Re-Housebreaking Your Adult Dog

Has your adult dog started using your house for a toilet again? Maybe your dog just has an occasional accident as some people say, every now and then. If so it's time to take a step backwards and return to the basics.

When I say return to the basics I'm talking about let's go back to training this adult dog just like we did when it was a pup and the best way to do that is by using the crate. By using the crate you are teaching your dog that he can hold it until it's time to go outside.

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When it comes to crate training people quite often ask me how big should the crate be and the answer is simple. The crate for your dog should be big enough that it can stand up and turn around and lay down. It should not be big enough that he can invite friends over for a party. We want the crate small enough so that he learns if he has an accident he's going to have to lay in it. With most dogs Mother Nature has a way of telling them to hold it.

I think a misconception is the fact that it's hard to train an older dog. When to some extent it's actually easier training an older dog than a puppy. So to make this work properly there are three places that your dog should be at all times for a four-week period.

The first place your dog needs to be is of course in the crate. By being in the crate as I said he learns that he can hold it.

The second-place your dog can be is on the grass. The reason we say he can be on the grass is the fact that that's where we want him to do his business and we want him to develop that as his preference. So actually the more time your dog can be on the grass the better off we are during this four-week training period.

The third-place your dog can be is with you. This is easy to accomplish simply attach a leash to your dog and then attach it to your belt wherever you go the dog goes with you so he's less likely to have an accident right in front of you.

Now we want to teach the dog how to let us know when it needs to go to the bathroom and the simplest way is by using a bell. There are several different bells you can use but I like the one you can buy at Staples office supply. This particular bell only cost $6 and it's like the one you see on a hotel desk. You know, the one that gets the hotel clerks attention.

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During the four weeks of training each time you want to take your dog to do its business you take him with his leash over to the bell lift his paw and hit the bell. Then immediately open the door. Your dog learns that the noise from the bell makes the door open. It usually takes anywhere from 4 to 8 weeks for your dog to catch on to using a bell.

As you can see if you will just take a short period of time to retrain your dog you can have a dog that's house trained again.

Source:http://ezinearticles.com/?Re-Housebreaking-Your-Adult-Dog&id=8368212