Comments on: Need some advice on crate training/housebreaking a 6 wk old puppy.?

By: momndadof3

momndadof3 — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 15:49:29 +0000

when you buy a crate make sure it has the divider in it.. so that way when you cage the pup it onyl has enough room to turn in circles.. might sound mean but it works i swear.. with house training.. use puppy pee pads that have the grass sent to them.. u can purchase them at pets stores.. and if he does happen to pee or poop in the house.. or let me say when he does.. take it outside and have it smell it out there..

By: Yo LO! ©

Yo LO! © — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 15:19:34 +0000

Basically, if the puppy is unattended or at night, the puppy goes in the crate. Take it out every 2-3 hours to go potty, first thing in the morning, last thing before going to bed and after it eats and/or drinks water, then if you’re not going to play/spend time with it, it goes back in the crate. When you get up at night to let her out, bring her outside, then immediately put her back in the crate so she doesn’t think it’s playtime.

Just remember, the rule of thumb to use for how long she can hold it is # of Months, +1, so if she’s 1 1/2 months, then 2 1/2 hours. This includes night time.

Listening to the puppy cry is all part of crate training. If she cries immediately, or after 1 hour, IGNORE her. Don’t talk to her, don’t let her out. If she cries and you let her out, then she’ll train you to open the door every time she cries. It takes a little time for them to get used to the crate, but once they accept it, they’ll see it as their Den and go in by themselves if the door is left open.

If she’s out playing and has an accident, then yell or clap to distract her, tell her no and immediately take her outside. If you don’t catch her, don’t scold her, she’ll have no idea why you’re yelling at her. In either case, make sure you clean the spot well.

Never use the crate as punishment – You want to associate the crate with being a good place. Praise her when she goes in.

Most importantly, have patience and keep her on a consistent routine.

By: Marti C

Marti C — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 12:53:58 +0000

You should probably start from square one, crate training. A crate just big enough for him to stand up and turn around in, then follow the directions below.
At least two hours before bedtime pick up all food and water. Just before bedtime take puppy out, wait for him to eliminate, then praise quietly and put to bed in his crate.
First thing in the AM when puppy wakes up, outside, wait for it, praise! Then start your day. Keep puppy in the same room with you at all times, when you see “potty” behavior, sniffing, circling, sqwatting, scoop puppy up, outside, wait for it, praise! Say something like “get busy” or “go potty”, when praising, say “good get busy/ go potty”!
If you can’t watch puppy, in the crate with a few chewie toys, the minute puppy comes out of the crate, outside, wait for it, PRAISE!
If puppy has an accident, don’t say anything, just quietly clean it up and watch him closer next time. The key to this is consistancy, EVERY TIME puppy goes outside, lots of praise. Set him up to succeed and he will.
Eventually you will be able to take him, say the “magic” words and he will go for you. If eliminating outside ALWAYS gets praised he will start to let you know when he wants to go out. You will have to learn his signs, some dogs will sit and look at the door, some will whine and scratch, some will bark and run from you to the door.
Hope this helps.

By: Wellington, Ohio

Wellington, Ohio — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 11:59:16 +0000

We crate trained our puppy about the same age.. Here is what we did, we started out just letting her go in and play and then when she would go in and stay we put toys in there with her to keep her busy and would cover her with a blanket in a quiet room. we would leave her for like a half hour and then times got longer. she is now 1 1/2 and she loves her crate that is her safety spot.

By: Pamela D(midget12_

Pamela D(midget12_ — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 11:30:45 +0000

first of all a 6 week old puppy should still be with momma, never get a puppy younger then 8 weeks, and as for crate training for potty purposes i don’t believe in that, is this where he/she will sleep? then don’t make him/her do potty in sleeping area. take puppy out every 2-3 hours until he/she is old enough to tell you when they need to go. if you need to leave puppy alone get some puppy pee pads and put him/her either in kitchen or bath but cover floor with pads.

By: steph

steph — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 10:43:23 +0000

You will need take your puppy outside every 30 Min’s in between eating and drinking and 5-10 Min’s right after eating. And be sure to praise her when she does go….and use the word “OUTSIDE” to get her used to that word and associating with what she has to do. If she has an accident do not yell at her or rub her nose in it…Just pick her up and take her outside, if she poops in the house pick the poop up and take it out side with her to show her that she is to go outside….and make sure you take her out in the middle of the night at least twice. Always praise your puppy for doing good.

I had to 2 crates: One travel one for going in the car and one big one for the house. I left toys in there, I even was able to find bowls to put on the side of his crate to have water and food. When anyone in the family left we had put him in there, he had one of my old T-shirts (unwashed) and a toy that came with him, that his brothers and sisters played with, and I left the radio one for him, and he did great….he never cried or whined, but you may have to put her in there and leave the room for a few minuets , then come back and let her out…The number one thing on training is repetition and staying on top of things. It will take time… Good Luck and enjoy your new puppy.

By: rblankenship_rblankenship

rblankenship_rblankenship — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 09:42:15 +0000

the crate will work well to keep her out of trouble, but it all at that age. she/he will still do it’s business in the cage at 6 weeks. give the dog a few weeks & then try.

By: Sandi C

Sandi C — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 09:21:47 +0000

i put puppy pads down, they worked for our dog.

By: Bunny Jay

Bunny Jay — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 06:57:57 +0000

I used to own a great dane. He was house trained quickly. We followed some simple rules, and those constantly. 1. We always went out the same door, the back door to the garden. 2. AT the beginning I went out with him every half hour, even if he didn’t have to go, he got used to it, then we increased it every hour, and so on. 3. During the time we went to sleep or the time we could not take him out, we had newspapers by the door to the garden. (we had tiles, so that was ok ) and when he “went” he always went only on the paper, since he was waiting on the door to go out. 4. Every time he “went” outside to do his business we petted him and told him he was a good boy.. – of course all of those things changed once he got older, and worked for this dog… I had some other dogs, this wouldn’t have worked at all… just telling you what worked for us.

By: A Stacey

A Stacey — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 06:36:53 +0000

We have 2 dogs, one is 4 months, one is 5 years and we crate trained them both. The biggest thing we learned was to be consistent. 6 weeks is really young, our puppy was 8 weeks and that was very young too. She is 4 months now and is just getting the hang of things. It takes time, consistency and lots of patience. Not sure how you’re doing the housebreaking, for us with both dogs, we put them on the leash and went to the same spot in the yard and said “Go pee/poo” and just waited until they did their business, then gave lots of praise and a treat right away. No business, no treat, they both got it pretty quick. With a puppy so young we would take ours out just about every 1.5 hours, I found it helped to set a timer so I didn’t forget. Also, at 6 wks the puppy can’t stay on its own in a crate for too long until it learns to listen to its body and to “hold it”. Make sure the crate is big enough that the pup can stand up and turn around in but not big enough that there is a place to eliminate in. But again the biggest thing I found was consistency, when my dog(s) made a mess in the house I had to remember that it was my fault for not being on top of things, not theirs. You should start to see signs of needing to pee/poo, the dog may start sniffing, circling, running away to a different room etc. Good luck, it can be very stressfull and it’s tough work but it will be worth it in time. We’ve been “mess-free” for well over a month now