it's eliminating. And if the puppy starts to squat portentously in the house, be quick enough to catch it in the act, summon up a loud "No!" and then carry it outside, where you go back to Step 1.

The cardinal rule of housebreaking bears repeating: Never discipline or correct a puppy for an accident you've discovered after the fact. The puppy won't connect the two, concluding only that you're irrational and irritable.

Housebreaking may be a hassle, especially for the first few months of puppyhood, but with perseverance and consistency on your part, your pup will soon figure things out. Meanwhile, here are a few tips designed to keep things dry:

Learn to predict when your dog will have to go to the bathroom: Immediately after waking, eating and playing are all good bets. The number of hours a puppy can hold its bladder corresponds to how many months old it is. So that wriggly 2-month-old needs to be walked every two hours. At night, crate or confine the puppy, and get up and out the minute you hear her stirring or whimpering.

Our last puppy was a "stealth eliminator." To safeguard our carpeting, I bought some cheap clear plastic sheeting from Home Depot and positioned it over all the rugs. That cut down on accidents immediately: Diva didn't find the plasticky surface as enticing as my plush carpets, and the sound of her sashaying on the crackly plastic prompted me to check on her.

When cleaning up accidents, use white vinegar diluted in water: It's cheap, and effective in neutralizing odors that might prompt a repeat performance in that same spot.

Once your older puppy has gotten the hang of going outside, vary the surfaces. Suburban dogs who visit city cousins are notorious for refusing to do "their business" on asphalt or concrete.

Come up with a code word. For your own personal dignity, strive for something that when crooned in mixed company will not make you sound like you have just exited nappy time at day care. ("Go poopies!" would fall squarely in this category.) Our own phrase, dignified but to the point, is "Hurry up!"

Don't go the newspaper route, unless you always plan to make a "litterbox" available. And though "wee-wee" pads are a quick fix, they still allow your dog to register the sensation of eliminating while in the house.

With male dogs, who live to mark territory, be sure to distinguish between two kinds of walks: one for eliminating, and another for sightseeing. Don't blur the line between the two, or you will wind up with a dog who will intentionally ration his, er, sprinkling to get you to take a longer walk.

Provide a mechanism for the pup to tell you when it needs to go. We have two large "jingle bells" tied to the knob of our back door. Encourage the dog to bonk the bells with her nose every time you exit for a bathroom break. Soon she'll be jangling on her own.

Remember that dogs don't generalize well. Just because a dog is housebroken in your house doesn't mean she'll transfer that habit to Aunt Susie's. Male dogs with an urge to mark are notable culprits. Boys, after all, will be boys