HELP! We just got our first chihuahua today, she is about 6 or 7 weeks old and I have no clue how to go about housebreaking a puppy. ANY advice would be greatly appreciated, I want to do it right! Thanks! She is soooo cute, but nameless at the moment, there are two boys {10 & 5} trying to come up with just the right name! Thanks for all your help and I'm so happy I found this site!!
Help housebreaking a puppy
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Take her out FIRST thing in the morning.
Then feed her breakfast.
Take her out 15-20 minutes later (Young pups cant hold themselves long).
Then take her out everytime she wakes up from a nap.. or plays roughtly.
If she's up and just wandering around, following you from place to place - take her out every hour if you can. (Just to start).
This will help her get into a routine.
Also make sure to say something like "Do you need to go potty??" and take her out. Make sure you PRAISE her with high voice and smile and pet her when she does her business.
If she has an accident, try to leave it there until she forgets about it and then go clean it up. Dont even LOOK at her when she poops or pees on the carpet.. because then she'll associate peeing/pooping on the carpet with attention, etc.
If you have to leave her, put her in her crate. More so than not, she won't mess her crate.. but take her out to go potty as SOOn as you take her out of the crate.
Guinness now TELLS me when he needs to go out. He'll look up at me, and then start kicking with his feet and I know he needs to go out. Start paying attention for little signals they give you (her's may be different). She may start walking in circles or sniffing at the ground a lot. (Thats a big sign).
Good luck!
Then feed her breakfast.
Take her out 15-20 minutes later (Young pups cant hold themselves long).
Then take her out everytime she wakes up from a nap.. or plays roughtly.
If she's up and just wandering around, following you from place to place - take her out every hour if you can. (Just to start).
This will help her get into a routine.
Also make sure to say something like "Do you need to go potty??" and take her out. Make sure you PRAISE her with high voice and smile and pet her when she does her business.
If she has an accident, try to leave it there until she forgets about it and then go clean it up. Dont even LOOK at her when she poops or pees on the carpet.. because then she'll associate peeing/pooping on the carpet with attention, etc.
If you have to leave her, put her in her crate. More so than not, she won't mess her crate.. but take her out to go potty as SOOn as you take her out of the crate.
Guinness now TELLS me when he needs to go out. He'll look up at me, and then start kicking with his feet and I know he needs to go out. Start paying attention for little signals they give you (her's may be different). She may start walking in circles or sniffing at the ground a lot. (Thats a big sign).
Good luck!
Hello :wave:
I can tell you - that you got your puppy to young for one......you should have really done your homework first before buying so you would know what to expect. I will suggest doing a search thru old threads there are many many posts on housebreaking plus read the stickies.
Chi's need to be watched very carefully around children also, they are very fragile....we totally promote proper care etc here. Many toy dogs are bought to be accessories instead of lifetime pets.
Being a repsonsible owner means knowing what your getting into (regardless of the breed), which alot of people dont do and then they dipose of the pet once the novelty has worn off. It takes special people to own a chi as they are very unique. Dont mean to sound preachy but we chi owners get very frustrated. Not saying you will be a bad owner but we get angry when we see shelters etc over crowded with pets that are disposed of. :roll:
That being said we will be more than happy to help you get thru this you may be facing alot of challenges since you got it so young and are lacking basic knowledge.
There are a few people here that got their babies young and things are ok.
Just a few questions:
Was this a pet shop purchase? How come you are not sure of the age?
Has it had any shots or wormings yet? Are you aware of hypoglycemia in this breed?
Please post a pic soon - we love pics!!
I can tell you - that you got your puppy to young for one......you should have really done your homework first before buying so you would know what to expect. I will suggest doing a search thru old threads there are many many posts on housebreaking plus read the stickies.
Chi's need to be watched very carefully around children also, they are very fragile....we totally promote proper care etc here. Many toy dogs are bought to be accessories instead of lifetime pets.
Being a repsonsible owner means knowing what your getting into (regardless of the breed), which alot of people dont do and then they dipose of the pet once the novelty has worn off. It takes special people to own a chi as they are very unique. Dont mean to sound preachy but we chi owners get very frustrated. Not saying you will be a bad owner but we get angry when we see shelters etc over crowded with pets that are disposed of. :roll:
That being said we will be more than happy to help you get thru this you may be facing alot of challenges since you got it so young and are lacking basic knowledge.
There are a few people here that got their babies young and things are ok.
Just a few questions:
Was this a pet shop purchase? How come you are not sure of the age?
Has it had any shots or wormings yet? Are you aware of hypoglycemia in this breed?
Please post a pic soon - we love pics!!
I would agree with what you have already been told. READ - READ - READ!!
There is a lot of valuable info on this site. Please be sure to read the info in the sticky on hypoglycimia. Normally, a puppy will not potty in it's crate, so I would suggest that anytime you can't watch your puppy carefully, keep him crated. That is not to say you should leave him in the crate all the time, just when you are gone or too busy to watch him properly.
Good luck - chis are very special and all of us on this forum are very passionate about our furbabies.
Welcome to the forum. :wave: We would love to see some pics of your puppy.
There is a lot of valuable info on this site. Please be sure to read the info in the sticky on hypoglycimia. Normally, a puppy will not potty in it's crate, so I would suggest that anytime you can't watch your puppy carefully, keep him crated. That is not to say you should leave him in the crate all the time, just when you are gone or too busy to watch him properly.
Good luck - chis are very special and all of us on this forum are very passionate about our furbabies.
Welcome to the forum. :wave: We would love to see some pics of your puppy.
Congrats on your new baby!! I got mine at 6wks too!
I just had to say I don't think by asking for housebreaking tips equals a person "lacking basic knowledge" (sorry I personally took offense at a post above, it came out sounding a little rude. I'm sure that was not the intention..but it read that way in my opinion)
This too is my first pup to house train.....so I too am looking for helpful suggestions (I previously owned large dogs that were always outside dogs)
so GOOD FOR YOU looking for the best advice that was helpful to others!!
The old school of rubbing their noses is not how I want to train...so Brainstorming with the best is the way to go!!!!
Here's what I've done so far:
I put pee pads everywhere in the house, (sometimes she uses them most time not.)
I put a pee pad in the corner of her kennel (she uses that one ALL the time)
During the day when I'm not home she stays in a large octagon pet pen that is attached to her kennel, so she has a large 'living area' and still be able to enter her 'bedroom' for napping......anyway, I put pee pads down covering the floor, then I put a flat sheet on top of those, then I have a pet pen on top of the sheet, that way where ever she pees...it goes through the sheet onto a pee pad vs the carpet!! I will also put pee pads on top of the sheet so she can *hopefully* get used to peeing on them!
We take her outside first thing in the morning....whenever she starts sniffing the floor (the only time she sniff's...is when she has to go!!) and after naps.....when I put her in the grass I say "Molly go PEE PEE" I say pee pee in a high happy voice...then when she is going I say it again in a congrats tone! I think she is learning what "pee pee" means, as yesterday I saw her sniffing, I said to her "Molly wanna go outside and go Pee Pee?" as soon as I said peepee...she immediatly squated oops....I knew that one was my fault!!
I think the most important thing is not to get mad or make a big deal of her having an accident, that just teaches them to NOT potty in front of you....so then when you do take them outside..they will not potty in fear you'll holler at them or etc again.....
and of course patients patients patients!!!!
oh and one last thing I did for potty training..I bought myself a carpet cleaner!!! lol.....so I'm not as frantic about the accidents!
I just had to say I don't think by asking for housebreaking tips equals a person "lacking basic knowledge" (sorry I personally took offense at a post above, it came out sounding a little rude. I'm sure that was not the intention..but it read that way in my opinion)
This too is my first pup to house train.....so I too am looking for helpful suggestions
(I previously owned large dogs that were always outside dogs)so GOOD FOR YOU looking for the best advice that was helpful to others!!
The old school of rubbing their noses is not how I want to train...so Brainstorming with the best is the way to go!!!!
Here's what I've done so far:
I put pee pads everywhere in the house, (sometimes she uses them most time not.)
I put a pee pad in the corner of her kennel (she uses that one ALL the time)
During the day when I'm not home she stays in a large octagon pet pen that is attached to her kennel, so she has a large 'living area' and still be able to enter her 'bedroom' for napping......anyway, I put pee pads down covering the floor, then I put a flat sheet on top of those, then I have a pet pen on top of the sheet, that way where ever she pees...it goes through the sheet onto a pee pad vs the carpet!! I will also put pee pads on top of the sheet so she can *hopefully* get used to peeing on them!
We take her outside first thing in the morning....whenever she starts sniffing the floor (the only time she sniff's...is when she has to go!!) and after naps.....when I put her in the grass I say "Molly go PEE PEE" I say pee pee in a high happy voice...then when she is going I say it again in a congrats tone! I think she is learning what "pee pee" means, as yesterday I saw her sniffing, I said to her "Molly wanna go outside and go Pee Pee?" as soon as I said peepee...she immediatly squated oops....I knew that one was my fault!!
I think the most important thing is not to get mad or make a big deal of her having an accident, that just teaches them to NOT potty in front of you....so then when you do take them outside..they will not potty in fear you'll holler at them or etc again.....
and of course patients patients patients!!!!
oh and one last thing I did for potty training..I bought myself a carpet cleaner!!! lol.....so I'm not as frantic about the accidents!
Please PM me if you have a problem in the future OK! And I am sorry but if you dont take the time to learn BASIC info BEFORE you make a lifetime commitment then I dont believe that it was a well thought out purchase. You dont buy a car then learn how to drive. She did more than ask for tips she said "I have no clue how to go about housebreaking a puppy." There have been plenty of people that have come and gone on this board that need to hear the facts-I do believe I said I did not mean to come off preachy but was concerned about the over crowded shelters where thousand of dogs (perfectly healthy) are put to sleep because people make impulsive purchases. :wave:imdeanna said:
Thanks
I REALLY appreciate all the help with housebreaking, but our new puppy seems to be doing great. The reason I had not known for sure about the age of our puppy is because I have had a sick grandfather and then a funeral and a trip to go through before we got the puppy so that is why I lost track of time. And it was a private adoption and even if I do fail miserably in the housebreaking does not mean our new "daughter" will end up in a shelter. And I shouldn't have said that I had no clue about housebreaking in my original post, I should have said that I had no clue about housebreaking chihuahua's. We have only owned one other dog and she is an outside dog. And the reason our puppy doesn't have a name yet is because I have a husband and a 5 yr old and a 10 yr old and of course me trying to name the puppy and we are not agreeing that its special enough. So the search continues, we just got her last nite so I want to see more of her personality come out, right now she is really playful and seems to love my boys. They have been told not to pick her up so they lay on the ground and she plays with them. Loves their hair and just jumping around like popcorn. Anyway sorry to ramble. Just wanted to thank those for their positive advice. We are "in love" with our chihuahua and I'm very glad I found this place!
I REALLY appreciate all the help with housebreaking, but our new puppy seems to be doing great. The reason I had not known for sure about the age of our puppy is because I have had a sick grandfather and then a funeral and a trip to go through before we got the puppy so that is why I lost track of time. And it was a private adoption and even if I do fail miserably in the housebreaking does not mean our new "daughter" will end up in a shelter. And I shouldn't have said that I had no clue about housebreaking in my original post, I should have said that I had no clue about housebreaking chihuahua's. We have only owned one other dog and she is an outside dog. And the reason our puppy doesn't have a name yet is because I have a husband and a 5 yr old and a 10 yr old and of course me trying to name the puppy and we are not agreeing that its special enough. So the search continues, we just got her last nite so I want to see more of her personality come out, right now she is really playful and seems to love my boys. They have been told not to pick her up so they lay on the ground and she plays with them. Loves their hair and just jumping around like popcorn. Anyway sorry to ramble. Just wanted to thank those for their positive advice. We are "in love" with our chihuahua and I'm very glad I found this place!
That is wonderful to hear, I hope you undertand where I was coming from, you will see if you stay long enough.
chi's can take longer than the average big dog and when you think they have it they can go backwards. It takes lots of diligence but I am sure everything will work out.
Just read alot as suggested cause they are their own lil almost human like creatures
I hope you undertand where I was coming from, you will see if you stay long enough. chi's can take longer than the average big dog and when you think they have it they can go backwards. It takes lots of diligence but I am sure everything will work out.
Just read alot as suggested cause they are their own lil almost human like creatures
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imdeanna, I noticed in your above post that you said you put potty pads everywhere in your house. This is not always a wise practice. Its fine to put potty pads in a corner of the xpen but if you have more then 1 or 2 potty pads in a certain area of your house, your puppy will find it hard and confusing to associate which areas are off limits for doing their business. Place them in 1 corner of the room or near an outside entrance. If the pupy attempts to pee or poop, scoop them up and carry them to the potty pad to finish. In due time, your puppy will starting running to the same potty pad and when and if you can move it closer to the door and eventually remove it all together.
That makes perfect sense! (about the potty pads everywhere)! I didn't think about that, I actually only had about 3 or 4 out, but mostly for easy access for us to get her to one if we saw her sniffing, as she was only 6 wks when we got her, to young to 'teach' so it was really more of a carpet savor
Now that she's 11 wks old, we only have one by her kennel, (& of course the floor is covered with them where her pen is during the day when were not home but they are hidden under a under a sheet)
But we are mainly working on outside as the potty, and so far it's going along great!
My husband built a ramp for Molly so she can get up and down off our deck on her own...it's so cute, she is sooo excited and thrilled to beable to "do it herself"!!
Now that she's 11 wks old, we only have one by her kennel, (& of course the floor is covered with them where her pen is during the day when were not home but they are hidden under a under a sheet)
But we are mainly working on outside as the potty, and so far it's going along great!
My husband built a ramp for Molly so she can get up and down off our deck on her own...it's so cute, she is sooo excited and thrilled to beable to "do it herself"!!
housebreaking
That is a good idea about the potty pads. I just have one in the room we keep her in when we are not at home. But she seems to wait until we are home and goes outside. Oh and she has a name now, her name is Popcorn. She jumps around like popping corn. She is such a good puppy. I have found only one oops in the house since we got her. I REALLY appreciate all the advice and help with our new puppy and getting her housebroken. It seems to be going really well so far but I know that she is really young so I'm not getting to excited yet!! :lol: I will post a picture of popcorn as soon as I figure out how to do that!
Thanks again and take care to all.
That is a good idea about the potty pads. I just have one in the room we keep her in when we are not at home. But she seems to wait until we are home and goes outside. Oh and she has a name now, her name is Popcorn. She jumps around like popping corn. She is such a good puppy. I have found only one oops in the house since we got her. I REALLY appreciate all the advice and help with our new puppy and getting her housebroken. It seems to be going really well so far but I know that she is really young so I'm not getting to excited yet!! :lol: I will post a picture of popcorn as soon as I figure out how to do that!
Thanks again and take care to all.
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Just wanted to say I think the name is great, and for what I've read it matches her personality. Those names are the best cus u always have a story that goes with them.
Well...I think u've had a lot of advice on housebreaking your pup so I won't say that much. Just that I always stayed with Sally Lolita when I'd put her on the pad and I'd start telling her to pee...I was always repeating the words "pee pee" so she could identify the action with the word. Now she knows what it meas...and everytime I say it she goes right to the pads byherself. I think all u need to do is to be patient and put a lot of time into it. Chis are very smart and they'll learn pretty soon how to please you. That's all they want to do.
Good Luck and enjoy ur baby
Mando
Well...I think u've had a lot of advice on housebreaking your pup so I won't say that much. Just that I always stayed with Sally Lolita when I'd put her on the pad and I'd start telling her to pee...I was always repeating the words "pee pee" so she could identify the action with the word. Now she knows what it meas...and everytime I say it she goes right to the pads byherself. I think all u need to do is to be patient and put a lot of time into it. Chis are very smart and they'll learn pretty soon how to please you. That's all they want to do.
Good Luck and enjoy ur baby
Mando
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